Diary of an Empty Spot in my Kitchen

Once upon a time, my kitchen did not have a dishwasher.

Sometime in it's former life, the previous homeowner added one to the end of the kitchen.  I was very thankful for this, even though it was a shady situation.  First of all, it was a vintage, rust colored dishwasher.  Second of all, the surround was made of thin particle board.  And finally, they'd slapped a butcher block on top of it for counter space, and there was no cabinetry above it.

It looked like the afterthought it was.  It hung off the end of the kitchen, practically in the living room, with nothing above it to tie it in.

This picture shows us in a dishwasher transition phase. I wish I'd taken a picture of the original dishwasher.  Can't find one anywhere......

My parents bought a new dishwasher for my first Christmas in the house, and Dad made that sweet little beadboard surround (I love beadboard). Obviously, we hadn't quite tackled the counters just yet.  Can you see how skanky that butcher block was?  I never put anything on it.  Then there was the vast expanse of wallpaper above it, which you can see a peek of. 

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When the kitchen remodeling began, I had a plan for the empty space above the dishwasher.  I really wanted to make the dishwasher addition feel original to the house and tie it in to the kitchen.

I began collecting vintage ivory colored pottery in all shapes and sizes.......

Down came the wallpaper.......

Priming was next......

Followed by painting.......

Then I had my very talented daddy build some shelves, and I painted them.........

Next I purchased and spray painted some brackets from Hobby Lobby.......

And finally today, on my first day of spring break, dad came over to install them......

Then I got to arrange all my goodies up there.......

I was so happy I cried when dad got them installed.  I was giddy.  I was thankful. 

It's exactly what I envisioned for the space, and even though I need a few more pieces of pottery (and to actually plant that shamrock on the counter), this really is a dream come true.

So today, the Diary of a Kitchen comes to a close.  And I am thrilled with the outcome.