In the kitchen

Sarah at Thrifty Decor Chick is hosting a new party called "Show Us Your House"--a great idea since we all love to peek into one another's homes, don't we? Today's feature is kitchens. Here's a look at mine.

Our kitchen is a large, open room which includes a casual eating area and a seating/desk area. It's hard to get a photo of the whole thing, but here some views from around the room.

First, the working area:

More of the workspace, this time with the island pendants turned on:

The eating area:

Our table is from Pottery Barn. It's enormous--11 1/2 feet long! I love being able to have a table big enough to seat lots of people. Beside the table is my mother's dough cabinet, which is one of my most prized possessions. As you can see, I mix all different wood finishes without much hesitation. Works for me!

The desk area:

A shot from the working end looking out toward the screened-in porch:

The stairs to the left of this picture lead down to the "terrace level," also known as the walk-out basement. I like the fact that the stairs are open; it makes the lower level feel more like a part of the house. On that wall is a family portrait wall clock I created.

One of my favorite features of this part of the kitchen is the lighted shadowboxes at the top of the cupboards. I use them to display pitchers. You can read more about my collection pitchers here.

Another of my favorite things is the window treatment. I love the plantation shutters on the windows of the other end of this room, but I wanted to be able to see out of the window above the sink, plus I wanted some fabric for color. I came up with a very easy way to make a no-sew faux Roman shade. You can see that tutorial here if you like.

My kitchen connects to the back entry, the dining room, the living room, the downstairs, the deck, and the screened porch. No wonder I have to mop the floors so often!

Kitchen details:

• Cupboards are maple beadboard; granite is Santa Rita
• Drawer pulls and cabinet knobs are from Restoration Hardware
• Appliances are KitchenAid
• Wall color is Ruskin Room Green by Sherwin-Williams

Thanks so much for visiting me! I'd love for you to join me this week as I start a new linky party called Grace at Home. Click here to read more about it.