Appliance Shopping

I'm about to place an order for our appliances, which makes this whole kitchen renovation plan seem very real! It's exciting, but also also pretty surreal. Chris and I have shopped around a lot, looking at difference appliance options and sources for the best items at the best deal. On Saturday we made our decision, and I'm just a phone call away from making it official.

While we kept the appliances on the modest side (Chris shot down the 36" Wolf range I was eyeing), we did still try to think of what will suit us best long-term, watching item reviews and planning for the long haul. And believe me, they're all pretty serious upgrades from what the house came with!

This dual fuel range will replace our current white electric range, which has the old-style coils on top (only two of which work - one is literally in pieces). We are going for a gas top for two reasons - one, because I love cooking on gas and two, because it feels *more authentic* to an old style house (as much as a modern, practical stove can). The oven, though, is convection, so we can all look forward to lots of very evenly cooked baked goods in our future. In addition, we love the slide-in style, which lacks the back panel many ranges have.

We picked this dishwasher because we loved the clean front. The buttons are all along the top of the door, so they're hidden when the door is closed. The handle is recessed, so from the side nothing protrudes. I especially loved that because it will be directly next to our farmhouse sink, and I didn't want a big shiny handle stealing the sink's thunder. Its reviews say it runs quietly and gets things very clean (a big change from our current model!)

The microwave is pretty much just a basic over-the-range microwave, but we're still excited about it. It will free up countertop space and double as a hood, so very practical and a nice clean design. 

No, we do not plan on doing laundry in our newly renovated kitchen! The washer and dryer are kind of being thrown into the project (much like the upstairs bathroom renovation - we seem to live by the go big or go home philosophy when it comes to home renovations). 

For the past two years we've been living with a washer/dryer set that CJ and I bought for $125 on craigslist right after moving into our house, from the sweetest little old lady named Marjorie. The set has treated us well considering the tiny pricetag, but in the past few months we decided it's time to retire them, as the washer has been acting up. And by acting up I mean stopping mid-wash and beeping incessantly until I drain the whole machine and remove the bobby pin/nickel/lint that's caught in the drain - a process which takes about 30 minutes to complete, and requires me to start the whole wash cycle over again! Talk about making laundry very unpleasant. When we replace the machines, we plan to do a whole little "laundry room renovation," so watch for more on that!

It's exciting to start acting on the plans we've been making for the past few months/years! This is our first major purchase related to the renovation, so it's very fun. Just a quick update on the rest of the process - we're still waiting on two quotes from the contractors we interviewed earlier this month, and are still planning on a September start date for the project. We'll keep you updated on the process as momentum (hopefully) begins to pick up!