DIY kitchen remodel — antique mirror over kitchen sink.
Originally I thought we would end up with something similar to one of these options over the kitchen sink.
I spent a lot of time trying to figure out a solution that I LOVED, that was also practical and kitchen-y… because sometimes I forget the natural order of things and I try to be reasonable.
Once I let go of what I “should” do over the kitchen sink, and embraced what I would LOVE, the solution became obvious: MORE GIANT FANCY THINGS FOR EVERYONE.
I have been looking for a year… And about half that year has been spent reconsidering shelves or cabinets because I couldn’t find anything that was “right.”
Right size.
Right shape.
Right style.
Right color.
Right price.
At first it was FUN– being “required” to scour the salvage places and spend hours online looking for GFT’s… but the fun wore off about month four.
Looking for something specific/that MUST fit a defined area/that is also a “reasonable” price as defined by my completely UNreasonable experiences scoring antique card catalogs for next-to-nothing/and is hopefully less than a day-of-driving/or we’ll be spending money on having it shipped… good luck.
After a full year of research, here is my report:
Anything AMAZING is $10,000, and definitely too big… and will leave you sad and dissatisfied with your entire life because you visited the holy land and then were forcibly ejected like the peasant that you are.
Anything affordable is a compromise of heroic (and wrong) proportions.
Anything sort-of-acceptable is $3,000… which is FAR too much money for something that makes your soul die a slow and disappointing death of compromise: see below.
The one mirror I did buy prior to this one, wasn’t really the right size… I knew this beforehand, but it was cheap, (and I am a hoarder) and it did me the favor/further-obstacle-to-progress by cementing yet another factor: I was completely inflexible about color… I wanted dark wood to complement the repurposed antique island.
The piano is dark rosewood, and ornate in a style that’s specific to about 1870-1880… it’s also the immediate focal point when you enter the kitchen, and I wanted to complement that.
I think because of The Kingdom Mirror, (and, errrr, the multiple other mirrors,) and because my general life motto is: BRING ME SHINY; you could assume that I think gilding wins all… but actually, my absolute favorite possession/craigslist find is the massive wardrobe we salvaged.
My truest love is Renaissance Revival/ideally around 1870/dark wood/lots of large carving/anything with an Ansonia head/Eastlake if ornate and not just etched with a spoon/never veering into Gothic or Rococo.
I had no idea that finding a mirror that fit these criteria would be SO HARD… (although I certainly knew that once I have a CONCEPT, there will be NO OTHER CONCEPT.)
And once I added the dark wood criteria, it almost didn’t matter if I’d had an unlimited budget (which I didn’t) because size-restriction already made it a nearly-impossible task. … So I started thinking about how we could retrofit something.
Enter the organ phase.
Even without showing Paul, I knew that the arguments against getting an organ are many… and sort of indisputable.
Unless you are an organist.
Or Beethoven.
But, in case you didn’t know? You can buy a SUPER FANCY organ for about $200… which is practically FREE!
Plus, let’s be honest – why would you NOT want to own an organ? Go search your Craigslist! Your significant other can thank me later!
My idea was that we would take the decorative top half, which is usually detachable… and hang that fancy part over the sink… and then turn the base into an addition to my pile of chaos in the garage: the place I store things “I am going to do something with,” that I will never actually do anything with.
OR I could get a blue tuxedo. And also lederhosen. And a bandstand with trumpets. And on Saturday nights, host a Lawrence Welk reunion show where I reprise all of the roles.
I believe this is what is called a win-win situation.
Eventually, after being forced to look at 47,000 organs, Paul got to a point where he said – fine. If we need an organ to move forward, try to stay within a three-state radius.
Then immediately, Self was completely dissatisfied with the organ idea. (Although to be clear – ONLY dissatisfied with organ-over-sink. NOT dissatisfied with the ACTUAL owning of an organ, which will absolutely be happening at some point.)
So I altered “let’s-repurpose-an-organ” to “let’s-repurpose-ANYTHING-THAT’S-FANCY.”
But even I could see that POSSIBLY I would be unhappy with hanging half a sawed-off headboard over my sink.
I was to the point where I was ready to just CHOOSE SOMETHING. Anything. Or go back to cabinets… or just start without a plan (which I said I would NOT DO.)
Forcing Self to WAIT FOR THE THING was maddening. And it made me question my imaginary plan that no one else was quite on board with. And it gave me ample opportunity to mentally explore the fine line between something-you-will-love… and poor-substitute-for-glory-in-the-form-of-half-an-antique-organ.
But as soon as I saw this mirror, I was SPEECHLESS at how much I coveted it; how MAGICALLY it was exactly what I wanted; AND that I would be permitted to go and get it because we NEEDED it.
The frame complements the piano perfectly, it was less than an hour drive, not grotesquely-over-budget, perfect color, size, and the CARVING GIVES ME SEIZURES every time I look at it. (Also, look at the close-up above and you’ll see that the mirror lady is wearing a necklace of invincibility.)
Somehow, miraculously, this is exactly what I wanted: a space that is unexpected and un-kitchen-y, and old and interesting… a space that is FULL of beautiful things that I love.
My expression here sums up how I feel: I cannot even believe how MUCH I love this kitchen.
Now for some details:
1. The four corners of blue tape are marking out an (unpictured) soul-killing option, in Boston… which was seeming more and more like what we were going to end up with.
2. The blue tape is also marking a wall-mount faucet that I AM IN LOVE WITH.
The choice is entirely aesthetic, as I haven’t yet begun my doctorate in spout-reach and faucet aerodynamics… also, YES PAUL TOLD ME you are not supposed to have wall-mount on an external wall, but I guess he thinks I don’t have access to the internet to figure out how to furr out the wall and add insulation.
November 23, 2015 @ 10:53 am
You know we are waiting for The Christmas Decor postings! No pressure at all and totally understandable if kitchen comes first:)
November 23, 2015 @ 10:57 am
I’m not sure I’d want to look at myself in a mirror every time I was at the sink. I say this because I have a giant mirror on the wall opposite my open shower (shower floor is 5×7 feet) and there’s no other place to look when you’re showering. In hindsight perhaps not the best design.
November 24, 2015 @ 10:23 am
While I agree I wouldn’t want to look at myself every time I stood at the sink, (let alone the SHOWER), if I looked like Victoria, I wouldn’t mind a bit!
November 23, 2015 @ 11:12 am
How much did you end up paying for the mirror? Or … maybe I missed it 🙂
November 23, 2015 @ 11:19 am
$500… (what he was asking.) I tried to get him to take $400, but he was really firm.
November 24, 2015 @ 10:27 am
So worth the price, imho, because it saved you from living in boredom for eternity, or until you stumbled across an even more impressive house. Or spending untold amounts on all the wrong GFTs. This mirror is perfection personified!
November 23, 2015 @ 11:15 am
absolutely L O V E that piece you have fully converted me to GFT
November 23, 2015 @ 11:16 am
I posit that you would have bought this particular GFT even without a picture, based solely upon the “Antique Victorian Lady Head” title, which is right up there with “Kingdom Mirror” in The Annals of Epic Descriptions.
Once something thus titled entered your ken, there was no denying its destiny.
And it is perfection!
November 23, 2015 @ 11:17 am
I love this soooo much. Ooh, I’m so happy for you. You are getting the GFT Kitchen of Your Dreams! Can’t wait to see it in completion!
November 23, 2015 @ 11:18 am
Perfection.
November 23, 2015 @ 11:25 am
Now your husband can look at himself all the while he does dishes!!!
November 23, 2015 @ 11:39 am
Victoria, Have you ever been to Empire Antiques in Hightstown, NJ? Their website would have you believe that it’s some kind of fancy-schmancy place, but in reality it’s a ginormous two story warehouse jam packed with with GFT’s. If you go, wear thermals, bring a flashlight and maybe a head-lamp, and be prepared to spend hours and hours getting lost. (Literally, I still have to ask the workers how I get out.) It’s sooo worth the trip.
November 23, 2015 @ 11:39 am
Meanwhile, I’m having to be all practicle and stuff…
November 23, 2015 @ 11:41 am
Whenever Paul argues with a big fancy purchase, tell him at least you don’t have to pay for shipping or taxes to import it to/from the uk! Amazon tells me I’d have to pay $134 import tax on that fancy faucet. 😛
November 23, 2015 @ 11:43 am
First of all: Impressive hunting. I quite get what you are after. And I certainly applaud it. Your kitchen is really going to be worth all of the headaches. But I do have to ask, and this is only because i care; aren’t you going to hit your head on that shelf whenever you reach into the sink? Or- are you going to pull the sink cabinet out a few inches to preclude that from every happening? And if you think this is my lame attempt to get you to NOT use that mirror (and send it my way), um… well… *cough-cough*
November 23, 2015 @ 11:45 am
Wow! I am exhausted and amazed at the beautiful kitchen you are building.
November 23, 2015 @ 11:48 am
You found it! With the lady’s head and beads, how could you not purchase it! Yay!
November 23, 2015 @ 11:52 am
The mirror is Fabulous. My 2 cents, tile the back splash all the way up to the ceiling on that wall and raise the right window height to match the window on the left. If you can afford to replace the window glass on both or maybe just the large window with a Victorian style lead glass it just might be the over the top fabulousness that is required.
November 23, 2015 @ 11:54 am
All I want for Christmas is Paul!!! His patience is remarkable.
Your kitchen will be amazing. How close to finish is it? I want a BIG reveal.
November 23, 2015 @ 12:08 pm
<3
November 23, 2015 @ 12:11 pm
Oh my gosh I love you SO MUCH. You are my spirit animal. And my husband wants to thank you for letting me live vicariously through you.
November 23, 2015 @ 12:14 pm
Completely gorgeous!!! I am really getting excited, I can’t wait to see it when it’s all done!!
November 23, 2015 @ 12:58 pm
Two things, 1) are you really ok with staring at your reflection while you’re at the sink – or will you be repurposing it and 2) what will you do with the window and door so they aren’t at different heights? Hide the tops with a window treatment or have Paul move your window up?
I can’t wait to see this room finished but probably not more than you.
November 24, 2015 @ 10:36 am
Are you kidding? Lol! I can envision Victoria practicing her pirouettes and curtsies whilst waiting for the tea to steep!