Here! Have some more kitchen inspiration: repurposed/antique kitchen cabinets.
I spent the weekend failing to get a handle on life… instead, I took a trip to Fabric Row; beginning the rapid decent into rhinestones, parking tickets, and indecision-induced-paralysis: where I got a glimpse of my project as madness, but plowed forward anyway because the other option was sanity… which goes directly against my principles.
Then I had to scour the internet for the imaginary pattern that lives in my head… then I got distracted by this faucet which is small but fascinatingly practical but maybe too industrial? Then I started looking at faucets. Then I found this kitchen.
It is my second favorite kitchen ever… Pilar Guzman’s is still my first, but only by a small margin.
Clearly, here is a person who understands the true meaning of life AND has adorable-mini-tartlets always displayed and available! Look at them!
WHAT have I been doing with myself that I have not advanced to this level of existence?
I am not even sure any cooking occurs here… not that it matters! If this is your kitchen, you probably just exist on beautiful thoughts and refined dishware.
Why did I not think of that? So much simpler!
Go ahead and click through so that you may accurately judge how horribly lacking your own home/life/existence on earth is.
Be sure you take the whole house tour, otherwise you will not be appropriately saddened by your personal deficiency in the curated whimsy and antlers department.
The bathroom has an antique pommel horse!!! I spent all day Sunday trying to find one for myself… How else can I go on living if I cannot display my guest towels in such a stunning exhibit of fanciful-design-one-upmanship?
On the bright side, I figured out why these kitchens make me so itchy: it’s because they show me I am doing human wrong!
It’s very scientific… These people look different under a microscope than I do!
I am doing life in the animal-muck-living-floundering-organism sense.
Vs.
Life of controlled-refinement-and-not-flailing-around.
Whoops!
These are people who spend their Sunday reading Donne, and eating scones.
(but not ALL of the scones!)
And just one cup of coffee, instead of drinking the whole pot and then being jittery and irritable but still mysteriously unenergetic.
And who never wonder if they should just go watch an entire season of The Sopranos, because the father of metaphysical poetry is simply too stimulating.
These are people who never procrastinate small tasks like moving the laundry from the washer to the dryer. And then again from the dryer to a folded state.
These are people who do not have a 5 gallon spackle bucket for compost in the kitchen… Which they are occasionally, frequently, always slow about taking outside to the actual compost pile.
Ok. That’s it. Abrupt end.
I have to go now because I have to continue my search for an antique pommel horse and go back to the fabric district a lot of work to catch up on because I squandered yesterday splicing myself into Dirty Dancing.
Please enjoy a few more photos of kitchens that illustrate my gauche Americanness: that I would look at this and even CONSIDER cabinets that came from the cabinet store.
I realize this may be disappointingly un-holiday-ish for some of you, so HERE! Enjoy some Christmas-themed West Coast Swing.
December 10, 2015 @ 9:20 pm
Victoria, remain exactly who you are!!! I love this blog, and am so inspired by both your words and photos!!! I just know you are going to be very, very happy once your quest for the perfect kitchen is reality…. but then what will you do?
December 11, 2015 @ 7:35 am
Dear Victoria, I can confirm you that not any single real French house never had those sort of GFT kitchen, you shouldn’t trust “Cote Sud” or “Cote Ouest” magazines. Your kitchen will be even more amazing than any of these beauties – it will be a real kitchen made with real sweat for real cookers. Merry Xmas from Provence, Daphne
December 11, 2015 @ 11:42 pm
Your posts are always so fantastic! I have to wonder about hat house though: was I mistaken, or did every single floor have a pommel horse in one of the rooms? Do they entertain a lot of gymnasts?
December 12, 2015 @ 4:55 am
I have the Kohler faucet. Two of them, actually. My husband bought them while I wasn’t looking. I would never have picked them because they’re expensive and not fabulous/fancy/made of compressed sparkle pony. But I was wrong – they’re amazingly useful. And as soon as guests figure out how to use them, they usually ask where they can get such a wonder. If it’s any comfort, they can be arranged into fun shapes like a swan or – my kids’ favorite – collapsed like a little snake waiting to shoot the next sleep deprived user right in the face. Good times.
December 14, 2015 @ 1:09 pm
you know what kitchen i want? the one from Practical Magic. if someone could drop that into my house, i’d appreciate it. they might also drop the Practical Magic house around my house while we’re at it.
December 24, 2015 @ 10:49 am
to the turn of sound of music’s – My Favorite Things (almost!)
Raindrops on dahlias and whiskers on the kitten (Elvis)
Pianos turned to islands, you’ve got to be kiddin’!
Shiny disco balls hung up with strings
VEB likes giant fancy things!
Pecan tartlets and antique garden urns
Searching Craig’s list and auctions for whatever she yearns!
An old mini van to home it brings
All of VEB’s giant fancy things!
Better than vogue for she has more issues
Oh! Another video upload, better break out the tissues!
Oh! An estate sale, hope eternal springs!
For there’s still time for Paul to love giant fancy things!
If it’s rusty, and covered in dust rings
Those are the times that her heart sings
But if there’s a time when she’s feeling so sad
She simply looks at her giant fancy things
And she doesn’t feel so bad!
Merry Christmas and thanks for the all the “cheer” throughout the year. Keep blogging you make us laugh!
December 24, 2015 @ 6:25 pm
There are no words for how much I love this… (The last stanza is particularly genius.) I sang it aloud to Paul, with GREAT relish, (we just watched SOM, so the tune was fresh in my head). He said– well. Your regular comments are going to be very disappointing after that.
You absolutely made my Christmas Eve.
xoxo
VEB, Elvis, Paul
January 9, 2016 @ 11:44 pm
I looked at the Alex McArthur site. There was a PUPPY with ennui. Like it had eaten so many expensive shoes it just couldn’t be bothered. At the point your puppy is over it, maybe it’s possible to have too much fancy.
May 5, 2017 @ 3:15 pm
When I look at your posts proclaiming your love of large wood cabinets etc I think of the shop & kitchen in the movie Chocolat! I love that shop.