Sharing a before look at my fixer upper breakfast nook along with my modern farmhouse design plans for the space.
MACTAVISH HOUSE | Published March 2, 2020
With the living room project finally completed, it was time to decide on the next room that I would begin updating at the MacTavish House. The logical choice was to continue the house beautification out the doorway and into the next room, which is my newly designated breakfast nook.
This space has seen a few drastically different lives. In the original house, it was a porch. My grandparent's had it enclosed shortly after they purchased the house in the 70s. They used it as a little sitting room with a sofa and TV. Years later when my grandfather became sick and could no longer go upstairs, the sitting room turned into a bedroom that my grandma used until she moved in the nursing home about five years ago.
Now the plan is to take down the wall separating the room from the kitchen and turn it into a dining nook. What really excites me about this idea is how much larger the kitchen will feel and how much more light that room will get.
There are a few challenges with this space, though:
THE CEILING
The ceiling is dramatically lower in this room than the kitchen. Partly because this was the original porch height and even more so because I recently realized the kitchen ceiling is actually higher than the living room and dining room as well. It's a two story house, but the second story is only over the living and dining rooms, so evidently they built the ceiling higher on the one story side. Which is beyond amazing for the kitchen, but not so great when you're trying to join the two areas.
And unlike in the other rooms in the house that have old plaster ceilings, underneath the ceiling tiles in this space it is open to the insulated attic. So we need a new ceiling. Obviously.
I'd like to experiment with a DIY idea that is pretty unconventional and would make the lower ceiling seem more intentional and special over just moving from one space to another and realizing you lost a good two feet of headroom. But I'll have to let you know if my plan works.
THE FLOORS
Another challenge is like there is also nothing but subfloor in this room under the carpet. Original hardwood floors exist in every other room, including the "entry" and bathroom, but not this room. This floor is also about 1 1/2 inches lower than the kitchen and living room. And that would all be fine, except when I take down the wall, the floors will have to look seamless from one room to the next.
What would be ideal is if I can take the hardwood floors up from the entry and bathroom and reuse them in this room so that the floors are identical. But I don't know if that is possible to get the old floors up without destroying them and I don't want to do that if I don't have to.
In the end, this breakfast nook space will be open to the kitchen, yet still be its own separate space, if that makes sense.
Just the center portion of the wall will be coming down - the area under the window and the section of wall connecting the window to the doorway. There is no way to completely open everything up into one space given our ceiling and structural issues, so I think this is the best way to make it all a little more open concept while still working with what I have.
I've started demo in the room as you might have seen in my Instagram Stories. (If you haven't I have them saved in my highlights.) But today I wanted to share my design plans for the space.
Even back when my grandma lived here before going to the nursing home, I would sit and redesign the house in my mind.
After installing the new all glass door last spring, the light really fills this space. Unfortunately, the room isn't big enough to have the large cushioned wicker chairs like I envisioned (I don't often use a mental measuring tape when I design in my mind.), but I still see a similar style.
I'm trying to scout out some affordable second hand chairs but it is proving to be difficult to find a set of four that go with my plan. There are some on Overstock.com I love so they are probably going to be what I go with if I can't find something soon. That is what I'm showing in my virtual design.
Years ago I picked up a table at an estate sale that needs to be refinished. It will have to be stripped of the old stain, and then I plan on staining the top and painting the bottom in a dark gray. Right now it is sitting in pieces and needs put back together (and someone may or not remember where she put the screws), but I will share it with you soon.
The floors will obviously be stained like the living room. I used Fusion Mineral Stain and Finishing Oil in Cappuccino.
The walls and trim will also be the same as the living room and painted in Valspar Snowcap White (satin for walls and semigloss for trim).
My plan for the section of the wall that connects to the living room is to add a couple reclaimed wood shelves. They will likely be made using some more of the wood that I used for my fireplace mantel. It will be a nice place to display some dishes or kitchen ware that I won't be using on a regular basis, but that are still pretty to look at. I've also got an easy art project designed for the other section of the wall.
Part of my design process for this space involves thinking of what I will be doing in the kitchen so that the two spaces flow together. I included a rug on my mood board, not necessarily because it will go in this room, but I'd like a similar runner in the kitchen and wanted to make sure my finishes and colors with go with it.
There really isn't a lot to do in this area in regards to furniture and designing since it is such a small space, but I really can't wait to eventually see it all come together with the lofty plans I have for the kitchen.
I would love to hear your thoughts on my ideas for this space or if you see anything you would do to freshen things up!
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