My Make Do Kitchen

Three months after I married Mr. Wonderful I gave him series of surprises.

1. I announced we were expecting. 

2. I caused a kitchen fire that destroyed the majority of our kitchen. 

3. I got fired from my job. 

The one good thing that came of this was that it cemented the fact that I'd married a great guy. He loved me through all of this.

Fast forward 16 years and we now have six children. And our kitchen? Well, it's still in basically the same state it was post fire. So now I have what's commonly referred to as an "unfitted", or what I like to call a "make do", kitchen.

The microwave is in a temporary location to conserve what little counter space we do have. The vintage Chambers model B gas range is a project and not working at this time. To the left of the fridge is a large pie safe we use for a pantry and to the left of the pantry is the electric range we currently cook on. With the current layout there is no space for a eating table.

The centerpiece of my kitchen is my beloved Seller's cabinet we found it at an estate auction in 2006. Mr. Wonderful was immediately drawn to it but I was not. What I really wanted was the 7 ft tall mahogany wardrobe I'd spied. I had visions of putting it in the master bedroom and tearing out the built in closet. (Yes I know how crazy this sounds) The bid on the wardrobe went higher than Mr. Wonderful was willing to pay so my dreams were dashed. I walked around the rest of the auction pouting, literally.

A little while later bidding on the Seller's cabinet began. I stood in the background, my eyes drilling holes into the back of my Mr. Not So Wonderful while he kept raising his bid higher and higher. Obviously he won the bid and while he grinned and gushed about his purchase I was looking at our new piece of furniture wondering where on earth would I put it. The barn and the fire pit were the first places that came to mind.

The main cupboard holds all of our everyday dishes

Love the built in flour sifter.

I'm not quite sure when I fell in love with the old cabinet. It just grew on me I guess you could say. Now it's my favorite piece in the kitchen. It holds all of our everyday dishes in the top cabinet, the bottom cabinet holds are baking pans, we keep bread in the bread drawer, flour and sugar on the counter top, and silver ware and often used utensils in the drawers. Over the years we've added to and subtracted from our collection of vintage pieces but this one item has never been for sale. I guess Mr. Wonderful was right all along.