Looks can be deceiving...
Yes, the powder blue cabinets are going, but they aren't as nice as they seem. Some of the bottom cabinets have holes going all the way through the floor and into the crawl space. They are just plain disgusting. The upper cabinets on either side of the sink are in good shape but are installed flush against an uninsulated wall and breed mold and mildew. All of the cabinets are made of construction grade plywood and the powder blue latex paint was put directly over oil and is coming off in rubbery sheeets. I think the cabinet doors may had the door detail routered in in the sixties. She also put in the black hammered iron look hardware at that time. At some point, she changed out the knobs and painted over the hinges.
No offense taken on the critique, rustyspaatz. So much has been neglected, and so much has been poorly repaired.
When it was built in '38, I think it may have had a sink on legs without lower cabinets. The walls inside the lower cabinets are masonite stamped to look like tile--more common in bathrooms, I think, as was the countertop tile. When I was a child, the counters were all like the one to the right of the stove. It is tiled with vitreous white and black tile typically reserved for bathroom floors. Her house is the only place I've seen it anywhere else. She worked on the counters by the sink, especially the counter on the left, and by the early 80's most of the grout was gone and the cracks were filled with a disgusting black goo. The back splashes are contemporary with the counter tiles by the stove.
When I was very young, the floor was alternating red and yellow marbled linoleum squares. Even then, I thought it was really cool. It's probably still there under the current yellow pebble vinyl flooring. However, the whole floor has got to come out. The kitchen floor is the best access for repairing rotten joists and sills in that part of the house. The surrounding rooms have hardwood floors. So, the current floor is awful as well as rotten in places.
The stove got stolen several years ago, and I replaced it with a 40" Hotpoint with two ovens. The large oven is self cleaning. It works and looks tons better, but it is new enough that it has the mechanical digital clock and some ugly knobs. Grandmama always had 40" ranges. The one from my earliest memories was a curvaceous behemoth, probably from the 40's. I remember when it died and was moved onto the porch and out of the house. That was probably in the early 70's.
So, anyone wants the cabinets, come on down. It's a double porcelain over cast iron sink. My grandmama was very proud of it, but the left side is brown and eroded from years of Comet.
The American Kitchens cabinets have a double drainboard double sink--porcelain on cast iron. My plan is to put the sink under the windows as it is now with the steel cabinets. The cabinets that will flank the windows have the neat half circle glass shelves shown in the ad. I also have the corner piece and plan to install the cabinets around the corner and put the stove flush with the cabinets.
Eventually, I'd like an older stove, but for now, the house has much bigger issues.
I have had most of the house rewired and replaced the switches and outlets with brown ones to match the original cover plates.
Thanks for the input and attention. I could talk all night long about the house, so all you have to do is ask.
BTW, the kitchen sink overlooks the front yard.
S
