Thoughts about kitchens

I have been perusing kitchen design options on line, which is a dangerous rabbit hole to go down, because you can get lost for hours. I have definite ideas about the functionality the kitchen needs to have. I want it fairly industrial-looking, practical, utterly washable, without much frill or fanfare. A commercial kitchen without quite so much stainless steel. I'm even okay with movable carts instead of fixed cupboards, so that it's endlessly flexible. I want it to serve a small family as well as it serves a crowd of fifty. We have lots of space to play with, and I have my eye on used restaurant equipment and sturdy fixtures. And I want a place for my 65-year-old double oven, currently in my basement, that I intend to take with me. It still works, and it's cool in that the glass oven doors lift up instead of folding down, and the burners slide in like a drawer to keep them away from little fingers.

When the young general contractor was walking through the church with us, he kept suggesting wood here or granite there, assuring us he could create something really nice and high-end for us, even though we kept assuring him we wanted inexpensive and maybe even secondhand materials. He wanted to build something gorgeous, and we wanted practicality over fanciness. He couldn't get his head around it. I guess he's used to clients who want all the bells and whistles, granite counter tops and custom cabinetry, like you see on TV design shows. I'm more interested in the food being produced and the people around the table.

I also have plans to re-purpose some of the cupboards currently in the kitchen. The long row of cupboards under the serving hatches would make a cool table. I like the clever little latches and hardware on them. The double row of tall cupboards lining one wall could be taken apart and turned into "lockers" where guests coming to retreats and workshops could keep their personal belongings. The cupboards themselves aren't made of expensive wood, but they've been so lovingly polished for so many decades that it would be a shame not to find them a place of honour somewhere. I am also in love with the triple stainless-steel sinks and might keep them. They would be especially handy during tomato-bottling season. And the narrow little pie shelves could be moved up to the sanctuary and turned into shelving for slippers and shoes, for when guests come.

There is one door leading into the sanctuary that should really be a steel door, not wood, but the current wood door has a beautiful grain and patina. I'm thinking when we replace it, I will put legs on it and turn it into my wheeled writing desk, doorknob and all.

As we design things, the more I can re-use and recycle, the better---not just for financial or environmental reasons, but to honour the church and its history. There is a sense of responsibility in taking on a project like this, a sort of obligation I feel to do my best and do it justice. I may not be able to save everything, and I'm not sure that I want to preserve every aspect of its churchiness, because it does need to be my home first and foremost, but what I can reuse, I will. Even if it breaks the young general contractor's heart.