Kitchen progress is steadily, but slowly chugging along.  Much like the Little Engine That Could, I’m just chanting I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.  Ben pieced the maple desk top is pieced together, but 1/3 of the way through sanding, our belt sander broke.  As we wait for the part to arrive, we’ve switched gears and made some progress on the cabinets.  Most of the perimeter drawer fronts are cut, painted, and curing before install.

As much as I love shaker cabinets, I wanted something different.  A less detailed design to keep the island the attention grabber.  Flat panels with a 45 degree edge, painted white should do the trick.

The island now has 2.2 sides of this solid 3/4 inch thick walnut gorgeousness:

Going through our planning, the island was the warmth the room was lacking.  I’ve already filled small cracks, sanded smooth with 220 grit paper, and applied one coat of teak oil.  We followed the same process on the bathroom vanity and love the results.

Teak oil hardens in the wood, protecting and enhancing the beautiful grain.  Just as the bathroom looked flat and boring before sealing, (see above) the island did, too.  Another benefit is that if the wood looks dry, or we have to sand out a scratch, a coat of oil refreshes the wood like new.  No full sanding or refinishing required.

Attaching the wood to the sides was simple.  Walnut is attached from inside the cabinet to hide all fasteners.

From certain, limited angles, if you squint, the island looks almost finished.

Until walking around the front to see the drawers lack fronts.  The toe kick is still exposed and we need at least one more light sanding and a coat of teak oil.  Hence the blotches at the top near the counter.

If we decide oil isn’t the best finish, we can always go over it with polyurethane.  Next up we’ll build the island drawer fronts and install the perimeter faces.  Who knows, maybe we’ll even get started on the tile backsplash.  I think I can, I think I can, I think I can.