glass cabinet

A more appropriate title would be “Random Kitchen Stuff we Finished Over the Weekend.”

First up, we got glass in those cabinet doors. Wednesday morning, I removed the doors from the cabinet frames, leaving the hinges and knobs on the door.

The boys and I hauled the glass-less frames to a local glass shop. While holding E and keeping my eye on V, I carefully started unloading the boxes from the trunk. Luckily, the man working there saw I had my hands full and took the doors out of my hands.

Once inside, E pointed out the taxidermy elk and deer (so Montanan) while the kind man and I discussed the doors. Yep, I want plain clear glass in each of these. He told me about their process and the precautions the take to prevent damaging the furniture. That made me happy. After giving me my total, only $30.60 for the glass and installation, I asked when the doors would be ready. His response: well, we open at 8:00 tomorrow, so come in any time after that. What?! That’s quicker than I thought it would be. Wahoo!

Sure enough, on Thursday afternoon, I picked up the ready and waiting doors. And they looked wonderful. Driving slower than a 90-year-old lady, we finally made it home. Shortly after hauling the doors in the house, I decided I couldn’t wait to get them back up. Four screws later, the cabinets were officially done.

Sorry for the glare, too.

On Sunday, Ben finished up some lighting. Specifically, rope lights inside the glass-fronted cabinets. He started with two packages of rope light and several strips of rope light channel.

After cutting, peeling, and sticking the channel, it was simple enough to push the lights in. The lights were a little long for the cabinets, so we coiled the extra length at the top of the cabinets.

During the day, the lights barely highlight the dishes. At night, the real magic happens.

I think our dishes now look like a jewelry display at a department store. And I love anything shiny or sparkly. The soft glow is pretty kick butt, too.

Update: We’ve had questions on the lighting placement. Our cabinet face frames overhang the cabinet by 3/4 inch, so we stuck the channel to the back side of that face frame.

Then the lights run up the side, and coil around the top front (to stay out of sight), and back down the other side.

Remember this ugly stove leg situation we have because our cabinets are taller than your average ~~bear~~ cabinet?

Well, it was finally time to take those legs from frumpy to fabulous. After discussing our options (painted PVC pipe, wooden legs, adjustable bolts, etc.) we decided to buy blots and 1 1/2 stainless steel pipe for a slip cover effect. Ben called from the hardware store to tell me they didn’t have brushed stainless pipe, only polished. I told him to get it because a. we didn’t have a better option and b. fine sand paper should fix that.

When he got home with the pipe, he pointed out it was stainless plated brass. I started sanding with 400 grit paper, being careful not to sand through the plating. Happily, it worked like a charm. See the difference?

While Handy Sammy held the stove front up, Ben screwed in the bolts, adjusted for height, and slipped the pipes over the bolts.

Oh, and I added a small strip of left over rope channel to secure the loose end of the rope lights.

For only a few bucks, we made matching stainless legs. With the height adjustment, the top of the stove sits nicely against the counter tops, too. While none of these projects will make a dramatic impression, it certainly helps the kitchen feel more polished and finished.

Just a little more sanding (the ceiling) and this small patch by the dining room, a few more trim pieces, some paint and we’re finally done with the kitchen.