For this round of renovations....I came home from a weekend painting workshop in Greenville, SC to an even emptier kitchen - meaning no sink or lingering cantilevered cabinets still hanging on - but one with freshly painted walls and the new tile floor, of course (that's what started this whole kitchen renovation movement: "Let's redo the kitchen floor!").
Over the next few weeks we slowly replaced the refrigerator and the range (Black Friday sales! Yesss.) while the cabinets were being built at Perrin Woodworking (downtown Charleston) - and while using the (one, tiny, pedestal) bathroom sink for everything and eating out A LOT. I also made my very first trip to Ikea (wow?!) to purchase the farmhouse sink and look at light fixtures...among the other billion things in there - a little bit much, in my opinion, but highly recommend enduring the experience if there's something specific you're looking for, otherwise, it could be a giant Target-style trap as far as money traps go BUT the farmhouse sink was just as perfect in person and I found a simple overhead (white cut glass) ceiling light for the kitchen for about $40.
One of my favorite parts of the kitchen experience was the search for the perfect countertops. With the help of Peter Martol, we toured both a warehouse in North Charleston and also a collection at his shop in West Ashley looking for the right piece - beautiful but durable, and it had to be economical. I could have spent all day in that warehouse being the rock & mineral lover that I am. I can't even begin to describe the amount of beautiful slabs...with different colored veins running through them, from all over the world....but we knew we wanted something light in color and price was a big factor for us. We ended up finding the perfect piece (Quartz!) at the Martol shop (which meant it was also a smidge cheaper, since he buys at wholesale - and we have pieces leftover for future bathroom reno's. Bonus!).