Walk-In Pantry–Day 4

Phil, the carpenter, finished constructing my walk-in pantry by lunch time today. It was just a question of fitting the final small shelves and one or two other bits and pieces. The major work is now all done.

I love how the door opens to about 170 degrees at its fullest extent – this makes access much easier, and also allows more light in.

Phil also re-attached the piece of picture rail that had been removed when the old cupboard was demolished. I asked the damp proofing man who did the work to retain this in case it was needed. It never was a very good fit, and still isn’t, but once it’s filled and touched up, it shouldn’t be too noticeable.

I do love the laminate floor panel on the right of the door! When the door is closed it looks like a stone wall, and it’s a lovely feature. I think it looks a lot more interesting than more of the same stuff as the door. The whole thing looks great, and fully integrated into my kitchen. I shall soon find it hard to remember what the old cupboard looked like!

In some ways I feel quite nostalgic about it, because it was an original feature of the house that I was quite keen to retain, but it was a real pain to use, so on balance I’m glad it’s gone. My heart sank and I was appalled when we first heard about the dry rot, but in the end it has proved a blessing in disguise because it has given me the pantry that I’ve always wanted, and the damage caused by the rot was considerably less severe than we’d expected.

All the small shelves on the left of the pantry are now completed. You can see that the ones at the top are not too high – the right height for standard tins. Below that, he has constructed some taller ones to accommodate larger items. We agreed that no small shelves were necessary below the level of the bottom large shelf.

You can also see the frame of the shelves at the back, sticking out further than the shelves at the front. This is because of the small amount of wall projecting beyond the side of the double oven unit. In order to make shelves at the back that were of useable depth, this had to be done. Also, Phil has attached some edging strips along the fronts of the larger plywood shelves, to cover the somewhat unsightly end-grain. This has improved the appearance greatly. He has filled all the nail and screw holes with wood filler, for appearance and practicality – nice to be able to wipe the shelves down and not have holes to trap dirt.

Finally, a picture of the bottom shelf, and the supports ready or the stone slab.

After lunch, my hubby and I drove to Newton Abbot to visit the stone masons on one of the industrial estates. They make natural granite and composition stone worktops for kitchens, and have offcuts in every conceivable colour and finish. We have chosen a very pale whitish marble effect slab, because I want to keep the general feel of the pantry as light as possible. Phil had cut me a template from thin ply and marked it “Top” and “Front” and we took this in. They will cut the stone for us and we should get a phone call letting us know it’s ready in the next week to ten days. All we have to do then is just slot it in. Phil said he’d come back and put a bit of silicone sealant around it if I wanted, and I think this would be a good idea, to prevent crumbs being caught around the edges.

Tomorrow morning, Gary is coming around to paint the walls. They will be white, in order to keep the interior of the pantry as light as possible. I have decided not to paint the shelves, but to seal them with linseed oil, which I think will give a pleasant, natural appearance.

Phil suggested getting a light with a sensor. This means the light comes on when you open the door, because it senses the movement. I think this would be a very good idea, not just for convenience (one’s hands are often full of stuff, going in and out) but also for energy-saving – all too easy to forget to turn off the light! I shall phone the electrician early next week, and also ask him to do one or two other small jobs that need attending to as well, such as fitting a two-way switch in the airing cupboard – at present the light can only be operated from the flat, which isn’t very convenient. I also want him to wire in the control for my clothes airer. More details of this in due course – I don’t think I’ve blogged about that one yet!

I keep going in the kitchen and admiring my new pantry, and can’t quite believe it is pretty much finished at last, and once the painting is done, I can begin moving stuff in. I can use it without the slab for the moment. I have also started cleaning up the kitchen after all the work. Phil was very good and hoovered up after himself but there is still quite a bit of dust on the horizontal surfaces in the room, and sawdust has been trodden through into the hall, which will need cleaning up, too. I cleaned the right-hand side of the kitchen from the door to the new pantry this afternoon, and brought all my recipe books back in and installed them in the wall unit again, and it’s already looking much more like home! Over the next few days I’ll work my way around the rest of the kitchen and start bringing things back in. I think I should be fully back in by the middle of the week, all being well.