"MY SUMMER WINE IS REALLY MADE FROM ALL THESE THINGS..."

Whether it's white wine, red wine or port wine, wine bottles must all have a place to call home. When we first moved in, our wine was stored just as any other wine is stored: in a cabinet. I quickly grew frustrated with this "storage solution" because every time I wanted a glass of wine I would have to take out each bottle until I found the one I wanted. Frustrating as it was, we did't have the counter-space for a mini wine fridge or even wall space for a hanging wine rack. Not to mention some of them are downright hideous and/or expensive and the wine racks that I did find never felt like a perfect fit for our kitchen. Matt is not a wine drinker, but I like to have my wine, at the very least, to be accessible.

After scouring the Internet for endless hours I had finally given up my hunt for "The One." I have a tendency to go on long-winded searches for what I call "The Ones," or in other words: that-one-perfect-piece-you-have-waited-for-all-your-life. This can apply to any home decor item and while I don't usually have a premeditated image of what I want, I know exactly when I find it. Yes, you know and feel when you find "The One" because you loose all sense of reason, don't look at price tags or care if practical. All you know is that you must buy this thing otherwise you will never be complete.

In my 25 years I've pursued many soul-mates in the form of an armchair, coffee table, upholstered bench, area rug etc. This time I was determined to find The One wine rack that I needed in order for life to go on. I finally came across it at Homegoods, which for those of you who are familiar with this store can agree is a synonym for Heaven. I spotted it out of the corner of my eye because of its unusual shape AND the fact that it was made out of what looked like bicycle chains. I gravitated towards it and realized that it WAS made of bike chains...recycled bike chains to be exact. And they were beautiful! Oiled, greased and aged to perfection in all the right places. It was made in France from old bicycle chains and now it would live on in my kitchen. Of course, I couldn't leave the store without it and when I brought it home Matt loved it just as much (he is an bicycle enthusiast). Score!

Now that I have found "The One" wine rack I can move on to other things; barstools, end tables, picture frames. And yes, this is only the beginning.

"TRACK HOME KITCHEN BEFORE AND AFTER...AND STILL IN PROGRESS"

Kitchens are probably my very least favorite to decorate. There are always too many variables to consider; countertop, appliances, backsplash, cabinets, counter-space, and so the list goes on. While we were house-hunting, I was never too particular about the size of the kitchen so long as it didn't have a tile, laminate or Corian countertop or oak cabinets. I'm extremely picky when it comes to decorating...not as picky when it comes to food. So after viewing about 30 homes with white tile countertops, linoleum flooring and cabinets in all colors of the rainbow, I was ready to just throw in the towel and be content with whatever kitchen we could settle on until we saved money for a remodel.

When we finally found the right home, I was pleased with the granite countertops and backsplash. Both had been recently updated and although the countertop color wouldn't have been my first choice it was still better than anything we had seen. Our cabinets are not what I would call "quality" cabinets, but after going back and forth between whether we should paint them or not I've decided to just wait it out to see if they grow on me. Seven months into it, they still haven't found their way into my heart for a variety of reasons. The maple wood is far too light for my taste which is completely unreasonable since my favorite cabinetry is white. But putting that aside, these cabinets are much too bright and yellow in contrast with the rest of the kitchen. Since for now we won't be painting them, naturally we had to upgrade and customize them in some way to take the focus away from the wood itself. One trip to home depot later we had chosen some oil-rubbed bronze handles and two hours later Matt had them all installed. Instantly the kitchen took on a new persona and I'm happy to admit that the first thing I look at in my kitchen is no longer the wood but the hardware. It's a perfect compliment to our furnishings and fixtures and until we can paint, I'll just have to learn to live with it. As much as I hate having to learn to live with things, I'm optimistic that perhaps this summer we will be able to make more progress in the kitchen department.