Finding and Replicating Antique Kitchen Cabinets
So out came the ugly Formica countertops in speckled gold and white, the avocado green appliances, the dark and dungeon like paneling, the yellow vinyl tile floor and the lovely particle board cabinets that were already in one hundred pieces. Also coming out was the old living room along with its grey rug, gold velvet wallpaper and plastic chair rails. A rustic antique looking beam replaced the old dividing wall between the living room and kitchen. Now I had a gigantic empty room with which to do what I wanted and I wanted nothing but antique Victorian. I found what I wanted from my good friend, Charlie Piper. He buys and sells “junk” which in my frank opinion is truly real treasure in the raw. He rescued a dilapidated old cabinet from a very old house that was being torn down and sold it to me for a mere $200. Carefully we carted the old relic home and showed it proudly to our friend who was going to restore it for us in return for a place to stay for a while. I would like to note here that bartering is an ideal way to stay on budget!! He thought we had lost our marbles!! I cannot repeat what he said here but I can sum it up that he thought we were crazy to buy such a mess!!
Even though he thought it hopeless, Randy carefully choose scrap pieces of plywood leftover from our builder Ben. After hours and hours of intense labor the cabinet now had a back as well as two sides. When we brought it home it only had a front and one side!! He also added shelves for me to accommodate my canning jars of snacks. However, it still had an ample coat of ugly black stain on it. So Randy went to work sanding and sanding and sanding some more. After several more hours he had a bare cabinet of impressive beauty. That is when he started to share our enthusiasm. After applying coat after coat of cherry stain and polyurethane we had a piece of furniture beautiful beyond any words. Ben and Randy brought it into the bare kitchen and I began formulating the rooms entire design around it!!
I explained what I wanted to Ben and that was kitchen cabinets that looked identical to what the antique one was. In essence I wanted a replica that couldn’t be identified as not the real thing. After days and weeks of samples and scratched plan after scratched plan Ben hit it on the nose and we had our first replica built in his workshop. He proudly installed it next to the original and we held our breaths as we stood back. The sight was so beautiful I could have cried!! So he went back to his shop and built another and then another until my kitchen looked just like an old Victorian kitchen of yore, minus the counters, floors and drawer pulls of course!!
Next we focused our efforts on the counters and drawer pulls. The “antique cabinets” would look out of place if we didn’t find just the right ones. Never start a theme in a room and then slap something else in with it. It makes the room look disjointed. Being an expert on Victorian design I knew that the Victorian home would have either soapstone or wood countertops. Wood being cheaper we decided that was the way to go. So we headed off to Brookside Lumber in Rumney NH. Being the place we purchased our wood beams we knew we could get a good deal on slab wood for our counters. The owner went over and above the call of duty by sorting pile after pile of slabs to find ones that were the gargantuan size we needed. Back at home Ben, Randy, my husband and his friend Mike (Whom also took a room in exchange for labor.) carted the massive slabs into the house and hoisted them onto the cabinets. After measuring and marking they hoisted them back down and cut them to perfection. Hours and hours of sanding and planeing later the guys hoisted them back onto the cabinets and Mike stained each one a deep Ebony color. He followed this with coat after coat of a countertop polyurethane. Just up the street from Brookside Lumber, The Blue Moon Salvage yard provided us with old drawer pulls from an antique drug store. I provided Mike with some black stove paint in a muted black from our stove shop, Mr. Fireplace. He went to work spraying pull after pull after pull. He said to me that he felt like he might be dreaming about pulls for a long time to come!!
In the end I got my dream kitchen and I received some interesting comments from friends. One said that she thought she had gone back in time when she entered the kitchen!! An elderly friend commented that she had once had a kitchen like ours when she was just a child!! So it looks like all our hard work paid off in spades. Now I bet you are wondering how you can do the same. Here’s my advice to you……….
Don’t break your back and your gas tank to find a full set of antique cabinets. It is just not worth the trouble and you will never find a set that matches your kitchen layout to a tee. If you do then I would suggest that you play the lottery!! Instead of trying to find a perfect set of antiques open your mind to a few salvageable pieces that really appeal to you. Spend your time and energy instead on finding a quality builder who can custom make cabinets that match your finds. If you are not sure then ask to see samples of their work and for a listing of customers for whom they have done work. I personally recommend Ben Ewens of Campton NH. He has rebuilt our house from top to bottom and we now have an almost finished Victorian that is absolutely eye popping. I cannot put into words how happy I am with his work. He is a bit slow but that is because he is a perfectionist and that is definitely not a bad thing when you want a house that will last forever.
So, to conclude, I have a little guessing game for you. Can you guess which cabinet in the pictures are the original and which is the fake? I will wait a few weeks for your comments. I will then tell you which one is the real McCoy.
