Hi, first let me say, I haven't worked much with wood in many years (35? since my teens) so consider myself a self- and internet-taught newbie and had to purchase tools like a decent table saw, routers, router table, woodworking workbench, Kreg master kit, compressor, etc. I don't have a garage or basement to work in so am using one of the living rooms to set up a temporary shop. I don't have a wife or kids to tell me I CAN'T do that, (it's just me and the dog) so I moved most of the things out to make room for the tools.
I'm tackling my own kitchen, which is pretty small, but will end up stuffed to the gills with things like 2 pantries surrounding the fridge, a plate rack over a microwave over the range, many pullouts & drawers, etc, all designed around a quartz Kindred KGCRA/8 corner sink that will overlay an adjoining drawer base cabinet. I'm going with this sink because of its looks & features, plus it frees up enough counter space to give me a continuous 5ft+ of countertop in front of a large 54" wide window looking nowhere (at a vacant house just 8 feet away.)
The kitchen will be a traditional faceframe type and is about 10x11ft but the chimney protrudes about 18x18 inches at one corner, and a doorway on the adjacent wall gives me little room for much more than the gas range and a 9 or 12''w base next to it. I have different options around the chimney, one being to cover it with a diagonal cabinet that would give about 6-8 inches on each side of the chimney to store things like spices or utensils.
I started making some faceframes from hard maple as well as a 6-inch wide base cab with 5 openings like for wine bottles... you may have seen them in some cabinet sites--they cost a fortune to buy compared to standard base cabs, so I tackled it first.
I've been designing it on & off for a few years now, I keep changing things in the software plan trying to make the best use of the space, as well as see what different species may look like. Because the sink is what Kindred calls graphite, a dark charcoal color, I think the countertops would need to be similar in color, so think the wood would need to be a light or medium color so the room doesn't get too dark. The house was built in the 1920-1940's range and the woodwork looks like ash grain with orange shellac. Some of the doors look dark like mahogany but there are no doors entering the kitchen, they've been removed many years ago. I pulled up the linoleum and the hardwood floors look like ash or oak.
So what wood would some suggest for this project? The layout will be changed significantly so not sure if I need to match existing woods or not-- but do I need to stay light because the counters will be almost black? There will be very little areas of the walls exposed anymore, but the thinking right now is the backsplash will be orange or terra cotta subway tile.
I am considering a rustic look but without knots, like a mix of colors like hickory or heartwood/sapwood maple. I know hickory is pretty hard and tough on tooling, but are there other reasons for a specific hardwood's use or non-use? I run across deals on cherry, mahogany & walnut all the time too. I do have some hard maple in narrow widths and in sheets I have a 4x8 mahogany and a couple 5x5 Baltic Birch sheets; I can always use them for jigs if I go a different specie.
Considering cost, finishing headaches and work, what wood would you suggest? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks.
10-07(2x18x90)-42x30CM-DW2bGAR-CHERRY2ORANGE_p.jpg