Saturday, July 22, 2017

Mountain Cottage Kitchen Reno - Built In Banquette Seating

I'm so excited to have this project finished! 


Mr. DIY did a great job building it and he did everything  from building to finishing. The only thing I did was design and consult on the design of the banquette.


Mountain cottage, diy Design Fanatic: Mountain Cottage Kitchen Reno - Built In Banquette Seating, cottage, cottage style, farmhouse kitchen, diyDesignFanatic.com

We've known from day one that we wanted a built in banquette in the kitchen at the mountain cottage. This is the only eating space in the house since there's no dining room. A banquette saves a lot of space and makes sense in a kitchen/dining room combination.
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com

After deciding how long and deep the seats were going to be, Mr. DIY taped it out on the floor just to be sure. (update):After taping the floor, he removed the baseboard heater and will install one to the left of the bench under the windows. 
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com

I really felt there should be a toe kick, so the banquette was made with a toe kick that would accommodate the existing baseboard in the kitchen.

We decided that the banquette would be 21" deep and 17 1/2" high and each seat would be 60" wide.
Since the top would be 3/4" thick and have an overhang, the box is 20" deep and 16 3/4" high, with a 4 3/4" high x 4"deep toe kick cut out. The boxes are made out of plywood.
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com



banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com


Using his Kreg Jig, Mr. DIY covered up the toe kick space just so it would look cleaner and nothing would fall through.
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com



Then, he used 2 x 4s for the bracing. We reused these from another project.
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com


He had to cut around the outlets.
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com


banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com


He then cut the tops out of plywood. The front and side overhangs are 3/4".
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com

He then cut  the board lengthwise at 2". In retrospect, 2 1/2" would have been better so they will stay open better on the window sill side. He will be adding a support hinge/lid stay later so that the tops will stay open and not fall on someone.
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com


He covered the unfinished edge of the plywood with 3/4" x 1/4" strips cut from 1/4" x 2 1/2" pieces of wood.


banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com


He attached the tops with piano hinges.
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com



I wanted the front and sides of the banquette to look like the Kraftmaid cabinet doors, so, after marking where the "doors" would go...
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com




he cut the 1/4" thick poplar boards down to 2 1/4" wide and attached them to the box. At the ends, the sides where it meets the corner were cut down to 2", so that when the side panel was put on (which is 1/4" thick,) they would still be 2 1/4"
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com




He wrapped baseboard and 3/4" base shoe all the way around the banquette.
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com


Here's how clean the inside looks once it was primed and painted.  The tops of the braces and the top edge of the box, as well as the top of seats were finished with a coat of clear poly to minimize sticking.
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com


All finished!
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com

Today, Mr. DIY installed our new fan. I really wanted a square wood X chandelier and he was willing to make it, but our little cottage really needs a fan in the kitchen. I found the fan on Amazon and it is the perfect size (at 44") for the space.
banquette, kitchen reno, cottage, mountain cottage, white kitchen, diydesignfanatic.com






These are affiliate links, which means I'll make a small commission should you purchase through one of these links.



diy Design Fanatic: Mountain Cottage Kitchen Reno - Built In Banquette Seating, cottage, cottage style, farmhouse kitchen, diyDesignFanatic.com, white kitchen


My next project is to make the cushions and pillows for the banquette.
The fabric I wanted won't be in stock for another week, but I already have the foam for the cushions.

Can't wait to get it all finished. Now to find (or build) a table.

Hope you're having a good day!

Pam
Disclaimer: The above post is about how we built our banquette benches. We don't take any responsibility for any errors or results obtained from using this information. Using power tools can result in injury. When using power tools, use safety equipment.

5 comments:

  1. Wow I am so imressed! I always wanted a banquette in our kitchen dining area. I like the details you put into this and the new fan. Kudos to your hubby once again for his talents and efforts!

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  2. What type table and chairs would you use for this type? Rectangle/circle?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I plan on getting the cross backed bistro dining chairs. https://www.wayfair.com/Lark-Manor-Hyacinthe-Crossback-Solid-Wood-Dining-Chair-Set-LRKM3988.html?piid=24099477#readmoremodal1

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  3. Hi Pam,
    I really like your banquett seating, and great work to your hubby. However as I am also a hard core DIYer and I'm thing l9st if your viewers have not even thought about your baseboard heat! Did your hubby remove the long unit and just replace with a shorter one. As that is what I would have done! Again mostvofvyour followers are most likely female, and that would not have been something they might even notice, butbyou didnt mention it in your blog. Just saying. Lol
    As I'm not a blogger, you can contact me if you wish at: Pollyaclements@gmail.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Polly! Yes, Mr. DIY removed the long baseboard heater. He just put in another heater in the wall to the left of the bench under the window. Maybe I'll go back and mention it. Thanks for pointing that out!

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