Dreams of hardwood and granite...

I spent the afternoon with S&W today, beginning with a late brunch and then followed by a visit to my condo's design centre. My design appointment isn't until June but I don't want to show up the day of and have to make all my decisions on the spot. I know me and the pressure to make decisions on tile, granite, hardwood, etc. and upgrades in a couple hours would stress me out. I'd much prefer to visit in advance of the actual appointment several times so that I can agonize and second-guess myself now. :)

So what did I decide? Here's the palette on this first visit:

Top left is the hardwood floor that runs throughout the space. It's American Walnut, and I suspect that this particular sample is an upgrade. Bottom left is the granite counter in Bethel White which is standard. To the right is a sample of the Scavolini kitchen cabinet in a dark espresso colour and the mini glass subway tile for the kitchen backsplash, both of which are standard.

The middle sample is the porcelain tile that I'd like to put in the kitchen. It's called Bamboo Oyster and it's not really obvious in the picture but there are streaks of gray that pick up the shades in the granite and brown which echoes the floor and kitchen cabinets. This may be an upgrade since hardwood floor in the kitchen is standard.

Given the layout of my kitchen and the placement of my fridge, putting in tile means that I will have to upgrade to the extended island so that the kitchen space is clearly defined. My concern at the moment is that the contrast between the tile and the floor is too great, but I think it's mitigated by the fact that it's contained in the corner of my unit. I'm going to upgrade to the pantry too - I figure the additional storage will come in handy. It's unclear though how flexible the cabinet configuration will be. I'll have to find out at my appointment which I am so impatient for!


Afterwards, we dropped in at Winners since S was looking for some casual wear. While W and I were waiting for her near the change rooms, I noticed the most random thing: assorted helmets from suits of armour - which at first I thought were the tops of waste baskets - and a pair of gauntlets! W drew the line at trying the helmet but he did agree to one of the gauntlets: