Come on a journey of inspiration & adventure while renovate & restore a beautiful Victorian home 'St Elmo' in the picturesque Hunter Valley, Australia & laugh at a few of our family adventures along the way.




Sunday, February 20, 2011

Kitchen stools, OH the choices!

Whilst dreaming of my kitchen in my dream house, I like to think about the sort of stools that I would have at the island bench.

I am yet to decide whether to keep the island white like the rest of the kitchen, or go for a contrasting colour, you may remember that post, if not, pop over HERE


This kitchen is definitely one of my all time favourites, you're probably sick of me posting this image.
I love these stools & always thought they where rattan, but looking at them closely I think they are actually fabric.
 They look fantastic either way!


These stools look like they are perhaps upholstered in leather, they certainly add some serious style factor to an extremely beautiful kitchen.
I guess a big factor in choosing your stools is
"How you want the room to feel?"
I love these more formal styles, but being a house with 4 kids, perhaps I would be best to opt for something VERY hard wearing.
 I think  a more casual feel to this area of the home would suit our lifestyle & family better.

Image via Decor Pad

 Before we move on. I had to show this glamorous trio, don't you just love the nail head trim.
I envision a very stylish women lives in this house.  Wouldn't you just love a peak at her walk in robe, I'm sure it's to die for!

Image via Decor Pad.

Now these industrial style stools would certainly withstand anything my son & his rowdy mates could throw at them, its more the contents of my pantry cupboard I would have to have concerns for, LOL!


Another more industrial style, "navy" counter stools, I have seen them in a chair as well.
They would definitely tick the box of  "hard wearing" & they have a high back, making them safer for little ones, easy clean, my only question to any of my lovely readers...
"Are they comfortable?"
By the way, this is another kitchen that goes into my all time favourites file!


Now these stools are definitely made form some sort of cane/wicker.
 I really like this look & it would be easy to tie into the rest of my decor with the use of a few wicker baskets here or there, lets face it, we all have a few baskets, they're fabulous for storage. Mine contain all of my house magazines.
The only down side I see is keeping them clean. The stools we currently have are timber & wrought iron & I am always wiping food from them, thanks to a messy 3 yr old.




Now I haven't made note of the source of the above 3 images as I collected them before I began blogging, These are the first style of stool I fell in love with. Easy clean, hard wearing & also budget friendly.
 I have seen them in many different timber stains but I really love the black. I have always been a "matchy matchy" girl & in my attempt to break free of my boringness, I think black would be a nice break away from my other timber furniture pieces .

Does anyone have stools like these at home, are they comfortable & do smaller children manage them safely?

So my trusty bloggers, any stylish suggestions are always appreciated, my kitchen will be white with shaker style doors of course. Unfortunately timber floors don't fit into my budget so I will be having a cream coloured porcelain tile thru out, very neutral, so timber black or silver would all look nice.
 Hopefully it will stand the test of time & not date before we move in!!

 CHEERS
Trish xxx


15 comments:

Raine and Sage said...

All gorgeous kitchens Trish. So many choices. I have to say that I'm quite partial to bar stools with a back as they're more relaxing to sit on, and I quite like the idea of friends perched with a wine comfortably chatting whilst I'm pottering in the kitchen. My kitchen is so tragic, so I think of these lovely ideas... like getting a dishwasher!!

Anonymous said...

Hi Trish...having just completed my kitchen renovation last year...and totally getting your stool dilemma...I thought I would share with you my thoughts and temporary choice for my white kitchen that supports 3 young boys!!!

I too love all your selections and ultimately will go with white leather stools with a high back to complete my look...but for now I have gone with pretty much the stools in the last picture...they are a freedom stool and are called "Mao"...they come in a beach colour or chocolate colour (dark). They are very practical for young kids and I love the shape of them...simple yet sturdy. I would not say the most comfortable for extended periods of time, but my boys dont seem to mind for the time they are on them (breakfast/dinner and occasional lunch/ and homework time) and certainly comfortable enough for a morning tea with friends or reading the paper over coffee. And if need be I have a small selection of cushions nearby to throw on for tush support...

I had planned on painting mine white...but actually the contrast is quite nice as well...so will "sit" on it for a while....

Hope that helps!!!!

Anonymous said...

Great Stools Trishy, I love that stove in the Mussaco Warner Miller Design image. That's my dream.

Personally, I like a really good back on my stools, afterall everyone gravitates to the kitchen bench and I hate a stool without a back and no support.

I think I like the fake rattan ones best. I wouldn't like the rattan, I think that they would get too many crumbs stuck in them. Having wooden slat ones here, I know what that is like with just one child and crumbs in the groove.

Jane @ the girl in the brick house said...

All beautiful choices and I like the faux rattan and the industrial ones with backs - you've got to have a back for comfort, I reckon. Good luck with your decision!

Georgy said...

Love the cane or ratten stools and actually have a couple now in my kitchen but I tell you what they are really hard to clean. With two small children food regularly gets stuck in them. So now I am favouring the idea of something simple like the wooden ones above in the last couple of images and I think these would go well in the kitchen you are describing. Sounds similar to what I want eventually. Hope you had a great weekend. Gx

Natasha in Oz said...

I love all of these pictures and I actually have a couple of them in my "files". I am sure whatever you choose will be fabulous!

Best wishes,
Natasha.

Kym said...

Loving all your pics and the first one is one of my favourites..stools are certainly a dilemma. Think I like something slightly industrial..whatever you choose will be fab! Kym X

Just Martha said...

Any updates to your building process dear Trish? Keen to hear if you have a plan now or have found a nice builder? We have the leather type with backs and they are very good, easy to clean etc but mine are all matchy matchy too!! Those metalic looking ones are very nice and the rattan ones in chairs I would love for outside.... Have fun..

GoldenValley50 said...

I love them all Trish! However as you say, you need to take into consideration how they are going to cope with the demands of children. That's why I think I would be opting for the darker timber ones. At least they can be wiped clean and you wouldn't be stressing about the kids using them. Once they are a bit older - perhaps you could swap them for those gorgeous rattan ones? ;)Sharyne

Tara said...

Hi Trish, I have similiar ones to the last pic and for a pop pf colour I painted them red and distressed them.They're so sturdy,I love them..xx

Mimi said...

Sooo much to choice Trish, I love them all. I am partial to a back in a bar stool. My friend has rattan bar stools and they look fabulous. Happy shopping! Mimi x

Jenny said...

Yes I have to agree with having a back in a bar stool. Much more comfortable. Nice pics by the way Trish. ;-)

Paula said...

Love these kitchens Trish - a few beautiful spots to stand one-legged with a glass of wine and admire it all :)

Anastasia said...

SO beautiful! sigh...love kitchens, especially white ones.
I recently got a new kitchen too - you can see it here
http://anastasiac.blogspot.com/2011/01/my-kitchen-rules.html
but we'er looking to renovate another home now so will have to plan all over again!

The Moerks said...

I love them all. Because I am a practical girl I love the navy industrial type barstools. I tried out the chairs once and found them very comfy.
Lovely blog and thanks for visiting.

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