When our decade-old dishwasher conked out recently, I took the opportunity to replace it with a state-of-the-art Miele and also spruce up the kitchen sink area in our 1860’s era Victorian house in Wellfleet on Cape Cod. Last updated more than 10 years ago, the sink area had slowly turned into an eyesore without my noticing. Unattractive plastic paper towel holder? Check. Rusty dish drainer? Check. Leaky faucet? Check. We didn’t want to undertake a full-on renovation, since we use the house mostly in the summer, but something had to be done.
Our mini makeover strategy? We replaced the faucet with a commercial-grade workhouse, recaulked the back of the sink, installed hooks and a wall-mounted soap dish to help keep the sink area clutter-free, and invested in some attractive French tea towels. Oh, and we banished the plastic dish-soap bottle in favor of an Italian glass soap dispenser. Here are the details.
After
Above: The upgraded sink area with newly installed Miele Futura G5285 Crystal Series Dishwasher; $1,699 from Miele.
Above: We replaced a leaky mixer faucet with a commercial-grade, deck-mounted Chicago Faucet and installed hooks under the cabinets to hang scrub brushes. A vintage wall-mounted soap dish, sourced from Etsy, holds a pot scrubber and a mushroom brush.
Above: Since impromptu parties on the porch are a feature of summer life, we needed a hardworking dishwasher that could handle a dinner-party-size load of dishes.
Before
Above: The original sink area, complete with rickety plastic paper towel holder and rusty dish drainer.
Above: The sink area, pre-upgrade.
Fixtures and Fittings
Above: The Miele Futura G5285 Crystal Series Dishwasher ($1,699 from Miele) features six wash programs, a cutlery tray, a delay start, and more. Plus, it’s super quiet, emitting a barely audible whoosh when in operation.
Above: We replaced the dated 1970s cabinet pulls with a pair of Sugatsune FT Classic Style Pulls; $15.13 each from ATG Stores.
Above: We custom spec’ed an eight-inch chrome Deck-Mounted Chicago Faucet from the Chicago Faucet Shoppe; it ran us about $400.
Sink Accessories
Above: I jettisoned the paper towels in favor of a stack of French Charvet Edition Tea Towels; $19.95 each from Flotsam and Fork.
Above: I sourced a wall-mounted enamel soap dish from Etsy; for something similar, consider the Antique White Enamel Cast Iron Soap Dish for $60 from Etsy seller Vintage Laguna Beach, or Vintage Porcelain Over Cast Iron Soap Dish, $29.99, from Jnknjack on eBay.
Above: The Burstenhau Redecker Wash Basin Brush Set is $21.50 from The Best Brushes.
Above: Common Good White Grapefruit Dish Soap Refill is $11.95 at West Elm.
Above: A Gianinni Glass Olive Oil Cruet holds the dishwashing liquid; $16.95 at the Gourmet Food Corner.
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