C: Inspiration from Julia

A couple weeks ago we had a real girlfriends’ night out. My mother, mother-in-law, sister, niece, V and V's two daughters and daughter-in-law (have I left anyone out???) went to see Julie and Julia. I liked the movie because for me it was a “double whammy.” I love blogging and I am a foodie/cook, although not of the Julia Child caliber.

Although I enjoyed the humor and the victory of the movie, the most prominent thing I took away from it was the image of Julia’s kitchen with her husband marking a peg board to outline where each and every pot should hang. Man! That image would not
leave my mind.

My son and I are NOT (let me repeat, NOT) housekeepers. When we put pots away, they are generally “chunked” into the space beneath my range. No careful placing of the pots for us! What that means, of course, is that space turns into a nightmare. Nothing can be found without getting down and digging through pot upon pot, and things topple over and out of the cabinet with alarming regularity.

So, we have this equation: that total inefficiency thing PLUS we have this blank wall between my kitchen and dining room. Hmmmmmm. Hmmmmm. Hmmmmm.

The thought of Julia’s pegboard would not go away, so I determined to have one of my own. I planned it, designed the trim in my mind, thought about what color I should paint the peg board (vacillating between pale yellow and pale green--kind of like Julia's, shown in the picture above). I thought about how to build the frame hang the peg board away from the wall. I concentrated on how to miter the corners of the trim, having never done such a feat and just knowing in my marrow I can do it. I thought and thought and thought and thought about this project.

Now, something else you must know about me is that I will plan and scheme and design this type of thing for days on end and then never get around to doing it! I rebelled at the realization that it is entirely like me to dream about this for months on end and never get it done. I whipped into The Home Depot on my way home and bought these items:

Three 2 foot x 4 foot pieces of pegboard, opting for the ease of handling this size offers over the 8 foot sheets. These were brown on one side,white on the other.
Three four-foot pieces of 1”x2” trim
Pegboard hanging hardware

These were the minimum...they did not quite live up to my “dream” of a perfectly-trimmed, beautifully-painted area but, by golly, they were enough to get the job done!

That evening my son and I screwed the trim pieces into the wall and then screwed the peg board on the trim pieces, making sure all was level. No trimming of the edges, no pale yellow or green paint. Just peg board hanging on the wall. And Voila!!

And, you know, that’s probably going to be as far as I’ll ever get, and I am just fine with that! What I know about myself? I would never have gotten to that trim thing, etc., and I like the white side of the peg board well enough that I talked myself out of painting it. No decorator, me! I actually like the utilitarian look this has. Makes me think I'm organized.

And, trust me, there will be no outlines of pots drawn on this peg board! I am way short of the organizational ability to make that kind of permanent decision about pot placement! But look at these wonderful little baskets that just fit right into the pegboard. Now there is no more searching for potato peeler or lemon zester!!



And, just look at my meat thermometers and other long, skinny tools hanging from this screwdriver holder:



Aw, lawzy! This is making me giddy with happiness!!

The change has been wonderful. Now the below-the-cooktop area is reserved solely for the seldom-used. I even have room there for the crockpot. My pots and many of my utensils are just a half-step away from the stove, hanging within arm’s reach on my "Julia Child Pegboard." And—best of all!—I love seeing my cookware displayed!

Thank you, Julia! C