No Butler Here!

When I tell people that I have a butler's pantry, the first question I get (usually after a blank stare or puzzled look) is, "What is a butlers pantry?" or "Why do you have two kitchens?" I'll admit that we were asking ourselves these same questions a few years ago - I never knew such a thing existed! I had no idea what I had been missing out on until I had my very own butler's pantry. So, I thought I would take a moment and share with you one of our DIY farmhouse make-overs.

This room was the very first of our farmhouse renovations for three reasons:

1. We needed a place to make coffee

2. We needed a place to cook and keep our drinks cold

3. We needed a place to wash our nasty clothes after a day of remodeling

Why is it called a "butler's pantry" anyway? Back in the day, the butler's pantry was used to store, count and polish family heirlooms - like silver, china, and crystal - along with other dining and entertaining server ware. Sometimes the butler even slept in the room to protect these treasured belongings. Ummmm - not at my house, no butlers around here! While I would LOVE to have a butler, along with all of those wonderful things hiding in a pantry, just waiting to be pulled out on a night of entertaining guests, I simply use mine as a mini kitchen.

Our butler's pantry is right off our "main" kitchen. When we bought the farmhouse, we couldn't figure out why on earth someone would have two separate kitchens (remember when I said we were asking the same questions?!), but now I can't figure out how I ever lived without one! I love having a separate space for all the preserving and processing of our food! Not only do I use the butler's pantry to prep, can and preserve, I also use it to cook smaller meals for our family and as a place to prep and store items when we do entertain guests. This means all of the mess stays out of the main kitchen and, most importantly, hidden behind a closed door until I'm ready to clean it. Out of sight, out of mind right? I also love that I'm able to close myself up in the butler's pantry and listen to music, bake or do some prepping without any interruption.

Did you notice there is a door and a window now missing after our remodel? We took that door down to the basement since we didn't need four doors leading to the same room. The window overlooked a sunroom that we've since turned into a mother-in-law suite, so we removed it to give our sweet Memaw some privacy in her own space. While we are empty nesters, we are excited to have her as part of our family and in our home!

I still can't believe the difference when I look back at these before and after pictures. It's hard work taking on a fixer upper house, but I believe it is worth it!