Got Extra Laminate Countertop Pieces Left Over?

I hate to waste anything. So when I wound up with two extra pieces of my post form laminate counter I racked my brain for ideas.

The light switches next to the pantry had to be placed much further into the wall then I planned for because of some over zealous beam placement. That unfortunately made it necessary to switch the sizes of some of the cabinets, leaving me with a sixteen inch space between the pantry and the door.

I had initially thought I'd put my dog's bowls there, but it turned out placing them at the opposite end of the kitchen worked better. That's when I realized cutting a few inches off of one of the pieces of laminate would make great extra counter space.

I screwed a brace into the pantry and onto the wall. It seemed sturdy enough, but I was worried that my daughter would inherit my weird habit of sitting on counters, and added a Stilig bracket which I found in the IKEA as-is room for $3. Then I ironed on the end cap over the bracket so it wasn't so prominent looking.

Now my daughter's stool has a place to be while not in use and a counter to stick empty bottles on when I forget to leave my recycling bins by the side door.

Ignore all that crap on the opposite counter. I'll get the kitchen cleaned up one of these days.