Kitchen “Remodel” on a Budget!
When we bought our house (nearly 4 years ago now) I loved the layout and location and yard and so much that it had to offer. What I did not love was the color palette and dated finishings...especially in the kitchen which happens to be (like many homes) the focal point of the main floor! Our kitchen was BROWN. Like every shade of brown imaginable. 2 different browns for cabinets and hood (that's right two different brown wood options here), cherry brown hardwood floors (which are finally about to be refinished and lightened up–hooray!) and then the backsplash….wait for it...cream, brown and darker brown to accent the well….brown everywhere else. I guess we had some contrast on the walls because they were mustard...somewhat of a yellowish brown.
I did not want to spend one second on how dark and dingy it felt to me, but my husband did not want to rip anything out or spend $20-30K on a remodel for a house we were just moving into. I was 6 months pregnant with our second daughter so I also wanted the house to stay intact but to somehow look completely different! So I agreed to do a cosmetic update without ripping out cabinets or any real demo minus the backsplash…We had close to 2 weeks from the closing on our house and when we had to be out of our old house, so I got to work finding paint, tile, fixtures and an amazing couple of contractors to get it all done for under $5,000! And guess what, within a week and a half and really closer to $4,000, we had what felt like a brand new move-in-ready kitchen! What we focused on:
PAINT
First and foremost all the paint. We had the entire house painted a lovely light neutral to get rid of the mustard color as well as a fresh coat of paint on the ceilings of white. Everything brightened up and we could actually notice so much more of the natural light coming into the windows.
All kitchen cabinets, island and hood were also painted. We have black granite countertops which quite honestly were not my first choice, I wanted new beautiful white counters which would give me more options for the kitchen cabinet colors...BUT we were compromising here and the counters are nice and in great condition so I adapted. We went with all white cabinets which i do absolutely love, and then for some contrast went with grey on the hood and island. That was where I wanted to play with more color, but the harshness of black counters pulled away from a more fun color IMO. The grey felt like it mixed it up and gave contrast and dimension I wanted, but still feels classic and works with anything. The paint alone made such an insane difference!
TILE/BACKSPLASH
This HAD to go immediately. I was not sure exactly what I wanted the entire house to look like or what the exact feel would be, so I opted for a simple white subway tile with a thin line of darker grout to keep with the white grey black contrast. I have to say 4 years later, I still love it. It just gives it that light, fresh, clean feel I want in my kitchen (and with 2 small kids, a dog and a husband it's near impossible to keep it that way all the time).
LIGHTING FIXTURES
These actually came a little later after we moved in, but they were part of the plan always. I did not like the dated fixture above the table area but I wanted to wait until I found the right table and chairs for the space before choosing the fixture. Once I found our lovely white table and light cream (easy to wipe) leather chairs, I loved the black rattan look to keep with the contrast and add a little of the casual boho feel without it being over the top. Finally, we added the copper pendant lights over the countertop. There were no lights other than the recessed ceiling lights, which provided nice lighting in the kitchen, however I really wanted the decorative feature of the pendant lights. I am so glad I added these for a little extra color and dimension in the space. We are still not completely finished (who ever owns a home and is?!). We are working on the floors next and replacing the hardware on the cabinets soon as well. I don't mind what we have, but a slightly more modern pull will also make a big impact!
I have to say, every day since we have lived in this house, I look at this space we spend so much time in, and I am so happy with how it has turned out so far. I am even happier that we have been able to do other projects which i will share, as well as plan for some bigger ones coming up, thanks to doing this all on a smaller budget! The best compliment I received was our neighbors coming in to see the house after we moved in (they spend a lot of time here with the previous owners) and they thought we ripped everything out and got a brand new kitchen! It just goes to show, a little vision, and a lot of paint go a LONG way!
