Kitchen
When updating our kitchen, we really had to think through where we wanted to spend our money to get the biggest impact. New countertops, an enlarged island and new appliances were at the top of our list.
Let's start from the beginning...
This is what our kitchen looked like on day one. Completely gutting the kitchen was not an option so we had to make some decisions about what we wanted to keep, and what we needed to upgrade.
Why is the island so small?
The first thing we noticed when we walked into the kitchen was that we had all this space and such a small island in it. We knew that when getting new countertops, we would be expanding that island and adding extra seating around it. We kept the original cabinet and added on to it to create the new island.
Time to paint!
We kept all of the original cabinets. Since I was busy laying the new flooring (a much bigger task than I had thought it would be!), we hired out the painting of the cabinets. This was honestly the best decision for us. During the process, I also replaced all the hinges and drawer slides with soft close features, then updated the hardware. We even added pendant lighting above the island where the can lighting had been.
It's all coming together...
It was the best feeling to see it all coming together. The cabinets were painted, the island was stained, the new countertops were in and the new appliances were installed! We finally had a functional kitchen again. And as exciting as that is, we still were not done.
What to do with this built in cabinet...
This cabinet sits in the corner of the kitchen, by our table. I really struggled with what to do with it. I knew that I didn’t want to leave it as it was, even painted white. However, one day we had the idea to turn it into a coffee bar. I removed the dish rack and removed the shelf in the middle. I wanted a small platform to set the espresso machine on so I built that out before tiling the middle section. I finished it off by adding a dowel rod towards the top to hang coffee mugs from. I love the way it turned out! It was definitely the best decision for that space without tearing into the walls!
One last detail...
The kitchen only had can lighting when we moved in. Adding light fixtures to a space is a great way to add a design element and elevate the space. I found this chandelier from Pottery Barn and knew it would be perfect for the kitchen. Maybe one day I will get brave enough to refinish the Pottery Barn table under it!
Kitchen Photo Gallery
Before and after photos as well as a look at the work as it was completed.
