I finally have some photos to share with you of what we've been up to in our kitchen. Of course, this whole project took much longer than we expected (what DIY project doesn't), but I'm happy with what we have accomplished. There are still things I want to change, but for now, it's a HUGE improvement!
Here's a before - I had to go back into my photo archives (2004 to be exact) to find a before shot! I've avoided taking any pictures in the kitchen for so long because I really disliked the look that much! Here it is in all it's oak, formica, and red brick glory!
My guess is that my husband was making peanut butter fudge that day from the ingredients on the countertop. Basically, the cabinets were a golden oak with brass hardware, a cream colored formica countertop, stainless sink and faucet, red brick backsplash, and bisque colored stove and hood. Now do you see why I haven't shared any pictures of this area!
Here's the after.
Here's what we did: We painted the upper and lower cabinets, added crown molding to the upper cabinets, removed the metal range hood and built a new one with a shelf, new faucet in oil rubbed bronze, and DIY concrete countertops. Oh, I almost forgot, I white washed the brick!
I chose the Benjamin Moore Advance paint in a satan finish for the cabinets. It does have a 15 hour drying time between coats, but the finish is more durable, like if you used an oil based paint. For the upper cabinets, we used Benjamin Moore Edgecomb Gray (in our house, it looks more like a cream color). I had also used this color to paint my corner cabinet and it is also the background color of my stenciled wall in the adjoining dining room. The main wall color in the rest of the space is Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter.
The lower cabinets were painted with Benjamin Moore Black (again, in our home, this looks more like a dark charcoal. I had originally painted the lower cabinets in Benjamin Moore Wrought Iron, but in our house, it gave off a green undertone (which I did NOT want). After a few samples, I went with the BM Black and it is exactly the charcoal color I was going for.
We added bead board wallpaper to the sides of the cabinets, updated the pulls to oil rubbed bronze, but I spray painted the hinges with Rustoleum ORB spray paint to save some money. I've used the spray paint on other fixtures in the past and it holds up incredibly well.
The DIY concrete countertops took the most time, but I have to say that I really do like how they turned out. We kept the original concrete color because it looked so good with the cabinet colors we chose. I'll be sharing how we did the countertops in few days! If we can do this, so can you!
The other thing that is such a big improvement is the range hood that Mark built. To white wash the brick, I watered down some white paint and gave it a few coats. The brick was here when we moved in and I have wanted to get rid of it; but I'm kind of liking it now with the painted cabinets and concrete countertops.
There are still things I would like to change in the kitchen - the electric range for one and the stainless sink for another - but that will have to wait a bit. For now, I am happy with the transformation and can't wait to add some decorative touches! I kept these pictures pretty bare bones on purpose so you could see the space without too many distractions.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on our kitchen makeover so far.
Next, the winner of the "Be Ye Thankful" pillow cover is #39, Barbara Barnes! Congrats, Barbara!
Also, if you entered the Black Friday Giveaway, that winner has been chosen and contacted as well! Thanks to everyone who entered!
Finally, I wanted to let you know that I've closed my Etsy shop for the week. I've been swamped with orders the past four weeks (which is a good thing), but I really need some time to get my house ready for Christmas. I'm participating in the All Things Home "Home for the Holidays" Tour this year and can't wait, but have to deck the halls this week so I'm ready!
Thanks for stopping by today and I hope your week is off to a great start!
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