Kitchen Makeover On a Budget

Almost two weeks ago, I asked Scott if we could do a household project.  It was the my-two-youngest-kids-are-off-working-at-summer-camps-what-am-I-going-to-do-with-myself-survival idea.  You have to approach these things carefully, at just the right moment, when the stars are aligned and the phases of the moon are perfect.  Not to mention you must have all the details logically in place along with proof of how we are going to pay for it. A lesser woman would have been intimidated.  Not me.  Twenty three years with this man have proved to be helpful. I came prepared.  I had answers to every question and pretty much left him with only one option - to say yes.  I nailed it.

Here's the thing.  Since we have moved into this house, I have had ambivalent feelings about the kitchen.  I like the size, but hate the floors.  I like how many cupboards we have (23 to be precise) but can't stand how dark, scratched and old looking they are.  I love the pantry but can't handle the white countertops and white backsplash that is the same material as the countertop and covers the entire wall up to the cupboards.  Blech.  And do I need to mention how I feel about electrical outlets and switches?  These were disgusting, beige and grimy.  Eww.

Yes, I said were.  Scott and Drew got on board and in six days (I gave them a Sunday off) and for about $100 we gave our kitchen a whole new look.  Here's the before and after pics.  Please note the dark, dank nature of the kitchen and the white backsplash.  HATE.IT.  And then the transformation.

Eww....aren't those cabinets awful?  Depressing?

Kind of worn looking? Can you see why I didn't love it?

Even this yellow paint color suddenly doesn't look so good.

While Scott and I went to Home Depot, Drew took down all 23 cabinet doors and removed each one's hardware.  He's such a good boy.  We started with a cabinet transformation kit made by Rust-o-leum.  Color:  Quilter's White.  It's actually cream colored.

Good thing we have a ping pong table and many card tables to handle all those cupboard doors.  We followed all the instructions to a T including waiting for all the drying times....and wa-la!  Finished.

Aren't they fabulous?  So clean, crisp and bright!  It wasn't even difficult.  We highly recommend the kit. But you see the problem don't you?  The color of the cabinets is too similar to the color of the countertops/backsplash.  Too much white!  Bland.  Vanilla.  Boring.  I bet you're starting to feel sorry for Scott.

We thought about the Rustoleum countertop transformation kit, but it was a little pricey and quite scary to be honest.

I've always wanted to tear those backsplashes off the wall, but my reasonable husband didn't think that was prudent, "Who knows what's behind there and what bigger project it will become?"  In other words...$$$$.  Because I'm older and wiser, I decided not to whine and pout to get my way.  Instead, I would let him make the decision. I'm growing.

We were kind of out of ideas though. So we left it the way it was.  For a day.  Then, as we drove along running errands, a thought popped into my head.  Not so unlike me, I blurted it out before thinking about what he would say.  "How about contact paper?"  As soon as I said, it I sort of laughed. I expected immediate rejection and possible ridicule. Admittedly, it's a little redneck-ish. Much to my surprise, Scott said, "That's a great idea!".  Wow.  I smiled smugly.  I mean humbly, but proud of myself.  Yes, yes it is a great idea. We drove to Walmart. A few minutes later we came out with a subtle print of contact paper.  Just something to break up the white and bring a little texture.

Just before we began, Scott smiled and said, "This is really a brilliant idea." Did he say brilliant? What an upgrade from 'great'.  I basked in that for a while.  You'll notice I did not take pictures of the process of measuring, cutting, smoothing, smoothing, peeling back, smoothing, peeling back, and smoothing yet again that took us MANY hours to do.  It was a marriage building experience.  I didn't talk much.  See how I'm growing?  I did, perhaps foolishly ask him at one point if it was still a brilliant idea.   He said yes! Maybe he's growing too.

I am not sure if these pictures show just how great these backsplashes look now.

And can you see how beautiful and sparkly white that outlet is?  Wow. I'm so happy!

 Don't look at the floor.  That wasn't in the budget at this time.  It's next.

Clean.  New.  Sharp.  Except for one thing. Of course, the yellow wall paint had to go. Man did that clash!  Did I mention this taupe is now the third color for this kitchen in the 18 months we've lived here?  A girl can change her mind - no judging!  I didn't know how to bring it up.  So I sheepishly said once when we weren't making eye contact, "I have something to say and I don't know how to bring it up."  To which he replied, "Don't tell me....now you want to repaint the walls too?"  Mind readers.  This is why you must stick it out in marriage so you can get to this point.  It's rewarding.

 Maybe someday we can replace the white appliances too, but I'm content with these for now.

Here you can kind of see how well this contact paper gives texture.  Did I mention it only cost $10 to solve that problem?  What a bargain!

another white outlet - happiness

Yes, it's finished and we love it.  It's so warm and cozy.  Not to mention bright.  I want to be in there every minute.  Drew said, "It makes me want to keep it clean all the time."  Amen.

My friends who have seen it in person all say, "You have to pin this idea."  Of course, they mean the redneck contact paper.  I'm actually kind of surprised I didn't see it on there to begin with.  If you have loads of patience and don't give up easily, you can apply it with no bubbles.  I could never have done it without Scott's long suffering.

Come on over and see for yourself.   I'll make you a cup of coffee and we can hang out in there awhile.