Over the past two plus years I have been working on my kitchen. It is the most expensive room to remodel in the house, so I've been doing it piece by piece which is slighting difficult for the impatient (that would be me) but also very satisfying to transform the space exactly how I want it, as I can afford it. What I find to be utmost gratifying is to look at the photos of the process. I am not there yet, but I have certainly come a long way!
This is the original kitchen. It had all of the trappings of an outdated, dark room. Dropped ceilings, 30 inch cabinets top and bottom, no lighting, a dishwasher that was so old it hadn't worked in years, gold Formica countertops and beige VCT flooring.
We started by ripping down the ceiling and discovered that the upper cabinet boxes were actually 36 inches. (One of the only eureka moments in the entire renovation!) So we proceeded to remove the doors and wood slats seen in the picture above, and make new doors. On the left side was an awkward small corner wall, so we added a new glass door to add more natural light. (The original access door was off of the living room which I removed and made into a solid wall. Not pictured.)
You can see the extended height of the upper cabinets in this photo as well as the frame work for the new crown molding that will be added. I also added recessed and under cabinet lighting (on a dimmer) and two additional fixtures, one over the sink and one over the table. If you've ever tried to place lighting fixtures in a room that is not yet built, it is so tricky! I made the mistake of not centering the overhead table light properly but it's all a learning process.
As a cost saving measure I had the cabinets professionally sprayed using Benjamin Moore Aura paint in Cotton Balls and Laura Ashley's Ivy Wreath on the bottom cabinets. I was able to paint these cabinets because they were custom made and solid wood probably installed in the fifties. I got lucky here too.
This photo shows the detail of the crown and the new lighting. I also replaced this window and had it trimmed with a deeper window sill to hold a few small plants.
The floors were ripped up, the appliances replaced, and I lived this way for two months before installing the 2.25 inch white oak flooring. After the flooring was installed I continued the search for cabinet hardware which proved very difficult for these existing cabinets. If I remember correctly, it took another four months of buying and returning hinges.
After living with open cabinets for a while I could not wait for all of my kitchen stuff to be hidden by doors! If you are considering an open concept for your kitchen, I suggest you take your doors off first to be sure you can live with it.
Today my kitchen looks like this. This year I hope to add a black or dark gray Corian or engineered stone countertop, a white marble subway tile backspash, this new undercounter sink and industrial style faucet that has patiently been waiting in my garage, a new stove top and new wall oven.
And then I will focus on the furniture! I desperately want a wood farmhouse table and new chairs. And some large wall art. Stay tuned...
Images: Tanya Lacourse
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I just love this rehab. What a difference! Great, great job. I hope you're enjoying long dinners in your new space. Great job having the guts to go 2 different colors as well. I could never had done that. Kudos.
Thanks for sharing! It looks so great, and it's nice to hear about the time everything took - puts my kitchen projects in perspective and tells me to BE PATIENT. Congrats on your new lovely room.
Bravo!
Wonderful new sink and faucets!
Kudos to you for taking your time in designing and installing a kitchen you'll love at a cost you can afford.
This is such a fantastic reno not reinventing the wheel.
Love how you made the bottom cabinets green and the chairs blue. Beautiful, clean white table works well, too. Bravo.
Love it! Very refreshing.
Great JOB on your kitchen remodel. We did a blog a while back on a remodel, and what to look out for in terms of timing. I thought I would post it here in the event that your readers might find it helpful. Again, beautiful and congratulations! best regards, Paige Loczi
http://loczidesign.com/the-kitchen-remodel-low-down/
LOVE it!!! The colors are fantastic...I love the table and chairs too! I want to hang out in this kitchen. It might even inspire me to cook.
If you are considering a dark corian (or any solid surface) be aware that the darker colors show scratches as white lines. They can be very visible. Just an FYI!
We are at the very end of a 4 month renovation. It's long and costly but well worth it. Yours is lovely and bright. You did a great job. Whenever I stand back and look at mine I think it looks like I blew up a magazine picture and put it on the wall. My old kitchen was tiny and probably one of the ugliest things ever! Enjoy your lovely kitchen.
It looks a million times better. I can really relate to trying to decide on fixture placement - that's what I'm going through right now. My kitchen is currently gutted down to studs. I have no cabinets or appliances - only a laundry sink to do dishes. My "kitchen" consists of a hot plate, microwave, toaster oven and a new refrigerator (my one luxury item) that is set up in my living room (which looks pretty crappy as well). I agonized over where to put the lighting - so much that I built a full scale island out of cardboard so I could properly place the pendant fixture boxes.
Anyway, thanks for the inspiration - I will probably take me two years to get there too.
This looks great!! I'm considering a kitchen renovation myself and am always looking for inspiration like this. It's so refreshing and playful, and such a dramatic change with much more light.
My only hesitation is with regards to cited upcoming changes. Right now the look and feel of the room (at least in the photos) is light and airy with a vintage / farmhouse / cottage feel. Adding a dark gray or black counter top doesn't seem to fit, in my opinion. The contrast between the green bottom cabinets and a lighter color seems much more suitable and friendly. Just a thought!
nice job.
Nice. I love the green and white. We're taking a similar approach to our kitchen redo—very slow, partly because of budget and partly because we're doing it ourselves and trying to fit it into our schedules. We also have no master plan, so time is also necessary for making decisions.
What a swack of work! But it paid off fabulously. It looks great and the future plans sound like it will be even more fabulous. I look forward to that post.
LuLu
Simply inspiring! And I absolutely love the clean, slick color combo you chose here.
How nice to see a kitchen redo that actually has personality!
Do many new kitchens look like magazine ads.
Love it!
Love the colors!
Bon Appetit:)
did you paint the doors on the bottom or get new ones.
Nice job!
My favouite picture is the X-pen with your pooch in the kitchen. :-)
Nice job, though I don't like the blue chairs with the green cabinets that much. But in general, it looks very nice. Kudos on your patience with the whole process.
I really love your kitchen!
I love your sense of color. Your kitchen is adorable and fun. I also think it's such a testament to moving at a pace that works for you & your budget. I imagine over the course of this project you've made many thoughtful decisions because you've been patient with the process. I bet you've also savored each improvement/update as it's unfolded. Bravo!
Fabulous job! I laughed at the bit about centering a light over a nonexistent table. I had the same issue in my kitchen remodel. I suggest people go with movable lighting over freestanding furniture, so you can make microadjustments after the job is finished.
I'm always a little sad to see solid wood painted with opaque paint, though. I so like wood grain showing through. That old five-panel oak door is a good example, and looks like a treasure. Original or reused?
...oh, and between engineered stone and Corian, I think you want the visual weight and opacity of the stone. Just my opinion.
i love the little dog in the pen as part of the remodeling process :)
I think I just saw your kitchen on Pinterest earlier today. I love the two color cabinets - The upper cabinets disappear with the color choice and make the space look bigger.
Consider some of the laminate countertops at IKEA. They would look great in your kitchen.
I love it, and the best part is.... it doesn't look just like everybody elses! Great character!
Great job! I love the incremental approach, the care you've taken with choosing the details, and your reuse of the cabinets. Because of the green it has so much more personality than most, and even has a classic feel because of the age & style of your cabinets.
One of the differences with doors vs. no doors is that the light reflects the doors (doesn't get lost in the depths of the cabinets), making the space brighter.
And I love the glossy paint on the cabinets - they look steel and I thought they were until I saw your before photo. Very retro. I repainted our old steel cabinets with a high gloss white epoxy and they look brand new. I don't think I'll ever go with new cabinets from now on.
Beautiful renovation. I would love to see it when it is complete! I love the idea of a farmhouse table. I kind of agree with Mel, in that I would personally probably stick with a lighter color for the counters, maybe a medium or light gray. The brightness of the room in it's current state is so inviting. However, what ever you choose, I am sure it will look as amazing as the rest of the reno already looks! Great work!
Looks great! Of all the kitchen renovations I've seen on the Kitchn lately, this one is my favorite. Not that it's entirely my style, but I really love that you're going slow, paying as you go, and used the original cabinets. That was one ugly-ass kitchen that you started with, and you made so many simple improvements! Work with what you got :)
Such a cheerful room. Terrific job. Thanks for sharing.
Oh, wait, is that a foosball table in the original kitchen!? Gah! Hahaha
YES! Lovely and you avoided gutting it. Wonderful and sensitive re-do. Congratulations and thank you for sharing the process.
I admire your patience. I once lived through a kitchen remodel that took 6 months and understand the frustration. Most recently we remodeled our kitchen in 3 weeks. We saved up first and choose vendors that had quick turn around times.
This is my favourite kitchen reno featured on AT so far. The $60,000 kitchens are lovely to look at, but don't provide attainable inspiration and, too often, lack soul. I love that you kept the original features you could work with and injected some fun without being kitschy.
Another vote for white corian countertops and keeping those chairs!
what an original 'upcycled' kitchen! love reading stories of owners who worked with what they had to improve on it. It looks fantastic and unique!
Spectacular!!!
I love the two colored cabinets and the overall vintage feel of it. Nice work, and your patience is paying off. About the counter tops, I have to admit I'm having a hard time picturing them as black, but could very well be awesome. Have you thought about using the material in the laboratory counters? I forget what it's called, but seems like it would compliment the vintage feel.
What an incredible nod to the past while still being completely up to date! Enjoy, and thanks for sharing!
Where did you find somebody to spray paint you cabinets?
This looks fantastic. Kudos for keeping the cabinets. They don't make them like they used to, yours will last forever and they are appropriate to the house. I wish more people would consider keeping the cabinets. I love the green you chose. I also vote for white countertops instead of dark - marble, quartz, or new laminate.
I LOVE the blue chairs with the green cabinets and I've won awards for color. Great choice.
What a great transformation. A farm table is going to look great in your space. I plan to do my kitchen in the summer again. I have revamped my kitchen through the years as well but it is in need of another makeover. I will probably end of salvaging my cabinets because I am in the midst of other very costly renovations.
I love my Arctic White coran counters and white subway tiles in my kitchen. They just yell classic kitchen and are suprisingly good at hiding dirt. I miss spots sometimes. Sure you want to go with a dark counter?
That is totally gorgeous. The green & white looks so fresh together!
Personally, I'd caution against black worktops-we have black marble and whilst it looks nice, it's very difficult to know if the darn thing is clean or not. Also, as we seem to have a lot of black handles on various kitchen tools, we're always searching for things.
But I'm sure whatever you do will look gorgeous!
I like the liberal use of puppy in this renovation.
amazing, wonderful, fabulous, environmentally conscious, gorgeous. LOVED IT!
Absolutely inspirational. I am overwhelmed on a daily basis - over-committing myself to 3+ soccer teams (managing 2), 2 jobs, and updates around the house...which I never start because I'm worried I'll never have time to finish. Thank you for sharing! I love the picture idea to keep one motivated and remembering how far it's come already. I think I'll pick up that paint I have sitting by the front entry and just put a light coat on. It has to dry anyway. By summer, maybe I'll sluff of some of my other responsibilities just to conquer a long awaited home project (and maybe adopt a puppy). Thanks again! :)
Looks fabulous -- fresh and distinctive without being self-consciously "wacky" -- a kitchen that is beautiful but made for real life.
I will second the caution about the darker countertops though. I have a dark brown granite (was here when I moved in) -- it's absolutely gorgeous, and very sturdy, but it truly is hard sometimes to know if you've got it really clean. If it is the best way to get the look you want, go for it, but maybe consider some lighter options too.
love it
Love it. This project gives the middle finger to all those renovation TV shows that gut perfectly useful cabinets. Not only did you save $$$ but also saved trees.
I tried hard to keep my existing cabinets but during remodel just but particle board used in my existing cabinets crumbled while doing electrical over head and setting a beam to the sagging ceiling. Had only the previous owner used a bit more stable materials. However I kept all the good plywood doors and reusing them to make my various subfloor cubbies for wine storage. :)
Amazing post, photos and (almost) finished transformation! I'm a fan of the white subway tile, so I look forward to your updates. I think the dark countertops idea will work with your future farmhouse table.
Personally, I love those chairs, but they probably won't work with your future farmhouse table, so I'll take them off your hands when the time comes. ;)
I second the question about spray painting your cabinets. Also, did you hide the wood grain or let it show? I have no idea how to hide mine.
Very good post. Sometimes it's good to be reminded that not every reno can be done all at once, and it's ok to take your time and budget out. I am curious, how much did it cost to have someone come in and spray your cabinets?
Lol, I LOVE your chairs if you are getting rid of them! :)
What a difference! Great job.
I've done something similar in my home. We painted our cabinets and have gradually updated our appliances. It looks very similar to yours, but we did red on bottom instead or green. My husband wanted all new cabinets but we can't afford it because we have other areas in our home that also need some TLC
Love it! Great color choices!
Great job! I am just completing a kitchen renovation as well, and have that exact same faucet..... I LOVE it!!!! We're just moving back into our kitchen and still have to install backsplash tile. I need to find something that I really like first, no luck so far.
Best!
Looks great, Tanya! The only thing I would say is that I think the flat part of the crown moulding/soffit looks a bit off in proportion to the cabinets and top trim. If you added a thin strip of trim, maybe an inch or two up from the bottom of the flat part, it would break up that expanse and balance it out a bit. I can't find a great image, but the effect is done a lot in older homes. Hopefully this photo links okay, but the thin piece of trim is the type I'm thinking of:
http://wansleywoodworks.com/mouldings/02_crown_moulding_1_large.jpg
Very lovely new kitchen. Not sure I like your choices for stove top and faucet, though I like the sink and the Corian countertop. (From the links you provided; these are projects you haven't yet completed)
Wow, keep more posts like this coming. Well written, useful advice and the project was right for most people's price range.
Good stuff!
An architect friend wanted to put a child lock on the HGTV channel so his wife would stop thinking it only took a few days to do a kitchen remodel. Thanks for showing just what time and effort something like this takes, but how worthwhile it all is!
I love the colours! so nice and cheery!
I would agree that the dark counters wouldn't be my first choice. I really like the idea of the white subway tiles to keep everything looking bright and fresh and picking either a white quartz (silestone) or a light grey colour. I think adding anything dark would really take away from the bright clean feel you have going on right now (but that's just my preference).
I highly recommend Silestone over the Corian. I found the Corian was just as expensive, if not more expensive than some of the Silestone colours. Corian can be scratched and get scorches from hot items so a quartz countertop looks better for so much longer. Quartz also doesn't have to be treated every year unlike ganite and marble and it's more germ resistant.
I am so happy I picked silestone in Grey Expo. It's a nice med grey colour that looks a little like a concrete countertop and goes great with my cabinets and backsplash.
http://www.granitdesign.com/images/produits/18/portfolio/89/large-Vanit%C3%A9%20Powder%20room%20Annie-634121107776866031.png
Beautifully done! I love the cabinets..and I appreciate your detailing how long it took to actually do it all...great post.
Oh my gosh-- I thought I was looking at a nicer version of my kitchen! I have 1950s metal cabinets painted a dark green and white cabinets on top. Your glossy paint made me think you had the same cabinets. Nice work!! Where did you end up finding your cabinet hardware?
It looks pretty nice as is! Are you sure you want dark countertops?
Personally really like the look of the white countertops (even if they were replaced with a different material) but black could look nice. The green cabinets are perfect, the colour! So retro and gorgeous!
Terrific job, and so refreshing!
The green cabinets are unexpected... and fabulous.
Thanks also for putting together such a thorough documentation of the process. Very helpful and interesting to look at.
What an awesome post! I LOOOOOOVE this kitchen! I don't think you should change a thing - I thought it was finished!
Thank you thank you thank you for doing something that's not *all* white. The green looks amazeballs.
Wow, what a fantastic redo! I think it looks amazing. We had a similar kitchen set up and cabinets to your before, too. Except in our case, the dark wood circa 1968 cabinets had started to really show their age in a way that didn't really make sense to paint over so we replaced them.
We did all white, but actually toyed with the idea of green on the bottom, just like you did, so it's pretty interesting to see this!
Thank Heavens............not another all WHITE kitchen!!!!!! The colors are soulful!!!!!! Fabulous!!!!!!!!
Ned
Adorable! But I'm with the others who would discourage a dark countertop. A plain white Corian or Silestone would look great. So would butcher block, but it would change the 'feel' of the kitchen quite a bit.
I love the coloured cabinets! For some reason it gives it a 60s feels. What type of wood is the cabinet? Would it be difficult to repaint the wood if needs?
Wonderful transformation and very brave to post the in-progress photos.
Nice job! Bet you can't wait to get to the end. Have you considered butcher block for the countertops? Would bring a bit of natural wood back into the kitchen and would tie in with your farmhouse table (presumably natural wood?). You have such a nice light vibe going on that I think the dark tops would totally destroy the overall look. Why don't you cut and tape some dark paper on top of your existing counters, then stand back and have a look. I have a feeling you won't like it. Keep us posted.
I think the black (or dark gray) countertop will look amazing!
Also... maybe consider black (or dark gray) grout for the white subway tile backsplash (?)
Hope to see the final product. But it looks great already.
This looks so promising for my own kitchen. My cabinets appear the same drab and dark colour as the ones in the before photo. I feel like I can actually do something nice to my kitchen now! I'm showing this after shot to my husband this weekend...time to go reno shopping!
I love love love this!
Kudos to a job well done, great foresight and great colors...but I'm 100% in the camp that sides with no dark counter tops with your look. We have dark blue-slate Corian countertops and although they are beautiful, they show scratches really easily (and the most random objects scratch them), dull easily, and generally darken our kitchen.
And speaking of Corian...my MIL just redid her kitchen and replaced her kitchen counters and stainless sink with an all-in-one piece that includes the sink! It is seamless and beautiful. Just a thought if you are planning on replacing the counters and sink!
I really really think this is a super cute kitchen. And I like the chairs you already have...very quirky and the color of them goes great with the green and white...I'd keep 'em. ;)
Absolutely darling. Great work, you should feel really proud. :)
Love it! Very fresh! Can you tell me where you are going to vent the stove?
We're about to buy a house with a similarly dismal kitchen, and I've been despairing about whether we can really fix it ourselves. This is so heartening to see! You did a fantastic job. Thank you for sharing with us, you've given me courage.
Look beautiful as is. I don't think you need to change the color of the countertop. I like the green that you picked and I do like the blue chairs with the green. I love that yellow bread box.
I love what you've done so far! We have that style of faucet on our wish list for when we do our kitchen.
Fabulous! I love how bright it now is and those color choices are beautiful. Great job!
Congratulations. Job well done...so far...and interesting reading. I completely agree with your comment about "living with your cabinet doors removed"...a really good investment in time to translate a "look" from a photo into real life.
When I saw the "Before" picture and read the lead-in I was expecting to see granite countertops and stainless steel appliances in the "After" picture. Was I ever happy to be wrong! You are doing an amazing renovation. I hope we get to see the "After After" pictures, too.
Great story, and helpful tips. I put in black recycled glass countertops with an undercounter black sink and LOVE IT SO MUCH. I mean, I really love those countertops and the sink. But I agree w/other posters about them perhaps not being the best choice here in this bright and beautiful and colorful kitchen.
Amazing transformation and I LOVE how you kept the vintage style. I love your kitchen table and chairs.
Your kitchen is AMAZING! I love the colors you've done on the cabinets!
Nice to see this beautiful transformation. I love how the style remained traditional yet the colours are bright and modern. Maybe you could also conceal your kitchen appliances to make the space feel even bigger.
I also have original custom solid-wood cabinets, and I'm halfway through painting the 40+ cabinet doors. These cabinets will last forever -- it's so sad to think of generations' worth of homes that will only know the particle-board cabinets (which will be thrown out into the landfill two or three times before the solid-wood cabinets wear out). Your colors are inspirational, and I join those who vote for keeping the light-colored countertops. At least settle on your table before you switch the counters. I like the blue of the chairs, but can see how the metal frames might not be as comfortable as you'd like. Overall, a perfect transformation, and you should be proud.
It's encouraging to see a kitchen done in stages for those of us who don't have a big remodeling budget. This kitchen is beautiful and will inspire me as I consider my own. I'd love to see an update.