“Outdated” Oak Cabinets Got a Serene Blue Makeover for Under $2,000
DIY content creator Kathleen Martin learned firsthand that it takes a lot of work and time to “make a house a home,” as she puts it. She and her husband are renovating their first home, a labor of love that has so far produced gorgeous rewards. One room in particular they’ve transformed is their kitchen — which wasn’t always so picture-perfect.
“My kitchen before was a wreck! Everything was outdated, nonfunctional, and filthy,” Kathleen admits. “I knew I needed more countertop space, a dishwasher, and an updated design.”
She Didn’t Need a Large Budget to Complete Her Ideal Updates
When dreaming up her new kitchen, it was important to Kathleen to create a space that was “bright on a budget.” She believes major updates shouldn’t require major price tags, and that paint can be your best friend in transforming a space — she painted basically every inch of her kitchen.
Nothing Got Replaced, Everything Was Simply Upgraded with Paint — Including the Ceiling
Kathleen kicked off the kitchen design by creating a mood board. Carefully considering several paint samples and thoroughly reviewing a color fan deck led her to choose Fusion Mineral Paint’s Champness for the oak cabinets and trim. A darker shade of blue (Clare’s “Good Jeans”) was painted on the ceiling, too.
“For the backsplash, I kept it simple by painting it white. I then used a dark gray paint pen to go over the grout lines,” Kathleen explains. “The floor was a huge eyesore before. It’s the type of linoleum that looks dirty no matter how clean it is. I painted it white and used a stencil to create a faux tile look. I made sure to seal it well, and it’s lasted beautifully for the past three years.”
One Half of the Kitchen Didn’t Have Cabinets, So She DIYed It
One side of the kitchen previously only had a stove and fridge, but no counter. With the help of her husband, Kathleen added cabinets from The Home Depot and wood countertops — but you’d never guess that they came directly from a tree. She painted them to mirror marble and covered them with epoxy.
She painted over her fridge and dishwasher to complement the blue hues, too (a decision that Kathleen admits has been quite controversial on social media). The last big project in the kitchen was opening up a wall to create an open archway into the dining room.
The Unique Blue Kitchen and Added Counter Space Was Worth the 2-Year Renovation
“I love how much more functional my kitchen is now,” Kathleen shares. “By adding in two new lower cabinets, we created so much more counter space. I also love that it’s unique — you don’t see that many light blue kitchen cabinets, so I like that it’s a little unexpected.”
It took around two years to complete the entire renovation (they worked in stages and on nights and weekends), and if Kathleen had to guess, she’d say the project cost under $2,000 in total. One of the biggest money savers was that Kathleen and her husband did much of the work themselves.
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This post originally appeared on The Kitchn. See it there: Before & After: “Outdated” Oak Cabinets Get a Serene Blue Makeover (for Under $2,000!)