Kitchen Upgrade on a Small Budget
One of the spaces in my home that was definitely lack-luster was my kitchen. Now don’t get me wrong, I feel very thankful that we were able purchase a new builder grade home (back in 2003). But, when the numbers were crunched, we did not have any extra for upgrades. When we moved in, I knew one of the first places that needed an update was our kitchen.
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Paint
I painted my kitchen 4 different colors before I realized that paint alone was not going to fix this problem. What was the problem? Beige!!! The counter tops, the flooring, and the walls were all boring beige. We had a very limited selection of choices with our builder and this was before I knew anything about Interior Design. Well flash forward a few years and I was going to tackle this problem head on. The wall color I settled on was Sherwin-Williams Riverway 6222 in Satin. It provided just the right amount of contrast with my white cabinets.
Countertops
The main problem in my kitchen were the counter tops. I know it is hard to believe, but this was a pretty inexpensive project.  Before I began, I watched tutorials online. I also read the directions that came with Rust-Oleum Transformations thoroughly. During the project I needed help and I received excellent customer service. The first step was to remove my sink. Then I pulled out the appliances and covered everything with plastic, including the cupboards. I also hung plastic from the ceiling to prevent dust from covering my whole house. You can purchase Rust-Oleum Transformations at Home Depot. I used 2 of their kits since I had so much counter space to cover. You can find the tutorial here. Just an FYI, we still have them and they are holding up well after 5 plus years.
Beadboard/Backsplash
The next part of this makeover was adding a new sink and faucet followed by a beadboard back splash. I purchased the large sheets of beadboard and then cut them to size followed by some trim molding to cover the edges. They were already primed, so I finished them off with paint to match my cabinets. I followed the same process to wrap the back and sides of my island with beadboard. Then I added base molding.  There is a small area between the stove and microwave where I put brushed stainless subway peel and stick tiles.
Flooring/Hardware
I updated the drawers with bin pulls and the cupboard doors with knobs in brushed nickel.  Over all I’m very happy with the way it all came out. Those beautiful appliances came a few years later. We installed our flooring soon after the kitchen was done. It is Pergo XP, Hand Sawn Oak. Just an FYI, I love the flooring and it is holding up very well.
To be honest, I didn’t tackle all of these projects at once. I did them one at a time over two years. Mostly because I did them myself and had a huge learning curve throughout the process. Thanks for checking out my kitchen update!
List of resources:
Paint Color –Â Riverway 6222,Satin –Â Sherwin-Williams
Countertops –Â Rust-Oleum Transformations – Home Depot
Sink & Faucet – Home Depot
Beadboard – Home Depot
Bin Pulls & Knobs – Brushed Nickel – Lowes
Stainless subway peel and stick tiles – Home Depot
Appliances – Lowes
Bar Stools – Target
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