It All Started With Some Counter Tops...
Life really is crazy, my friends. You never know where it might take you. One day you are plugging along, doing the things you have always done, and the next day, everything can change. We have been getting really good at dealing with change around here, some good, some bad, some easy, some hard. Maybe changing everything in our house was a subconscious choice, because I needed to feel like I had control over something, I'm not sure, but it has been fun... Mostly!
Let's backtrack a bit... Okay, more than that. Let's backtrack 5 1/2 years. This house was ugly. Especially the kitchen. Here's a pic:
We painted the walls, changed the hideous floor, and replaced the light fixtures, and eventually even got new appliances. It was much better, and I could live with it, but I HATED the counter tops. (Forgive my lack of photography skills.)
I said over, and over, that they would be the first thing to change in the future. Fast forward a few years, and they were still here, and I still hated them. Only I hated them worse than I thought. They weren't just ugly, the finish was ruined. They were permanently sticky, and stained, and hard to clean. I told Brandon it was time to get serious about changing them. After saving for a while, and then asking for money to put towards new counter tops instead of birthday and Christmas gifts from our parents, we got new counter tops last July. Beautiful, beautiful counter tops. I BLAME THEM FOR ALL OF THIS =)
Now, I feel the need to add a disclosure. I know, somebody out there is wondering what we were thinking. You know we have been struggling with unemployment over the last few years, and you might be thinking that we could not afford to re-decorate. I want you to know that when we got started, things were fine. We had purchased the majority of the supplies when things were going well. I sold the decor I didn't want anymore, and used that money to replace it. I have gotten very good at buying used, and making it my own. You may have noticed that I have been refinishing a lot of furniture, but I can paint a lot of things. I have made some extra that way too... I am going to start using my blog to showcase some of my work, but that is for another post. The point is, you can decorate on a tight budget. In fact, I dare say, I did it for free. Even earned money along the way. You can too!
Anyway, this post is about the kitchen. The rest of the rooms will be coming soon after, since we didn't stop there. I wanted to finally share our kitchen "After" pictures, though, it is not done. Is anything ever "done" when it comes to houses? It is as close as it is going to get for a while, because I haven't found all the right things, and some of it has to be saved for. Here is a list of what we have done so far, and what I would like to do eventually:
Kitchen Project
Let's backtrack a bit... Okay, more than that. Let's backtrack 5 1/2 years. This house was ugly. Especially the kitchen. Here's a pic:
I said over, and over, that they would be the first thing to change in the future. Fast forward a few years, and they were still here, and I still hated them. Only I hated them worse than I thought. They weren't just ugly, the finish was ruined. They were permanently sticky, and stained, and hard to clean. I told Brandon it was time to get serious about changing them. After saving for a while, and then asking for money to put towards new counter tops instead of birthday and Christmas gifts from our parents, we got new counter tops last July. Beautiful, beautiful counter tops. I BLAME THEM FOR ALL OF THIS =)
They were lovely, but suddenly, everything else was wrong. Everything was ORANGE. The oak cabinets, the counters, the back splash, the caramel colored walls, even the window valances... I couldn't take it... And it all exploded from there. We painted the cabinets, but then the walls had to go, so we painted the walls, and that meant all the rooms had to be painted, and at that point, none of the decor matched. So there you have it. Everything changed!
Now, I feel the need to add a disclosure. I know, somebody out there is wondering what we were thinking. You know we have been struggling with unemployment over the last few years, and you might be thinking that we could not afford to re-decorate. I want you to know that when we got started, things were fine. We had purchased the majority of the supplies when things were going well. I sold the decor I didn't want anymore, and used that money to replace it. I have gotten very good at buying used, and making it my own. You may have noticed that I have been refinishing a lot of furniture, but I can paint a lot of things. I have made some extra that way too... I am going to start using my blog to showcase some of my work, but that is for another post. The point is, you can decorate on a tight budget. In fact, I dare say, I did it for free. Even earned money along the way. You can too!
Anyway, this post is about the kitchen. The rest of the rooms will be coming soon after, since we didn't stop there. I wanted to finally share our kitchen "After" pictures, though, it is not done. Is anything ever "done" when it comes to houses? It is as close as it is going to get for a while, because I haven't found all the right things, and some of it has to be saved for. Here is a list of what we have done so far, and what I would like to do eventually:
Kitchen Project
Granite Counter TopsGlass Tile Back splashAdd Extra Pantry CabinetAdd Island TrimPaint and Antique CabinetsPaint WallsTrade Some DecorCrown Molding- Window Treatments
- New Flooring
Here are the photos. I am a terrible photographer as usual, but you get the gist. I am loving the kitchen now. What a difference!
And, finally, the afters...
P.S. If you noticed the hutch by the table... It's not complete. It's one of the many projects I am working on. Can't wait to share!! Also, things are going well on the job front. We are hoping that we can finally settle in and settle into a routine.
Thanks for reading!
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