Modern Kitchen Makeover on a Budget

Once upon a time…about 2 years ago, the hubs and I set out on one of our infamous “Model Home Dates.” See more of those here & here. It was February in Michigan and we were looking for something to do.

I learned a valuable lesson that day. Just “looking” at model homes is sort of like going to the Animal Shelter “just looking” at the puppies. One casual trip to the humane society and dude, you’re coming home with a dog.

Now, this does not in any way diminish my absolute L-O-V-E of Model Homes Or the fun date that they’ve become. It just means I need to prep myself in one of 2 ways.

Scenario A: “You’re JUST looking, dreaming and gathering ideas for your ‘someday home.’”

Scenario B: “With enough spray paint and Frog Tape anything in this house is achievable for $6.00”

Well, I had my “B” goggles on that day and in rare form, so did my Mr. Our style has evolved over the years and we were ready to take our kitchen from Tuscan to Modern Glam in one foul swoop. Liiiittttllleee did we know that one foul swoop would be 4 months of called in favors, epic amounts of saw dust, a completely non-functional kitchen and having my oven live in our entry way. For. Realz.

But that fateful Saturday night in May, with every cabinet door proudly back in place, we looked at each other and both said “SO worth it.”

That being said, here’s our journey from Oak to Kona, Tuscan to Glam. Hope it gives your No Small Life some inspiration. Even on an tight budget, if you’re willing to put in the work, you can make a MAJOR impact.

Here’s where we started. We were blessed enough to inherit granite counter tops and a tile back splash from the previous owner. NOW, if we were choosing our own counter and back splash, as lovely as this is, this wouldn’t be our first choice.  It’s a little too yellow for us BUT my mama raised me right and I will NOT complain about granite, SO love it we will…..BUT, I wouldn’t mind changing the back splash eventually. Stainless Steel Subway Tile anyone? Yes please.

Here is the cutest Mr. Fix-it you ever did see. My husband and a couple of our ah-mazing friends were rock stars with this project. I basically owe them steak dinners on demand for the rest of their adult lives.

We learned a TON by redoing this kitchen. First, if you’re re-staining your cabinets, you will be sanding ‘til the cows come home. Make sure you cover everything! We hung sheets and plastic tarps in our doorways and covered our counters with brown butcher paper. Also, if you’re keeping any window treatments, give those bad boys a vacation until you’re done.

Second, be prepared to live in chaos for a while. It comes with the reno territory. I declared a few rooms in our house “reno free zones.” I was sort of a dictator about it, but I wanted our bedroom, bathrooms and our basement to be crazy clean and organized during this time. We needed a few places to retreat for sanity sake, everything else was a free for all lol. Its only a season…I said over and over and over 😉

And one that was well worth it, because now…

We can have a dance party in our kitchen every day.

I fell in love with that light fixture on amazon and quickly pinned it to my “Kitchen” board.  When I bought it I had no idea it would transform my kitchen into what my high-school Spanish Teacher would’ve lovingly referred to as a “disco tech” BUT once I got over the initial sparkly shock, I was smitten.

The light fixture above our sink was a steal at Costco believe it or not!

The cabinet stain color is called “Kona.”  It’s photographing a little darker than it actually is. It’s a rich coffee brown, but still allows you to see the wood grain and a little variance in color.

We also learned that if you go the staining route for you cabinets, recruit some help from someone who knows what they’re doing.  Thankfully, we have a friend who loves that sort of thing.  So. Grateful.

And if you’ll look to your right…

Tulips make me feel like Spring is just a little bit closer.

This buffet counter is a great space for serving AND for holding the BEST VALENTINES DAY CARD EVER!

#CracksMeUp

And lastly here’s a little venture into our Dining Room.  Read all about that transformation, including the flooring & the wall color debacle, here.

Thanks for stopping by! And if you want to see what I’ve been whipping up in my kitchen lately, check out these Quick Roasted Veggies!

Until Next Time,

Meg

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