Kitchen Remodel: Cabinets

Yesterday after I posted, I realized that I never wrote about what we did to the cabinets. For years, we've talked about painting them but never actually got around to do it because we knew what a HUGE job it would be. We had painted our much smaller cabinets in both of the bathrooms and that was a chore. So, when we got to thinking about the kitchen, we thought we'd save some time and buy new doors and drawers that didn't need to be painted. Bryan, my contractor brother-in-law, helped us order some beadboard shaker doors and drawer fronts. They are made of RTF rather than natural wood but seem to be very durable. The best part is that they have texture and color already on them. It saved so much time and they look great. Thanks Bryan!


The cabinet boxes were in decent shape, so we decided to color-match the paint at Dunn-Edwards. They did a great job and even gave us Papa Jack's discount. (Thanks Dad!) The painting was time-consuming -- it required washing, sanding, priming and two coats of paint. I didn't want to be around the fumes too much so it was great that Grandma and Papa Randy were here that weekend to help too. Once that was done, we thought we were close to being done -- just hang the doors and install the glides for the boxes. Um, well that takes much longer than you'd think it does. Plus, Brett has held off on installing some of the doors to make it easier to get under the cabinets to install the countertop. But, I think we're getting close to seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

Kitchen Remodel Update: Countertops

Last week we were down in San Diego for a conference that Brett needed to attend for school. It was a lovely week of doing nothing but swimming, shopping and getting some sun...at least for me and Ella. Uncle Jace even stopped by one afternoon for lunch and swimming. After the conference, we stopped briefly in Santa Clarita to see Grandma, Papa Randy, Nanna AND the Great Aunt Cass who was visiting from Minnesota. Now, it's back to reality and the neverending kitchen remodel. It feels like we've been doing this forever -- and I'm not really doing much work! Poor Brett has done the vast majority of the work thus far.

This Sunday, Brett's parents came up for the afternoon to help us make some more progress. Before San Diego we had finished painting the cabinet boxes, and Brett had installed some of the cabinet doors. It was enough progress on the cabinets that we could start cutting and installing the wood countertops. But, Brett needed some help with that so Papa Randy lent his expertise and Grandma even assisted with holding the countertop. I pretty much stayed out of their way and worked on cutting the shelf paper to size. Even that took what seemed like forever!



So, as of now the countertops are cut but still need to be installed. We needed to figure out what to do for the backsplash...none of the options we had previously discussed sounded like they would be the perfect thing. So, right now, we're just planning on painting the walls and then putting down some trim where the countertop meets the wall to cover up that small gap. Of course, it requires patching the wall a bit where the cheap laminate "backsplash" used to be. Right now, our patch job is drying as I type. Later tonight after Ella is in bed, I'll break out the "Highland Moss" green paint and the roller. We figure, if we don't love the way the wall turns out, we can find another backsplash option at a later date that works better. In the meantime, the painted wall will be better than a damaged one. So, if all goes well, Brett just may be able to install at least some of the countertops tomorrow. Once that is done, he'll be able to put the drawers in and more of the doors on. I think once that is done, we'll feel like we've accomplished something.

Kitchen Remodel: Lighting

A few months ago, Brett & I decided to take our tax refund and remodel our kitchen. When we moved in four years ago, the kitchen seemed 1,000 times better than our 1970's apartment kitchen complete with an avocado colored stove. However, now that we've lived here for awhile, we noticed that our late 80's kitchen was starting to show its age. I think the cabinets were originally the cheapest of the cheap so now 18 years later the veneer was starting to chip off, drawers wouldn't slide easily, etc. Plus, the laminate countertop was starting to lift at a seam and the sink has lost its luster. So, we came up with a plan to remodel on a budget. Of course, we haven't exactly stuck to the budget but it should end up being a reasonably priced remodel considering what some people spend on their kitchens. Here are some "before" pictures of the kitchen.




Originally, we had planned to update the cabinets, countertop, sink/faucet and stove. I hadn't even thought of lighting, but I've learned that the Piersmas are really into good lighting. They are also big fans of the dimmer switch. So, of course, Brett really wanted to get rid of the florescent lighting. We have a soffit that we could have taken out but that would have required far more expertise and work than we had/wanted to do. So, instead Brett (with some assistance from Papa Randy) did a lighting remodel that included:

removed the existing lights

installed two old-rubbed bronze track lights with tea-stained shades

finished the look with beadboard and molding

installed a recessed light over the sink

AND added a dimmer switch for all of the kitchen lighting

We also purchased some under-cabinet lighting (with a dimming feature of course) that Brett will install once we're done with the cabinets. Here are a few pics of the finished lighting. They don't quite do it justice, but they'll have to do until you all can see them in person.



We've made significant progress on the cabinets since Brett got back from camp. However, they are not quite camera-ready yet. I'll do another post when we get further along. We're headed to a conference in a couple of days, so the remodel may drag on for a couple more weeks. I can't wait until I have a nice, new kitchen that I can actually cook in!