My Whole Kitchen Modern Makeover

After about 7 months of progressive work, I FINALLY finished my kitchen makeover!! Renovating your kitchen is a lot of work, especially if you plan on doing most of the work yourself. When we watch HGTV or other home improvement channels, we often see shows on which kitchens are transformed before your eyes within 30 minutes or an hour, but the reality is that the time-lapse doesn't often show you all the sweat and work needed. And of course I didn't do everything all at once. I spent a lot of evenings and weekends doing a little here, a little there until I got it all done. Some weekends I didn't want to even do anything, lol. However, despite all the work it took, I am more than delighted with the final project.

Why did I make over my kitchen in the first place?

Well, everything in my kitchen annoyed me - the cabinet colors, the paint, the appliances, the old sink, the floors...lol, shall I go on? But as a homeowner, one of the things I've learned is that you should decide what you need to fix on your home that would make you happy/love your home you are in, and work on that. With that "to do list" you have to prioritize, of course. In my house there was a long list of things that I didn't like, and the kitchen was definitely on that list, so of course it was a priority.

I'll show you the various projects I worked on and how I pulled it all together. I worked on 7 major projects to complete my kitchen makeover:

1. Cabinets
2. Paint
3. Countertops
4. Flooring
5. Appliances
6. Lighting
7. Backsplash

In later posts I can give more step-by-step tutorials, but I would like to use this blog post to showcase the dramatic before-after of my kitchen with these 7 projects.

1. Cabinets
First, I HATED the color of the kitchen - It was brown-on-brown-on-brown. Bleh. Not my aesthetic and it didn't tie into the rest of the room (i.e living room and dining room). So I first decided to tackle the cabinets which I painted myself! I painted them in BEHR Premium Plus Ultra interior paint (Satin sheen) in the color Ultra Pure White, which you can find at the Home Depot. Cabinet painting tutorial coming soon!

I kept the same hardware, but added cup pulls on the drawers to give it more of a dramatic effect. I only have 3 drawers, so it wasn't very expensive. I got them from target here. 

2. Paint
The kitchen was painted in a hideous pistachio that had to go, FAST! I painted the kitchen in my signature grey and now it feels modern and airy in the kitchen.

Before

3. Granite Countertops
I replaced the hideous beige formica counters with this gorgeous granite in Luna Pearl. This is a mixture of white, gray and black specks, which was perfect for the color scheme I was going for. And I got it for a great price!

Here's a tip for getting a great deal on granite: instead of going to a formal show room, lookup local granite shops or distributors. It might not be fancy, but if they can do a good job, you'll save a ton of money. A quick google maps search will tell you where they are. But get a few quotes on price per square foot before you decide. But just know that you will usually have to pay for things like cutting out the sink plumbing, removing the old counters, and disposal. You also need to schedule a plumber once they're done to reconnect the plumbing.

After you get a quote you can have them come to your home to measure and give you a written estimate. You don't even need to complete the job right away. I waited 3 months after getting my quote to save money to pay for the granite. Don't feel like you need to rush.

Before

4. Flooring
I actually had to change my floors because of water damage. And now that I think about it, I think the thought of replacing my floors is what motivated me to makeover my kitchen in the first place. My choice of flooring was hard because my countertops were quite busy, and I wanted to find a color that complemented it that didn't break the bank. I landed on this engineered hardwood in this beautiful Brazilian oak from Lumber Liquidators.

Before

5. Appliances
Man, am I glad those hideous black appliances are gone! I hated them with a passion. Luckily, I got a great deal on these at a Labor Day sale. If you want cheap appliances, you won't necessarily find the best prices at large home improvement stores. You're likely better off going to smaller specialty stores, or in my case, Brandsmart. They might not be the latest model, but they'll have lots of packages that are way more affordable.

Before

Before

6. Lighting
Y'ALL!! Look at my snazzy stainless steel that I got on clearance at Lowe's for only $50!! (News flash, it's no longer at that price - Sorry!!) It's in the Allen+Roth brand, which I find to be both stylish and affordable. This fixture has 6 bulbs and is huge - which is perfect for my large kitchen. I put in some daylight bulbs so it's nice and bright in there compared to the ugly wrap light (builder grade) that I had before. And yes, I also installed this light fixture myself. 

Before

7. Tile Backsplash
Last, but not least was my tile backsplash. I also installed this myself, which is why it took me a month (working on the weekends) to complete. Would you believe me if I told you that it cost me about ~$36 to complete this backsplash project? I decided to go with a 6 x3 inch white subway tile in a running bond pattern. I finished it with a light gray grout, which pulls it all together. Like with the cabinet painting, I'll do a whole separate post on how to do tile backsplash - it's super easy!

Before

I am very happy with how the kitchen turned out. And I'm overwhelmed at how starkly different it looks from the old kitchen. Cooking and spending time in the kitchen is about to be lit from now on!

Have you done a kitchen project recently or are you hoping to do a kitchen project soon? If so, let me know in the comments below?

Until the next adventure,
​~T