This is a story of dreams becoming a reality, and walking out of the darkness and in to the light, literally.
I bought my house new and completely finished in May of 2007. It's a craftsman bungalow that I completely adored. The kitchen being the only exception. It was nice but it was nothing I would've chosen. The cabinets had a dark stain that matched the hardwood floors. You literally could not tell where the floor ended and the cabinets began. It only gets light during the day from a set of windows above the breakfast area, making it a complete cave at night. Even with under-counter lighting it was difficult to see anything. I probably didn't help matters with all the junk on top of the cabinets. And while I loved the personality the bulletin board added, it didn't exactly reduce the clutter.
After two months of combing Pinterest, houzz.com and Pottery Barn, creating countless boards, liking hundreds of photos, my dream of a white kitchen slowly started to become a reality. I decided I'd open up the space by tearing down the two cabinets on each side of the sink, adding exposed shelves. I'd then tear out the sink and install a white farmhouse sink. I'd finish it out with a white paint job, white subway tile backsplash, black granite and a new stove. (see earlier post for work-in-progress photos).
I'm over the moon with the finished results. Everything was finished up on Friday, December 21st, giving me the weekend to get everything back in the cabinets (a 4.5hr job). Just in time for my family Christmas on Christmas eve and another party on Christmas night! I will say having to take everything out of the cabinets was the best time to discard/donate things that I never use, giving me tons of extra storage space. Thankfully, I already had all white dinner and serveware which looks great on the exposed shelves.
I found the pendant lights at Pottery Barn and the Tolix counter stools are from Design Within Reach.
I bought my house new and completely finished in May of 2007. It's a craftsman bungalow that I completely adored. The kitchen being the only exception. It was nice but it was nothing I would've chosen. The cabinets had a dark stain that matched the hardwood floors. You literally could not tell where the floor ended and the cabinets began. It only gets light during the day from a set of windows above the breakfast area, making it a complete cave at night. Even with under-counter lighting it was difficult to see anything. I probably didn't help matters with all the junk on top of the cabinets. And while I loved the personality the bulletin board added, it didn't exactly reduce the clutter.
After two months of combing Pinterest, houzz.com and Pottery Barn, creating countless boards, liking hundreds of photos, my dream of a white kitchen slowly started to become a reality. I decided I'd open up the space by tearing down the two cabinets on each side of the sink, adding exposed shelves. I'd then tear out the sink and install a white farmhouse sink. I'd finish it out with a white paint job, white subway tile backsplash, black granite and a new stove. (see earlier post for work-in-progress photos).
I'm over the moon with the finished results. Everything was finished up on Friday, December 21st, giving me the weekend to get everything back in the cabinets (a 4.5hr job). Just in time for my family Christmas on Christmas eve and another party on Christmas night! I will say having to take everything out of the cabinets was the best time to discard/donate things that I never use, giving me tons of extra storage space. Thankfully, I already had all white dinner and serveware which looks great on the exposed shelves.
I found the pendant lights at Pottery Barn and the Tolix counter stools are from Design Within Reach.
