The original cabinets are the cheap orang-y oak stock type. I think they get more orange every year.
Following are pictures of my current kitchen. In order to take these pictures I shooed all the children into a closet and locked the door and cleaned like a lunatic for half an hour. If you listen closely, you can almost hear them howling with hunger in the background.
The South Wall
Please do not ask me why I have a teapot on my stove in June. It is a remnant of winter when I indulge in the consumption of certain hot drinks. Don't tell my bishop.And what is that small rectangular thing on the counter to the right of my stove top?
Sound it out. I received this little plaque from a dear friend in CA who sometimes reads but never ever comments on this blog. I think of her every time I see it. It is currently wanting a nail to hang it up on a wall somewhere.The East Wall
Yes I know I have no valance or cute lacy curtains on my window. Haven't I mentioned my sheer lack of decorating talent before? Clearly I need your help.The North peninsula with escaped children hoping for cookies.
They were sent away sad and disappointed to chew on cardboard until I was finished documenting that yes in fact my kitchen is clean for five minutes per year.The lowdown is this: I am not able to spend the big bucks to do the dream kitchen thing right now. So my plan is to paint or stain the cabinets, and get a new countertop.
I need color/pattern opinions from you. And by you, I mean everyone reading this post - whether I know you or not.
The floor is light gray/tan tile with dark gray grout.
The sink is stainless steel, and the appliances are white. I do not want to spend money replacing appliances, either, so please try to work within those limits.
URL's are appreciated if you have them.
Now, ready, set..... GO!
Ok, unless you want to paint your walls as well, I'd go dark with cabinetry. (As opposed to a whitewashed look.) I'm thinking a deep walnut or even espresso stain. I'd go a nice medium color for the countertop, maybe with a greenish gray tone. What type of material are you thinking of for the countertop?
ReplyDeletePainting the walls is definitely on the table.
ReplyDeleteThe countertop will probably be just a formed laminate. I don't wanna spend tons of money on an upscale countertop now, when I might redo the whole cabinets/floor/countertop later.
http://samples.wilsonart.com/p-171-mesa-verte-4573-7.aspx That's roughly what I was thinking of for the countertop. Of course, that's just what I can tell from the picture online.
ReplyDeleteNo, no, no, Lisa. Upgrade your countertop now. It'll save you hassle and money later on. You can always plan around your countertop.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I consulted with my fashion conscious friend here at work and this is what we came up with.
Stain your cabinets a darker stain--couple of shades at least. Get a gray countertop--I'm thinking the cheapo granite stuff that will have flecks of darker gray in it. Then paint the wall with your sink (the whole wall all the way to the dining room) a terra cotta color. See http://desktoppub.about.com/od/colorpalettes/l/blcpgray.htm. We liked the 4th row down, the orangy/red color. Paint the dining room wall a white or slightly off white color. Put up a back splash behind the stove of white tile with interacting blue tiles (you know, the kind that has diamond shapes in the middle of a sea of white). The royal blue right next to the color scheme I pointed out earlier would look great. You can accent your kitchen with this blue by adding towels, pic frames, vase w/flowers, etc.
I say go bold, but stay away from the traditional yellow or red that are prevalent in kitchens today (maybe since I'm sick of my red kitchen).
about six or so families in my ward have just redone their countertops in kitchen and bathroom...it is a sprayed on application that truely transforms it and then it behaves like a laminate. it is around 200-300 for kitchen and then 50 or so a bathroom (all depending on the amount of countertop). i can arrange a tour of the houses and the phone number of the guy if you would like?
ReplyDeleteYes please! I'll have my people call your people.
ReplyDeleteOMG can I get that spray stuff in my bathroom?
ReplyDeleteMy new house has laminate counter tops but they sort of look like granite. I like them. I am no decorator though. :)
ReplyDeleteHmmm I think you should paint the countertops (yes, paint) neon green, then replace the grout with a nice orange color... something that might look like it had once been PowerBait (sparkles and all). The walls would look lovely as a bright pink. For the finishing touch, let all the primary children loose on the appliances with some permanant neon fingerpaints. And... Voila!
ReplyDelete