I thought I'd end the week with a simple idea for jazzing up your kitchen if you have one like mine.
Our kitchen had nondescript oak cabinets with no knobs or pulls when we bought our house eight years ago. (The counter tops and back splash were pink laminate... the '80s were not kind.)
To update without spending a lot of money, we put bead board up on the back splash, right over the laminate (after we figured out how time-consuming it was to try to remove the laminate).
We also painted the cabinets white and added brushed nickle hardware. (Another tip: Do you know how expensive it can be to replace hinges on a lot of cabinets? Instead, I removed all the brass hinges and spray painted them nickle. Worked great and super easy to do.)
After all that was done... I still felt that the kitchen needed more charm. So, I recently removed those two cabinet doors and took them to a glass shop. They took out the inside panels and replaced them with glass.
I attached wine glass holders to the underside of the shelves and created a little bar area.
The project was easy and pretty inexpensive. And those are two of my favorite things.
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25 comments:
I love the bead board idea! Our cabinets are new, but we may replace the formica counter top...adding the beadboard would be a great way to treat the backsplash!
Diane
That looks so much more elegant than oak. Nice update!
~Heather
I love that! My best friend says no kitchen is complete unless it has at least one cupboard with glass in it. Mine have none--oops.
Mary, your beadboard idea is great and the the drawer pulls you selected create a perfect counterpoint. What I like best, though, is how you added life to the whole corner by showing the bright red dishes. Love it! You've quite a talent.
I love this. We're moving in 2 weeks and I am NOT in love with the new kitchen. It has oak cabinets and white appliances. I cannot wait to get paint on those cabinets!
Love it! We are in the process of redoing our kitchen (we have the oak cabinets of yesteryear and the laminate back splash as well). We may have to go the painting route too! Thank you for sharing.
I love it! What color are your walls? I have white cabinets and black countertop and want to go with blue walls - a lot like the color you have! nice changes for cheap!!
Hi remodelingthislife:
The bead board is grey. Sorry, I don't remember the exact color... other than it's a Benjamin Moore color.
There's a hint of pink still in the tile floor... which I hope to replace someday... but I figured the grey would work with that.
Thanks for your interest,
Mary
I love the bead board! This was a great fix, it looks really good.
so funny - we are in the midst of a kitchen remodel that sounds familar - painted oak cabinets white, brushed nickel hardware including spray painting the hinges! Yours looks great, but I might be biased!
I love it! LOVE the bead board idea!!
Just love the glass cabinet doors and the racks in the cabinets to hang the glasses..looks great!!
I love how the glass cabinet faces look. I've been thinking about having my hubby cut out the fronts on a couple of cabinets to do that to the kitchen then adding a light on the inside of the cabinet. It would brighten it up also. Nice job on the update. Can't wait to see what you profile this week.
I like this, it seems like an easy way to make a great use of some space.
Love it... I'm actually wanting to paint our kitchen white as well! Trying to convince my husband. Did you do the work yourself? Or pay someone to do it? Any ideas for islands? I've seen nice designs where the center island is the pop of color or black instead of white like all the others cabinets. What's your take?
My favorite part of this is the geometric shapes the wine glasses make on the shelves. Did you buy those glasses just for this shelf?
Beautiful!
I so agree, classic and beautiful updates,
Chris
What a great idea with the beadboard going right over the laminate!
And I agree - replacing hardware is EXPENSIVE! Spray painting with nickle is brilliant! It looks great!
You know, I just love bead board and would love to have it as my back splash. It's so cozy looking. Love the glass doors too. You're good!
Be a sweetie,
Shelia ;)
Great practical advise with an amazing effect. Wish you showed us the before pics (80's kitchens are always good for a laugh).
Love the kitchen! Thinking about using beadboard in our bathroom its such a great inexpensive product that yields fantastic results.
I love it! Definitely changing hinges is a huge investment. I was able to find some but still ended up paying a little more than I had hoped.
Question - is it better to paint cabinets white or try to re-stain (I would imagine time consuming)...meaning value on return. We have pickled (blech) wood cabinets and I know when we go to sell, that wouldn't be optimum so trying to figure out my next step.
Your work is amazing!
Hi Nik:
Thanks for the compliment! Painting or staining would depend on the style of the kitchen. Painting is easier, so I would try to go with that as a first option. New paint and updated hardware definitely go a long way in making a kitchen look up-to-date.
Thanks,
Mary
Hi Amanda:
I hired a painter to do the cabinets. You certainly can do them yourself, but talk to the paint store about the best kind to use on cabinets. The last thing you want is chips. There are latex paints out there now that are tough like oils that you can use.
As for island: I love a contrast, too. If you've got white on your cabinets, you certainly can do wood or black on an island, depending on what else is in the kitchen.
Mixing things up makes for a more custom/ interesting look.
Thanks,
Mary
We did a lot to our kitchen and found the easiest way to remove laminate is to use a hair dryer and a large flat scraper. Heat the laminate on top with the hair dryer and work the edge up with the flat edge. Heat, lift, repeat. Works like a charm.
Susan
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