An easy kitchen fix: No cooking involved

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.

Room makeover, a before & after: Now everyone's going to want an invite

I thought I'd fill you in on a redesign I've been working on for a family in Massachusetts. Their home is beautiful; it just needed to a little punch and a little more color. I employed few design strategies that I thought I'd pass along.

The kitchen table was originally surrounded by four chairs. I pulled in a bench that was in the mudroom and was really too large for that space anyway. This not only provides two more seats at the table, it makes the dining area more interesting.

Next, I added a cushion to the bench to warm it up. The foam was cut to size, something most fabric stores will do for you. I covered it in a cheery blue, green and yellow stripe. The fabric is outdoor fabric, meaning it should stand up a bit better to the two children in the family. I also added a pillow with flowers in the same colors.

The original table centerpiece was too small. So, I found a cutting board with feet that the homeowner already had and grouped items that are used at the table anyway: salt and pepper shakers, napkins, oil and vinegar holders.

The lemon tree was lost as an accessory elsewhere in the kitchen. But on the cutting board, it provides a nice bit of color.

With a bit of contrast (the iron of the bench vs. the wood of the chairs), a little softness (from the cushion and pillow) and some drama (the height of the cutting board and the grouped accessories), the space is much more inviting.

Later this week, I'll show you a few other spaces in the home...if you behave.