The most bland and builder basic thing about our home when we moved in was the kitchen. The cabinets were a very light almost blonde maple, with white walls, white appliances, counters and sink. The first thing I did the week after we moved in was to paint the walls chocolate brown. (Sorry, I don’t have a before picture.) At least you could see the cabinets afterward, they didn’t fade into the walls.
I talked to a cabinet refinisher and he told me about “Dark Paste Wax”. There are several brands out there, the one I bought is called Brie and the shade is a dark walnut. After two coats of wax, the cabinets had a really nice warm brown tone. One that I could live with. Be sure to try it on the inside of a door first and make sure you go with the grain of the wood. This stuff works wonders to bring cabinets to life.
I ordered some nice hardware off the internet at a very reasonable price and installed under cabinet lighting. Now the cabinets were looking a whole lot better.
The best feature of the kitchen was the pretty travertine tile floors.
One of the worst-looking areas of the kitchen was the island. The white Formica counters, sink, and faucet looked really cheap.
Then the very best part came. I received a remnant piece of granite as a gift, it would work perfectly for the island. You can see all the tools, this is immediately after they installed them. Most stone yards sell remnant pieces at 1/3 to 1/2 the sq. ft. price of a full sheet. These are small pieces only suitable for small jobs.
With the gift of the beautiful granite, I needed a new sink and faucet. Again I found some great buys on the internet. This really changed the look of the island and the entire kitchen.
I found some corbels to support the granite overhang, painted the island wall a soft camel color, and aged the detail on the corbels a little. Just this small piece of granite gives the kitchen a much more updated and custom look.
This is what the kitchen looks like today. I’ve been really happy with the results of such a small remodel. It doesn’t have to cost a fortune to make a big difference. Not counting the gift of the granite, the entire project came to a little under $400.00 for the sink, faucet, under-counter lights, corbels, and hardware. Huge improvement for a small investment.
Thanks for stopping by. I always look forward to your visit.
