So the last post I showed you some of the projects we were working on. After completing those, I decided we should just keep going! There were so many things I didn't like about this house when we bought it. But Andrew (and our Realtor/BFF Kristin) reminded me that cosmetic things can be changed! Easily. But it still took a long time to make the changes we wanted.
Before we moved in we did some demo, and I talked about it here. And then after we moved in we did some painting upstairs, and had to wait a 6 months for landscaping, and I talked about that here. And since then we've done a few small things like this, and this. Really, we have accomplished so much in this house, but there were still things we really wanted to change.
Counter Space. Although I had more counter space in my house than we did in the apartment, it was only by a tiny bit. I always wanted to extend the counters, but that would be spendy. So, we decided to built an island/extension. I showed you a picture in the last post, but here is the island in action!
It may not seem like a lot to you, but it cleared off the edge of the counter to the right, and the cupboard that all of the pots and pans were jammed in. So, then I was able to take the juicer, toaster, and food processor and hide them in a cupboard. Which made my counters much less cluttered!!
After doing the island project we realized just how much we didn't like the cupboard color. Now, this has been an issue since day one. The floor, cupboards, counters and walls are all the same basic brownish hue. This is part of why we painted the island cream, because we wanted something different. We also have a granite top buffet on the other side of the kitchen that is the same cream color (a GREAT Christmas present from Jana & Jake!).
I did lots of research about changing the cabinet color. Since I come from a painting family (My grandfather and father were both painters), I knew I could handle some painting, but I didn't know what kind of paint. I knew I was going to be touching the cupboards a hundred times a week, so I wanted them to hold up well. I came across a BUNCH of blogs that did Rust-Oleum Cabinet Transformations. Not to be confused with Rust-Oleum Cabinet Restorations, Wood Refinishing Kit. There was nothing but boring wood on the cabinets, I definitely didn't want to restore them, but transform them!
We purchased the kit from Home Depot for $80, and had the dark base tinted to Espresso Color. I went back and forth about this color, but I am SO grateful we did it. We watched the DVD twice, and read the instructions thoroughly. We knew the hardest part was going to be the dry times. Some coats required 12 hours of dry time! We tried to plan it so that we would always be busy. Here are some pictures and steps we took!
See, cluttered counter tops! And boring colors. It was our house, sure, and I was proud, but it was BLAH. Andrew took off all the doors and drawers, and I taped up everything. I used blue painters tape, which was a mistake. It always seems to bleed. The Green Frog tape does better, but I forgot :(
Messy cabinets! Another organization project to come! I taped inside the cabinets on the areas we would see, and then taped everywhere around them. While I started the "de-glossing" step inside, Andrew started on the doors and drawers. "De-glossing" just consisted of rubbing the cleaning agent all over the doors to ensure no dirt or dust remained and that the "Bond Coat" would adhere correctly.
This was pretty tedious, but we were told by other bloggers that it was the most important step, don't skip or skimp! It was recommended to let the doors dry for 1 hour after that. Then we started the first "Bond" or Paint coat. It had ok coverage, but I knew we'd need another coat because the kit recommended it.
This was the end of the first night. We started around 8pm and finished around 1am. The following day we had arranged for the girls to go over to my in laws for a play day, and we are really grateful we did, it was a long day! Each door required 2 coats on each side, with a 2 hour drying time in between coats. The inside was fast since it was much less wood to cover and only one side.
After the 2 coats dried, we did the "Glazing" process. You paint on a glaze and wipe it off to achieve the "desired look." It brought out the wood grain and made the cabinets look like they were expensive replacements, instead of just old cabinets we painted over. It's a long process, since we had to glaze both sides, and each coat had to dry for 8-12 hrs, but I was glad we did it. After the glaze we did the final top coat. Honestly, I didn't see a huge difference after the top coat, but it says it helps to protect the cabinets, so we did it! After the top coat its recommended to let the cabinets, doors and drawers dry for 12-24 hours. We did, and then re installed them. And now we have THIS:
How about a side by side comparison? Yes? OK!
I LOVE it. What a nice contrast! And I know you can't see it, but the counters are so much more organized!
Although it was a long, long, long project, it was worth it. With supplies the cost was around $115. Good deal for a complete kitchen makeover. AND we have enough left in the kit to do our 3 bathroom vanities that are the same blah color. Wahoo!
Well, until I post about our next project....Happy Blogging!!
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