Friday, May 2, 2014

Kitchen Dreaming. With a Little Help from Cabinets Direct USA...

Our kitchen has come a LONG way.  When we purchased our home, it was a cramped, dark hole.  I knew it wouldn't take much to improve the space because, well, anything was better than what it was!!



It would have been fantastic to rip the entire kitchen out and start fresh, but we were working on a major budget. The entire main floor of our fixer upper, and then some, had to be renovated...so a total kitchen overhaul was way out of reach.  I needed to come up with a short-term, smaller scale reno and leave our kitchen dreams for down the road.

We kept the original cabinetry and general footprint of the kitchen the same to save a ton of money.  Then it was time to remove walls and the weird restaurant booth seating.


After that is was time to to lighten things up!  The cabinets were painted white and zhushed up with some new hardware.  I nixed the old linoleum floor and carried the hardwoods into the kitchen to keep the flow of our open concept home going.  Then we added some much needed new lighting, countertops, backsplash and appliances.

For an "in-the-meantime" renovation, we sure did a lot of work, but it was all done on a tight budget.  We spent the least we could and still ended up with a great looking kitchen.





Of course that great looking kitchen still has bones from the 1950's, when our house was built.  The doors may be solid wood, but the hardware is showing it's age.  And no amount of prep or priming could keep the heavily varnished, knotty pine cabinets from bleeding through a couple years later.  Don't get me wrong...our current kitchen gets the job done!!  But the design lover in me can't stop myself from dreaming of a kitchen that is both beautiful AND efficient.

Looking back, I'm thankful we couldn't afford a complete gut job of our kitchen when we bought our home. Living in the space for a few years has taught me how I want the space to look and, more importantly, function.

And even though we can't afford it now, I know we'll be replacing our charming kitchen one day.  So there is no better time than the present to start planning and prepping for our space.  I mean, how else will I know how much this whole shebang is going to cost us?!?

Not too long ago I found myself {along with hubby and my parents who were visiting} pulling up to a Cabinets Direct USA showroom.  Walking into that place, I was like a kid in a candy store!!!  They have the most stunning displays and super helpful sales people.  I was able to send my own sketch-up from floorplanner.com to their sales person who then translated my elementary work into the awesome images below.

During our reno we would flip-flop our current door and window placement.  This move would allow me to create a floor to ceiling pantry in the kitchen that we currently do not have.  I'm not going to lie...I love that I have two spacious linen closets in our hallway, but I've been missing that type of storage space in our kitchen.  This rearrange would solve that issue.







Then I took things a step further and even extended the island to the wall {since the door is no longer there}, giving us even more countertop and cabinet space.



{Pretend the bar height counter is extending all the way to the wall in the rendering below....just like the ones above.}


So what do you guys think of our "future" kitchen?  I'm kinda in love.  And now I'll just count the days months years until we can afford it. ;)

Anyone else dreaming of far-off renovations?!?!  I can't be the only one...

68 comments:

  1. Looks great!! I'm dreaming of our future kitchen reno too!! Now we just need to be there .. at least it gives us time to save!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I can't wait to see what you guys do with your kitchen...I know it will be fabulous!!

      Delete
  2. You've done so much with the kitchen already, but I am LOVING the dream layout! That giant peninsula would be amazing.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love your current AND future kitchens. Both plans are more than I would ever have the guts for!

    I'm dreaming of finishing our backyard. We've got tons of grass in the middle (don't ask about the current forest of weeds), but that's about all there is out there, unless you include the weedy patches of dirt running down each side.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much, Lisa! It's so much fun to dream. I hope you get your backyard finished up soon! :)

      Delete
  4. We are dreaming of a kitchen reno too! Our cabinets are from the 1920s or 30s! Yuck. We are seriously considering IKEA now. Anything new will be a major major improvement. It's fun to dream though!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I loved your post about your kitchen...I can't wait to see it take shape! :)

      Delete
  5. i can't wait to see what you do, gabbi! i love it as is, so if it gets better it can only be amazing!

    ReplyDelete
  6. I always love seeing the process of your renovation. The before and after is just so amazing. Love it just the way it is now but having the counter extended sure would be amazing too ;)

    ReplyDelete
  7. I cant even imagine it looking better but I'm so excited to see it progress. I can't believe you got rid of the booth ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aw, thanks Caroline! HA...I know. I totally should have kept it. ;)

      Delete
  8. That looks AM-azing!!! I am constantly dreaming of a new kitchen! You home has come so far and it so gorgeous!

    ReplyDelete
  9. I think you "in the mean time" kitchen look great! But I understand the wishing and dreaming for the total reno too!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Sarah! It definitely looks good as is, but I can't help but think of improving the super old cabinets. :)

      Delete
  10. I am constantly thinking of how I would want my kitchen to look. Only one problem we don't own a house yet. So I completely understand far off renovations! Your idea looks great and I love your kitchen now.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Oh the kitchen! My nemesis! I don't know when we will ever get ours done so I am going to live vicariously through yours ;)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Don't worry....ours probably won't be done for another 10 years! HA! :)

      Delete
  12. OMG how cool is that?! it's so much fun to think ahead of all the amazing things you could do with your home. And yours is already gorg. :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I love looking ahead to see what a space could be! Aw, thanks!! :)

      Delete
  13. Your kitchen redo is amazing! What a change. I could live with that for some time. :) BUT I understand wanting a new kitchen and your plans are gorgeous.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much, Ashley!! I definitely can live with it as is, but I can't help and think of where it could be. I swear, it's a sickness hehe. ;)

      Delete
  14. This is amazing Gabbi! I hear ya on the storage and I love what you did with extending the bar top all the way down!

    ReplyDelete
  15. Your painted kitchen still looks great! I love the turquoise accent wall, so fresh! I know, I've been dreaming of two new remodeled bathrooms. One day right?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much, Jane! Yup, one day we'll get it all done. ;)

      Delete
  16. oh my goodness....i cant believe there was a booth in that kitchen!!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Your kitchen looks great, such a huge transformation! I would love to give my kitchen a little makeover too. I'm always dreaming of changing things up!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much Bethany! I'm glad I'm not the only one who does that. ;)

      Delete
  18. I love the open concept you have in your current kitchen! I think cabinet direct should seriously just give you some free cabinets haha with your vision it'll be amazing!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much, Cindy!!! GAH, I wishhhhh! That'd be fan-freakin-tastic! :):)

      Delete
  19. That is awesome! I can't wait until we paint our cabinets and fix our kitchen up!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Ashley! So much fun to think of all the potential! :)

      Delete
  20. Your Kitchen is gorgeous! I'm just starting on my own kitchen remodel in Champaign IL and I'll definitely be adding your kitchen to my inspiration folder—I love white cabinets too!

    Roxanne Rook | RDI Renovations

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much, Roxanne! So glad you stopped by. Good luck with your remodel! :)

      Delete
  21. Wow! That's some huge scale remodeling you have managed to score. A lot of people would envy that. Nothing beats getting an unlimited budget to retool your living space into whatever you want it to look, feel and flow like, right? It's cool that you are totally exhausting the opportunity. I love the design you're eyeing for your "future" kitchen, by the way.

    Paul Klassen @ Pinnacle Group

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Gosh, I wish we had an unlimited budget for remodeling! I couldn't even imagine what that would be like!! Thanks...I'm hoping I can execute that design in the future when we save. :)

      Delete
  22. Amazing! Your kitchen is so inspiring. And those renderings? Look at all that countertop space! Looks amazing!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aw, thanks so much, Shannon!! I know, I die over the countertop space we could have! I hope it comes to life in the future! :)

      Delete
  23. Those are really cool home renovations that you did there. Do you do this professionally or just in your spare time? You did really great and if you do not already do this professionally, maybe you should think of doing so.
    Jak Manson | http://www.mlwcontracting.com/project_galleries.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Jak! I planned the space, did some demo and then had a contractor do everything. There is no way we could have tackled this huge main floor reno ourselves! I wish I could do something like that professionally. Thanks for stopping by!

      Delete
  24. Wow, you did an amazing job of updating what you had and it looks wonderful. I love the new layout, it would be fantastic. Just one observation since I had a similar layout once. Instead of raising the counter height to bar height, just leave it all counter height and it becomes a hugs island of sorts. Makes the space more open and fabulous counter space. Just a thought.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much, Marty! Thanks for your suggestion. I thought about that possibility, but then I'd lose the outlets that I have in that area...so I'm not sure which direction I'll go when we tackle this far down the road. Definitely something to consider! :)

      Delete
  25. I can't dream kitchen without cabinets and beautiful wrecks. I like the use of fancy lights you used for the decoration.
    Wicker outdoor furniture sydney

    ReplyDelete
  26. First time visiting your blog via Design Post...I love your "charming kitchen" and the pendant lights are perfect. The new plans look impressive!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. So glad you visited, Heather! Thanks for stopping by!! :)

      Delete
  27. Oh my goodness, I cannot believe the huge transformation from when you guys first bought that house. What an amazing kitchen makeover! I love the future kitchen too and I know all too well about the planning for the future projects. I am really excited about living in Boston, but I MISS owning our own home. I miss the projects. So the only thing I am daydreaming about is when we will have a house again. :) Love your style, you rock!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much, Brittaney! It definitely was a dramatic change from where we started. One day you'll be able to do some amazing projects in your own home! :):) You're the sweetest, xo!

      Delete
  28. It was worth reading, Now I am also decorating and remodeling my kitchen just like you did no matter what it takes. I am also planning to install a Platform Lift to solve accessibility problem in my home.

    ReplyDelete
  29. It's turned out so good! I am thinking about renovating our kitchen soon. I just don't see it turning out this good.

    Aaron Carter | http://www.vickershomeimprovements.net.au

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Aw, thanks so much, Aaron! Good luck with your kitchen reno! :)

      Delete
  30. I feel your pain having to wait for a kitchen reno! I dream of white cabinets. I would love to go to that showroom and play!

    ReplyDelete
  31. The way you opened the space in the kitchen remodel is fantastic! I love the white cabinets! Great Job!

    ReplyDelete
  32. Talk about a serious renovation! This type of renovation would be great for adding value to a home being sold!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Jeff! Yup, we had an appraisal done after all of our work was complete and we added a ton of equity to the house! :)

      Delete
  33. Oooh kitchens!! My fav!! I love all your mock ups and I really love all the changes you made. The white cabs and pops of blue are fantastic!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks so much, Shavonda! :) Kitchens are one of my favorites too!!

      Delete
  34. LOVE your kitchen. Would love to know the name (and brand) of the aqua color you painted on the walls? Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  35. I love your kitchen so much. The door style is really unique. The aqua color is my latest infatuation and I love how you brought it in with the lights and walls and various accessories. Really a beautiful transformation.

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.