Melanie from Washington recently wrote this to me:

“Hey Kate, I read that when you remodeled your house a few years ago, that you designed and built your kitchen.  We’re in the beginning stages of gutting our very dated kitchen and we’re starting over from scratch!  We’re so excited!!  My question for you is, were there any pitfalls you ran into?  Anything you learned along the way you’d be willing to share?  What should we know about building a kitchen starting from four bare walls?  Help!”

Great question Melanie!  Me and my Mister built our kitchen over five years ago, so to answer Melanie’s question, I had to dig through the archives and pull out all my files to refresh my recollection of the process of building our kitchen from scratch.  It resulted in a mild rash and minor heart palpitations, but I’ve since recovered.  

No, I’m kidding.  I absolutely love kitchen design, and loved the entire process of choosing all the details of the one in our own home.  I’m one of those people that if I overheard at the grocery store you were building a new kitchen, I’d butt my ponytail right into the conversation and want to chat all about appliances, countertops and the exact style of door front you’re choosing for your cabinets.  “Really?  Oh, fabulous!” 

Building a kitchen from scratch is an enormous task.  Unlike throwing the latest most popular shade of paint on your walls, a kitchen must be a space that can stand the test of time.  My kitchen suits the style of my home, and also my own personal tastes as well.  While there are a few things I wish I’d done differently, for the most part, I really love the floor plan and finishes we continue to live with every day.  

Ten Lessons I Learned from Building Our Kitchen

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I was tra la la-ing my way through my local Habitat for Humanity ReStore a few weeks back, admiring all the great salvage and scheming of ways to put some of it to good use.  I was there because I had spotted a few cool cabinets on Diggers List and wanted to investigate further. 

As I chatted it up with one of the managers, I couldn’t help but notice the sign just behind him. 

Do you love the exclamation point for added emphasis?  Like rejected brass light fixtures are something to get excited about?  Well actually, I kinda do get excited about them.  A lot. 

I actually like antique  brass fixtures, just not these super shiny leftovers from the early 90s.  So with a fixture like this, one that just happens to have a completely fantastic shape, I see no reason why it shouldn’t be spray painted.  White.  Pronto! 

Hello gorgeous.  Don’t you just fit right in ? 

Aaaaaand, she was free.  Fah-reeee. 

Yep.  Free.

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A few weeks ago you all saw the new color I painted in the refreshed kitchen !  Every morning it’s like a breath of fresh air walking into this space, and I’m so glad  I took the time to add new paint and accessories.  So I thought I’d break down the step-by-step on how I painted the kitchen cabinetry, specifically the island, and wrap up a few other details as well. 

Here’s a quick reminder of the island, Before and After:

Here are the steps I followed for refinishing my kitchen cabinetry in oil with a brush technique.   For projects larger than this, consider renting a professional paint sprayer for quicker and smoother application.

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Grazie, merci, mahalo, danke, gracias, thank you thank you thank you for all your kind comments yesterday.  Kitchens are one of those spaces where there is so much you can do with so many different materials !  For us, we wanted something light and bright and inviting with plenty of space for cooking and entertaining.  This guided much of our choices.  Some queries came up via email or in the comments, so here’s a few answers.   

What are your countertops made of?  (Charlotte ) What type of marble do you have ?  (Samantha)   Tell me about your countertops  (Sue). 

The countertops are a combination of marble and cherry wood.  Yes, it’s true, I chose the two most high maintenance countertops.  Everyone tried to talk me out of it, but I held my ground and I have no regrets.  I ripped this image out of a magazine many years ago and stapled it to my forehead.

I didn’t care if wood countertops were as impractical as high heels in a marathon.  I had to have them.

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My friends, it took me a week, but I finished painting over my yellow kitchen !  You know how you just want something new after a few years of the same old look?  That was the story of our kitchen.  Hub and I just decided last fall that we’d grown tired of the butternut yellow on the island and walls.  I debated whether or not to do it because I did like the previous color, but eventually we just decided to go ahead and make the change. 

I was inspired to transform the space into a palette that would compliment the adjoining family and dining room, so we painted the walls, and I painted the island, a gray green color by Benjamin Moore called ‘Camouflage’.  I also replaced the valance and changed up the accessories. 

Welcome to our kitchen, refreshed.  Come on in and have a look around !

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