Archives for June 2023

DIY or Hire it out?

Do you want to update your kitchen with some freshly painted cabinets? We have wanted to paint our cabinets for a while but it seemed like a massive undertaking. This year we did some research and found a friend that has a cabinet painting business. We decided we would leave the cabinet fronts to the professionals and we would DIY the cabinet boxes ourselves. Now in hindsight, I am so happy we did this! The cabinet fronts that we had painted professionally look like brand-new cabinets. The cabinet boxes that we painted ourselves do not look quite as good… but you only see the minor mess-ups if you open the cupboard.

Before buying painting supplies this is the first thing you should do

Before going to Home Depot and spending hundreds of dollars on supplies (that will come soon enough), you should sketch a map of your kitchen. My husband thought this idea was kind of silly so we were a little lax. Looking back we wish we would have been more detail-oriented when it came to labeling the cabinets, hinges, and drawers, before taking them apart. If you are putting them back on yourself then having things labeled will really speed up the process.

You can take it one step at a time

You don’t have to do it all at the same time when it comes to updating your kitchen. Our first project was to replace the tile in the kitchen with LVP wood flooring. Up next, we tackled the backsplash by replacing the strange Southwestern pattern with a simple white subway tile. Then we tackled the appliances and updated those to a stainless steel finish when we found products we liked. Once all of those were done it was time to decide on a paint color for the cabinets.

How to choose a paint color for your kitchen cabinets

I was on the fence about choosing a paint color for the kitchen cabinets. We have pale grey walls and a white subway tile backsplash. I knew we couldn’t do grey since it would probably end up clashing with the walls. I talked to a friend who had her cabinets professionally redone and went to see them in person. She had picked Benjamin Moore Simply White and I loved how light and bright they looked. We decided to go with the same color and I am so happy we did. Our painter said it is by far the most common paint color he uses, he said 80% of his customers request it, and this made me confident that we made the right choice. Especially if we sell our house one day, it definitely appeals to the masses and has a more timeless feel.

Prepare for your home to be a construction site for a few weeks

We definitely sped up the process by having the cabinet fronts painted professionally. We dropped them off on a Wednesday and they were ready for pick up the next week. Our DIY painting of the cabinet boxes took a bit longer. We had a good bit of sanding to do and that created quite a mess in our house. Then I wasn’t quite prepared for how strong the paint fumes were while we were painting the boxes and then when they were drying. I am so glad we did this project in the spring. I cannot recommend this enough. You do not want to do this project in the dead of winter when you cannot crack open all the windows. Having fresh air flow in from outside made it much more livable.

How to choose hardware for your kitchen cabinets

I had a tough time choosing hardware for the cabinets. I love gold but had also seen silver and black look really nice against white painted cabinets. I ordered a few options from Amazon and ultimately went with these gold handles (be sure to apply the 10% off coupon once you are in the Amazon app!). I love how they look now and am glad we went with gold. I had ordered drawer pulls to go along with them but they ended up being a much lighter shade of gold so we decided to keep it uniform with the handles throughout. When ordering handles and pulls beware that different styles can have different sheens and tones.

Last, but most important, tip

Find a husband or partner that enjoys DIY projects! Parker truly finds joy in doing things himself. He is also very good at it. He installed all of the new cabinet fronts in one night while I was at a dinner with girlfriends! I know, what a guy. I realize I am lucky. Before you start the project you have to realize that you have to put hours into it if you want it to turn out looking good.

Photo reveal of the finished kitchen

Ta-da! I love how clean it made the kitchen look, I don’t know why we didn’t do it sooner! I bought the rug before the cabinets were done and I think I will move it into our hallway and look for one with a few more colors.

The kids broke them in

On the first night with the new cabinets installed, our 2-year-old smashed open a Ziploc baggie full of smashed raspberries (they were going to be used in homemade ice cream, of course). That was a good reality check! The cabinets are definitely not going to stay looking pristine forever but thank goodness they are wipeable.

Are you updating a bathroom?

We have been down that road and shared our tips when going through a bathroom renovation. I had my heart set on a moody powder bath and that is what we ended up with. I love it! Check out this blog post for my bathroom tips and how to stay within your budget.