08/15/2020
This was quite the transformation!!! All the photos that follow are before, during and after! In that order. The first photos are as it was upon moving in. The former owners style and realty pics. The Dining Room has a desk area which we converted to a Coffee/Breakfast Bar to lower costs of adding shiplap we opted to horizontally stripe the walls to add visual interest. It is a place for the homeowners and guests to enjoy coffee, tea, fruit and pastries. The upper cabinets were removed from that wall and lower cabinets were painted black with gold drawer pulls to seperate the kitchen/dining spaces and to tie in the dining furniture pieces. Little touches were added to make it inviting and aesthetically pleasing. Fun mugs were hung on the wall, we have a tea kettle and tea station, all the coffee fixings and fruit bowls. A cake plate can be filled with donuts, pastries or bagels. Continuing into the kitchen we did a very high quality no chip paint in grey and took some of the extreme varying heights (late 80’s early 90’s) out by filling some spaces with wood (this prevented the purchase of new cabinetry) the cabinets are solid wood and very durable. This gives a face lift for less $$$$. We removed the corner bread box in the kitchen as this dates your kitchen. We added crown molding trim to the top of the cabinets to add visual interest and draw the eye upward, playing on the high ceilings. This is an in- expensive way to add character, beauty and drama to any space ! We put on all gold drawer pulls and all new stainless steel appliances. Do not be afraid to mix metals (silver, copper, gold) it is now not only acceptable but high-end to do so! We added under cabinet lighting. We painted our dishwasher black with appliance paint as it was very high end and we didn’t wish to replace a good working item. Another money saver! The little white hood fan did this kitchen no justice. As it was not to scale in the space (Too small a piece in a big space). It demanded either a large beautiful hood fan or microwave and we chose the latter. We also removed the white subway tile which we did like, but decided to go with marble herringbone which is timeless and classic. We still have some final touches and visual interest to add to our island which we painted black to tie the spaces together but define them as separate! The biggest thing is to think outside the box! To think what is you and how the space will meet the needs of your family. It is perfectly acceptable to mix colors top/bottom cabinetry or have an island base be different color then the rest. It is a rarity these days to see all matching cabinets and considered to date a space.
