My New-ish Kitchen

It’s no secret that we bought a house with some design challenges. We’ve been attacking each room with resourceful fervor in hopes of a grand finale dream kitchen. We’re talking new appliances, flooring, cabinets, countertops, backsplash, and lighting – the works!

Then I read this:

On average, a midrange (meaning not upscale) minor kitchen remodeling project costs $21,695, according to Remodeling Magazine. While expensive, it’s cheaper than the average major kitchen renovation, which runs $58,367 on average. ~smartmoney.com

Want to see my new $58,367 kitchen? I would too. But sadly, that will have to wait. How about my $21,695 kitchen? Ummm – not yet. BUT – I can show you my under $200 kitchen.

I hesitated doing anything in this room because often, if a room gets to “good enough” or “ok for now” then now becomes forever.

But I couldn’t take the yellow walls, taupe trim, sunflower/butterfly border, teal plastic chair rail, and (my biggest gripe of all) no knobs on the cabinets any longer.

So we set out to see what a little paint, cabinet hardware, some DIY and creative accessorizing can do for a kitchen, for under $200. First, the plan (be patient – oodles of before and after pics further down!)

Inspiration: New Jersey Diner

Since we live in New Jersey, land of diners, why not go with a simple theme that doesn’t require expensive, luxurious touches?

Very easy and simple to do. Neutral canvas with black and red accents. And don’t forget the silver bling!

Paint Choice:

First of all, we had to remove the wallpaper, border and chair rail. A simple mix of water/vinegar spray and persistence and teamwork got that done in about 2 days (thanks hubby!).

Our paint choice had to coordinate with a taupe backsplash, wood cabinets, and forest green countertops and floor.

We had to pick a color that would blend well but not take center stage. Sort of disappear in a non-offensive way and let the pops of color do their thing.

We chose Behr Silver Dust – very neutral with a touch of gray to play with the grout and the back-splash and floor.

And it was a huge relief to paint the taupe trim in semi-gloss white. Nice and crisp!

Accessories:

As luck would have it, I had impulsively bought a red Keurig machine last year, and already had some red retro canisters.

To add some color around the window, I took two Crate and Barrel dishtowels (tomato print), folded them lengthwise and clipped them to a pressure rod. Cheap and fun! (Can’t say that about too many things, huh?)

If you’ve read my post “Ideas for that awkward space above the kitchen cabinets” then you can appreciate my dilemma. Builder’s grade cabinets paired with 9’ ceilings and no crown molding results in a problematic proportion. So, I scored a couple giant, whimsical utensils at HomeGoods and perched them above the cabinets. Minimal dusting required.

And finally, I needed art with personality. Seeing how I was already nearing my $200 budget, I turned to my friend, the Internet, to find artistic photo’s of diners and used frames I already had.

A couple in the eat-in area:

And three diner object compositions by the back door:

And of course, we added brushed silver knobs and pulls to the cabinets and drawers. Talk about relief! That was driving me nuts.

Before and After Shots

Ok, enough about the details – lets see how it came together for under $200 with some before and after fun! (Note: the before shots are from before we moved in).

And finally, just a few more after shots:

So while it’s not my dream kitchen, it’s good enough for now. It will be interesting to see how long “now” really lasts. And if you thinking about selling your home in the near future, don’t you think it’s worth $200 to spruce up whichever your “problem” room is?

How have you updated a room that bugged you, but on a budget? In these economic times, lets share our decor survival tips!