I will be the first to admit I am not a cook. I can cook but I am not creative with it and quite frankly I do not get joy from cooking. I would rather set a beautiful table than cook the meal, after all there is always Taco Bell! If you haven’t read part one of this post “A Designers Small Kitchen” I suggest you do that first. Then come back because there is always more! So get your Taco Bell and a Soda and take a break this is a long picture heavy post.
After 10 months of preparing for an estate sale at my parents home, getting their house emptied out, wallpaper pulled down and new paint on the walls I was able to come back to my kitchen and finally finish what we started. Here I will give you some practical tips on how you can take a builder kitchen that doesn’t function well, into a kitchen that not only you can be proud of but one that is easier for you to navigate.
The newly completed kitchen above. Below where we started from.
From a function standpoint we only had one lower cabinet with a stile in the center. This made getting cookie sheets mixing bowls and other stuff difficult to get out.
About 9 years ago when we replaced the counter tops, sink and faucet I decided it was time to do a gut job. But I could not figure out how to change the configuration to gain anything. Not a corner lazy Susan cabinet (there isn’t enough room) not more counter space. So in the end I decided to leave the cabinets but make the ones I had better.
I headed over to a local cabinet shop that has done strange stuff for me before. I asked them to build two tray drawers to fit into my 1 lower cabinet. In two weeks time I had 2 trays that were solid birch and dovetailed.
The next step was to do a bit of reconstruction on the cabinet base so we removed the stile and shored up the cabinet under the drawers to accommodate the new tray drawers. With full extensions this created a whole new world for me. Neat, organized drawers a place for everything.
Fast forward several years and I get the hair brain idea to do that same work in the cubby cabinet. Only this time I decided drawers. I headed to the cabinet shop and asked them to build 2 drawers for me. I already had the top drawer made by my dad.
In 2019 the drawers had to be replaced because we had to lose depth in the cubby cabinet to gain the 3″ we needed for the refrigerator cavity. Go back to the previous post. When we had the whole refrigerator debacle I decided the cabinet above the refrigerator was going to be useless unless we had a pullout tray. My cabinet shop thought I was crazy when I told them the dimensions. It is huge. It is taller in back so that nothing can fall behind and divided in the middle so you can effectively corral things. This was probably one of the smartest things I did in this kitchen. Now do I use this space, no not often. You have to get a 3 step-step stool to get all the way up there. But I store things that I don’t need too often. The thing is when you need them you need them and they are out of the way until then!
As we’re talking about finishing this project I mentioned to the husband that I wanted to do some panel molding and I just wanted to make it more architecturally interesting.
I also wanted to take the stiles out of all the upper cabinets too. I hated the fact that I had to turn a dinner plate to get it out of the cupboard and I was wasting very valuable real estate because I was working around the stiles. So we decided we would attach the stiles to the doors to open up the cabinets.
It’s amazing what such a simple change of just a few inches can make.
Decisions made it is now March 8th one week before Covid shutdown. We managed to get the over the fridge tray installed and then we got started on the panel mold.
Each wall space was different so it had to be well thought out. There was a lot of experimenting with frog tape before we actually decided on placement. Using a brad nailer made the job so much easier. The refrigerator wall done it was time to do the soffit.
The thing I have always hated about the kitchen is the soffit, so I wanted the cabinets to look like they went all the way to the ceiling. The placement of the panel mold was tricky because of the position of the cabinet door on the refrigerator wall.
It’s all about the sight lines. So, I decided to lower the panel mold a bit to match the molding on the cabinet doors above the fridge, By doing that all the molding at the top going around the room would be at the same height.
That completed we moved on to the cabinet end where we installed a library panel. It finished off the end run nicely. We just used 1/2×3″ flat trim molding that I had cut at our local custom trim shop. This is where I also purchased all the panel molding and the library cap that I used on top of the baseboard. Lowes and Home Depot don’t stock some of these moldings that I used. When applying the interior molding inside the 3″ boards I did have to UTube that. I was having trouble getting the cut right. What I learned was you have to cut this piece of molding with a scrap piece of the 1/2×3 behind it. This enables you to cut the angle just right. I found that YouTube is a great resource when you are stuck on any type of wood working dilemma.
I decided to paint the uppers our trim color throughout the house along with the refrigerator wall. I used a latex satin on the new cabinetry and walls and oil based paint on the old cabinets. I wanted the walls to have that architectural look of panels. Plus, it’s easier to keep clean in a kitchen. The paint color I used is an ancient Sherwin Williams color that I now have to have custom mixed. It was called Raw Silk.
On the lower cabinets in the old part of the kitchen I used a color called Dragons Breath from Benjamin Moore. Again an ancient color but still in their Classics Deck. This is a very nice soft black in my kitchen. In other light it can read more soft brown black. I like the way it looks. I had used the Dragons Breath on the walls in the old kitchen and left it on the sliding glass door wall.
I decided to paint the lowers dark because I knew I would like the way the darker color anchors the upper cabinets but also because I didn’t want to highlight our older black appliances. I just wanted them to go away. I am one of those strange people that doesn’t like stainless steel appliances and the new refrigerator is Black Stainless.
I did change up the pulls on the lowers cabinets because I wanted brass against the black cabinet and I wanted a bit more modern feel. I obviously have no problem mixing my metals.
So here are the take aways
- Set your priorities, sometimes you have to do it in stages and that’s ok.
- Get your vision, figure out what the end game is. It helps to put together a project board of ideas and as your ideas coalesce you can pull it apart and add things as you go. I find it’s better to use actual samples if you can or physically print this out and make your board rather than leaving it on your phone or digging thru Pinterest. Easier to change things.
- Think outside the box. Can you use what you have but figure out a way to make it better for your personal needs.
- Make friends with a local cabinet shop. They can sometimes think of things that you haven’t and they are a great source for on trend ideas, and drawer glides and cabinet pulls.
- Make friends with your local trim shop they are also a great resource and the trim is about on par price wise with the big box stores plus you’re probably supporting a local business.
- Do all your problem solving with frog tape. It’s a great way to help you visualize. When I was trying to visualize the panel molding above the soffit I don’t know how many times I had to pull it down and reposition it. The frog tape can even briefly hold a piece of trim molding in place if you need that visual.
- Don’t start until you have all your ducks in a row. There’s nothing worse than getting excited to demo only to discover you have to stop because you don’t have a plan, you run into plumbing or electrical you don’t know how to handle. This can set you back for weeks and there is nothing worse than living in a construction zone for a long period of time. Basically know from A to B to C where you’re going and stick to it.
- Know your limitations. There are always things that you are not good at, so let the professionals do that. I guarantee they will do it in half the time and it is so worth the money to have it done right.
I decided to install a third secret drawer into the cubby to accommodate the sterling.
Next up floor and finishing out the trim on the floor. Thanks so much for hanging in there. I hope some of this helped you on your way.
Shelley
