Cabinets are Gone, Kitchen is DONE…So Where’s All The Stuff??

The day is finally here! The kitchen makeover/refresh/whatever you wanna call it – is D-O-N-E!

To refresh your memory, a few months back in June, I had a crazy idea after seeing my sister’s painted countertops in her wetbar. I had the realization that while a big reno wasn’t in the budget, MAYBE I could give my kitchen an update after all! So my ugly laminate counters went buh-bye…

and then I needed to figure out a solution to my gold laminate flooring…

Enter the peel and stick grey tiles my friend told me about.

THEN…the grey island needed a makeover because the grey floor and the grey island were too much. So I wrapped it in beadboard and painted it white

THEN…(oh my word, I can’t believe all this started from seeing my sister’s counters! haha!)…my husband and I tore down the uppers in the front of the room…

And I ripped out the molding around the window and gave it some updated trim. Then added plywood for a shiplap look…

Then it was time for some molding on top of the 1960s boxy cabinets…

…and some wood shelves to fill the empty space where the corner cabinet came down:

We removed the pendant over the sink and hung some new gooseneck lights:

And the kitchen makeover is COMPLETE!

I keep getting asked this one question – and it is a valid one: “Where is all your stuff?? I’d love to rip down some cabinets too, but I just don’t know where we’d keep everything.”

Today, I’m going to answer that question!

So we still have those cabinets on the left side of the room, where our refrigerator is. The cabinet above the fridge houses stuff we rarely use – mostly entertaining dishes like large serving bowls, bundt and springform cake pans – that kinda stuff.

Then bowls, small plates and wine glasses you see are in the open shelves there:

 

Large plates and glasses that we use every day are in the island:

As well as cookbooks, mixing bowls and pyrex dishes we use all the time:

(Forgot a pic, but that island cabinet has our toaster, electric griddle, blender, and waffle maker inside and the drawer above has all of our phone/ipad/speaker chargers)

The cabinet to the right of the stove houses random glasses, mugs, favorite plastic cups – that sorta thing:

I snapped a pic of that itty bitty cabinet to the immediate right of the fridge, and didn’t realize how terribly blurry it was until I loaded all the pics on the computer – but that little guy has sports water bottles/travel coffee mugs in it. The tiny drawer above it has pot holders and tea towels.

The four stacked drawers you see in this photo:

are where we have cutlery (top drawer), the second drawer has random accessories like crab mallets, tongs, meat thermometers, peelers, corkscrews, etc:

Third drawer is the kid zone. All the smaller bowls and plates they love are right in there. Ever since they were toddlers, that drawer has been theirs – it always had sippy cups, tiny bowls for puffs, you know what I’m talking about, parents! It’s nice that every thing is within their reach, so if they need a snack or whatever, just open the drawer and take what they need.

Bottom drawer is plastic containers:

Cookie sheets are in the drawer under the oven, and pots, pans and colanders are in the other cabinet, under the antique scale:

And that drawer above is our junk drawer:

Oh! Mugs and coffee station is in the dining room –

And the china cabinet in there holds more pieces we don’t use much. Pitchers, baskets, more bakeware, etc…

We have a pantry in the hall for food – our house is small though, so it’s probably closer than having it in some kitchens! My next project is the trim all around the doors (replacing the skinny 1960s stuff), and adding the board and batten in the hall, so once that’s done, I’ll show you everything!

It’s amazing, we haven’t for one single second missed those cabinets. We had open shelves for a while anyway, and a lot of the stuff on the shelves was decorative, just to put something up there. Between that one cabinet for cups, and the island shelves, we really don’t need anything else!

It feels SO good in here to us now. I love how I know where everything is, and we only have the things we need. So much to be said for less stuff. And I am truly amazed what a change this was on a budget. I mean, ripping down those cabinets didn’t cost anything, and the plywood was about $30 to do everything! Crazy.

I am in shock at how these countertops are holding up too!! Been 4 months and still going strong!

Totally unrelated, but sunflowers and eucalyptus are my new fave combo. Gotta love Trader Joe’s! Smells amazeballs too.

Alrighty, I HOPE I covered where everything is – if there’s anything I forgot or you have any questions, ask away! I hope this inspires those of you who are living with a kitchen you don’t love but think it’s out of reach…budget friendly options are definitely out there. We all deserve to live in a space that makes us happy. One of my favorite quotes comes from Nate Berkus who says, “your home should rise up and greet you. At the end of the day, it should ground you in a sense of peace.” I couldn’t agree more. And living with less in here has certainly made this happen.

As always, I truly appreciate you stopping by and reading this little blog of mine – it means so very much.

XO

 

 

 

 

Comments

  1. Carolyn Bowden says:

    Love the kitchen and the idea of less stuff! Where did you get the mug rack in the dining room? I need to finish my coffee station and the little racks that hold 4 mugs isn’t enough!

  2. Rebecca Smith says:

    Where do you keep all your baking supplies? Brown sugar, powdered sugar, flour, spices etc? I have two upper cabinets that hold things like five kinds of vinegar and four kinds of oil? I have no idea where I would put all that!

    • Flour and sugar are in those big glass containers on the counter, and everything else is in the pantry! And spices and oils are in the lazy susan cabinet by the oven. Can’t really see it – it’s next to the four drawers.

  3. Wendy Selego says:

    Just my plastic containers would fill your whole kitchen. Why do we hold on to all that crap!

  4. your kitchen, is my dream kitchen. Love every part of it. thank you for sharing

  5. Emily Olszowy says:

    Um, that is not a junk drawer. 😀

  6. I have been trying to play catch up wit all my emails- I absolutely love everything you have done!! I’m sorry I didn’t respond sooner to your post. Isn’t it amazing how everything causes a domino effect 😁! I love your taste and enjoy your blog!

  7. Judy Cekada says:

    What color did you paint your kitchen wall?

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