First Time Fixer | The Kitchen

How it Started

Whoa the kitchen was a doozy. It was nearly non-existent when we started the project. The few cabinets that were there all sat against one small wall near the back door, and when you entered through the back you walked straight into your dishwasher. If dishes were being done, the backdoor was unusable. The fridge was opposite this narrow walkway, and so close that you could touch the fridge doors and sink at the same time. The washer/dryers was behind the fridge, separated by a wall, creating a dark corner of mostly unused space. The kitchen not only needed a total update, it also needed a complete layout change to make it functional again.

The Layout Plan

So we got to work, brainstorming alongside our realtor and friend, Joey Svec, with Building the Bluegrass. We came up with a plan to maximize the space and also provide good resale value and desirability when complete. I was pretty set on having a space where a dining table could live, more on that plan in the Dining Nook post to come, but the plan for the kitchen was essentially this : open up the space by removing that wall, add a window on the back wall over the new sink, close up a window on the side wall (so the kitchen can move to the other side of the room) and fill the space with as many cabinets as possible for the much needed storage in a small home. We even made room for a little island, which I think is so helpful for the practicality of cooking in a small kitchen - more surface area! I have a similar situation in my own kitchen, and I love that everything is close at hand to easily move back and forth between jobs. Plus this layout would not interfere with the flow of the house, and would give space for foot traffic in and out of the backdoor while working in the kitchen. It wasn’t featured in the episode, but we moved the washer/dryer into a closet we built where the old cabinets were that also houses the hot water heater. It’s not a laundry room, just a laundry closet, but this setup is very common in the neighborhood and won’t be a deterrent to buyers who want to be in this community.

The Style and the Cabinets

The house has the original stacked stone on the exterior, giving it such a cute cottage vibe. I wanted to keep a casual, cottage inspired feel to the home, but mix that with the simple lines of craftsman homes. We added in some craftsman elements with decorative trim work, and a new stairwell, so I chose a craftsman style cabinet to compliment the look. In the episode you saw me shopping for these cabinets at The Peddlar’s Mall in Lexington, KY. Maybe I’ll do a whole post just on the cabinets…it was a lot of work! I had no idea how hard it would be to install these guys, they have to be perfectly level or else it can cause damage to the stone countertop later. They were also pretty rough around the edges, and needed sanding and adjustments before they were ready for paint. We had to custom build the fridge cabinet (my husband is quite the craftsman!) and a couple other cabinet pieces were custom, as well as all the trim to finish out the island. But in the end they looked great, they still have a little bit of “character” to them which suits the style of the home, and now the kitchen, as Chip Gaines would say - looks like a million bucks.

The Colors and Finishes

I chose soft off-white walls throughout the home, and a light grey/taupe trim to give some subtle contrast, and wanted the cabinets to stand out against all the white. That’s the tricky thing I’m learning with flip homes - you want to give it some personality, but not too much, so it appeals to more buyers. I chose a warm beige, but we joked that it was a magic color, since sometimes it looked green, sometimes khaki, sometimes grey. In any case, it worked, and I love how it turned out. I knew I wanted a black countertop, to keep with the vintage feel and also break up all the white in the home. While I desperately wanted a soapstone counter (I had a great slab picked out with gorgeous white veins throughout, and my slab was accidentally sold to another customer…ugh, I know) but since that didn’t work out I settled on the next best option for our timeline and budget. Again, such is the nature of renovating, you gotta roll with the punches and keep the project moving. I landed on this honed granite, which gave it a matte finish similar to soapstone. It has a slight speckle and vein in it that really compliments the color of the cabinets, and in the end, I was happy with the result. For the backsplash I went with an understated cottage style backsplash, using wood paneling, painted in the same color as the cabinets. In a larger space this might have felt boring, but I think the monochromatic look really works in this little kitchen, along with the vintage inspired light fixtures and hardware to pull the look together.

Specs & Links

Pendant Light (over the sink) - Amazon

Overhead Flushmount Light - Overstock.com

Cabinet Color - Valspar, Relaxed Khaki

Wall Color - Valspar, Fresh Cotton

Wall Trim Color - Bear, Alpaca Blanket

Wood Cutting/Charcuterie Board - Make For Life Workshop

Styling, Paintings, and Photography - JoAnna Liston