Mini-Kitchen Make-Over

We recently made a few changes in the kitchen to make it fit our family better. And I changed a few things, cosmetically, just because I wanted to.

Here is the kitchen, before the mini-makeover.

When we first moved in our house, way back when, I quickly realized the kitchen wasn’t quite big enough for all our stuff. This shortage of space forced me to decide what was most important and what wasn’t so important to have in the kitchen. I worked hard to fill the available space with the tools and materials I used most often. The rest of the stuff went elsewhere, stored wherever it could be. We did add the white kitchen cart to store our Gladware and Tupperware things. And it all worked, for the most part.

A few months ago, I had the idea to add a pantry cupboard at the end of the counter. It would take up as much space at the kitchen cart did, width and depth wise, plus it would give us even more space and the ability to organize the kitchen better. After sizing and pricing pantry cupboards at a handful of retailers, we found Home Depot to have the style and price options best for us. We chose an unfinished pantry, measuring 24″ wide by 18″ depth and 84″ tall, with two cupboards and two adjustable shelves. Luckily for us, all kitchen cabinets were 20% off as well, so we snagged this big guy for $152 instead of the regularly priced $189.99.

We moved the kitchen cart,

and then removed just enough of the floor trim so the pantry would be flush with the wall and then anchored it into the wall stud.

Placed, anchored and ready for paint.

I painted a coat of primer, using Zinsser All Surface Primer. The paint guy at Home Depot recommended Zinsser because it has a smoother finishe, compared to other primers. After applying a thin primer coat, I applied two thin and even coats of Swiss Coffee by Behr. We already owned both the primer and paint from other projects so there was no extra cost. The pantry does have different trim than the rest of our cupboards but in painting it the same color, it fits right in.

In moving items into the pantry, other areas opened up. We are still playing kitchen utensil “musical chairs” but we’ll get it like we want it soon enough. With this extra space, we were able to collect those superfluous items we had stored elsewhere when we moved in and relocate them back to the kitchen. I like having a place for everything and I like having as much as possible off my counter.

I swapped mirrors, too. From this one

to this one.

This new one was a find at a garage sale maybe two years ago for $6. I like the full , unobstructed frame. It makes the space look bigger. Plus the white tone matches better than the black of the paned one.

Next, I adjusted the size and recovered the bulletin boards on the side of and below my cupboards. I added the plain boards a couple years ago during another update. This time around, I actually measured the space and made the boards to fit perfectly.

Before.

After.

For the cork board, I used a combination of the pieces already had and a package of 4 – 12″ x 12″ squares I picked up at Menards for $5.94. I bought the fabric at Hancock Fabrics. This particular fabric was 50% off, so for two yards, I paid $5.39.

I will post the how-to for these covered cork boards tomorrow.

Lastly, I primed and painted under my sink, again using the Zinsser and Behr paint I used on the pantry. It was unfinished wood that had been spilled and dripped on since the house was first built. Now it looks clean and bright with the paint. I even washed the garbage can!

To complete this area, I laid down a printed vinyl piece on the floor. It’s easy to clean AND it really classes up the under-the-sink area. I bought the vinyl off a big roll at Hancock Fabrics and for this half-a-yard, it was $3.50.