When we gutted and renovated our bathroom last year, it made us want to do the few updates we’d been dreaming about in our kitchen more than ever! After much thought, we decided to go for it. It is the last space in our home for us to add our own fingerprint.
We are doing a mix of DIY and outsourced work for this project. Honey has already started on the plumbing and electrical work, and our first round of contractors arrive later this week to take out the counters.
The first thing we are doing is replacing the counters with the same quartz – Cambira Berwyn – that we used in the master bathroom. This is the bulk of the expense on this project.
We wanted to replace the counters because we love them. Doing so will also allow us to make a couple of tweaks that are on our “dream kitchen” list. First, we are taking down the peninsula here and extending it out by 3″.
Then, we are removing the sink in the island and leveling out the step up here as well.
Finally, we are painting the cabinets WHITE (goodbye glaze and dreary kitchen) and the island some sort of a darker color (yet to be determined)! There will also be just a little backsplash left, which we are going to do in a white subway similar to what we did in the bathrooms last year, but smaller in scale.
When all of that is complete, we will paint the kitchen, mudroom and den. I am toying between the exact color we have now and going just a couple of shades lighter. When we originally moved in, the entire house was painted in flat paint, which has turned into a real nuisance over the past decade. I cannot wait to freshen it up and get some good scrubbable paint on these walls. I’d really like to avoid repainting the brick fireplace, which makes keeping the color the same the most likely option.
All of the curtains, furniture and decor will remain the same. It is probably time to recover my chairs, another 10 year old DIY, but I’m going to wait and see how everything looks before deciding on that.
We are really excited about these changes and look forward to sharing with y’all as make progress over the next three weeks or so!
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Love your plans! You are so lucky that you already have a good layout and your cabinets are obviously in good shape as well. We had to replace everything and reconfigure the room so that all added to the expense. Can’t wait to follow along in this renovation! Go Amanda!
xo Shelley
Yes!! The cabinets are really nice and we’ve maintained them nicely so that is a huge savings! Same with the layout. It was well thought to begin with. xo
We just got quartz counter tops in our kitchen and we LOVE them :-) Also did the white subway tile and we already had white cabinets. It is (to me) the quintessential crisp white kitchen. The white just sets off any accessories to a T!! I’m sure you’ll love yours!!!
I love hearing that!! I’m so excited to see it come to fruition!
Can’t wait to follow along…our renovation starts this summer and it is so great to finally get to see our plans come to life after 9 years. I’m sure you are going to love it!!
So exciting!! I can’t wait to see yours.
I never comment but I love your blog. So I thought I would this time because this is going to look great. Especially after what you did with your bathrooms. Just beautiful…. so I know the kitchen will turn out awesome, Good Luck!
Thank you so so much! I hope so!!
I have always loved your kitchen. I just know your new look will be just as fabulous. I can’t wait to follow along as I am starting to think about doing some updates to my own kitchen.
Thanks! I’m really excited!
It will be lovely, and will be the crowning touch on your home! Can’t wait to watch it come together. xo
Thank you so much!
Love it! Will you be moving the stool section in the island to the area of the penisula that will be extended by 3″? Or no stools at all?
We are going to have stools on both!! I am so excited about this – 3 at the island in the kitchen and 3 on the peninsula!
Amanda,
I am so excited for y’all! We just repainted our kitchen and replaced the floors (after twenty years of white tile floor- not a good idea with three kids and pets!). We redid the pantry and got quartz countertops a few years ago. It makes it a happy place to start each day, and I know yours will feel like that too! Can’t wait to see the process on your blog!
Thank you so much!!
Have always loved your style and have been following you for many years. Our kitchens have similar elements so may I ask you why you are taking the bump up on the island down? With my open concept the bump up hides whatever might be on the counter. I’m seeing this trend everywhere and just don’t get it. Other than that, can’t wait to see the transformation!
I am taking it down just to have more usable counter space and to open the room up more visually. I don’t have an open concept floor plan though!
How exciting Amanda!
I love your kitchen now…but the changes are going to be so fun to watch happen.
Thank you so much!
I have followed your blog a long time & always admired your kitchen. But I always thought if it was my house I would remove the island sink and not have the step up counter. Can’t wait to see the results.
Yes! I am so excited about these two things!
So excited to see the changes unfold! We had our cabinets painted white a while back and have really enjoyed it. Will you be painting them yourselves? We were not that brave lol.
No, we are outsourcing the cabinet painting, after much consideration. I need these to last through lots of wear and tear!
Can’t wait to see the changes! We painted our cabinets very pale gray a few years ago. What a huge difference it made lightening up our kitchen. The solid cherry cabinets were in great shape but made it so dark. I love your ideas about the peninsula too.
Yes! I really think white is going to make a huge difference.
Your kitchen plans sound amazing! We are in the middle of our kitchen”reno” although it’s mostly going to be just smoke and mirrors DIY stuff. I dream of someday doing an overhaul. Can’t wait to see it all come together for you.
Nancy
I LOVE everything you’ve done with yours so far!! Honestly, it’s fabulous and inspiring!
I’m looking forward to following along. I think I recall maybe a recent light installation in the kitchen too? Was that also part of the grand plan? This will be a very chic update no doubt!
Yes! We updated the can lights to be much brighter!
i cant wait to see how your kitchen turns out! you have such fabulous style and taste! those chandeliers are so beautiful! good luck with renovating! xoxox
We refreshed our kitchen a few years ago and took the bump-up off our island, too. We now have three barstools on the family room side of the island and I can’t tell you how many times friends and family have sat in those barstools while I prepared meals. Conversation flows and the whole personality of our home changed. Anxious to see your “after” – how blessed you are that Honey can do much of the work!
I am hoping we are not far behind you guys with kitchen renovations… we did some light changes back in 2014 that my husband agreed on to placate me until we could go full on and repaint cabinets, get new countertops, etc. until it was in the budget. Our first big project was all new doors, trim, etc. and then new floors in our upstairs loft, so now I feel like it is time for the updated kitchen! ha! I really want recycled glass counter tops so I can’t wait to see how your changes come out so I can get motivated to do ours!!
I was a super loyal, long time reader but just gradually stopped reading blogs as about 2 years ago…. But I still pop in over here every once in awhile because you still have the best advice and the most timeless home! We built our house about 11 years ago and, even though I picked everything myself, it’s time for an update! I wanted to see what you were up to in your kitchen and sure enough you and I are doing almost the identical updates!! We are going white on the cabinet and Dorian Gray on the island. I’m just a smidge behind you in the process; excited to follow along your journey. I’m especially interested in what you were going to do for pulls. I really want to go gold/bradd but I still have so much nickel throughout my house. What are the “W’s” doing??
I love hearing that you still pop in from time to time. I am doing chrome pulls. I am scared the gold is really just a trend and I don’t personally LOVE it. After doing chrome in my bathroom I do love it every day. I still have gold lighting in the kitchen and don’t plan to change that. Hoping it all turns out ok!