This kitchen has been two years in the making, constantly tweaking what we had (painting cabinets, painting countertops!, buying new appliances as we could afford them) until we were ready for a little bit more of a renovation a couple months ago.  Here’s what it looked like when we moved in:

And here’s how it looks today:

Although we initially were going to tweak the layout, we decided to keep it just the way it was and we’re glad we did.  Keeping the same cabinets also saved money. In the first phase of the reno, we painted all the cabinets white, and in the second phase we painted the base cabinets a deep navy and added hardware which changed the whole game.

Functionally, our favorite change was the addition of a few open shelves (and the subtraction of an upper cabinet).  At first, we added just two shelves and in the second phase we opted for one more because we honestly couldn’t get enough of the convenience. The sink, the touch faucet, backsplash, lighting, pantry door, roman shade and counters were all additions in the past few months. At the end of the post, I’ll link to all the sources, as well as posts relating to them.  For now, just enjoy the photos!

A lot of you have expressed your sadness about us leaving the spaces (this one in particular) that we’ve worked so hard on without ever really getting to enjoy it.  Know that we have.  We have enjoyed working on this kitchen and in this kitchen for the past two years and most recently, watching it reach a potential we saw when we first toured this house.  Every aspect, from working side by side trying to figure out how to install counters and backsplash for the very first time, to seeing our vision come to life has been so rewarding! We’re so grateful we documented it all so we could look back and remember the projects and maybe drool a little over the outcome. Cheers!

Painting the cabinets, A new fridge (and stove, and dishwasher, and range hood), the paneled peninsula, painting the navy base cabinets, adding open shelving, adding a third open shelf, Hardware on the cabinets, A new pantry door, Etching the pantry windows, New lighting, DIY Black walnut counters, New sink, New faucet, Marble backsplash.

Top cabinets: Benjamin Moore Mountain Peak White, Base cabinets: Behr’s Midnight Dream (color matched to Benjamin Moore), Hardware: Restoration Hardware, Floating shelves: Ikea, Pantry Door: Home Depot, Fridge: Kenmore Elite, Double Oven: Kenmore, Range Hood: Kenmore, Dishwasher: GE Adora (we really don’t love this dishwasher, ps), Countertops: Craft Art, Sink: Kraus, Faucet: Delta Cassidy Touch20, Globe Pendants: West Elm, Black Wall Sconce: Reed from Rejuvenation, White Roman Shade: JCPenney, Hampton Carrara Marble Backsplash: The Tile Shop.