Kitchen Overhaul Update

A while back I mentioned that our teeny, tiny kitchen was in desperate need of a makeover.

It's not that I just wanted to redecorate -  I needed to redecorate, and if you don't believe me, see for yourself.

This kitchen was/is small, had super bland beige walls and countertops, was poorly lit (with inexplicably exposed fluorescent lighting), and had sub-par finishes all around.

As much as we would've loved to, it sadly just didn't make sense to rip everything out and start from scratch while we're just renting.

No, there weren't any snazzy new cabinets on the way, no beautiful backsplash en route...

We had to approach this overhaul knowing it wasn't investment, but rather a temporary way of personalizing another bit of our little home.

As I've said before, I love sketching on my iPad and did a lot of brainstorming for our little kitchenette by doing just that...

 

With busy work and social schedules, plus a tight budget, making something of these ideas has been a very slow process. And while it's still very much underway, it dawned on me that we've actually made a lot of progress in the last few months... baby steps or not!

First, we managed to free up some much needed counter space by replacing two wooden knife blocks with two magnetic strips.

I've loved the look of these for a while now, and thanks to MLo and his Dad (who both miraculously remembered my passing comments about this idea), our amazing knives have been both on display and out of the way since Christmas!

Despite the setback/saga of MLo's broken elbow, I managed to take the next step on my own and checked 'paint the walls' off my to do list over the holidays. 

We opted for a bold and bright yellow that almost makes our turquoise bathroom look demure!

This admittedly in your face colour takes some getting used to, and I know it definitely isn't for everyone, but we're very happy with the way it turned out and both agree it really livens up the space!

After not really finding exactly what I wanted on Etsy, I ended up purchasing this set of four glass kitchen canisters for a ridiculously low price at the Kitchen Stuff Plus store across from my office building.

Kitchen Stuff Plus

Since I don't do too much baking, we've passed on your typical flour and sugar, opting instead to fill our new canisters with more frequently used items here in the Nook: coffee, tea, pasta and nuts. Whatever works, right? 

Other improvements and additions include a new magnetic spice rack, Marc's DIY filter for our terrible fluorescent lighting (made of a custom-fit wooden frame and tracing paper), and a little Sansevieria plant here and there, to provide some much needed greenery.

I still plan to hang a mirror behind the sink, score one or two new lamps for the corners beneath our cabinets, finally decide on a small print to frame, etc. etc. etc. but thus far I'm quite pleased with our progress.

Would you or have you decorated your kitchen or home differently, with outrageous colours or daring designs, knowing that you'd likely move or renovate within a couple of years?

You obviously know my answer... what's yours?

KLI | NofW