Our kitchen is finally done! We love how it has turned out. Well technically it’s been done for months, but there’s still a few finishing items to cross of the list.
So let’s go down memory lane on how the kitchen looked last fall when we moved in. Terrible floor tile, broken cabinets, navy blue laminate countertops, mismatched appliances and just an overall dark space.
Before
Kitchen Pt 1: The Plan / Kitchen Pt 2: The Demo / Kitchen Pt 3: Tile
After
Our vision for this kitchen was to have a bright and open space that would be comfortable to work in, while be welcoming to guests when entertaining. I think we achieved that!
Cabinets + Hardware
We both agreed that we wanted our upper cabinets to go to the ceiling to bring in as much storage as we could and achieving more of a “built-in” feel. We have 9ft ceilings so we had two options – go with two rows of uppers or one massive upper. The price was almost identical, but it mainly came down to us liking the streamlined look of having only one upper. Going with one row meant we needed 48 inch uppers with 6 inches of trim work, which not every brand carries. Luckily, we were really happy with the quality and options that the Kraftmaid brand carried.
I wanted the same hardware on all cabinets and drawers. I personally don’t care for the look of mixed and honestly just hate knobs in kitchens. I love how simple and streamlined the hardware is that we ended up with.
Countertops
I was set on having white cabinets, but I was going back and forth on countertops – white or black. Of course white on white looks amazing, but in the end I wanted more contrast. However, with black countertops I *really dislike* shiny black countertops. If we did black countertops, they’d have to be honed. We found a beautiful honed granite slab and it was exactly what I was looking for. Had just the right balance of veining without looking overwhelming. A lot of people have shied away from granite because of the awful patterns used in the early 2000s and the maintenance. Ours came with a 5 year sealer and then after that we’ll need to seal it at least once a year (it will only take 20 minutes!). Granite is still a great surface to have and it’s less expensive than quartz. However, I was scared having black on the island would make the space feel too heavy, so we opted for a white quartz there.
Appliances
We originally weren’t going to replace all of the appliances, but once we got to the point of buying a new dishwasher and microwave, we decided to go all in. I wanted matching brands and handles. (I didn’t want a handle for the dishwasher or for the bottom drawer with the stove.) We have a couple friends who have access to Whirlpool’s Inside Pass program through their companies, so we were able to get a bigger discount on those appliances than you could ever get from a retailer. Our drawer microwave is from Sharp and even though it broke on us one week after install, it was fixed at no charge and has been great since!
A few other things we had done include electric upgrades. We removed the fluorescent box light that was in the middle of the kitchen and replaced with four LED can lights, a wall-mounted light above the sink and added under-mount cabinet lights.
Sources
Cabinets: Kraftmaid from Lowes – Deveron Maple Full in White
Countertops: Unique Stone Concepts
(Honed Black: Negresco)
(White Quartz: Ellipse Quartz Mont Blanc)
Countertop Fabricator & Install: Russo Stone and Tile
Hardware: Wayfair
Subway Tile: Home Depot
Light above Sink: Shades of Light
Sink: Wayfair
Faucet: Wayfair
Hood Vent: Wayfair
Faucet: Wayfair
Hood Vent: Wayfair
Under Cabinet Lighting: Armacost
Appliances: Whirlpool
Rug: nuLoom