DIY Kitchen Renovation Series: The Before

Ahhh, the kitchen! The heart of the home…a gathering place during family functions and holidays, that is, unless you can’t stand it! That’s right, we can’t stand our kitchen, I said it and I’m not taking it back! When I think of a nice kitchen, I get a warm and cozy feeling because it’s a place where I can spend a good time of my day cooking, blogging, feeding my baby. But not my kitchen. Most of the time I just want to get in and get out. Keep reading and you will  find out why I will be very happy when we start to renovate our kitchen.

Reasons we DO NOT like our kitchen:

1. Let there be light! Because there barley is any in our kitchen. There is only one fluorescent light that sits on one side of the room. Basically, only one side of the room is lit. 
2. It is not functional whatsoever! There is not enough counter space or storage space. At one time plates were sharing a cabinet with food. The layout of the appliances SUCKS! There’s a short window and a long window (like, why?????). Why couldn’t all the windows be the same size or just have one big bay-type window?
3. It never feels completely clean. Since moving in, there are some places that I haven’t bothered touching ( yes, sad to say) like the dingy walls or underneath the faucet with the leak. I had intentions of cleaning those places but I was pregnant when we moved in, then became just too busy with daily life…. plus it was creepy. The tile counter top is hard to clean because there are too many crevices.
4. Horrible craftsmanship.The cabinets were just plopped up there as evidenced by some of the doors hanging lower than others.
5. The appliances are old and sort of do their job, but not all the way; the freezer leaks and the dishwasher leaves soap residue-plus I hate cooking on electric stoves. Give a girl some gas!
6. One of our biggest issues is that the kitchen is blocked off by an awkward wall that serves as two storage closets. The wall adds to the kitchen feeling gloomy and definitely prevents our desires for an open concept house.

Please excuse the fly traps, but the fly issue here in Texas is real! We are on a quest to find a solution to our flying-friend problem, but that is a post for another day!I’ve been told that the kitchen doesn’t look so bad, but, that is in pictures, people. Trust me if you could see the grime on the walls and the true dysfunction you would be begging us to hurry up and renovate!  Can you see the small amount of counter space we have been forced to live with? My husband built an island for me this past Christmas to help alleviate my pain- you can see it in the second doorway there. And oh, look at that. The refrigerator is inconveniently placed in front of the window and that is because there was really no other place it could fit. Can you also see where the hood is placed? yes, yes, I understand that a hood goes over the stove, but the stove has no place jutting out in the middle of the room in the first place.

Oh yeah, the one light in the kitchen decided to go out about a week ago, making it very hard to do any cooking at night!

In these photos you get a view of that awkward wall and how it adds to the house feeling like a puzzle. The usable area is quite small in this orientation, there is so much space wasted to nothingness.

Quick overview of what we want in our kitchen:

1. Open, airy, and bright (natural and artificial light). Yay!! Get rid of that wall. Give the new hung dry wall a nice paint color. Either make the windows the same size or combine them into one big window. Add recessed lighting all around the kitchen so that I can see when chopping vegetables and wont cut my finger off.
2. Expose the hardwood flooring ( we are hoping there is hardwood under the tile) and give it a good sanding and refinishing.
3. New appliances, of course!
4. An affordable and durable option for counter tops and enough of it.
5. A pantry that will serve dual purpose as a laundry room.
6. Basically Bring This Kitchen To LIFE!

Here are some examples of kitchens we like:

What I love about this kitchen is the clean lines and how it combines elegance with simplicity. Check out Lily Stephenson’s blog to see more of her house reno  here.

Love the combo of light and dark in this kitchen from chrislovesjulia.com

Did I mention I LOVE white kitchens. This kitchen feels so fresh! It makes me want to say “ahhhhh.” I feel relaxed when looking at it, just the way I should feel when in my kitchen.

All of these kitchens have elements that we are looking to add to ours. What are things you like to see in a kitchen? What do you want a kitchen to have most? Let me know your thoughts below.

Check back later this week for the next post because we have begun demolition in the kitchen and I have some great things in store for ya!