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Of course it needs more light but undercabinet won't help. they are too close to the counter. If they are bright enough to affect the room, you won't be able to look at the counter and if they put the right amount of light on the counter they won't help the room. You need 300w of recessed lighting in the ceiling AND undercabinet low voltage, all on dimmers.
I hate to disagree with the experts, but paint the tile. Clean it intensely. caulk the holes and cracks. Use a latex primer and spray it with a semi-gloss enamel in a light color that the experts should help with. You will have to repaint it every three years. But the tile is worth as much as the counter as far as cost goes ($20/ft/ sq.). So there.
It is hideously ugly, but you know that already. Sorry.
Last edited by Wilson513; 01-26-2012 at 10:32 PM..
First, use some Murphys oil soap, or some wood polish to brighten up your cabinets, they look it good shape. Buy some really nice knobs, or handles, there are some great selections, and it may really update your look, plus you can choose which style appeals to you.
If you haven't got much money, look at hardware outlets, or thrift stores. One idea if you like to be creative is to either paint your own cheap wooden knobs, or buy a variety of the same metal color in differant styles.
Since you may eventually replace your back splash, buy a few tiles similar in color to yours,and some tile paint sample sizes, and experiment, you may be able to add some interesting colors by using a stiff stencil type brush, just dab a nearly fry brush, tapping the colors randomly. If you haven't got much money, look at hardware outlets, or thrift stores. for the knobs.
You haven't really given us an idea of your style preference? If you like countryish, you have an easy fix.....Just add some sweet china plates in various designs to your wall above the cabinets. I use the old fashioned desert plate size, picking the patterns I like at thrift stores. You can buy the nice metal plate hangers, copper colored would look nice w/ that touch of orange.
I would have left the appliances, they look pretty good....so now you are stuck w/ the metal color of your appliances.
You could paint the walls above the cabinets to contrast and compliment you wall color in your dining area.
Use a few nice wall accessories, pictures, I love Gordmans selection, and they often have marked down wall decor.
Your floor looks fine.
What would look nice when you can afford it would be those lovely small glass tiles, they have some great color schemes. Have fun, cute kitchen, small but efficient.
My favorite kitchen happened to be my smallest, it was designed by the lady of the house, and every nook and cranny was utilized, it was most efficient kitchen I have ever had.
Also, take another pic just like this when your new appliances are in. Go to the Sherwin Williams, or the Valspar paint web pages. They have the coolest program, upload your pic, and play w/ color and design real ime. Great way to plan and dream for when you can do major changes. Or to help you choose your paint color now. Keep us updated
Last edited by JanND; 01-26-2012 at 10:43 PM..
Reason: spacing
I would however rip the back splash off no matter what. There is such a multitude of things today that you can do even for not that much money.
So with your new applainces for a few hundred more, if even that, you can get a better looking b/s
I too also agree with Ohiogirl and kept the appliances and replaced the floor counters and b/s.....
I would have loved to keep the appliances, but unfortunately they were all broken. This was a foreclosed home and it was pretty beat up.
The other part of the kitchen (past the island/peninsula) is the dining room. Currently it has a white wall and not much else (but boxes!)
Well, the cabinets are is really good condition, and my husband freaked out when I mentioned re-painting them. And the tile is is ok condition, but we just don't have the funds right now to tear out and redo. PLus, up close the tile is very ugly-little flecks of gold and orange *shudder
The cabinets don't look bad. If you did anything to do them, maybe you could stain them more of the chocolate color that's in style now. And update them with stainless hardware to match your new appliances.
As far as painting the backsplash, I think that will look kind of strange -- the tile and grout will all be the same color. Are you sure you can't re-do the tile? Tile is really not expensive, you sure don't need much of it, and maybe you could do it yourself, or at least tear it out yourself. That would give you the most bang for your buck and then you could live with the other stuff because they're not that bad.
Of course it needs more light but undercabinet won't help. they are too close to the counter. If they are bright enough to affect the room, you won't be able to look at the counter and if they put the right amount of light on the counter they won't help the room. You need 300w of recessed lighting in the ceiling AND undercabinet low voltage, all on dimmers.
I hate to disagree with the experts, but paint the tile. Clean it intensely. caulk the holes and cracks. Use a latex primer and spray it with a semi-gloss enamel in a light color that the experts should help with. You will have to repaint it every three years. But the tile is worth as much as the counter as far as cost goes ($20/ft/ sq.). So there.
It is hideously ugly, but you know that already. Sorry.
I agree with the recessed lighting, but I'm of the opinion that one might as well replace the tile if one is going to go to all the effort of cleaning/painting, you know?
Tile is available for a modest price, and God knows a decent tile man can be had for a song these days.
Think things through, you don't want to "respend"...
I sorta suspected that although the appliances were not visibly rusty or otherwise obviously broken down the age / lower quality meant that they were not very functional. Replacing is often a smarter move than attempting repairs, especially for stuff that is not top of the line to begin with.
Personally I think you ought to plan out a similar strategy for the overall space. While some folks are saying the cabinets look to be "in good shape" I know they are nothing special, I would peg their age as greater than 10 year, though less than 30. While they probably are not falling apart I suspect the operation of the drawers and even the hinges has seen better days.
Painting them won't change those facts. In fact even if you upgraded the operating hardware the overall sturdiness of the cabinets and the layout of the kitchen is not really great. The smart thing to do, long term, is budget for a pretty major kitchen overhaul.
The sad reality is that painting over tile does little to really transform dated tile. The color may be hidden but the pattern will still come through in all its dirt grabbing yuckiness.
Don't waste time or even the cost of paint on that kind of mistake.
Similarly I would not attempt to upgrade the general lighting with recessed light until you "green light" the big overhaul which in all honestly should involve getting rid of the boxed soffits, new cabinets in a more functional arrangement than with the not very useful penisula, and probably a re-think of the pantry... Not cheap but good kitchens rarely are. When you do all that work AND have new backsplashes AND new flooring (all of the existing is from the same era and it is all bad...) you will transform the house and almost certainly DRAMATICALLY improve the appeal to buyers.
You may have been smart to get a foreclosure at a good price. If that let you leave money in the bank for an upgrade soon than later then you are doubly wise -- you can afford to do a nice kitchen AND enjoy for a longer time. If the foreclosure still required you to stretch then just save up for a little while. Don't waste your money on stuff that will need to be ripped out!
Most folks will tell you "de-clutter" but given you have an remarkably unappealing backsplash my short term strategy would be to go visit thrift stores and get goofy cannister set and spoon rests and other trinkets to sorta obscure the nasty back splash and pull visitors eyes away from the light sucking cabinets and ugly flooring. Have fun with it! Go track down troll doll kitchen accessories of other wacky kitsch. When you have your demolition yard sale with the ripped out cabinets and all the kitchn knick knacks you'll get your money back!
Quote:
Originally Posted by woody_7
I would have loved to keep the appliances, but unfortunately they were all broken. This was a foreclosed home and it was pretty beat up.
The other part of the kitchen (past the island/peninsula) is the dining room. Currently it has a white wall and not much else (but boxes!)
I would paint those cabinets in a minute. It's a lot of work but not a huge expense, and will immediately open and brighten the room. A soft white/cream, not harsh. Must look good with that countertop, so really need to test samples. Could even go with a soft color, as this is not a forever plan. Nice new hardware.
Backsplash--it might actually look better when you paint the cabinets, but I don't think it'll ever look good with the floor. You really could get some super cheap tile, like $1-$2/sq ft, and it's not a hard DIY project. It is a big project, though, labor wise, not sure if you're up for it.
How about beadboard glued right over the tile and then painted a semi-gloss? If that suits your style, it would be a super cheap way to go, and would look good. Use small pieces of trim around the edges to disguise the visible gap where the beadboard is sitting on the tile.
It sounds like you're at the point where you want to spend as little as possible to get the kitchen looking fresher/more updated so that you can not deal with it for awhile and concentrate on other things. If you're going for "fine for now", rather than a huge wow factor, you're looking at:
Painting cabinets: Roughly $30 for a gallon of primer and $30 for a gallon of paint, then sandpaper and brushes/rollers if you don't have them.
New hardware can be cheap or pricey. I wouldn't go too low-end with this. Shoot for mid-range.
Beadboard backsplash: The faux panel kind, not the actual individual boards. Very cheap. Saw to cut it, then paint and liquid nails and some trim. Not a huge expense.
Good luck. Kitchen has potential to be very cute. I would go super cheap now, make it cute enough to hold you over for however many years until you feel you want to do the big overhaul.
I'm sure the new appliances made a big difference. Do you have photos of those? I would probably add some stainless steel hardware to the cabinets. I have no problem painting cabinets but in your case, it seems from the photos you can make them a bit more modern with hardware until you do an overhaul.
The backsplash could work with the right accessories. Orange and browns are in. Knowing myself I would probably attempt to remove it. The problem with removing it is, if its adhered to drywall, then the wall ends up damaged.
I think one of the big box stores had those copper tiles, 12 x 12 that stick on the back for back splashes. they have a variety of colors and designs, and are thin enough to work with easily, plus can be cut with a scoring knife. there is also a web site,I don't remember the name. That could be cheaper and look nice also. i kinda like copper. JMO.
I think one of the big box stores had those copper tiles, 12 x 12 that stick on the back for back splashes. they have a variety of colors and designs, and are thin enough to work with easily, plus can be cut with a scoring knife. there is also a web site,I don't remember the name. That could be cheaper and look nice also. i kinda like copper. JMO.
Those tiles are expensive.....I have been eyeing them forever.
Love copper, and want to redo my back splash in it.
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Think things through, you don't want to "respend"...
