Taking a Kitchen From Beige to Bright for Less Than $9,000

Moving into a house that was just 16 years old meant that Chad and Patty Esslinger wouldn’t have to take on any major renovations. But the problem with the relatively new home was that it was stuck in basicville, and the kitchen was the town hall.

Update at a Glance
Size: 12 by 13 feet
Location: Downers Grove, a suburb of Chicago
Cost: $8,620
Big savings: Painting the cabinets rather than refacing them saved the homeowner $8,000.

BEFORE: Everything was pretty much the same tone from floor to ceiling. “The maple cabinets were kind of yellow; the granite countertops were a beigey color; the paint on the walls was caramel; the floor was midtone wood,” says Chad. “There was not a lot of flair or design elements.”

The matching tones and lack of adequate lighting made the space darker than necessary. A plastic ceiling box with a fluorescent light hardly helped.





AFTER: Though Chad is an interior designer, he approached the project like any homeowner would who’s picking out finishes and materials. And he wanted to be budget conscious, too. For example, he considered refacing the cabinets and adding new doors, but the $10,000 he was quoted would have been more than he ended up spending on the entire project. “I could have thrown a lot of dollars at it and changed the layout and made the island bigger, but that just didn’t make sense,” he says. Instead, he had the existing cabinets painted in Benjamin Moore’s Decorators White.

“I like the crisp, fresh feel of white cabinets,” he says. “I know there are wood purists out there who cannot believe I’d put paint on raw wood. I love nice-looking wood cabinets. I’ve had cherry cabinets before that I never thought of painting. In this case these were discolored and had to go.”

The cabinets were sanded, primed and then painted. Then 3½-inch crown molding was added along with all-new hardware. The 5-inch-long cylinder handles give the cabinets a bit more drama.

Appliances: KitchenAid

From the Pros: How to Paint Kitchen Cabinets


He kept the countertops too, since they were in good shape. The appliances were 14 years old and on their last legs, so he replaced all of them. He then installed pendant lights over the island and undercabinet lighting to brighten things up.

Previously, a 3-inch lip of granite acted as the only backsplash. And there was a power outlet every 2 feet, much more than what was necessary. Chad removed most of them, keeping only one on each wall in the corner. He then installed 3-inch by 6-inch gray glass subway tiles.

He also removed an outlet from the island, leaving just one on the oven-facing side. Though the island reads as being a bit blue in the photos, it’s actually gray, chosen to balance out the white cabinets and complement the backsplash. A piece of beadboard was added to tone side for character.

Island paint: Chelsea Gray, Benjamin Moore



Nearby, a large round table can seat six.

Here’s the cost breakdown for this kitchen project:

Appliances (fridge, microwave, stove, dishwasher): $4,000, from Best Buy
Painting, beadboard, crown molding: $2,000, including labor
Backsplash: $1,000 for tile; $450 for labor
Pendant lights over island: $80 each, from The Home Depot
Light fixture over table: $100, from West Elm
Table: $400, from Wayfair
Table runner: $30, from Cost Plus World Market
Chairs: $480 (six at $80 each), from Target

Total: $8,620

Accent pieces: Jonathan Adler, from JCPenny

See more photos of this home

More: DIY Spirit and $8,700 Transform a Townhouse Kitchen

Find kitchen and bath goods in the Houzz Shop

URL: Taking a Kitchen From Beige to Bright for Less Than $9,000 http://www.decor-ideas.org/cases-view-id-25621.html