Yes, I've got the kitchen itch again. Yes, I know, it was just a few months ago that I encountered the kitchen fiasco. The one where I painted my kitchen only to realize I loved the original red and painted it back again...3 days later. At 10pm. Because I'm nuts. When I get a decorating idea in my head, people, it does not let me let it go. You know that saying, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it?" Well I pretty much live the exact OPPOSITE of that. We've lived in this house for 5 1/2 years, and there are rooms that have been painted over and over again multiple times. There have been more coffee tables in the family room than most people have in a lifetime. I am wacky like that. I love changing things up, and thank GOD I found a man who embraces that aspect of me. It must not be easy to hear the words, "Hey hon, I was thinking about that molding..." or "hey babe, you like this paint color?" over and over...and over again. He's a champ, I tell ya.
So back to the kitchen...I DO love my red kitchen. I DON'T think ANYTHING is wrong with it. In fact, I think it's quite nice. But I can't seem to stop obsessing about open shelves these days. Then I saw Traci from Beneath My Heart post her new kitchen and OH. MY. WORD.
There's this beauty from Midwest Living:
And there's this from BHG:
However, as I got to thinking, this wouldn't be quite as simple as removing the cabinet fronts. It would involve a LOT more. Let me illustrate:
1. Remove upper cab fronts. Fill in the holes from the hinges, AND add molding around all the cabinets.
**this would also entail me getting new white dishes...I do have some, so I wouldn't be starting from scratch, but still. Besides, I'm not a huge fan of the ones we currently use, and most of them are chipped anyway;) Plus, have you SEEN the selection of white dishes at the Dollar Store?! Seriously people, it's awesome - and FYI, my favorite wine glasses I've ever owned came from there. They're freaking fabulous. Oh, and I've already addressed (in my head) the sippy cup/bright colored plastic kid dishes issue - I'd get large baskets for the shelves in the island and their stuff can all go in there. Plus, I'd only be taking the cab doors off this one side of my kitchen - the side with the fridge and stove would remain as is, so things can be stored there also.
2. I don't want the red paint against the stark white, so I'd paint the walls. Thinking something like our basement, which is SW Whole Wheat. It's like a khaki-ish color, but more gold in it. Very warm. I like the thought of keeping things neutral - that way I can play with different colors, like throw blue in the mix in some dishes/accessories if I want...or maybe a touch of red, especially at Christmastime.
3. I'd want the island darker. This would involve stripping it, and then staining it. Thinking a nice walnut-y shade. It's very honey-ish (wow, do I win the prize on making up words today or what!?) now, and I think with the new wall color and white cabs, a darker stain would look much better.
4. Paint the cabinets white. Outside and inside. They are currently a buttery-yellow (SW Jersey Cream).
5. New curtains. Thinking some nice airy, light panels, in a cute print of some sort...not sure.
*Also, but not 100% necessary at the exact moment all this gets done: beadboard backsplash under the cabinets and FINALLY some lighting for under the cabinets as well.
*And another one for the wish list...I'd love a natural fiber rug in there too. The floor isn't as yellow as it appears in this photo, but I would like to hide some of it if I could, and I am obsessed with natural fiber rugs at the moment.
OHHHH...almost forgot. Yeah, um, this would also force me to paint the attached dining room, since it is currently a deep gold/yellow, and against a khaki color, would look downright ugly. Oh, and um yeah, the hallway and entrance would probably then have to be painted in the near future as well, since so much of that is seen from the kitchen and dining room area....yeah, this might not be the best plan after all, now that I think about it...oh who am I kidding, I'd bet money that this crazy Naptime Decorator will be making some changes at some point in 2012 to this kitchen. I can never leave well enough alone. But it would take me a LOT of naptimes to get it all done;)
What do YOU think? Should I go for it? Do any of you have open shelves? Do you love them/hate them/have words of advice for me? And is anyone out there insane like me when it comes to changing things up constantly? Tell me I'm not alone!
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7 comments:
Well let me start by saying that cabinets are SO expensive! We went shopping for some in our laundry room and I nearly passed out with a quote of 2 grand for three. You have to be sure your okay with possibly not being able to get them back the way they were. Second what do your dishes look like? All of ours are white and matching, but I still have some kiddie dishes I would not want displayed. It's a hard call and could be hit or miss completely.
I have a larger open shelf in the kitchen and the island Dan made for me has a large open shelf on the bottom. I have a love hate relationship with those shelves, when I take the time to arrange everything they look great, but sometimes things get super dusty too. That's not fun at all. I think they look beautiful if you do it right. But it takes not only the time and effort of doing it, but also the time and effort of keeping it clean :)
Not a fan of the open shelves...Who keeps their cabinets that organized all the time?!
your kitchen looks almost identical to the kitchen over at "Beneath My Heart" do you all live in the same neighborhood? Personally I love open cabinets, although I don't know if I would ever get rid of our cabinets (at least as long as I have children at home putting away dished). Whatever you do, I'm looking forward to reading the progress! =)
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I love the idea, but agree about being able to keep it looking clean/neat all the time. Why don't you try doing only 2 cabinets (maybe the ones to the left and right of the sink)? I saw a few open cabinet photos on pinterest, where they did only some. I still love the idea of white cabinets, though. You could always still do the island and buy new dishes. I'd throw some cool canisters in there, too. Target had som cute ones in Columbia the other day.
Go for it! 20+ years ago at my first home - a cute little cottage, I took all the doors off my cabinets and it kept me organized and actually made my tiny kitchen look bigger. Now...at 47 am thinking of doing it again. I quit my job a year ago and have an 18 yr old who is almost outta here...so like you (although older and at different place in life), I look around my house all day and re-arrange and think of new projects. You can always add the doors back! Great blog....
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