Budget Kitchen Makeover

Budget kitchen makeover. How a few small changes and a bold colorchange made a big difference in this all white kitchen.

The kitchen is one of the many things I love about our new house. A full remodel has already been completed by the previous owner, and the original 1990s oak cabinets are long gone. Instead, there are Shaker-style cabinets, a big island, and plenty of counter and storage space.

But despite its recent renovation, the kitchen felt sad and depressing. The whites always looked dingy yellow or gray, and with no contrast between the white cabinets, white backsplash, white counters, and gray island, everything looked drab!

In particular, I really hated the tile backsplash. I didn’t like the shape of the tile, which felt too modern for this kitchen. The grout was too light (again – no contrast). The grout lines were at least 1/4 inch thick – way too wide! Plus, I hated the way those outlets cut into that ugly green stripe. And if you look closely, you’ll see that a light switch isn’t level with the outlets. So without question, that tile backsplash had to go!

So, how to add some color and interest to this kitchen? I liked the layout of the kitchen, so I didn’t want to move anything. And I wanted to stay budget-friendly. Painting the cabinets and changing out the backsplash was the best option for our budget kitchen makeover.

Finding the right color blue was the hardest part. The kitchen gets direct sunlight in the morning and indirect light the rest of the day. Many blues looked too bright in the direct light and many gray blues looked too gray and not blue enough in the indirect light.

These are some of the blues I looked at:

Finally, I decided on Smokey Blue by Sherwin Williams. It was the perfect shade of blue that wasn’t too blue and had just enough influence of gray.

Normally, I’m a DIY sort of gal, but I have personally seen too many badly painted kitchen cabinets. I didn’t feel confident in my DIY abilities, so I asked Lorilynn of Heart of Home to help with our budget kitchen mokeover by painting the cabinets and re-tiling the backsplash. She also added a new door to this awkward spot and it looks so much better.

Here’s what the kitchen looked like before. Drab, sad, and depressing.

Here’s the kitchen in progress getting a new tile backsplash and the cabints painted.

And here’s what it looks like now!

I couldn’t be happier with the results of our budget kitchen makeover! The new tile fits the modern farmhouse style of the kitchen so much better. And no more ugly green stripe! The outlets blend in with the tile so they’re not as noticable and the uneven light switch is gone!