Usually I hang out on MMM, but we are under contract on a new home so I am beginning to lurk here for ideas. The house is incredible, solid and crazy outdated. We are trying to determine all of the major things that we need to do before moving in versus the things we can do over time.
Also, we are trying to find finishes that we will love and will wear well over time ie. we don't want to pick something trendy or at the end of the fad.
We are going to refinish the kitchen cabinets; either a dark stain or white. If we do white, we are planning on dark counters, either a quartz or possibly soapstone. If we do stain, it will likely be a more neutral granite. Are either of these better or worse than the other?
There is currently stained woodwork/windows/solid doors throughout. White woodwork is so much fresher and brighter. I believe painting it will really update the space, but is this something we shouldn't do?
We are planning on an antique bronze finish on fixtures and door knobs. Is this too trendy?
We are fairly set on these cabinet pulls (approximately 4.5" long):
However, what the heck am I supposed to do about these weird, tiny cabinets above the microwave area and the little one in the corner?
Lastly, does anyone have recommendations for websites with decent quality cabinet pulls and door knobs for reasonable prices?
I think the arched doors will look dated no matter what finish you choose. At our last house we bought replacement doors online and bought the matching paint to finish the face frames and boxes ourselves. It turned out really nice and more timeless, was very reasonable and less time consuming than painting doors would have been.
FormerlyRR you bring up a good point. We were planning those to coordinate with the handles on the appliances we picked but yes, the arches do make it a bit more difficult. Do you have any suggestions aside from a standard round knob?
My H really likes the egg shaped knobs but I am not really a fan.
TBM refacing isn't completely out of the question but I love that these cabinets are solid! Buying new doors of similar quality would be pricey.
Just for shits and giggles. This almost an identical layout (from the same builder etc) down the street where they just painted the existing cabinets, added granite and SS appliances. It's incredible what a difference it made.
It was built in 1988, the "wood room" aka family room is really good quality, solid wood. I know it is sinful to paint but the room is so dark as is. The floor is laminate, so crappy crap that is getting ripped up. My thought is doing a wainscoting look with white on the bottom panels and trim, with a gray or beige on top.
The second room is the dining room. I haven't quite figured out my color scheme in there yet.
Post by Velar Fricative on Oct 23, 2014 8:22:16 GMT -5
We are in a similar situation! We are scheduled to close on our new (outdated) home tomorrow. I just decided to refinish the cabinets and will use the Rust-Oleum Cabinet Transformations kit in Espresso Glaze next week. I considered white but decided to go dark instead for a few reasons (current cabinets are a very light oak - they have arches too but I don't care about that, I just hate the color). I'm also going to use the Rust-Oleum Countertop Transformations kit in Desert Sand because I prefer lighter counters with darker cabinets. Undecided on backsplash as of now.
I do think those pulls wouldn't look right with these cabinets. We are likely going to go with less trendy pulls and knobs just to keep in line with the cabinet style. I haven't decided what to get yet but it seems like there are good deals online; we also may just go to Home Depot and buy some.
Usually I hang out on MMM, but we are under contract on a new home so I am beginning to lurk here for ideas. The house is incredible, solid and crazy outdated. We are trying to determine all of the major things that we need to do before moving in versus the things we can do over time.
Congratulations. DH and I are in the process of updating a home built in 1986. We have similar issues.
Also, we are trying to find finishes that we will love and will wear well over time ie. we don't want to pick something trendy or at the end of the fad.
I hear you. But I think in the end you do have to respect the age of the house and accept that home dec is cyclical and that being current means continual updatings- so like FormerlyRR says- ultimately it's best to suit your own tastes.
We are going to refinish the kitchen cabinets; either a dark stain or white. If we do white, we are planning on dark counters, either a quartz or possibly soapstone. If we do stain, it will likely be a more neutral granite. Are either of these better or worse than the other?
At the end of the day, painted or stained, they're still going to be cathedral arched, non-full overlay cabinets hung under a soffit. It might be useful to consider whether you want to do a full gut of the kitchen in a couple of years or if that isn't high on your list of priorities. I'm in a similar situation, except I dodged the cathedral arch. I did a full on to the studs kitchen remodel previously- I wouldn't do a full reno in my kitchen unless I planded to stay put (unlikley) and expand the room into my backyard.
I really like what your neighbor did to her kitchen- she refreshed it with a primarily cosmetic remodel. That's sort of what I plan to do next spring. When I did my old kitchen, I scoured old decorating magazines and noticed that the ones that aged "best" tended to have white cabinets- they looked less dated than any other color. That said, I chose a dark pine that suited my cottage-like house.
I had a medium tone vanity in my powder room than I painted a dark coffee color. I love the way it looks, but it shows dirt almsot as much as white would. I have a medium tone granite countertop with it which looks nice. Like you I toyed with doing a white vanity and a nearly black granite. I swapped the hardware out for brushed nickle to match the faucet and lamp.
There is currently stained woodwork/windows/solid doors throughout. White woodwork is so much fresher and brighter. I believe painting it will really update the space, but is this something we shouldn't do?
This is something that will come in and out of style. I'd be inclined to paint the trim in most of the house some kind of white. Be aware though, a midtone stained trim is the most forgiving in terms of cleaning and maintnance. I dust my floor trim weekly, in my old kitchen monthly cut it pretty well.
We are planning on an antique bronze finish on fixtures and door knobs. Is this too trendy?
I kind of feel like bronze is nearing the end of it's run. But if it speaks to you, have at it. I have mixed finishes- nickle in two of my baths, chrome in another. I have some very high end brass which I intend to keep. Brass is supposedly coming back. I do like some cohesion with finishes that are part of the house. If you swap out doorknobs, you should do hinges as well. I wouldn't worry so much about rooms that are closed off from the public areas of the house like bathrooms and to a lesser extend bedrooms.
I don't like that pull with your cabinets. They clash.
We are fairly set on these cabinet pulls (approximately 4.5" long):
However, what the heck am I supposed to do about these weird, tiny cabinets above the microwave area and the little one in the corner?
Lastly, does anyone have recommendations for websites with decent quality cabinet pulls and door knobs for reasonable prices?
This is one of those things I poke around different place to buy. I've had some success at Lowe's and also a local boutique hardware store. Good hardware is $$$.
If I were doing a full on redo I might spring for spendy pulls, but not if I was recycling an older dated cabinet.
You have to consider how the current hardware is installed. If you stay with knobs as your neighbor did, you won't have to drill new holes and repair around the others. I have a friend who had her kitchen redone professionally. She had pulls that were installed in the center of the cabinets- it took her carpenter days to repair them.
Thanks for any advice you're able to give.
My dining room is very like yours. I painted the trim white. I painted the wall below the chair rail white as well and put a sea glass aqua above. It's very pretty.
I love the quirky wood paneled family room. I had a similar sun porch at my old house. Instead of fightiting it, I embraced it's rustic-ness. It was the favorite space in the house. Think warm and cozy instead of dark and bring in color with rugs and textiles.
Post by dr.girlfriend on Oct 23, 2014 10:20:04 GMT -5
Hi, and congratulations, and welcome!
The more info you can give about your house (whatever you feel comfortable with) the better -- there are some things that I'd probably recommend if it's a 1920's Victorian in San Fran relative to a Cape Cod in suburban PA or a beach house in Florida.
That said, I agree with trying to live with things a bit before you decide on non-cosmetic changes. You might realize that you want to substantially change the layout of your kitchen or knock down a wall or something.
Beyond that, I agree with doing what makes you happy. I had a wood-paneled room with big bookshelves like yours that I painted completely white. It was a giant pain, but I love it now. It went from my least-favorite room in the house to my favorite. It used to be a cave in there, and between the white paint and the recessed lighting we put in it's all sunshine now. I think yours would look good painted, especially since you'll still have the wood floor. Before-and-afters are here:
I would definitely paint the trim in that dining room. The problem is knowing where to stop and start.
For pulls, I wouldn't try to match to the appliance pulls -- appliance pulls are VERY modern, and don't look right in every kitchen on cabinets. I just did a white kitchen, and I did relatively transitional knobs and pulls. I think they are classic, but still interesting, and might go better with your current cabinet style. Here they are on Amazon:
I just purchased handles from this ebay seller: super fast shipping, nice solid quality product and wayyyy cheaper than the ones HD has (I bought the first ones shown). They come in different lengths. We used 8" on everything except the 12" doors over the fridge and micro, used 4" for those.
Thanks for the feedback so far! I really appreciate it.
This is another comparison shot for the family room. The updated house down the street painted the wood and put in carpet similar to what someone mentioned above.
And ours for comparison:
We are considering HWs throughout the main level, including the kitchen for cohesiveness. If we did carpet in the family room, we would likely do a tile in the kitchen since the cohesiveness I am longing for would be broken anyways.
TBH, I might paint the walls/backs of the bookcases in the family room, but leave the trim, shelves and fireplace as-is. I'd rather have to decide later to go back and do more than do too much at once and loose some character that I'd regret.
But really, I'd change the flooring and put furniture in and then see if it still looks too dark afterwards. I'd leave the dining room (paint the walls, not the trim). I personally have white trim throughout my house, but my house came with painted trim, and it's small, so the white ties all the rooms together and brightens it up.
TBM refacing isn't completely out of the question but I love that these cabinets are solid! Buying new doors of similar quality would be pricey.
I'm talking about replacing, not refacing. The doors we bought were wood, painted, (they used the same Sherwin Williams pro paint that my cabinet guy used on our hall cabinets in this house), and were better quality than what was originally there. They were very reasonable too....something like $30-$40 per door a couple of years ago.
The only thing I have to comment on is those little cabinets - I would put seasonal/holiday use stuff in the one above the microwave and that small vertical one by the dishwasher is perfect for holding sheet pans, cookie sheets, cooling racks, etc (as long as you remove any shelf that might be in it). Are you planning on keeping that range/microwave? If not, then when replacing it, I would consider tearing out that little cabinet above altogether and just walling it in.
Are you planning on keeping that range/microwave? If not, then when replacing it, I would consider tearing out that little cabinet above altogether and just walling it in.
The appliances are all going! They are original and just won't work out for us.
Another question too. Has anyone ever removed a soffit? Based on room proximity I am 90% sure there is no plumbing in there. There could be electrical though. I considering removing the soffit, then using the opened up ceiling to wire in recessed lighting over the counter tops.
atarianna we renovated a 1971 ranch and had a very similar kitchen We ended up gutting everything, but i can comment on door pulls, etc
we used: www.doorcorner.com - so reasonably priced & items here within 3 days. We installed oil-rubbed bronze for everything. and have a "white" kitchen
How fun to have so many possibilities. I would paint those cabinets white. There are very few situations in which I would be willing to strip and restain kitchen cabinets. So. much. work.
With those cabinets I think you will need knobs/pulls that are more traditional than the one you had been thinking about using.
I would try taking down the sofits. Maybe poke some smaller holes first just in case. There wasn't anything in my sofits, but my house isn't really comparable to yours in style or age so I don't know what you might find. If you can wire in recessed lighting for the room from that point I think you will be very pleased with it.
I'm usually pretty into white woodwork, but in the pictures that you posted I'm rather enjoying the warmth of the wood. If it looks the way I'm envisioning in person, then I would keep the trim wood at least FOR NOW. You don't have to commit to it forever, but once it's painted it's pretty much done for good.
I had the most unpleasant job of stripping almost all the wood trim in my house because they had painted over the wood trim without any prep work. Don't let that be you if you do paint it. It's REALLY bad. The paint goes on fine and looks fine for a while, maybe even a couple years. But then it chips easily and looks terrible. You can try to touch up, but the chipped area still shows and in no time another area chips....
Okay, moving on. I really like the idea of carpet in the wood family room. Maybe painting the shelves, but mostly leaving the wood at least until you have tried living with it to know you want to change it for sure.
It was built in 1988, the "wood room" aka family room is really good quality, solid wood. I know it is sinful to paint but the room is so dark as is. The floor is laminate, so crappy crap that is getting ripped up. My thought is doing a wainscoting look with white on the bottom panels and trim, with a gray or beige on top.
The second room is the dining room. I haven't quite figured out my color scheme in there yet.
The house I grew up in had a wood panel family room. My mom had it painted and I always liked the way it looked. It majorly brightened the room and still looked very classic IMO.
I understand what everyone is saying about living with things for a while before making major changes, but I don't think it's going to be an option for us.
We plan to do most of the renovation before moving in. We have 2 kids under 2 and trying to live with young kids in a non-functional home is quite possibly one of the worst things I can imagine.
My H and I want to update the home without taking character away from it. My dad doesn't want me to paint the wood at all but suggested a compromise of painting everything white aside from the doors. I found some great examples on Pinterest but it seemed to work best with craftsman style, whereas mine is more traditional, and where the wood doors were pretty dark.
I so wish the wood room were a library or office, we would definitely keep it as is. As a family room, I just don't think I can live with the darkness for such a central piece of my home.
It's your home, so do what you feel is best for the house and your style of living. I think we are encouraging caution anywhere you aren't sure what you want for the space. But where you do feel strongly, there's no reason to hold back.