First of all, I would like to thank those of you who have taken the time to fill out the Reader Satisfaction Survey in my last post. Feedback from my readers is vitally important to me. I'm leaving it open for awhile to give more time to those of you that haven't yet had the chance to take the survey. Note, it is completely anonymous. I do not know who took the survey. This is your chance to tell me what you want to see & read on my blog. So far, one of the things the majority is asking for is more details and the thought processes behind the scenes. I will do my best. :) After much discussion back and forth between my friend, the cabinet painter, I mentioned in this post, I have decided to do this kitchen makeover myself . . . well, with help from Ryan (my husband and best friend) and my mom. I have a small budget to work with and hiring it out wasn't going to fit within the budget due to the work involved with removing that car paste from the cabinets. I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised at the portion of the quote that was the new doors and drawer fronts. All in all, I can honestly say that it definitely is not a need-a-renovation-loan kind of price to hire Drisco Kitchens to do your cupboards and I KNOW you would be happy with that decision. I was torn between wanting her to do it and wanting the satisfaction of doing it myself. Not only is Berthe's work impeccable but she is an adorable person. Check out her work on her Facebook page. Another decision that has been made this week is what I'm doing about my countertops. I talked to an installer recommended by Precision Countertops on Killam Drive and found out that I cannot use my existing countertop form and have it relaminated. The reason for this is that mine has curved edges. To laminate curved edges, this requires a special machine that only factories have. If your countertop is all straight edges, then relaminating is a very cost efficient way to update them. For now, I'm going to strip the existing paint off of them, which should be an easy task as it readily comes off with even a fingernail! Then, I will prime them with Stix primer and then repaint them black with ordinary wall paint. I will then clear coat them with about 5 coats of clear coat. I just haven't nailed down the exact clear coat I will use yet. I want a fast-drying clear coat that doesn't require sanding between coats and is 'flooring durable'. In my opinion, all this talk you hear about having to be 'food safe' is a gimmick. Like, are our tables covered in 'food safe' product? How would we know? What about the detergents we use to clean our tables and even our dishes? They must leave unhealthy substances behind, one would think. Anyway, thats my opinion on that matter. What I REALLY want is wood plank countertops, but those will have to wait. Maybe next year. Unless, of course, repainting my countertops doesn't work out. ;) So far, I've been working a little bit at a time on stripping off the wallpaper off the island. Then, I'll strip it off the cupboard doors. Its coming off the island great. I'm not wetting it or anything, just peeling it off by hand and then the paper backing I'm scraping off with a Pampered Chef metal cake/pie server. Its working just great and doing a nice sanding job at the same time! LOL Then, I will use my Circa 1850 stripper and strip the car paste and paint off all the doors and framework. It sounds easy and I hope it goes smooth. I will keep ya all posted on the process. As you read before, this used to be my Mom's kitchen and she had just got a nice faucet put in (by Dad). Its only fair that my mom get to keep her new faucet, right? So, if I'm getting a new faucet, I need a new sink! Right? Well, when Dad took the existing sink out for Mom & I to work on that countertop redo we did, he had a super hard time getting it back in. Ryan helped Dad get it in but it was quite a chore and had to do with it being old and old brackets and tight spaces, etc. So, the sink will have to come out again to redo the countertops and I've always wanted a black sink so . . . . one came on sale and I picked it up today! Yay for me! I found the faucet I want and if it doesn't come on sale by the time its time to install the new sink, then I'll just use my newly acquired discount at Kent and go buy it. I imagine you're wondering what my kitchen budget is and where I obtained it? Its $1000 and I got it by selling off things I didn't have room for after the move and things I really didn't need. So far, I've only bought the sink which was on sale for $289.99: I did a simple mock-up of what my kitchen may look like when its completed. Its very rough. I'm not real good at this stuff yet. But, it does give you an idea. The ceiling looking like a dark gray wasn't intentional but I do kinda like it! I will leave that decision until everything else is done, though.
The upper cabinets will be the same color as the window and door trim. I wasn't able to make that turn out in the mock-up. And, the dinnerware isn't size proportional, but again, was the best I could do for now. For me, seeing my plan like this, makes it exciting and I can hardly wait for my health to improve and warmer weather to come so I can get to stripping them cupboards and making this all happen! :) * Remember, comments & opinions are welcome and wanted! I will only see the name you chose to provide and the comment left so if being anonymous is your comfort zone, we've got that covered. :)
2 Comments
mom
4/1/2016 11:12:15 pm
Looking good. Can hardly wait to see the complete kitchen makeover
Reply
A Fresh Perspective
4/5/2016 01:24:40 am
Thanks! ME, TOO! ☺
Reply
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