Thank you! I will definitely post progress pics. :)

I wonder if the range was originally over in the space occupied by the DW now. Then things got moved around and cobbled a bit when the range was tacked onto an existing peninsula and the DW was put in its place.

Looks great! We have also used diluted Mr. Clean in a plant sprayer (with wand) to remove heavy smoke residue. It works very well. I start a t the top of the wall, spray across, and let it run down. Then just wipe it off. Follow up with a spray of clean water. Especially if you will be painting. We also spray aerosol Fabreeze into the ac air intakes to get rid of the odor. The ceiling tiles can be painted with an encapsulating paint as long as it meets fire codes.

Ewww eww eww I'll bet you sleep better tonight. Good job the fugly part is over!! Oh and soak the lamp globes in the tsp too. (Bet they used to be white)

I was thinking the same thing. If that's what I was getting off the walls, I can't even imagine what their lungs look like! It was so gross. I'm so glad to be done with that part!
So my boyfriend thinks we should just use an all-in-one primer/paint on the walls. I'm thinking it'd be better to use pure primer, then paint it. Thoughts? I'm thinking pure primer will seal in any remaining nicotine stains.

Yep, that's my thinking, too. I think he's just wanting to hurry up and get it done, lol. I told him that if I'm going to do it, I'm going to do it right!

Congratulations. After all that, do it right and use an actual primer.

Oooh, I like that backsplash, Miranda.

Using a real wood primer is very important here. The walls will leach goo no matter how well you cleaned them. If you use anything less you will see the primer actually turn brown. Don't skimp here. Even using the wood primer you may have an issue.

You've done a great job with the paneling.

The condition of your cabinets is very poor, as you know, so don't put a ton of effort or money into them. Getting everything painted one color will go a long way toward unifying all of the different "themes", including all the weird add-ons. Tape off the vent and spray paint it white as well.

Get a patio/floor paint and paint your floors because I don't think you'll be happy with them once you paint the cabinets. I wonder about getting a med beige tone and using that same paint on the ceiling tiles - make it look like a country kitchen with wood floors/ceilings. Here's how someone did theirs to help with supplies, etc. If you don't mind a little extra work and a lot of taping, you can even do your floors thusly

Home Depot has a kit for $40 from Rustoleum that you can use to paint your linoleum counters to look like soapstone. You'd have to get some adhesive and glue down the loose bits but it would at least get you buy until you can afford to replace them. I'd also think about finding a piece of butcher block that will fit the space above the dishwasher to bring that up in height plus make it usable. Don't worry about moving the dishwasher or anything just now...that can wait until you actually are ready to install new cabinets.

Paint that strip of wall near the stove (yellow wallpaper) with chalk paint, get a stool, and make that a little "command center". Your son can do homework there, you can go through coupons, drop off the mail....

One of the biggest expenses will be the knobs/pulls for the cabinets...that stuff ain't cheap! Home Depot sells "pro packs" meant for builders that are the less expensive pieces in bulk - generally 10 knobs and 4 pulls. If they only come in silver and you want black, bronze or periwinkle, it is really easy and inexpensive to take a can of paint to them. You don't want to spend a lot at this time because they might not be what you want or need later when you're ready to change out the cabinets.

Home Depot has a bazillion colors in spray paint so pick your accent color, whether it be blue, green, yellow or red and feel free to paint whatever accessories you want.

Check on Pinterest for "how-to" on making mason jars chandeliers. You can actually buy those jars clear, blue or green and pinterest also has tips for coloring those jars any color you want. If you bunch them into 5, replace that light over the eating area. Cute, cheap, country...

For the future, if you happen to have an IKEA anywhere near where you live, I know a lot of people are using their kitchen cabinets, Price is right and user-friendly for installing if you learn a little bit and take your time, as well as do your homework up front. If there is room in the budget, I'd consider walling up the dutch door and moving the entry to the hallway, giving you another 3' in your kitchen.

You have a unique opportunity in that there is pretty much nothing you can do to make this worse. That means you can take some chances and try out some fun new things and not feel bad if they don't work exactly like you want. That, my friend, is a big bonus!

Wow, Columbia, thank you for all the suggestions! I have heard of those Rustoleum kits for countertops and cabinets. Will definitely need to do something with these ugly countertops. I like the idea of a chalkboard there on the wall by the stove. That is actually pegboard that they nailed onto the wall. I pulled it off and there's a lovely piece of linoleum. Guess they had an extra strip left after doing the counters and thought, Hey let's put that on the wall! I shudder to think what's under that! Might be the original kitchen wallpaper under there, as there's some protruding down at the bottom. (See attached photos.)

My Current Kitchen · More Info

I looked up the mason jar chandeliers. They are so CUTE! I really like that idea and it would fit with the country cottage theme I want to go with! Thanks for the suggestion!

Jennie get me sizes!! Include the mudroom please. Door and window locations and widths...Also how goes the primer?

Haven't started priming yet. Waiting for my son to help me with that! I completely forgot about the measurements, sorry, lol! I will get them for you. :)

YAY!!! Let the primer sit about a week you want to make sure nothing is bleeding through. Looks like you are going to have to paint the ceiling tiles too.

hmmm... OR consider covering the ceiling in a textured paintable wallpaper.

It runs about $ 34.00 per roll you would likely need 3 rolls. But! it would save you miles of work and time.

It's already looking so much better. I love the quirky style. It might turn out looking even better than a new kitchen.

If you are renovating any other rooms in your home that are paneled I would suggest you carefully remove at least one sheet of paneling (it can always be reinstalled). I bought a home built in the 30's that also had paneling everywhere. When we removed it we found beautiful beadboard in perfect condition. I think at some point the owners just wanted to make it look more in keeping with the style at the time.

It looks like the ceiling tile is that cellulose acoustical tile, and wallpaper will definitely NOT stick to that. The tile can be painted using a roller.

Remember to caulk tile gaps before hand, if you paint.

OK you are a great person to take this on. You are going to make a spendid remodeler!

Remove the base cabinet opposite the fridge. Put it on the right side of the stove. Put the dishwasher to the left of the sink as you face the sink. Now you have an easy opening to the kitchen, a prep island and stove in the center of the room where you can see and talk to everyone. Remove the upper cabinets that were over the DW.

I say this because I see your stove is gas and it would be expensive to move. This might give you a more open work feeling in the kitchen. Difficult as it may be, I would do nothing other than paint cabinets and the kitchen and save money until you know what you want to do in the kitchen.

And I hope when you do the room please consider ripping out the wall between kitchen and living area. Good luck, you are doing great!

What's above the ceiling tile? Might be worth taking a look.

No, you do not have to caulk the ceiling tile gaps before painting. That would make a huge mess. Just paint with a roller. The gaps between the tiles will just show up as a black line.

If you use a long enough pile nap on the roller, the paint should just fill in those cracks with paint.

It is what it is, and you cannot make it look like smooth drywall ceiling by simply caulking.

Ahh I thought they were the plastic ceiling tiles. I know wallpaper sticks to them.

Don't be afraid to look for a used light fixture you have a lot of expenses ahead.

That is certainly true, Nancy, but not exactly to the point. Caulking is just to help keep the paint from cracking in narrow gaps, and will give a more finished look to the paint job.

Caulking it will be more noticeable than the cracks, IMO.

I have seen these kind of ceilings painted the way I have described and they look fine.

I think I would tackle the ceiling before the cabinets. Then figure out if you can move that dishwasher.

google removing nicotine stains from appliances and cabinets....I did it with my daughters used stainless.

The cabinets will need to be washed and a heavier sanding then the paneling. Once paint builds up and there are multiple layers of it, mistakes get re-coated again and again. Work a bit harder on the fronts of the cabinets. If you can see if you can borrow a mouse sander or orbital it may keep you from wanting to curl up in a small ball and shedding tears. If you can't borrow one of those use a sanding block. The cabinets will take more time and be a pain.

So remove hardware. clean, sand and sand again lightly after the primer dries then wipe with a damp cloth.

Remember primer does not look like paint it's blotchy and ugly you only need a second coat if the nicotine bleeds through. Since these were painted already you can use a normal cheaper primer.

Take some time to go back over the paneling and any seams that are not flush or flat or gapped, nail in and apply putty - such as the one over the doorway.

When painting the cabinets and with the primer too use a small foam roller and don't crisscross the paint - apply it back and forth in one direction.

It looks 100% better already!!

**Note: The caulk if you use that has to say paintable. If not wood putty or drywall compound is fine.

The cabinets are sticky also from grease build-up, not just the nicotine. A good degreaser such as Dawn dish detergent will get most of it. That is what they use to clean sea birds after an oil spill.

I am thinking that you can put the hardward hinges, knobs etc in acrylic paint remover to get all the dried paint off. Remove doors and prime doors front and back then two coats on inside let dry thoroughly and then paint the fronts. Take you time so they can cure properly and become resistant to soap and water clean up.

I think you should have a look at Online 3D Kitchen Constructor. It will be very helpful to solve your dilemmas. It is a great tool for kitchen planning, design and decoration. It is human-friendly and is powered by latest 3D technologies providing you with an image via browser.

Its demo version is free, so you can try to design your kitchen and choose colours or materials for your cabinets and countertops.

Kitchen Constructor demo: http://prodboard.eu/kitchen/

E-mail: support@prodboard.eu