Help! Outdated kitchen needs a budget-friendly facelift!

10 years ago

last modified: 10 years ago

My boyfriend is moving into this townhouse in two weeks. He wants to update the ugly kitchen, but since he may only be here for three years, he doesn't want to spend a fortune.

Problem number one: The dropped ceiling and dated plexiglass panels with fluorescent lighting. He hopes to go up by another foot in there, tear out the existing light, and add canned lighting.

Problem number two: He intends to tear out the tile floor and add wood floors; however, the color on the floors in the rest of the house that he wants to carry into the kitchen is also honey-colored oak. We think that it will be too much orange so he is thinking of either painting the oak cabinets or staining them darker.

Problem number three: He would like to keep the granite countertops and try to pick a paint or stain for the cabinets that will work with their existing color; however, since there is not enough overhang on the peninsula to allow anyone to sit there comfortably to eat or visit, should he just get a bigger countertop slab so the peninsula is functional for seating?

Number four: A tile backspash is needed. We are thinking of a classic ceramic subway tile. He wants to stay away from anything too dark or trendy. Your thoughts?

Number five: When we lift the ceiling, he will be left with shorter cabinets that don't go to the ceiling. That decorative adjoining wooden piece above the window will probably be removed, but will that look odd? New (taller) upper cabinets are not in the budget at present, but we are trying to figure out a way to work with what he's got in there.

This is the only picture I have of the kitchen at present. Thank you in advance for your help, Houzzers! :)

Featured Answer

PRO

Staging Dallas

10 years ago

Painting the cabinets and adding some nice hardware will change the look of the room. I'm not sure how to knock out the ceiling without replacing the cabinets. Can he remove the plexiglass lights, make the ceiling one consistent height, and put recessed lights in the new ceiling? That would prevent the cabinets from looking too short when the ceiling is knocked out.

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Comments (24)

cjohnston
10 years ago
Your boyfriend's plans sound great! The best thing will be removing the drop ceiling and changing the flooring. I agree that you should remove the decorative wood piece above the window. To finish the top of the cabinets, just install a nice oak crown moulding around all cabinets (there will be a gap where the window is, which is OK). It looks like you would need a clear stain on the moulding to match existing cabinets. I have honey-colored oak cabinets and similar wood floor in my kitchen. I like the monochromatic look - it doesn't read orangy to me. You can introduce an accent color in the backsplash and accessories. If he planned to be there longer, it might make sense to change the countertop and paint the cabinets. Not sure it's worth it otherwise.

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charliebeth thanked cjohnston
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charliebeth
Original Author
10 years ago
New Again Home Interiors...he does plan to remove the plexiglass lights, make the ceiling one height (a little over a foot higher) and then put recessed lights in the new, higher ceiling. I do worry that the cabinets will look too short when he raises the ceiling. I'm wondering if he adds molding to the top of the cabinets...if that will help it look better? I just don't like a lot of dusty space up there and would prefer the cabinets to go all the way up, but it isn't in the budget at present. I'm crossing my fingers that he chooses to paint instead of stain the cabinets.
charliebeth
Original Author
10 years ago
cjohnston, you read my mind about the molding! :)
charliebeth
Original Author
10 years ago
I just saw this other thread on "before and afters" and it struck me that their kitchen layout looks almost identical to his. Their AFTER picture gave me hope that he can make his look nice too. :) https://www.houzz.com/discussions/not-all-kitchen-makeovers-require-a-full-scale-renovation-dsvw-vd~722675
User
10 years ago
Go French or Spanish provincial and paint cabinets white, cream or grey
charliebeth
Original Author
10 years ago
chookchook2...I am definitely thinking cream or white. :)
PRO
Wow Great Place
10 years ago
Charliebeth, this is a kitchen worth painting, for sure!
I would also suggest painting before you commit to changing the floor, since you only have a 3-year time line to stay in this house.
You may like the floor better with a different cabinet colour, assuming the floor works well with the granite.
And take down that valance over the window for sure! You may even decide to wrap the backsplash tile up around the window....
Not sure which direction to go for cabinetry colour, as the shot shows a lot of orange, and I'm not sure what colour the countertop is (that's a pricey thing to change, so if you can work with it, all the better!)
If you can get a close-up of the counter, that would be helpful.
charliebeth thanked Wow Great Place
charliebeth
Original Author
10 years ago
@Wow Great Place...I wish we'd taken more pics when we were doing the walk-thru but we forgot. Once he moves in, I will post more to show the granite. As I recall, it has black and dark brown in it and maybe some maroonish tones.

He will definitely be getting rid of the floor tile in the kitchen as he finds it very uncomfortable to stand on when cooking, so it is more of a comfort thing than just aesthetics on that front. He prefers a unified floor throughout, and since it is a relatively small townhome of 1500 feet, he wants there to be as much flow as possible.

The kitchen definitely does feel orange when you're in there and the glaring yellowish green fluorescent light doesn't help at all. Cannot wait to get rid of the color on those cabinets. :)
PRO
Wow Great Place
10 years ago
Be sure to post any new pics in this same thread, so those of us who have participated will get the e-mail that a new comment was added! (Some people post a brand new thread, and then wonder why some people may not respond.....kinda hard to see every post on this site!) ;)
nwduck
10 years ago
One thing you might consider if possible is doing a tray ceiling, that is, leave the bit of ceiling adjacent to the cabinets at its existing height, and do that around the whole room in a symmetrical way. Then, bump the ceiling up, do the can lights on the new height ceiling. It could give you an opportunity to make the ceiling a statement feature with paint/finish. Obviously the peninsula was not meant to be an eat-in bar, so I wouldn't even bother trying to fake it with bar stools. The dining area must be immediately adjacent, yes? For such a short stay, and given potential resale, I'd do ceiling first. Cabinets second. I'd get a professional paint job, and consider replacing the top cabinet arched doors with a simpler style to match the lowers, removing the wooden valance. Paint the walls as needed. Not sure more work on items like tile backsplash, flooring or replacement countertops would be worth the investment.
apple_pie_order
10 years ago
I would replace the fluorescent lights with chandelier or pendant lighting with the tray ceiling as described.

Then get estimates for professional painting and new oak flooring to replace the tile. That will run some thousands of dollars. Divide estimated cost by number of days in three years. Ask if it is worth the cost per day. Some costs may be partially recouped on selling three years from now.
PRO
Executive Design & Construction Inc.
10 years ago
Check out this transformation. We also removed fluorescent lighting and installed recessed ones. We replaced tiles on the floors with beautiful wooden flooring. And for backsplash I think travertine tiles are classy and timeless. Let us know what you think!

http://www.houzz.com/projects/441958/Budget-friendly-kitchen-makeover
PRO
Lori Dennis, ASID, LEED AP
10 years ago
Charliebeth, I really like your kitchen! You call it dated... But I love the dropped ceiling. Right now many elements are competing: Especially tones and colors. Try painting your cabinets a neutral color like a pastel shade to compliment your beautiful countertops and floor tile.
Like this color below:
http://irisinteriors.files.wordpress.com/2013/10/screen-shot-2013-10-29-at-1-36-25-pm.png
charliebeth thanked Lori Dennis, ASID, LEED AP
charliebeth
Original Author
10 years ago
Lori, we are currently in the process of meeting with contractors, etc. I agree that there are many competing colors/tones. We are bringing the wooden floors from the rest of the bottom floor into the kitchen and entryway. We are considering colors for the kitchen cabinets as they will definitely be painted...especially as the butterscotch oak floors will be a bit orange next to the already orange maple cabinets. We got bad news from one contractor who said we cannot take out the dropped ceiling in the kitchen as the ductwork is in there and there is no room to put the ductwork in between the raised ceiling we want, and the top floor. :( We are both fairly tall and love to cook, so the dropped ceiling in the kitchen feels too low to us. We removed the plexiglass panels and can see the exposed fluorescent lighting at present, but believe it or not, even that feels like an improvement. We are assessing how to approach the lighting as we want to get rid of the fluorescent and then add some canned lights in there, but there might not be enough room unless we lower the middle of the inset down to incorporate the depth of the canned lights. We are also trying to figure which walls can be removed to open it up a bit, but it looks like a couple of the projects are not going to be feasible. Disappointing, but it's still very livable as is...just not exactly what we would like to see in there. Thanks for taking the time to comment.
charliebeth
Original Author
9 years ago
Hello all! Latest update is we have found another contractor and demolition has finally begun on the kitchen. They've taken out all cabinets and they are removing the ceiling and a wall between the kitchen and great room. Very exciting to see it all happening, despite the dust and mess. Currently waiting on the engineering report about load bearing walls, etc., but at least work has finally begun. I'm posting a picture or two, which will show the kitchen above, from the same angle, but gutted. We do plan to reuse all of the lower cabinets and we are going to paint those. We hope to get taller uppers which will go all the way up to the new, higher ceiling. New granite too, since the existing was notched to incorporate a partial wall that has been removed. We are also hoping to reuse some of that granite elsewhere in the house, if possible. The floors will likely be engineered oak floors in Butterscotch which will match the rest of the house. We are thinking of painting the cabinets off-white, picking a neutral granite, maybe something like Bianco Antico or White Springs, and then going with either a glass or ceramic subway tile. Contemplating Whisper Green glass tiles by Daltile, but I'm wondering if they look too much like they belong in a bathroom, rather than a kitchen. Anyone have any advice about glass tiles in the kitchen? I think I prefer a ceramic subway tile, but I'm open to suggestions. We want to bring in a tiny bit of color to an otherwise fairly neutral space. Thanks for any advice you can offer! I will continue to post pics as work (slowly) progresses. :)
charliebeth
Original Author
9 years ago
Also, our contractor is suggesting we get rid of the peninsula and just add in a standalone island, since we are removing a wall and there will be room. It will add to the cost, so we are trying to weigh the options. I didn't mind the peninsula and since we are getting new granite with enough overhang, we could actually have a place to put stools and be able to sit and eat there or have it be a place where guests hang out when we are cooking. Any opinions on island versus peninsula? We won't have plumbing in the island, but we would have electrical outlets there. I'm attaching a "before" picture of the peninsula. We can reinstall it once the floors are done, or go with the island. That small wall you see over by the upper cabinets on the left is now gone, so if we nix the peninsula, we would carry the cabinets and counter a tad further down the wall there.
charliebeth
Original Author
9 years ago
Latest update is that we are keeping the peninsula, but enlarging it to include a wine fridge and making the granite top wider so that we can use it for extra seating. Ceiling has now been raised to 8 feet (woohoo) and it feels better and bigger already. Will post pics as soon as drywall goes in. Wood floors will hopefully go in next week and then the new ceiling trusses will be clad in cypress beams. Finally, some progress!
charliebeth
Original Author
9 years ago
Here are a couple of pictures to update our post. One is of the Black Cosmos granite for the kitchen counters, and we will be pairing those with off-white kitchen cabinets. The other is a pic to show the exposed support trusses which we intend to wrap with cypress, and the other is a picture of the Australian Cypress floors being installed today. Hoping it all comes together nicely. Fingers crossed.
charliebeth
Original Author
9 years ago
Granite pic did not attach. Here it is...but it is hard to tell in this photo that it has black, gray, cream, and a tad of a gold color in it.
apple_pie_order
9 years ago
Looks good. The floors are gorgeous.
charliebeth
Original Author
9 years ago
Hello all. Just wanted to follow up and share a picture of the new and improved kitchen. It feels much brighter in here. It is the same size, although we went up a foot with the ceilings and gained new cabinet space due to that. We also extended the penninsula by about a foot so we could sit at the counter comfortably. We are looking for a way to bring in some blue, maybe a Wedgewood blue color, as we have a big blue wall opposite the kitchen. I thought about a window treatment, but I don't think Mr. Handsome wants anything on the window.
charliebeth
Original Author
9 years ago
Here is the before picture again to compare...
apple_pie_order
9 years ago
The structural changes look like they were worth the effort. The floors are beautiful, too. Quite an update.