My IKEA Kitchen

When we had a our epic Water Damage of 2013 situation it was so overwhelming.   Living in temporary housing was not fun.  Not being in our home and our routines was tough on all of us.  I did what I could during the day.  My hubby had to start working 7 days a week because we had just left the shop where we were selling our painted and reclaimed furniture.  We didn't have a place to paint and work on projects because of the flood so we lost most of our income.   I did what I could during the day.  Removing staples and nails from every inch of floor during the day and so much more. My hubby worked late in to the evening and we ate more fast food dinners than you could have  imagined!  Nothing can replace a home cooked meal.  

We did a lot of the work ourselves so we could afford to upgrade our home.  Insurance only gives you the amount of money of what was previously in the home. They also take 20% off for depreciation.  Don't get me wrong I'm so grateful for good insurance.   It was a tight budget but it was worth doing most of the work ourselves.  We did have a great contractor that we used for specific updates.  The kitchen though was our baby for several months. 

Our kitchen needed to be overhauled.  About 5 years earlier we had done an update.  Painted the cabinets, new hardware, glass back splash, IKEA open shelving, updated laminate counter tops, new microwave, and dishwasher. 

The before picture I was happy how our kitchen was.  We did lack storage but over all.  It looked better than when we moved in 14 years ago.  We live in a 1983 split level.  Our home had a kitchen that had harvest wheat wall paper on all the walls.  The counter tops were butcher block laminate with 16" tall black splash.  Oh, it was so ugly!  To top it all of it had smokey glass chandelier.  That found it's way to DI quickly.  Yep, it was still stuck in the 80's.

We decided on an IKEA kitchen.  I was a little hesitant.  I didn't want a cookie cutter kitchen.  No, they were not going to be solid wood and were they really going to be durable?

I was happily surprised when we ordered our cabinets and 24 hours later we were assembling them.  They were so easy to install.  The only English word in the directions was "Click".  If we couldn't figure out something we joked that all we needed to is "click" and that would fix everything!  The pictures were sufficient for the most part.  I was able to build the boxes with out any help from my hubby.  Installing them my hubby did and he put on all the doors  You wouldn't have to have experience in DIYing.  IKEA has an efficient step by step system.

 I choose the large modern farm house style sink.  I prefer one large sink to two smaller double sinks.  It's less to clean and I love the ability to soak large pans in the sink.   We did purchase a rubber mate because it is a porcelain sink and we had broken a few glasses. 

The tile back splash was $2.98 a square foot.  This was very easy to install.  It comes in sheets.  We have a south facing kitchen.  In the afternoons my kitchen is so bright and calming.  The tile is a key part because it reflects the light so well.    The paint color I choose was Rain by Sherwin Williams.  I wanted my kitchen to be as big as it could even though it's a small kitchen.  Going with lighter colors makes a space look bigger.  

Atlantic Salt, Quartz Counter tops are from IKEA  The only thing that was a little bit difficult it took 3 weeks for the counter tops.  They look great.  I was a little worried that glass tile and quartz counter tops might clash.  They ended up complimenting each other.  They also have little sparkles in them.  They are super easy to clean up. 

We purchased the dish washer through IKEA because I wanted the door to match the cabinetry. The dish washer is whisper quiet.   The corner cabinet is the perfect place to store cereal. It has a ginormous double lazy susan. 

 

This is a 1950's solid wood cabinet that I found on-line for $60.00.  Originally I wanted the kitchen to be vintage cabinets but I couldn't find enough of them..  It inspired me to go with the IKEA Shaker style cabinets.   I have to say I'm so happy that I was able to get all the modern conveniences with updated vintage look.  

The dishwasher was where the drawers are now.  We moved it to be next to the sink for easy loading.  It opened up the prep space and it is easy for us to cook together.  We're not squished anymore while we making dinner or baking.  The peninsula is a longer than before by about a foot longer.

The drawers are amazing.  They slide out with ease.  They are super deep.  I can put my extra large crock pot and all of my pots and pans in one drawer.  This is much more efficient than trying to store them in a regular cabinet.

The tall pantries are a must.  We use to have to store can food in our basement on bookshelf.  Grady, (son) told me that he likes having all of our food upstairs.  I would have to agree.

The drawers pull all the way out so you can see everything.  I've have a baking drawer, can food drawer,  pasta, etc.  My old pantry we use to waste food because we couldn't find it.   It was a like a deep abyss of dry foods and canned items.

The pulls are a modern take on vintage style.  I choose to go with chrome on pulls and sink faucet.  I think the clean look is classic.

All the drawers and cabinets have soft closures.  I don't have to worry about my son slamming them.  

 The Sunbeam Mixer is reproduction of an 1960's mixer.  I bought this at the DI a few years ago for $40.00.  My mom has an original one that still works today after 50 years. 

We purchased 39" Tall upper cabinets which also gives more storage.  By having cabinets going all the way up to the ceiling it makes the kitchen look larger. 

Before was a red pendant light.  I recently noticed that they are in the Zupas by me.  

I choose a  chandelier over the sink.  I traded a few hours of computer work for it.  A little bling never hurt a kitchen.  It looks pretty in the daylight too.

If you look at the upper cabinets above where the TV is you'll see open shelving where I display my vintage finds.

We also saved 20% off everything we needed for the kitchen at IKEA because it was their yearly kitchen sale.  It was like getting our quartz counter tops for free.  The computer program that IKEA uses was tricky so I finally went and they helped with the computer program to make sure I had the right measurements and placements. 

I would highly recommend an IKEA kitchen it was affordable and I love the way it looks and functions.  

Be Your Own Kind Of Beautiful, 

Debbi