Kitchen Spruce Up – No Construction Needed

Ah the kitchen. We cook in it, clean it up; we welcome family and friends – and within its walls we plan lives, colleges, field trips, class parties, graduations, weddings – all kinds of things get planned in the kitchen! Do you love this room or what? Maybe you do – or maybe you’re wishing for a change. But, since kitchen renovations require budget, here are some small budget ideas to help reinvent your kitchen without disturbing a single cabinet.

David Van Scott Photography

Declutter

Savers, this means you. Get all of that “stuff” off the tops of the fridge (and front of the fridge, too…magnets, photos, diet slogans…gone). Clear off the top of your cabinets, too. Declutter INSIDE your cabinets. Be brutal. How many ladles does one family need if you’re not in the soup business? Make more room inside your cabinets and you will not only feel more space – but also make room to put things so you can remove things from your counters. Let there be expanses of space on your counters.


Ditch the dust collectors

The butcher block with knives? The jar filled with utensils including the melted plastic spatulas? Retire these. Unless you are in a very large kitchen – these items eat up precious counter space and are also dust collectors. Opt for a well organized drawer instead.

New Knobs

Oh the power of that little bit of “jewelry” on a cabinet door! Mix it up. Do crystal knobs at the drawers – and oil rubbed bronze on the cabinets. This is a favorite trick – very rich looking, adds sparkle and light – and is easy on the budget. (Check out California Crystal’s products for great knobs…Google them…)

Paint!

Repaint the walls and wrap the room in an entirely new color. Paint remains the biggest bang for the buck change in any kitchen, followed by…

Invest in new custom window treatments

David Van Scott Photography

Do something marvelous to go with the new wall color. Bring that treatment right up to – or as close to – the ceiling as possible. It’ll make the windows look bigger and ceiling feel higher. If budget allows, do coordinating demi or full slip covers for all or some of the kitchen chairs.

Try even a few of these tips and before you know it, you’ll be reveling in your “new” kitchen faster than you can say, “New cabinets, new schmabinets.”