Hi Everyone!
Happy Wednesday friends! So its been a while since I’ve posted any updates on what’s happening around the house and I figured its about time to fix that. Over the past year we’ve been busy making updates to the house here and there and one of the spaces that saw the most changes was the kitchen. The last time I shared any kitchen progress here this was what it looked like:
Today the kitchen is looking much more finished and since I was snapping some pics of the space for our Design Sponge feature I figured I should probably snap a few extra to share here with you guys. If you follow me on Instagram then of course you’ve already seen it!
We finally installed a light fixture over the sink and the floating shelving. For the light we went with this light from West Elm.
I wanted something clear so it didn’t obstruct the view out of the window or the light streaming in, but it also needed to be a decent size. This one was the perfect choice.
We once again opted for SemiHandmade for the floating shelves. Just like with the cabinets, we went with the DIY version and painted them the same white as our trim and the cabinets in our last house, Benjamin Moore Simply White. Its my FAV white paint and its my go to for kitchen cabinetry. The intstallation was brutal, but once they were up we love them. We also brought in this marble top island. I really really REALLY wanted this one from Crate and Barrel, but I just couldn’t bring myself to spend $1300 on an island when we still had and have so many other things to do in the space that are going to be a bit pricey. We found this one at Target for under $300 and I love it! The marble is beautiful and it gives me the perfect place to display my ever growing basket collection.
These store our kitchen textiles, extra mugs. recipe books, etc. A couple are my market and grocery baskets.
Another thing we did was add this French door between the kitchen and laundry room. At first I wasn’t going to, but I’m glad we decided to in the end. Its nice being able to close the door when the washer and dryer are running We also added thicker trim around the doors. We are actually adding this same trim around all the doors in the house eventually. We still need to caulk and paint it all as well as paint the French door. I’m torn beween painting it black to go with the black dutch door we added in the laundry room, or whether I want to do something a bit different and paint it a fun color.
We still have just a couple more things to do in here before I’ll call it done. I want to incorporate a raised feeding station for Callie that also doubles as shelving for my cookbooks somehow. Ill have to figure out a design for that and DIY it. And finally we need to install the floors in here and the laundry room. Now I know what you’re thinking….”Shavonda girl, why the hell didn’t yall install the new floors first!?” Well….I was dead set on keeping the checkerboard floors when we first moved in and now I regret it EVERY. SINGLE. DAY. So we will be replacing them. Id also love to do a little makeover of the pantry and add in some additional shelving and paint the door.
Well that does it for the kitchen updates. Ill be sharing a few more spaces we’ve updated in the past few months as well soon. Until next time friends….
Xo-Shavonda
Natalia says
I love your kitchen, did you get your counter tops from Ikea, lumber liquidators or another source. I want to do butcher block in my kitchen but debating on where I should buy them from as we are on a budget and Ikea looks so much cheaper but don’t know how long it will hold up.
Shavonda Gardner says
Hi Natalia!! We got our butcher block countertops from Ikea. They are AMAZING and we love them. They are very durable and so beautiful and so so affordable. Theese are the Beech. I wanted the Oak, but at the time we were building the kitchen the Oak had been discontinued due to a manufacturing issue. They have since resolved that and the Oak is once again avaiable. If I had it to do all over again I wouldve gone with the Oak because I love the warmth of that option. BUT even still, I love our counters and I wouldnt trade them for anything. I hope this helps!
Gretchen@BoxyColonial says
I love your kitchen! It’s a beautiful space, but it looks so user friendly, too. That marble topped island is fabulous!
Julia@Cuckoo4Design says
It’s so so good and has come such a long way. Love seeing your vision from the beginning coming to life. (Ps love the “drop it likes its hot” tea bag dish, so fun)
Shavonda says
Thank you sweet friend! Its been a fun process for sure! Isnt it just adorable! I got it from World Market for like $3!