The Evolution Of A Kitchen
See how we transformed a dated ugly kitchen into a classic white kitchen. Get ideas and inspiration for your own kitchen and see the evolution of a kitchen.
Our kitchen has gone through big, big changes! It started out as the ugliest room in our home and was transformed into my favorite room. Without a doubt, the biggest change and transformation our Tanglewood House has gone through happened in the kitchen. I’m so glad you stopped by to see the evolution of a kitchen!
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Ann, Lory, and I are sharing how our downsized (or right-sized) homes have evolved. Today’s post is part of our downsizing series! We have shared The Evolution Of A Living Room, and The Evolution Of a Dining Room and now we are sharing our kitchens! You can see links to my friend’s beautiful kitchens at the bottom of the post.
OUR DOWNSIZING STORY AND DOWNSIZING SERIES
Because I know that many of you, like me, have downsized or are thinking about downsizing I started a series on DOWNSIZING!
You might like to read Our Downsizing Story, Part 1 and Our Downsizing Story, Part 2 and Our Downsizing Story, The Finale. And please share your own story with us in the comments.
Also, here is another helpful downsizing post, 10 Things To Know About Downsizing. We would love to hear your best downsizing tips in the comments!
OUR KITCHEN STORY
We had never intended on downsizing. On a whim, we did a walkthrough of a house on a nearby country golf course and fell in love with it. Well, most of it. And all of a sudden, it made sense to downsize from our large StoneGable home!
However, there were a few changes that were non-negotiables for me and Bobby would have to agree to them before I would even consider moving! Renovating the kitchen was number one! And Bobby was on the same page too!
Here is how the kitchen looked…
The cabinets were a nice shaker style but the wood was a dark cherry. And they clashed with the oak floors! And although the floors were not my favorite, they were something that was going to stay.
There was a tall bar height counter around the main part of the kitchen. It really fenced in the kitchen. UGH! And did not allow for any seating!
I had never thought of a U-shaped kitchen but as I used it every day it became quite evident just how efficient and easy it was to cook in!
Here is the original stove, microwave, and backsplash at a different angle. There were three different backsplash patterns in this kitchen and they were all ugly!
Part of the kitchen also included an area with lots of windows. This was obviously a place to put a small table and chairs. I found this area awkward because our dining table was just steps away. It was redundant to add another!
The evolution of our kitchen was a makeover! Our kitchen really did not evolve, it happened in a span of several months!
WHAT WE LIKED ABOUT THE KITCHEN
We did not change anything in the kitchen for 8 months. So I had lots of time to live in my kitchen and work in it and decide what I liked and did not like about it. It was a time of many pro/con lists, and conversations with Bobby and our kitchen designer!
This kitchen was an ugly duckling! But happily, there were actually things I liked and loved about it.
The biggest thing was the layout! I found the U-shaped kitchen was very efficient! The U shape also corralled my kitchen space and gave it boundaries in our very open concept home.
We were also quite pleased with the location of the kitchen and its entire footprint.
Because the kitchen can be seen from so many rooms I liked the idea of having it be well defined, even though it is open too!
The second thing I liked was the style of our cabinets. The edited shaker style worked so well with the bones and style of our home and they were very good quality. The cabinets are a bit contemporary. And since they are seen from our living room and sunroom as well as our dining room their style did not scream for attention.
Those two things along with the wonderful sunny windows made this homely kitchen seem promising.
THE PROCESS BEGINS
The kitchen makeover started three months after everything shut down because of Covid in June of 2020. We were able to move forward because our project manager built plastic walls around the kitchen. And the workers came and went through a separate door to the garage. We spoke by phone through the plastic wall and only when all the workers had gone did we venture into the kitchen to see the progress.
Bobby and I set up a makeshift kitchen in the dining room on a long utility table. We made dinners using a multipurpose smart oven. The all-important coffee maker sat on the utility table in the dining room too so we could make coffee. And we ate on paper plates and used plastic utensils and drank from plastic cups.
We kept a large Artic cooler, that acted as a make-shift refrigerator, next to the table and bottled water came in handy to drink and cook with.
I kept bows of fruit and snack bags on hand for us. And we used the grill quite a lot that summer!
Any dirty dishes were washed up in the utility sink in the garage.
I can’t say this was a fun way to live but we did eat pretty well in spite of not having a kitchen.
KITCHEN CABINETS
One of the first decisions we made concerned the kitchen cabinets.
We opted to paint the cabinets because the cabinets were new, good quality cabinets, and the right style for our new kitchen.
And we also added small glass-front cabinets above the existing kitchen cabinets and added molding to the ceiling. I chose a lightly seeded glass.
To break up a long wall of cabinets, we added a glass front to the center cabinet.
Here’s the before and after…
CHOOSING THE PAINT COLOR
Since our whole home was painted Simply White by Benjamin Moore we decided to paint the kitchen that color too.
Simply White has very slight yellow undertones that reads a soft white on walls.
The paint color for the kitchen cabinets was the hardest decision we made when it as come to this house.
I thought I would like a two-toned kitchen or a light taupe kitchen. And I thought about painting the base around the kitchen another color, but always came back to white.
Here’s why I decided to paint the kitchen the same white as the rest of the house…
- I just did not want the kitchen to fight for attention when we were sitting in the living room or sunroom
- I’ve had a white kitchen for 25 years and loved it
- I could add color with accent decor or dishware
- White kitchens are classic
- All kitchen colors have a lifecycle. White is timeless and never goes out of style
I love white and neutrals so a classic white kitchen seemed like the best choice for me.
PAINTING THE CABINETS
Painting the kitchen cabinets was a big, big project!
Cabinet fronts were taken off and sent away to be painted. Plastic was taped over the openings and the rest of the cabinet boxes were spray painted.
Here is a before and after…
The difference was astounding!
I’ve always said paint works magic! It really does!
WHAT WAS CHANGED IN THE EVOLUTION OF A KITCHEN MAKEOVER
Our kitchen makeover took three months to complete.
Here are the things that were changed…
THE HARDWARE
Changing out the hardware proved a bit harder than we thought.
The original hardware were knobs and the new bar-shaped hardware did not match up with the original knob holes. So the holes needed to be filled in.
But there was another issue. The old knobs left “ghost rings” on the cabinets. The back of the pulls dug into the cabinets a bit and dented it, leaving a light depressed ring in the wood of the cabinets. And that could be seen even when the cabinets were painted.
This was a process! The cabinet holes and ghost rings were filled in again and sanded and primed and painted for a second time! The kitchen company we were using for the makeover did not catch this issue the first time around! But I did!!!!
The long bar hardware was a good fit for the style of our home house. We chose a brushed nickel for two reasons…
- I love the soft look of nickel
- and it worked with the hardware in the rest of our open-concept
I was wishing to go with gold tones but the concentration of gold tones in the U-shaped kitchen would have fought with appliances and the rest of the house.
Sometimes we have to make adjustments to our wishlist!
When the bar pulls were added I was very happy we went with the brushed nickel.
THE BACKSPLASH
Let’s talk about the backsplash. Please find a picture of the old backsplash above! What were they thinking!!!!!!
A new backsplash was a big splurge. Because the kitchen was so monochromatic I wanted the backsplash to work with the white kitchen but show off the color palette of our home without being obvious. And bring a bit of pattern and texture to the kitchen.
The photographs do not do the backsplash justice. It is much more tonal than shown.
The backsplash is Calacatta Gold marble in a basketweave pattern. I have loved baskets for as long as I can remember. And have collected them for decades. So this pattern has a special meaning to me!
When I saw it at our local stone showroom I knew it was “the one”.
Because our cabinets are rather plain I feel the backsplash grabs a lot of the attention.
THE COUNTERTOPS
We not only changed our countertops from granite to marble-like quartz we also dropped the bar height counter around the U-shaped kitchen to a countertop height. And we added a place to sit.
One big tip for anyone who wants a white kitchen with white counters is to really be careful that your countertop works with your cabinets.
Just like paint, white Quartz also has lots of different undertones like yellow, gray, greige, pink, brown, and more. So be careful, friend!
We chose Ultra White for our countertops for several reasons but the most important reason was Ultra White Quartz was spot on with the cabinet paint color. It was not too yellow and not too gray.
I also am not a big fan of a lot of wide or dark veining on kitchen counters. Ultra White has lovely soft muted light gray veins.
If you look carefully you can see a couple soft gray veins on the counter.
Choosing a counter edge was another decision we had to make. My mantra in this kitchen makeover was KEEP IT SIMPLE. So we kept the edge very simple.
We also curved the countertop on the bar side of the kitchen. This was a smart decision. It looks pretty and adds a little extra seating space.
THE SINK AND FAUCET
Our sink was another change for the better in the kitchen!
We went from a stainless steel sink to a truffle-colored composite farmhouse sink. Composite sinks are wonderful! Our kitchen sink is by Blanco.
Composite sinks come in so many colors, are antibacterial, do not stain, and clean up with a little soap and water. They are made up of a composite of ground granite and other materials. If you are looking for a new sink make sure you look at composite sinks. I highly recommend them.
Here’s the before and after…
We also changed out our faucet and garbage disposal.
At first, we chose a smart faucet, the kind that you wave your hand in front of to make the water comes on. However, I would not get a “smart” faucet again. Our faucet was an idiot! So I replaced it with a dumb one that just squirts water and works. LOL!
THE STOVE THE HOOD AND THE MICROWAVE
Our range is from the GE Cafe Collection. Since we did not want to change the footprint of our kitchen we needed a range that would fit into a standard 30 ” space.
I really would have loved a big industrial oven with lots of burners and other amenities.
However, this range has 6 gas burners and a griddle attachment, two electric ovens that bake, broil, proof, and more. One is also a convection oven.
It’s a great professional oven that fits in a traditional range space!
I LOVE this range.
Here’s a before and after…
Because the original range was electric we had lines run from our propane tank into the kitchen area of our home. That was a bit of a mess! But so worth it!
We moved the microwave to the pantry and ran electricity for the microwave.
The microwave is housed in the middle cabinet to the left of the refrigerator. You can see where we stashed the microwave in the image above.
We had a hood custom built and a very strong exhaust system installed in it. The wooden piece around the bottom of the hood is painted to look like the wood on my French table in the living room. It’s actually a piece of yellow oak.
THE LIGHTING
Our kitchen originally had only can-style overhead lighting and they were not on dimmers. I am such a huge fan of dimmers! Now all the lighting is on dimmers!
We kept the overhead lighting and added other lighting to our kitchen.
All the glass upper cabinets are lit as well as the middle glass cabinet. When these cabinets are dimly lit in the evening the kitchen looks so pretty!
And task lighting was installed underneath all of our cabinets.
To have our kitchen be up to code we would have had lots of outlets on our backsplash. And I did not want to break up the backsplash with outlets. So I had outlet and USB port strips installed up under the cabinets.
These are not visible unless you are looking up close from a crouching position like I was to take the image above.
We also have two pop-up outlets installed in our quartz countertop. These are amazing! And also have USB ports.
One of my favorite things we added to the kitchen was the big hanging globe lights over the countertop where there is seating.
I wanted something bold because the kitchen is very white!
Here’s the before and after…
THE BANQUETTE
We turned the area in the kitchen with all the windows into a small seating area by building a banquette with cubbies for baskets underneath. The baskets are full of my grandchildren’s books and art supplies.
I love sitting here in the morning to drink my coffee and do devotions.
We also replaced the blinds with retractable shades. What a difference!
Here is a before and after…
A YEAR IN THE KITCHEN
Even though our kitchen is the most used room in our home, I still like to decorate it for the season at hand. Nothing over-the-top or fancy. More like a nod to the season.
Here’s a little peek at our kitchen during the seasons of the year!
Let’s start with my favorite holiday…
CHRISTMAS KITCHEN
Christmas at our home is a holiday and a season. We love to decorate early and enjoy our home in all its holiday finery!
I decorate my kitchen a little more at Christmas time than the rest of the year! This picture was taken when the warm morning light was pouring through the windows.
The hood is the perfect place to hang an evergreen wreath.
SPRING KITCHEN
Spring in my kitchen is all about herbs! The little pots of herbs are so happy on the kitchen counter!
The counter in the background is often used as a dessert bar or a pop-up cocktail bar.
SUMMER KITCHEN
Summer garden blooms abound in the kitchen! After picking flowers in the garden I put them in the sink. Then I clip and fuss over each flower and snippet of green to create little bouquets to decorate our house.
The little bouquet by the sink was made with red and pink knockout roses that bloom in the back of our home.
My favorite ways to use our sink are to bathe babies and to use for arranging garden flowers.
FALL KITCHEN
If I had to choose one word to describe my kitchen in the fall it would be “warm”. I think the kitchen looks its best during this time of year!
The evolution of our kitchen has been more of a whirlwind over the last two and a half years! As we tweak and change things in the kitchen I’ll add them to this post!
YOU MIGHT LIKE THESE KITCHEN POSTS
Here are a few posts to help you organize and decorate your kitchen…
IDEAS FOR DECORATING YOUR KITCHEN COUNTERTOPS
VISIT MY FRIEND’S KITCHENS…
Designthusiasm | Kitchen Remodel on a Budget
On Sutton Place | Kitchen Update Ideas
Wow! I wish you could come to my house and give me some tips! Your kitchen is beautiful!
Thank you so much, Sondra! In this post, there are lots of links to posts that will help you.
I have followed your blog for so so many years. I was quite surprised when you all decided to move and watching your journey and how you downsized has been amazing. I now have downsized myself in the last few months. My kitchen is very similar to your original …. But older. I knew when I purchased I would want to update and lighten as I too had a white kitchen for over 25 years. I love seeing what you did and love how it turned out.
Can you share a breakdown in the costs? Thanks so much for sharing your beautiful home and all you do!
Hi Tami, Downsizing can be an arduous experience and also exciting! The costs of a kitchen are so varied when it comes to updating a kitchen. I would say, they are, however, very expensive. We went well over our budget but planned on going over. And we hired a contractor to work with us. That really raised the cost but for us we felt it was worth it. Blessing to your in your new home!
Much better. I love your backsplash the most. The darker cabinets seemed overpowering in the space. Now, it’s open & bright and suits your aesthetic.
When I moved into my downsized new build home it had the same dark shaker cabinets with a raised bar peninsula. I stacked glass front, lite cabinets on top to fill in the gap and give me more storage for glass/crystal ware. Better, but I still didn’t like my kitchen. I had a designer in and we tore the whole kitchen out and started over with a different floor plan and an island. We moved the kitchen from the inside to the dining area with lots of windows. It was a very expensive reno but worth every cent. The cabinets have a more traditional profile and are a light, cream color with the island in a contrasting color. I love my kitchen! It’s light, laid out well, lots of storage (appliance garage) and plenty of seating at the island. Sometimes we have to make changes to have our home to make it suit our needs/wants.
I could not agree with you more, Joanna! Congrats for being brave enough to not settle for something you really did not like living with.
Love the neutral, open airy feel of the kitchen! I always gather some ideas from all your posts!
Your kitchen is glorious. It’s the perfect mix between functional and esthetically beautiful and homey without being too cutesy and chintzy. Very elegant.
Thanks, Suzanne!
Love all the wonderful tips and beautiful photos!
Awesome kitchen! Love your style!
Loved the evolution of your kitchen at Tanglewood! You have such a wonderful style for decorating and your house shows that in every room. Love your blogs!
Your kitchen is gorgeous!
Kitchen looks beautiful!
Oh my gosh! Your before kitchen looks so much like mine! Now I want to paint my cabinets!
Magnificent, inspirational changes. You nailed it!
The kitchen is a breath of fresh air!! Anyone would be happy to cook in there and just enjoy a cup of coffee sitting in the island.
Wednesdays are now my favorites for new tips!
Your kitchen makeover is so pretty. I desperately want to have my cabinets refaced or replaced. They are a dark espresso. I recently replaced all the cabinet and drawer pulls with some that are an aged copper finish-it’s a good start. I have granite countertops and would love to have quartz again. You really changed the look of your space by removing the two levels of the bar. It opened up the kitchen so much more by doing this. I am constantly amazed at the lack of kitchen stuff on your counters. I try but there is just no way I seem to achieve it.
The kitchen looks fantastic and I love the backsplash!
Beautiful kitchen. I hope I can remodel mine one day.
Love your blog and FB page. So many good ideas and helpful hint.
Oh, I just love your kitchen… in every season! Thanks for sharing all your ideas!
I have been following your blog for many years—love both of your beautiful homes. I am a fan of white kitchens and love the lightness and brightness of your homes. I enjoy the items that you link, your recipes, and your decorating advice.
Every. Single. Time. I always find something in your posts that inspires me. Thanks, again!
So sweet, Debbie! Thanks!
Wow! You did a lot of work and it has paid off beautifully in your kitchen! What a makeover!
Absolutely beautiful kitchen. Thanks for the many ideas!
Amazing kitchen evolution!!!
Love your kitchen and the seasonal changes that you add
Beautiful
I love your redo of the kitchen. The glass insets in your doors give your kitchen a fresh look. And the curved countertop was a great idea.
Your kitchen is beautiful. I love everything about it.
I love how you enlarged the countertop to fit another sitting area.
Thank you for posting the step-by-step transition of your beautiful kitchen and providing the reasoning behind your choices. I have saved your post to my Pinterest so I can consult it when attempting to “beautify“ my own kitchen.
We are finishing up some renovations in our kitchen and your post about your kitchen evolution is both timely and helpful. Thanks!
What an inviting kitchen! Kitchens are my happy place. We moved from a large home with a fabulous kitchen to a place with a much smaller kitchen. Loving these ideas for when we start working on it.
You did an outstanding job on this but you always have such a good eye!
Beautiful kitchen. I just did white quarts and handmake slightly crackles subway tile backsplash. Still have oak cabinets. Waiting for my husband to come around. Has his heals dug in. I want to paint.
I love the quartz countertops and the glass cabinet doors – bright and classic!
Such an amazing updating of your kitchen! My eyes teared up in awe of such place of comfort and peace. The banquette is amazing and inviting!!! The color of the bench padding, and then the coordination of the straw baskets under is also inviting one to sit and chat there, not just for eating. I liked your older one very much, but how you upgraded it, is amazing … just looking at the photos, as if it was an open house for a realtor, It felt like home! The new gas stove is amazing…. one of my fave upgrades is the truffle colored farmers sink! … and of course, most of your accessorizing. Congrats on such a beautiful job and such an incredible eye for color.
The new kitchen is stunning! I love how fresh it looks.
Beautifully done!! Often times change is exactly what we need. It refreshes our senses and imagination. I love what you did with the kitchen!!
glad you are focusing on the kitchen
I love your kitchen. The backsplash is my favorite. We are getting ready to remodel our kitchen. I hope it will turn out as beautiful as yours.
Just love all you ideas.
Your transition is soooooo fresh and clean looking!
My kitchens needs to evolve!!
I love so much – palette, hardware, seasonal decorating of your kitchen!
So much to love and inspire! Thank you!
Love, love, love the transformation!
Your white kitchen is just beautiful! I have loved your Stonegable one for years and this is just as lovely.
Your style and choices are very classic and will be in style for years to come.
Wow your ktichen has gone though one huge transformation and it is gorgeous!! The countertops, the sink, your gorgeous back splash and your beautiful lights. Of course white cabinets are my most favorite. I have a white kitchen cabinets too and I love it!
Hugs,
Karin
I have been following the transformation of your kitchen. I wish our cupboards could be saved. I would paint them in a minute. You’ve done a great job. Your kitchen is lovely.
I loved your updates, especially the backsplash! We are planning to downsize and move to Margaritaville Watersound in Florida. We have lived in Texas all our lives and we are old!?
I always struggle to get a vision for the island/counter edges when asked. I really like the rounded edge you did on the ends. That really gives a bit of something special. Composite material for a sink will be something we look into on our next project. I like that the sink looks like one large farmhouse sink but has a split down the center. What a transformation! Whites are tricky for sure with those undertones. The basket weave tile I bet is truly more stunning in person. Lovely Yvonne.
Such lovely improvements! Watching it evolve since its makeover has been inspiring 🙂
One of my favorite things about your kitchen is how you broke up your cabinets by adding a glass front!
Just love what you did with your kitchen. So smart (and patient) to live with it for 8 months till you started the changes. Nice to see someone not desperate to rip out perfectly good cabinets either. Shows what a difference colour can make.
What an absolutely lovely kitchen. So very inviting. And also functional. Congratulations on your transformation. Our home is small as we are retired and so we downsized. We have a galley kitchen that. functions very good for the two of us. Our pallet is very soft grey with white accents and white appliances. I, too, like nickel hardware.
I love all of your ideas for the kitchen remake! So, refreshing!
Your kitchen transformation is beautiful!
Just lovely. I recently painted my kitchen cabinets white and what a difference…..new dabinet pulls and I love it!
I am hoping to update my builder grade counter, but that expense will have to wait.
thanks for sharing your lovely, warm home.
Just beautiful!I hope someday I can have a white kitchen!
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve brought your page back up that is about your kitchen renewal! I’m glad you were able to transform it to be the one you had envisioned! It’s so pretty and your ideas are right up my alley!! I love your neutrals!
Huge job! Turned out wonderful!
I love love your new kitchen! Every thing you chose is just so beautiful! Thanks
I love every inch of your kitchen evolution! Thank you for sharing!
You are so sweet Dixie!
absolutely love everything you have done. what a visionary! can you please tell me about the electrical strip outlet and usb port strip that you used under your cabinets? also, what is a pop up outlet? i am remodeling my old galley kitchen and would love to use these ideas.
A strip of outlets and USB ports were installed at an angle under the cabinets. And the popup outlet was installed on our island. It is a round disc that lays flat and when we tap it it an outlet and USB ports pop up. Our contractor installed these for us. Hope this is helpful. You should google these to get a better idea.
I will be redoing a tiny home of 875 sq. Ft. I want to paint the ugly kitchen cabinets white. Did you use Simply White for yours? Love your posts. Thank you
Oh what a sweet home, Eileen. Small homes are so cozy! Yes, we used Simply White in our whole home including the kitchen.
I have a very similar kitchen banquette area and need new window blinds. Could you tell me about your retractable blinds? TIA
We love our shades! We have light filtering shades in the downstairs and blackout blinds in the bedrooms. Many are on sale right now. Here’s the link:https://rstyle.me/+aUyHkvT1kQOKT7DVGW1Mcg
Hi. Do you have a link to the white utensils canister and wood tray? Thanks
Hi Lauren, I found the wooden tray locally and I can’t remember where I found the utensil caddy. Here a pretty one that is very similar:https://rstyle.me/+zxorNLXmACJrvcESDzmb0w
I so appreciate how thorough this blog post is, thank you for taking us through it step by step. I loved learning about the entire process and it just turned out so beautifully! It’s impossible to say that I have a favorite part, all the components are wonderful! Thank you for also letting us know about the sink, I wasn’t familiar with that materials so I appreciate that and the resource. I feel as if I learned so much, not just because of what you did in your kitchen but ideas for my own especially since we’re having estimates on our counters at the end of this week! Have you mentioned in a different post a little bit more about your shades that you changed over to? That’s another thing that I would like to consider, I think the retracting shades with are so much more attractive than the blinds I have now. Blessings and best wishes always!
Thank you, Dee! I used blind.com blinds. See them here:https://rstyle.me/+FphF9yMhUTV2JAVoEXY-yw
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve read and re-read your kitchen posts!
I even emailed you before I’ve changed mine! I’m glad that we stuck to our gut feelings and didn’t let anyone try to change our minds! The white is lovely and is always timeless!
I’ve been following you for years. Just love your beautiful kitchen. Can you provide a link for your countertop or maybe the manufacturer and name of the quartz. I’m currently trying to make decisions to renovate my kitchen and this countertop is exactly what I’m searching for!
Hi Ann, Thank you so much. I’m not sure of the quartz manufacture. The quarts is ultra white. Hope this helps.