skip to main content

Home Decorating

Black cupboards are done...kinda, sorta.

14 years ago

Well, I finally pretty much finished painting the new cupboards in our kit yesterday afternoon. Still have to tweak a few spots, second coat in places but at least the "innards" are done and usable once again...microwave is in the left cupboard, the strange lights glowing on the right is our coffee brewer.

I don't have enough "pretties" lol! (or at least ones that fit) I'll find somethin' somewhere I guess...ran out of steam yesterday. Here's a shot of them early this morning, about 4am. Mike starts a fire every cold morning...or maybe when it's not so cold too. :)) A little out of focus but I hate the flash effect. I don't know WHY Photobucket isn't re-sizing all of a sudden??? Trying to reduce size but it's not saving...hmmm.

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (56)

squirrelheaven
14 years ago
Love it. Very nice space! Would love to see more, and before & afters.
cooperbailey
14 years ago
The black looks great! and yes photos please. pretty please.
Related Discussions
How do you like your marble countertops?
Q
Comments (41)
I often see posts about Carrera and Calacutta marbles --- has anybody done Crema Marfil? Is it really a "true" marble? I had a granite in mind for my master bath and there isn't enough of it. On my revisit to the stone yard I was once again attracted to the soothing qualities of crema marfil --- only a tiny bit of veining, very consistent, with once in a while fossils. It looks very pretty. My other granite choices just didn't seem to work as well with the fabrics and cabinets that I have in mind. The crema marfil would make a very monochromatic look, but it would allow my pretty windows to shine and would hopefully all just look pretty together. But, I came home, jumped on GW and saw so little about it that it worries me! Don't mean to hijack, I'm just hoping somebody has experience with this stone! Here is a picture of the combo --- the creamy color will be my cabinets, the dark brown paint and then the fabrics are window seat and window treatment. The little glass crackle tile would be periodic in the floor. I could do crema marfil floor tile as well, but again, not much info! BTW, kateskouros, if I had an island like your gorgeous island, I'd be propped up on it making margaritas!
...See More
Need Layout Help- Small Kitchen causing big problems
Q
Comments (67)
Newbieremodeler, This is my opinion but there are few things that are necessary in making a small home function well for a family for a LONG time, not temporarily until you buy a bigger house. But a well functioning home where you can raise a family. I am thinking about this alot lately because we are buying some rental properties and trying to make these homes "livable" for a family so they are easily rentable. These are things I am thinking about.... 1. Eat in kitchen is not necessary but a kitchen that is close and CONNECTED to an eating area is. (there is a difference) You can connect to an eating area with visual and physical connection. 2. Easy access to the nice green space in your backyard/sideyard that allows you to connect to the outdoors. This allows you to enjoy summer BBQs and perhaps entertain easily in the summer. (I would put sliding glass door from your dining room to make it happen easily in your house). You can't afford the linear foot without cabinets in the kitchen. So you have to put the slider in the dining. This is a typical small home solution. An easy way to make your house livable is to put a deck across the east side of the house (kitchen dining side if this give you a nice access to the yard and increasing the entertaining space without adding on to the house.) 2. Dining area that accomodates a larger group of people with rearrangement of furniture to host occasional parties, ie Thanksgiving, birthday parties, having another family over for dinner is ABSOLUTELY necessary for long term staying power of a small home. I think this is a more important criteria than actual eat-in kitchen. When the house cannot accomodate life's meaningful events in your own home, you feel that your house is not "good" or "big" enough. I think older home designs (pre-WWII) understood this well and gave generous spaces to the dining area even though they did not give enough to the kitchen. Imagine feeling that you can never host a Thanksgiving dinner for 10 at your house because there is no way to make it happen even with rearrangement of the furniture.... In your current kitchen, you can probably seat 6 to 8 adults in the dining and a card table with kids in the living room. Set the table close to the dining opening near the fireplace and have a nice Thanksgiving/holiday party at your home for 10 or more people. This allows you to create memories for your kids. In many of your plans, there is no way you can host the holidays at your home: ie the banquet kitchen and the kitchen eat in table.... These are great for larger homes where there are other areas to host a large party but not in a small home, IMHO. Do you forsee yourself hosting family parties? Dining rooms that are somewhat open to living room rearranges furniture easier for parties. There are people who never host sit down dinners (informal for families. I am not even taking FORMAL) at their homes because it is impossible. On the other hand, I have been in homes that are much smaller but the house makes holiday dinners happen. If you think having these life's events in your home is important to you, then you need to design for it. I think many of your designs show 36 inch opening between the dining and LR. I think this is smaller than what you already have. (58 inches, I am reading). I am not sure what the reason is behind this.... I would open up dining area as much you can given the load bearing condition. Figure out the house first then the kitchen. This is really important! This is not easy because you have to optimize everything and look ahead to the kind of family you will have. You need to have a reasonable plan for various phases of your family's life. For example, if you are a family that will watch TV in the basement, then you need to plan for the basement media room. More questions about the house: How will you use your basement as you have kids? Will you be satisfied with 1 bath on the main or wil need/want to add 1/2 or 1 bath on the main? Where is the nice part of the yard? How will you access that? Do you use the garage to park? If so, do you enter the house through the kitchen? Do you just use the garage as a storage and never enter the house that way? You can add storage in the garage easily to put overflow kitchen stuff in there IF you move the kitchen to where the dining is currently. (as is one of your ideas) In a small home, I actually prefer this type of arrangement than making a kitchen that is too big for the house... (there should be a balance of rooms in a given house) Do you have places for young toddlers/school aged kids to go and play on a rainy/cold day? Where will the toddlers eat? (I had a small toddler table next to my kitchen island for couple years until my kids were old enough to climb the stool easily. The booster chair streapped to the stool did not work for us as well.) Do you have places for teenagers to hangout and have some privacy? Do you have a place for adults to have a little quiet and solitute from one another. (Bedroom is fine for this if you design for it) Do you have a place for occasional overnight guests? How do you enter the house? Where to you drop your stuff as you enter? When I look at your LR, it looks underutilized to me. i would close that opening, and put a wall there so you can cluster the seating arrangement next to the FP. Then you move the kitchen where the DR is now. You create some storage in the garage that stores all your large occasional kitchen stuff. The dining room should have a large opening to the LR which makes the rearranging for large parties easy. You can see into the dining and you feel more connected to the family. (if you DH watches TV and he won't budge from that, then you need to be able to see the TV from the kitchen to feel connected to the family) The couch should face the FP and you can have a console behind the couch which will create a space near the front door a sense of entry. These are some ideas to get you started.... Good luck.
...See More
Unique Things/Items about your Kitchen
Q
Comments (91)
Gary, thanks for this fun thread. I've bookmarked it so that when I've a moment here or there, I can read through it bit by bit. It's really kind of the kernel of this site. I'm posting one of several favorite things, but I've chosen this in particular because someone elsewhere called this cabinet a "problem" cabinet -- and yet I designed it this way deliberately and it's even more successful than I could have hoped! I don't know if the moral is just "Different strokes" or rather that I haven't adequately explained why it's neat. This is a cabinet on the edge of my kitchen overlooking the next part of my wide open space that is the family room. That is, the kitchen and family room are one big room, and substantially open to the rest of the shared room in the downstairs as well, the dining room and living room. I wanted to transition the edge between kitchen and family room. I had thought since we mostly just read in a family room, maybe crafts too (we've never before had one so I don't rightly know exactly how it will be used), I thought I'd want a set of bookshelves that could hold family-room-type books or games or something. For now at least these bookshelves are holding cookbooks and I really like it. I don't know whether this will change in the future. But in order to set the bookshelves into the cabinet, right-angles to the cabinet itself, a bite had to come out of the cabinet to house the book shelf. And then for there to be a door on the cabinet, the bite had to be recessed a bit to make room for the hinges. What I hadn't anticipated was how useful this little minishelf would be given the plan to house spices in this cabinet. My most-used spices edge out onto the mini shelf on the right where they are just one-deep; no rooting for lost spices amongst the most popular. Then there is a deeper cavity on the left for the workhorse job of storing the bounty. I bought an additional shelf from the cabinet guys which has helped contain almost all of my spices. Still there is overflow above the hood. But with time I may balance out the spacing, say, be moving baking-type flavorings out of the cooking-type spice cabinet. Don't know; all's working great for now though. I'm constantly amazed at how functional and pretty (IMO) this is. Very exciting. Here's the view from the family room looking down the range-run: Here's a photo of the interior of the spice-part of the cabinet:
...See More
Stalled on cabinet and paint style/colors--help?
Q
Comments (19)
Lavender, isn't that scullery kitchen amazing? I love her pass-through cupboards. That's the neatest idea. And the great wall of storage is nice too. I hope you'll pop back over to the "Not bunnies" thread that Oldbat2be started. There are a few more pics there for you to see. : ) We have dark colored counters now: It looks pretty, but I find that it gobbles the light, and it's hard to clean b/c I have to go by feel, not by sight. I'd like to have something that's easy to clean and that bounces lots of light around the room. sis2two, I think we're probably going to leave the tile for now. DH and I talked about it earlier today, and we think we can make it work. I think I'm going to use the 2nd plate I showed as the color inspiration. I held it up to the cranberry colored wall and it just popped! DH wants to hang it up. Now I need to find one of those plate hangers that I bought and put in a really special spot (that I can't for the life of me find!) Cottagey is good, that's what we're aiming for, so thank you. : ) Thanks for the pictures, Bmore, and the link. Some of those are quite pretty. And one made me dizzy, LOL. It's funny how what we bring to the table alters our perceptions. So many tiles remind me of my high school days where our school had tile on the walls, or even more so of the girls' locker room that was coated in multi-shade green mini tiles everywhere. So a lot of tiles that are popular these days say "girls locker room!" in my brain. I'll bet the folks that are loving their newly tiled bs's never had that in their locker rooms to spoil their perceptions. (Grin) Oh, and I really like the little corner cupboard with the curtain. That's darling. Actually, I find that whole kitchen to be rather pleasant. : ) (I wonder if I'd be able to see out the window? I'm kinda short...) Oh and the ctop is different on each side of the sink. Look at that. Is SS a noisy ctop surface? Just wonderin' Onedogedie: "The things I love about that door style are the visual lightness, the simplicity, and the cleanliness. They are humble & utilitarian and perfect for a house like mine." So true! Except for the cleanliness part. That's one of the reasons I'm reluctant to build our own cabinets. I know that we cannot get a high quality factory finish at home. The white painted cupboards in our kitchen are showing a tremendous amount of wear and have been very difficult to wipe down. It seems like all grime sticks like glue, whether fresh or old. Just the same, I'd love to see that door style come back around again. I had plain old almond laminate in a kitchen once, and it disappeared just like you said. Actually, we painted the lowers green and the uppers white, so it was very similar to the inspiration picture you posted. It was a cheery kitchen to work in. Thanks for the complements on the arch. : ) Nap, I need a nap.
...See More
bebetokids
14 years ago
Even fuzzy it looks fabulous!
newdawn1895
14 years ago
Question? Did you shabby chic the cabinets? You did a wonderful job indeed.

Someone is going to have a beautiful Thanksgiving table by the fire.

....Jane
jant
Original Author
14 years ago
Thanks all...here are a few shots I just took. I'm still painting as you can see from the looks of my island lol!

{{!gwi}}

As far as technique...lol. I'm not sure I EVA do it the same way twice but I always brush paint and always use semi-gloss. Even semi-isn't that glossy nowadays. These were initially stained with leftover Polyshades. (had to pretend I was making an effort at the wood look...snort) But it's a base coat that I later expose by wiping off the black paint...it gives a look of age without dinging/sanding the thing to death and it does occur IRL on old pieces. I do a little bit of sanding but never much or all around. I'm not happy with some of it and to fix it I'll just use some raw sienna craft paint in spots then paint it black again and rub off very lightly with a damp paper towel.

I've honestly found the more layers you have the more realistic it looks so don't be afraid of messin' up! I normally "blister" black pieces a bit with crackle (not used in the normal way) but I didn't this time as I wanted to keep the finish smooth...since they stay with the house. Someone might want to change them...who knows?

BTW, if you want a "Ballards" look, this isn't for you lol. I like a more primitive look.

I might put some Butcher's Wax on as a top coat...dunno.
bungalow_house
14 years ago
jant, can I come live with you? I love what I've seen of your house!
tomorrowisanotherday
14 years ago
Simply STUNNING!!!!!! I am in LUV! The beadboard in the uppers just MAKES it.
zipdee
14 years ago
Wonderful! What a beautiful space with those gorgeous hutches flanking the fireplace.
neetsiepie
14 years ago
Oh you're so lucky to have that gorgeous light in your kitchen. I'd LOVE black cabs, but my kitchen is too dark. You did fabulous...love the primitive-ish look. Yes, butchers wax would be perfect.
juddgirl2
14 years ago
Gorgeous! I usually sand the paint off after painting, but might have to try the wipe off method when I paint my hutch. Do you wipe off immediately after painting one section?
haley_comet
14 years ago
Wow that is stunning!! Just so beautiful and totally useful...bravo!
DLM2000-GW
14 years ago
Much better! Now I can see what I'm looking at! Love it love it love it - of course. It'll be interesting to see if you close the doors to your microwave on a regular basis. We have the same set-up and I closed them at first..... rarely anymore!
lynninnewmexico
14 years ago
Jan, they look wonderful! I don't know if you'd mentioned it earlier in another thread, but did Mike make these two cabs, or did you buy them new or used? Whatever, they look like they've always been there flanking your fireplace. And, all that new storage must be great! I don't remember seeing the light fixtures on your fireplace before. Did you guys add them? They really add so much to the charater of it. Lovely!
Lynn
jant
Original Author
14 years ago
Oh Deb...your eyes are just gettin' old like mine. Want it any brighter ma dear? I wasn't going to JUST use that first pix from this morning ya know. :)

Juddgirl... re: the wiping off. No, not immediately. I let it sit for about 5 minutes or so then pounce with a damp paper towel or VERY gently wipe. Sometimes I'll go back over with almost a dry paintbrush just to add more dimension...or whateva lol. Just takes a lil practice and experimenting on some old piece...or just on wood/2x4's hanging around...hee.

Lynn...yes, I wanted soft light on that side of the kitchen (I detest overheads!!) and finally found some simple plug in sconces up in NH. Mike drilled diagonally through the brick and in-line switches are hiding on the sides.

No, M has enuf on his plate...he didn't make them. I had my cab guy make these in unfinished pine at the same time as the rest of the cabinets. I've got to have him out soon to measure for the bath remodel. Hope he doesn't think I KILLED his cabs lol!

Thanks all very much for your nice comments. :) Have to touch up the walls now.......sigh.
hoosiergirl
14 years ago
OMG, that is absolutely gorgeous! You have a true talent, Jant! Do you design for a living by chance? If not, you should!

You have a beautiful home, Jant!
lesmis
14 years ago
Those are just beautiful...when can we see the rest of your amazing kitchen?!

Kat :)
dawn25
14 years ago
They look awesome! I absolutely love that you have a fireplace in the kitchen. It looks so cozy with the lights and the fire.
User
14 years ago
OK, this settles it. I'm coming to live with you too!
;-D

I love, love, looooove your "new" cupboards, and think this entire space is just heavenly. I don't think you know how to create a space that isn't pure perfection. ::sigh::
User
14 years ago
Love, Love, LOVE it! :) The whole thing is really sharp looking!
User
14 years ago
That looks wonderful. I love the effect you achieved on the paint and that fireplace area w/ cabs is just wonderful. You really have a lot of talent for this. Will look forward to more pics. c
peytonroad
14 years ago
That is fabulous!! I love it. I wish I could do things like that! From the view of the picture, it totally fits!!!
redbazel
14 years ago
Jan, I hadn't realized that you had two of these kitchen cabinet pieces flanking the fireplace. The black makes a real statement with the brick of the fireplace. Glad Mike liked it too. I don't decorate for my DH, but I am very pleased when he thinks what I did looks good.
Your cabinets are looking really nice with the dishes starting to go back in. I hope you can do some more "panoramic" kitchen views as you get nearer to done.

Good job!
Red
carolfm
14 years ago
I LOVE the cupboards! Wonderful paint job and I've always wanted a kitchen with a fire place. So...how many of us can you accomodate if we all decide to come live with you? :-)
jant
Original Author
14 years ago
Hey guys...I am SO mad! I just lost a long reply...stooopid Photobucket's fault...arrrrgh. WHAT is up with that site today?

Back in bit...need to run an errand.
jant
Original Author
14 years ago
OK, this is getting ridiculous on Photobucket. Pix I uploaded a bit ago are NOT there. Not in any album. Nothing is saving with edits....arrrgh.

Anyhoos, yes...it's gonna be crowded lol! How 'bout we set up a bunkhouse thang in our barn? I CAN use the help with 2 baths to gut, foyer to change out "etc"....hmmmm. :)

Here's a pix from the last time the kitchen was clean. :( I had just bought this new light for over the sink.

Thanks again all.
teacats
14 years ago
Just flippin' wonderful!!! :)

Saw the first fuzzy photos -- and thought: "Great Stars Above -- has Jan been sniffing the paint too long????" LOL!

Just knew that the black cabinets would be great sitting next to that yummy fireplace (((( soooooooo jealous over here!!!))))))))

the other Jan -- at Rosemary Cottage
hoosiergirl
14 years ago
It makes me feel so much better when I hear others say that their house isn't always "photo-ready" (since mine very rarely ever is)! I've loved every photo you've posted, Jant! What a beautiful home you have! Thanks for sharing parts of it with us!
greenthumbfish
14 years ago
Fabulous!
ctlane
14 years ago
I love it even more now that we have seen the other side.
jant
Original Author
14 years ago
Morning all...

Well, didn't get the backsplash painted yesterday...first thing today and then I'm DONE...well, almost. :( With the new cupboards done, what I knew would happen, has. My antique stepback cupboard needs to move out of the kitchen....sigh. It's just too many large pieces, too similar in style and just too much weight on that side of the room. Think I'll put it in my barn room...nowhere else to put it.

Sooo, I'm going to add more white cabinetry me thinks. A desk/server combo with cabs above. It will be nice to have a laptop area in the kit anyway. Then I can fritter even MORE time away lol. Might even sneak in a warming drawer which I could use since I only have the range oven. Good for keeping things warm when my family gets together.

Jan...can you believe I had an FP in my last Denver home too? Don't know how I'm pulling this off ...snort. When I walked into this kitchen, I couldn't believe my luck. The idiot realtor who listed this house did NOT even take a shot of the FP to use in his listing...he was a piece of work lol.

Here's another shot of the kit (complete with sponges, dishrack lol) It's so pretty when the afternoon sun comes in and I love having the southern exposure on this side.

Thanks guys for your comments!
jant
Original Author
14 years ago
I meant to say "an FP in my kitchen in Denver". FPs in themselves aren't a big deal...duh.

I'm so sad my workhorse cupboard has to leave...:((.
jjam
14 years ago
Now THAT's an inspiration room. Just beautiful.
jejvtr
14 years ago
jan

Thanks for posting & sharing your artistic work of art - Love what you have accomplished - The cabs appear as though they have been there forever - love your dish display in the uppers
Love the last pic w/the way the light is coming in the kitchen -
keep posting your work!
awm03
14 years ago
Love the cupboards, the finish, the brick, the design, the sconces...I love everything about your FP wall. The rest of the kitchen is terrific too. But the FP wall is killer.
gracie01 zone5 SW of Chicago
14 years ago
Love what you've done Jan.

You must be the same Jan from the former GI site, right?
The "snort" gave you away.
hoosiergirl
14 years ago
Can we see your workhorse cupboard? You'd better not ever move -- I think you've used up all of your kitchen FP cards!
arleneb
14 years ago
Wow, what a lovely room! Warm and inviting . . . may I come have coffee? I love the fp and the "new" cupboards -- and everything else. You've done such a great job . . . like hoosiergirl, I'd love to see the cupboard that's moving out . . .
parma42
14 years ago
Beautiful kitchen and I've gotta love a gal who's not afraid to accessorize her counters. :)
ladyamity
14 years ago
WOW...... just WOW!

Of course, anything you do Jan is always a WOW!
Your attention to detail always gives me so much inspiration and your get-er-done attitude always motivates me!

If you all think her home is wonderful, you should see Jan's gardens!!!

DEB: I emailed you back a few days ago. Hope you got it!
ttodd
14 years ago
Oh, now that's just wonderful!
jant
Original Author
14 years ago
Hey all,

Just got back home from a few hours of flea marketing...always fun to do on a rainy day. Found a neat old sailing ship print with a thin blue enamel and gold gilt frame...$20. Decided to give myself a break after 5 solid days of painting for hrs and hrs!

OK Gracie and Amity...identify yourselves lol!! Am I the only "snorter" here? :) The gardens...sigh. Talk about a change from several years ago thanks to our deer prob during winter. It's more and more boxwood each yr...one of the few things they're not chomping on.

Thanks very much everyone....really. Here's my stepback cupboard. It was quite a find (read seriously underpriced!) 20 odd years ago in Denver. It held our little TV, towels, you name it at our ranch.

I'm standing at the sink shooting this. The FP and cupboards are just to the left of the doorway there. VERY heavy now visually on that side of the room. That's a good 7' run that I'll probably use for more of the white cabs/desk.

No, my walls aren't pink. :) Thanks again all; I really appreciate your comments and funnies too!

{{!gwi}}
jant
Original Author
14 years ago
Sigh...a closeup of the drawers. Ain't she a a beauty?

{{!gwi}}
hoosiergirl
14 years ago
Oh, it's beautiful! I'd be sad to have to move it, too!!
teacats
14 years ago
Another snorter here too! LOL!

LOVE all sides of your kitchen!

What kind of countertops do you have?

Jan (snort) at Rosemary Cottage
jant
Original Author
14 years ago
Ah HAH! I knew there were other snorters lurking about...who knew it was sweet Jan from Rosemary Cottage? Hee!

The counters are soapstone Jan...we love them. Just oiled them twice in the first month and since then they've been on their own. We prefer the gray tone vs the oiled black. The patina is amazing...and soooo smoooooth. It was our little splurge in here. And I'm so glad we went with the soapstone sink. I've always wanted one. Used to go to this salvage place years ago and drool over the big ole sinks.

Hoosiergirl...yep, I'm sad about that but....Maybe I just need a second house? That's IT!! :)))
DLM2000-GW
14 years ago
amity I'm going through my junk folder in hotmail and not coming up with your email - try again?
loribee
14 years ago
Jan, just thinking...what if you switch out the kitchen cupboard with a smaller one from your foyer???
teacats
14 years ago
oooooo -- soapstone!! The kind of surface that I just want to run my hands over ...... (((snort, heeheehee, snort))

That kitchen cupboard does have the same effect too -- a wonderful surface ((yeah, I know -- who the hell put these blasted fingerprints on everything .....LOL!))

Jan
neesie
14 years ago
Lovely kitchen. So nice to see a brick fireplace that hasn't been painted.
prill
14 years ago
maybe you need to move that step back to my house! That could work.

Related Stories

COLOR 10 Pair-Ups for Black in the Kitchen

By Laura Gaskill

Combine black with other colors to add drama, polish and modernity. It also can make a kitchen look more spacious

KITCHEN DESIGN 10 Smashing Black Kitchens

By Becky Harris

Looking for something different from an all-white kitchen? Think about going stylishly dark instead

MOST POPULAR 11 Reasons to Paint Your Interior Doors Black

Brush on some ebony paint and turn a dull doorway into a model of drop-dead sophistication

LIFE Reluctant DIYer’s Diary of a Dresser Makeover

By Becky Harris

Weekend project: Glossy new black-and-white dresser, hold the sandpaper

DIY PROJECTS 17 Ways to Decorate With Everyday Things

By Becky Harris

Characters on the new Netflix series 'Orange Is the New Black' make the most of what they have. Here's how you can too

DECORATING GUIDES What Goes With Dark Walls?

By Laura Gaskill

Bring out the beauty of dark blue, charcoal and black walls with these decorative matchups

CLOSETS Houzz Call: Is Your Closet a Storage Powerhouse?

By Laura Gaskill

We want to see how you are making the most of your closet storage areas. Post pictures and tell us how you’ve organized them

DECORATING GUIDES How to Create Better Flow in Your Home

By Affecting Spaces Design Studio

Learn how much room to allow for furniture, and tricks you can use to make the most of a tight space

HOUSEKEEPING How to Clean Stainless Steel

By Bonnie McCarthy

Protect this popular kitchen material with a consistent but gentle cleaning routine

FEEL-GOOD HOME Regain Calm With a New Weekly Routine

By Laura Gaskill

Having a day-by-day housekeeping schedule makes the chores a lot more manageable

Sponsored

More Discussions

Home improval and revamping

4

Reorganizing my bedroom, need some advice

17

Master bedroom help

13

What do I put on walls or mantle to help this space?

19

Help with Family/Living Room Furniture

2