Wow, what an amazing transformation. It looks like a totally new kitchen. I can't believe you did all that yourself. Great job!

I am SO impressed...When I first looked, I forgot you'd said those were your old cabinets. If someone told me they were all new, I would've believed it. The refinishing and the added/changed details are wonderful and seem to be the perfect choices to create the new look. Quite a transformation when so much of it is the old kitchen! VERY good job!!!!

I admit that I'm not a fan of black appliances, but it really works in your kitchen! Good job!

And I love the glazed cabs too. Very nice! If I ever get the final tweaks done on my kitchen & work up the courage to post pics, you'll see the similar sort of glazing I've done on my beadboard backsplash & wainscoting.

Ditto what the others said - looks brand new!!

Bet you walk in it every day and just "Ahhhhh...."

BRAVA!!!

OMG - And you DID IT YOURSELF!!

I am super impressed. It looks totally different and I love it.

Definitely a job well done!

downsy, Super job! It really turned out great! Congratulations!

Sandy

It is WONDERFUL, BEAUTIFUL and SO PROFESSIONAL looking!
You are so talented and hard working! May you be so blessed in your practically NEW kitchen!

Christine

Fabulous, and for less than $10,000. Congratulations. You put a lot of us to shame.

Wow, are you talented! That looks like a six-figure remodel. Have a ball in your wonderful kitchen!

Downsy, That is an amazing transformation. What a difference! And the fact that you did it yourself, makes it all the more remarkable. I would have thought the cabs were new if you hadn't told us you painted them. You did a great job. Way to go.

You did a fantastic job!! I love the paint - it does not look dirty.

Fabulous! Fabulous! Fabulous!

downsy,

Beautiful job! I love your cabinets and just like the others said I never would have known that they weren't brand new!!!! Lovely, lovely! Enjoy!

Very, very nice...the cornices over the range and window really add a luxurious touch!

I can't believe it's the same kitchen--great job!!!

Fantastic!!! Everything looks great together. Love the finish on those cabinets. Enjoy your new kitchen!

Well that surely deserves an "ADA GIRL!" You have done all that in 8 weeks! That's amazing. Great Job!

I would say "YOU GO GIRL" but you already went.......
...... Beautiful, good job!!

Looks terrific!! I LOVE the fact that you did it yourself. Wall color really makes the cabinets pop, too!

What wonderful choices, Downsy. I love the way they all come together. The wire inset and handles are fantastic with your glaze. This is definitely an inspiration kitchen; if you haven't already, it needs to be in the Finished Kitchens Blog, and for that matter, added to the "under 20K" thread. I imagine a lot of people have gone off excited and encouraged from that one. Happy cooking!

amazing! Great job! And DIY?? Even better!! Would you please post your kitchen in the under $20,000 kitchen thread?

Here is a link that might be useful: under $20,000 kitchens

I find these DIY kitchens one of the most rewarding parts of GW. Such talent and vision! Congrats to a job well done at an enviable price. Thanks for sharing.

Very pretty! Great job! Congrats!

Looks good!

I remember your question about keeping the original granite tiles. Looks so much better having it all match!

Love the detail of spray painting the granite! Did you have to do anything special to get it to stick? I've never painted 'rock', so don't know how it would hold up to being washed.

Beautiful! Great job!

Thank you to everyone for your kind words! I feel very happy, blessed and RELIEVED that I finally did it! God opened up a window of time in my business for me to complete the remodel and for that I am really thankful.

ccombs - I added my kitchen to the under $20,000 post and tried to put one of my photos in the post but had no luck at that today. So I reposted with a link to my album.

raehelen - I put a basecoat of zinsser oil primer on the granite squares before I sprayed them with the bronze paint. I don't know how they'll hold up over time, but I figured the painting was worth a try. If it doesn't work - then I'll have to chip out the old granite square and find a tile the right size to put in there! However, the paint seems to be sticking fine and I don't really get the backsplash too dirty where I'll have to wash those tiles often.

I cannot believe this was DIY! It looks fantastic. You must be so proud of all your hard work.

WOW! I thought I was looking at our DIY! We did the same thing to oak cabinets with the crown, feet and scroll above. But you make us feel really slow! We are now in month 12; can't imagine doing it in 8 weeks! Looks like you did a little hitting with a chain to distress, fun huh?? I asked my daughter if mine looked too dirty, but like you, I love the look. Congrats on a beautiful job. Feels good to do it without spending a fortune and in time for the holidays! I hope to be able to post soon...we are about finished.

Downsy

Unbelievable transformation!!!!!!!!!!! You must be sooooooo very proud of your work, seeing the fruits of your labors everyday - Just LOVELY really - way to go. Good call on the paint/wallpaper & the cabs don't look dirty- excellent idea w/molding on the cabs too - You did the molding?

Just a thought - have you considered darkening the table & chairs

great work! Congrats & ENJOY!

Gam51 - I took an old cloth baby diaper I had from years ago and filled it with big lug nuts, and large screws and whacked the heck out of the doors/drawers! I hit them with a hammer, a meat mallet, a garden weed puller and put nail holes in them to mimick worm word. That was probably the most fun I had while working on them! I can't wait to see your photos.

Its funny how the cabinets look even more distressed in photos than they do in person.

I was able to work pretty much non-stop for 8 to 9 weeks - putting in 8 to 12 hour days at times and longer. I also worked on Sat. and Sunday. I knew my job would get busy again, so I was in a hurry to finish so I'd be able to go back to work (to pay for the remodel) !!!! LOL

I looked at your first picture of your old kitchen and thought it wasn't that bad. But wow, it looks great now. I really like what you did to the cabinets, they look new.

And the backsplash, how clever of you, I love it. Can you tell me what you used to spray your switchplates?

Downsy, I have a question about repainting your almond refrigerator black. What process and paint did you use and are you happy with the results? The photos look terrific!

Jejvtr - Yes I think I will do something to that table and chairs at some point. But for now I am DIY'd out! I have definitely considered going darker!

Happyladi - I used Fleck Stone paint to paint the lightswitch plates. I happened to have a can on my shelf from quite a few years ago and it matched nicely with the tiles.

Danajw - I used the epoxy appliance paint that I found at Lowes. I can't remember now who makes it - but its labeled appliance paint. To be honest - that is one thing I will NEVER do again. It was a major pain - the mist is very fine and carries everywhere. I started out in my breakfast room and realized the fine spray was going under my plastic sheeting and was all over my wood floor. I moved it outside on my deck to finish it. It was very hard to get an even coat and I wound up having to put a poly coat over it to get the finish to look nice. So in hind sight - it was alot of trouble, but it saved me the cost of buying a new fridge.

Downsy, What a fantastic makeover. You must just grin from ear to ear everytime you enter your kitchen. This great transformation and the doable cost of it gives everyone on a more limited budget heart to try to redo their kitchen.

We are also doing a makeover with outside help, but our redo will not be a budget breaker either. A while back I read a post where someone got a quote and instead of being the $100,000. expected, it turned into $160,000. I am not knocking it, and it is fantastic if you can do it, but I about fell off my chair when I saw the amount. We built our ranch style house 30 some years ago. I believe for a 3 bedroom house with a back and front porch and a two car garage w/sandstone and siding we paid the contractor $32,000. (inc. interest). At that time wages were not near what they are today, so I guess we just handle more money now.

Sorry, didn't mean to go down memory lane, but your great redo just shows we can still do much with what we are comfortable spending.

CONGRATULATIONS on a job well done.
Jane

It looks so pretty, I would never have guessed it was DIY. You must be very proud to go in your kitchen everyday and realize what a great job you did.

You did a stunning job and are real insperation. Thanks for posting.

Amazing! Your kitchen is really lovely.

Dowsy, What a lovely makeover. I also didn't think they were the same cabinets. It's amazing what putting on some finished end pieces and moldings will do to make cabinets look rich and expensive. More importantly, the work and love that went into this remodel is obvious. I hope you enjoy every moment in your new kitchen.

Downsy, What a great makeover, I love what you did. I'm wondering how you stained your cabinets? Did you paint and then stain, did you do any sanding for the rub through look?
I have to say they look better than some I've seen in showrooms. you must feel very proud to have done this yourself, very inspiring

Katy

Your makeover should inspire anyone who wonders what can be done without breaking the bank! You did a beautiful job and should be very proud to use your brand new kitchen!

Enjoy!

Oh gosh - thank you all very much. I really apprecite the compliments.

Katy - First, I sanded the cabinets to remove the old shiny poly coat, then I primed 1 coat of Zinnser oil based paint. Next I put on 3 coats of BM White sand. I painted an outline in all the routed edges using BM Bittersweet Chocolate. I didn't do any sanding to reveal the old stain. I tried that on my test piece and it looked more rustic than I wanted. I did distress them with a hammer, nail holes and hit them with a bag full of lug nuts. I brushed the glaze over the paint and let it sit for a few minutes and then I wiped the glaze off leaving it heavier in some areas than others, and letting it stay in the dented ares. (I found a tip on here from soneone and I can't remember who - but she used Viva papertowels with her glazing and that's what I used to remove my glazing. They were just the right softness.)

I looked through kitchen cabinet catalogs and magazines and the kitchen blog photos trying to notice details that would make my stock cabinets look more custom. I knew I wouldn't want to do this again anytime soon - so now was the time to incorporate stuff into the kitchen. I didn't even own a miter saw and had never done crown molding before, but I am pretty handy and bought a book and looked at instructions on the internet. I just plugged away and learned how to do the stuff I wanted to do!!! It was either that or not have it!