Moodboard Monday: Kitchen Brainstorming

We met with a kitchen remodeling company last week! I think we could have managed a decent kitchen remodel on our own, but the presence of a toddler and the fact that I’m steadily growing in size and decreasing in mobility make it much harder.  Plus, pulling in professionals will allow us to fix some more technical issues like the window and effed up electrical.

My big goals for the space are:

  • Replace all the cabinets
  • Replace the sink
  • Replace countertops
  • Replace the overhead lighting
  • Shorten the window and fit cabinets under it
  • Redo all the cabinetry in the butler pantry
  • Add recessed lighting in the butler pantry (space permitting)
  • Replace the tile in the mudroom

As far as design is concerned, here are my thoughts:

I’d love for the new cabinets to go all the way to the ceiling, with glass doors on the uppermost cabinets.  To add a little bit of interest, I’m thinking of backing the top cabinets with wallpaper (which will also get used in the mudroom). I’m a little concerned that two-toned cabinetry may be trendy and go out of style…but I LOVE the current color of our cabinets, but want to brighten them a little bit. My dream sink is a simple, apron-front sink. As must as I like the functionality of double-bowl sinks, we have so little counter space on that side of the kitchen that I think it makes more sense to shrink the sink a bit (plus, double-bowl apron front sinks are pricey AF, especially since I do NOT want an acrylic sink).

My plan for the counters to get a marble-look quartz composite. Real marble stains very easily and while I love the look of marble, I don’t want to deal with the upkeep. I’m having some fun with texture for the backsplash–visual texture that is, since a textured backsplash in a kitchen would be a beast to clean. Since there’s not much area to cover, I think it will be a fun accent and not overwhelming.  In the butler pantry I plan on using a simple white subway tile since that space is more of a hallway.

For the awkward space above the radiator, I’m think of adding some floating shelves and coffee cup storage. I like the faux roman shades I have right now, but I’m thinking of replacing them with a navy linen for a little more texture. The wood shelves and jute rug will also add some natural elements which I think help warm up any space.

It’s funny… the overall look of the mood board is much more farmhouse than I usually go.  I do think it will look really nice in our house in the end though. Plus I purposely chose permanent fixtures that are a little more vintage/neutral so they’ll look good with the bones of the house vs our specific decorating style.

Moving to the mudroom…

The only thing we’re planning on having the contractors do is replace the existing pinky-beige floor tile with (my favorite!) white hex tile. After that’s in place, I want to build some custom storage for shoes/jackets/etc and paint the door.  The same wallpaper accent from the kitchen will get used here on a larger scale to tie the rooms together.