My Home's Before and Afters

Over the next couple weeks, I've decided to re-share some of the updates we did after purchasing our home last summer.  The simple updates and additions we made completely changed the feeling of the 20-year-old home, making it feel new, modern, and most importantly "ours," but still full of all the character and traditionalism that mature landscaping and architectural design provided, making us fall in love with the house at first look.

A good realtor will always advise buyers to consider the things about a home that cannot be changed, when determining if it's "the one" for you.  That's sometimes easier said than done.  It's easy to determine if the physical condition of the land or location of the lot is satisfactory.  But, on the inside, where you'll spend the majority of your time - what if you don't have an eye for how you can work with what is there to make it more appealing to your personal preferences and functionality?  What if you're the kind of person that doesn't know what you want, until you see it?

Hopefully, the photos I'm sharing over the coming weeks will help you to identify good bones when you see them now.  If you've decided your home no longer meets your needs and preferences - so you're considering selling, but you don't want to spend the money required for a full re-model, because, then, why move?  You'll find in this and upcoming posts: never underestimate the power of paint, hardware and new light fixtures to make your home more appealing to others and sell quickly! 

Today, let's start with the kitchen.  I kept the original footprint (didn't knock down any walls or relocate any plumbing), but we completely gutted and rebuilt cabinetry, counters, back splash and appliances.


Here are the BEFORE photos:

 Cabinets were poor quality and outdated; while the perimeter counters were updated to granite, the dark browns, grays and cream colors darkened and dated the kitchen.

The breakfast nook was spacious, but the blue paint, and outdated light fixture, made the kitchen look dark and lopsided to me.

I prefer cooking with a gas range, so I was lucky to find out that a gas line was close-by that could easily be run into the kitchen to replace the electric top with gas.

Here are the AFTER photos.  We completely gutted the kitchen and started over with new cabinetry, counters, back splash and appliances, from the awesome people (and coincidentally, my neighbors) at TrueSource Home Specialties, in Marietta.  

 The limewashed brick wall addition in the nook, balanced the kitchen and brightened the space; the brick accent wall coordinates with the limewashed brick fireplace that can be viewed from the kitchen.

 Drawer microwave (because the kids and I think it's totally cool to have a microwave operate with an automatic drawer- makes for easier cleaning too!) and trashcan are built into the new kitchen island.  The island was extended, by about two or three feet to accommodate the microwave and trash cans, while still providing storage space.

 Pendant lights were purchased at Woodstock Antiques and became the inspiration for all of my kitchen remodel selections!

When I moved the microwave to the island, I added a gas line to allow for a gas range in the kitchen and replaced the microwave with a decorative hood/vent that matches the cabinetry.  upon demolition, it was decided that the plumbing and layout worked better with the dishwasher relocated to the opposite side of the sink than originally designated.  So, that's not an oven, that's a dishwasher with a window.  The inside of the dishwasher has a light that turns on when it is opened and when cycles are complete.  It's simply an aesthetic factor.  It doesn't light up during the washing, which would be totally cool and should be considered by the manufacturers, in my opinion.  Because I like cool things.

"Fantasy Brown" Dolomite Counter tops:  Not as hard or stain/scratch resistant as granite or quartzite.  think of Dolomite as closer to a Marble as far as maintenance.  So, you have to be a little more conscious to protect it from staining and scratching, but its not quite as risky as marble.  I was told by the supplier, that on a hardness scale of 1-10 (10 being the hardest) for natural stones, Granite and quartzite would be an 8-10, Dolomites, like Fantasy Brown would be about a 5-7, and marble would be closer to 3 or 4.  So don't be scared to use it in your kitchen or bathroom- because it's just as beautiful as marble and not as fragile!

 Added Vent/Hood where microwave used to be; added decorative white tile back-splash, with gray grout.

 All kitchen hardware and the faucet are champagne bronze finish.

Granite composite sink, in Truffle

 We added a small table to serve as a coffee station in an otherwise useless corner of the breakfast nook.  I intend to add open shelving above the coffee station to store mugs and tea cups.

Custom table from The Market, in Woodstock

Added a brick-facing backsplash to the back wall of the kitchen nook, then limewashed the red brick to whiten and brighten the dark nook of the kitchen.  Pendant light from The Market, in Woodstock.

I hope you had as much fun looking at the big changes made, as I did making them!  The next posts will be much less extreme overhauls, and show how just paint, fixtures, and furniture staging can change the entire feel of a room and sometimes function too!