Tag Archives: paint

An Alpaca in the Kitchen

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Ok.  We don’t really have an alpaca in the kitchen.  Although that would make for some interesting photos.  We do have alpaca colored cabinets in the kitchen though.

kitchen

Ok.  So that’s not completely true either. We have cabinets that are partially painted in Sherwin Williams Alpaca.  Partially is the key word here since so far I have only worked on the top cabinets and the doors are still covering my dining room table.

kitcen

I just finished the third coat of paint on the front of all the doors and hope to start on the back side of them later today or tonight.  For the most part painting has been fairly easy and quick.  ”Well what is taking you so long?”, you ask.  Finding the time to paint.  The best time for me to paint is during Noah’s naps or after she has gone to bed.  It works well but it kind of draws the whole process out.

Thankfully I (and Michael Luke) am loving the color choice.  I’m not sure Noah has noticed. Kids these days!

Noah

Thank you so much for weighing in with your color choices in our little poll.  A majority of you chose Alpaca.  Even with all your Alpaca encouragement I still almost when with Requisite Grey.  Not because I don’t value your opinion but because I was just afraid it wouldn’t be dark enough.

After seeing Alpaca on the cabinets though I can’t imagine it being any darker.  The tonal value is really close to the existing cream color which you can still see on the bottom cabinets.

kitchen

The difference is in the underlying tones.  The original cream color had a lot of yellow in it.  Too much for our taste after painting the walls yellow.  The new color has a subtle pink tint.  It doesn’t come across as pink at all but it picks up some of the warmer tones found in our floor tile.  And because red and yellow are next to each other on the color wheel they yellow walls work well with the cabinets.

kitchen

The light grey of the cabinets really allows the counters to shine in all their glory.

kitchen

Which is totally what I wanted!  And kind of a cool picture as we, the body of Christ (the cabinets) want God (the counter) to shine in all His glory.  Like I read in my quiet time this morning… “He must increase, but I must decrease.” – John 3:30

Hopefully, painting the bottom cabinets will move a little quicker than the top.   I’ll be sure to share pictures along the way as well as let you know the process I used to paint and prep our cabinets.

Have you ever painted cabinets before?  If so, how long did it take you?  What do you feel like has been your most labor intensive DIY project?

P.S. Don’t forget that your purchase from Color Created Family helps to cover our adoption expenses as we journey towards bringing our little girl home from Hong Kong.  This month a portion of each sale will also go towards The Sparrow Fund who helps families through the adoption process.

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DIY Knife Stand Block

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One of the secrets to making a small kitchen look big is keeping the counter clean and clear of objects.  Doing this allows the eye to travel the full length of the counter without stopping.

american olean backsplash

I try to do this for the most part but sometimes your best use of storage is on the counter.  For instance with my knife block.  It’s a pretty bulky piece to store in the cabinets.  Plus, it’s incredibly convenient to have right next to the stove while cooking.

While I find myself knee deep in the middle of our kitchen transformation I keep looking for ways to simplify things and tie everything together with the yellow and grey color scheme we are working with.  I also like seeing the same color repeated throughout the room.  This design trick also keeps the eyes moving.  Which is one of the reasons I decided to give our knife block a little makeover.

personalized color knife block

personalized color knife block

I found the inspiration for this project a couple of months ago on Pinterest.

roamingrolfesknifeblock

source

The project has been sitting on a back burner in my mind since then.  I decided to tackle it a few weeks ago while I had the Sherwin Williams Lemon Chiffon color still out from painting the walls in our kitchen.

First, I removed all the knives and cleaned the knife block with a damp rag. My block had a little metal plate screwed on the front.  I removed it and filled in the holes using Fast ‘n Final.

personalized color knife block

Next, I used a scrap piece of medium coarse sandpaper to scuff up the block a little bit.  This helps the paint adhere better.

personalized color knife block

Using the same paint that we used on our walls I applied two coats. Allowing ample time to dry between each coat.

personalized color knife block

(This is after just one coat of paint.)

Finally, to protect my little block from any abuse it may receive when “Chef Krystle” cooks I added two protective coats of Minwax Waterbased Polycrylic protective finish in Clear Gloss.  I had some leftover from when I painted the dresser in Noah’s room.

personalized color knife block

Not only does it protect the paint but it also gives it a nice glossy look.  Which I like!

personalized color knife block

(Oh, by the way!  Check out that grout job in the background.  Yay for ML!)

kitchenThis was a really easy project and an inexpensive way to update one of the accessories in my kitchen.  Over time I am hoping to add a few more yellow pieces here and there.  You know, to really tie the whole thing together.

In other news… painting of the kitchen cabinets has officially begun.  The whole process is taking a little bit longer than I originally anticipated but I am too excited about the transformation to complain.  I’ll keep you updated as it progresses.

Linking up at:

Young House Love, Bower Power, Sparkle Meets Pop, Red Bird Blue

 

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Time to Weigh In

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Ok, y’all! Michael Luke has finally finished grouting the tile backsplash. Let me just tell you that it looks great. Even better than I imagined because we didn’t have to pay anybody to install it!  I’ll be back with more posts about all our tiling adventures but until then I need your input on paint colors for the cabinets.

We have wasted countless hours staring at all our paint samples, re-situating them around the room, switching back and forth between favorites, and now we have narrowed it down to two choices.

Sherwin Williams Alpaca and Requisite Grey.
cabinet shotOriginally, when I started pulling finishes together for our kitchen I was picturing a medium grey tone for the cabinets.

My Sunshine Kitchen

My Sunshine Kitchen by krystle-1 on polyvore.com

But now that I have had time to think a little lot more about it and see what the kitchen looks like with the counters and backsplash installed I’m honestly  leaning more towards Sherwin Williams Alpaca.

counter shotI like Alpaca because being a lighter color it won’t enclose the kitchen.  It has been truly amazing how much bigger the kitchen looks since we painted it yellow and I just don’t want to lose that visual illusion.

american olean backsplashSo here’s where you come in.  It’s time for you to weigh in and let me know which color you would choose.  I plan to get the paint mixed by the end of the week and hopefully start painting by this weekend!

Have you ever debated and then debated some more a major design decision for your house?  Or are you one of those who goes with their first choice and there is no turning back?

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