MY NEW KITCHEN DESIGN (AND BLACK KITCHEN CABINETS!)

I'm in the final planning stages for a big home remodel of my own this time, and believe it or not it can be so hard for me to allocate the time and attention that this project should surely be getting from me!

But today I felt like I made some major headway in the kitchen design, and I surprised myself with the realization that I want black cabinetry.  Seriously, it came as a shock!

I had general ideas about what I wanted (quick recap: the house is a 1923 California Spanish, and we're keeping it fairly traditional with lots of gorgeous updates and just enough edge to feel fresh and exciting.)  The thought for the kitchen was white cabinetry, carrara marble countertops, white subway tile, wood floors, etc.  Keeping it classic.

We know two things for certain going into this remodel:

A) We own, due to a fortuitous little mix-up involving a client declining what they'd originally ordered, this existing Aga stove in white and black enamel that makes for a pretty spectacular centerpiece in any kitchen.  So we will obviously be designing around this beauty.

B) We will have double french doors with black trim leading from the kitchen to the back yard.  Similar to the image below, although my doors will be on the broad wall of the kitchen and not at the end like this.  So this is another major design element to take into account when I'm planning the rest of the kitchen. 

(all images via my "kitchens" pinterest page)

I mined through a ton of Pinterest and Instagram images today which really helped me sharpen my vision of what I do and don't want for this kitchen.  I highly recommend using this process for any design challenge you're working through ... it is SO helpful to compare, analyze and dissect many different photos to figure out which elements are drawing you in and which leave you cold.  I bet you'll be surprised at what you find out!

In the course of my research today I learned that I really love the look of black base cabinets in a mostly-white kitchen. 

I also learned that black cabinets up on the wall feel a bit too dark and heavy for me, at least in a modestly-sized kitchen like mine ...

I reinforced something I already knew well about myself, which is that I absolutely love white walls with black window and door trim like those pictured above and below.  I'm definitely incorporating this details throughout the house ...

 

I learned that the exception to my distaste for black wall cabinets is when they are trimmed in black with glass fronts and bright white interiors.  I love that contrast, and since I'm an all-white-dishes kind of gal, this look would totally work for me.
 

I learned that if I go with black base cabinets, the floor definitely needs to be a light enough color to provide some contrast.  This black on black doesn't do it for me ...

I learned that I myself don't love the combo of butcher block counters with black base cabinets, but that I'd like to incorporate a bit of natural wood (maybe open shelving?) somewhere in the kitchen to keep a casual and organic feel.  This is first and foremost a family home and I don't want it feeling too stiff or formal.

I learned that I'm leaning toward having a white plaster hood over the range rather than the usual stainless steel model. In fact the house below with the arched doorway and white walls has the sort of vibe I'm going after.  I'm even planning to use cement encaustic floor tiles like these in the mudroom and at least one bathroom.

I learned that I still dearly love the combo of black with brass hardware.  I'm a tiny bit concerned that this combo will feel like a passing trend a couple years down the road, but I'm tempted to choose a raw, unlacquered brass that would patina and dull over time.  In the end you have to go with what you love, even if it means jumping on the trend bandwagon.  If you truly love it, you won't tire of it.

And last but not least, I learned that this style of kitchen I'm describing with black base cabinets and white uppers is called a "tuxedo" kitchen.  I didn't know that!

So what do you think of the direction I'm headed in?  What would YOU do if you could design your dream kitchen?

MY HOME TOUR PART 2: THE KITCHEN

Thank you for the great response to part 1 of my home tour!!  I received a lot of questions via email and instagram about my kitchen, so today here's a round-up of all you need to know about my kitchen renovation.

 

Below is what the kitchen looked like when we bought the house.  Original 1930s cabinetry (which wasn't fancy even to begin with, let alone 80 years later) and some lovely tile work from the 70s or 80s.

  

You pretty much have 3 choices when it comes to choosing kitchen cabinetry:

1) Ikea pre-fab particle board cabinets (usually the lowest-priced)

2) Solid wood pre-fab cabinets (mid-priced)

3) Custom wood cabinets (higher-priced)
 

I've used Ikea cabinets with my clients plenty of times when the budget called for it, and they can be a great option.  But this time around our installer happened to have a great deal on some mid-priced, solid wood pre-fab cabinets.  The quality was great, the price was right, and I loved the simple shaker style detailing.  The only down side was that they only came in various brown stained finishes, none of which I liked.  They weren't even available in white!  But we were working with such a limited budget and doing so much else to the rest of the property that we decided to go for it, knowing we could always paint them later on.  

I always love these side-by-sides ... they are just SO ultra satisfying!

  

I posted a full tutorial about my DIY cabinet painting process a little while back, so hit the link for the whole scoop!  The question I get most often is what color I used: Benjamin Moore "Eagle Rock" is my go-to for a rich and warm gray ... I love it!  (I also used it on this gorgeous campaign dresser.)
 

Check out my posts about choosing affordable brass cabinet hardware, painting my tile backsplash, and DIYing the black and brass pendant light above the sink, and that pretty much covers my kitchen remodel from start to finish!

   

SOURCES

paint: Benjamin Moore "Eagle Rock" 

countertops: Caesarstone "Oyster"

brass cabinet knobs: vintage on ebay ... explained here

brass drawer pulls: National Manufacturing window sash lift

pendant light: Hampton Bay from Home Depot (no longer available...find a similar one here)

chevron indoor/outdoor rug: Ballard Designs

cordless roman shade: ebay (with DIY added trim)
 

Links for the rest of the home tour:

 nitty gritty remodel // dining room // living room // bath // 

nursery // bedroom // patio // my design studio

And catch this house featrued on Domaine Home too!

 

DIY PAINTED KITCHEN CABINETS

This is a post I've been meaning to share with you for a long time!  When I tackled the project of painting my kitchen cabinets I combed through many blogs for inspiration and info on the best way to go about it.  So here's the low-down on the approach I ended up using...I hope it's helpful to you!

(And FYI, I've posted multiple other tutorials for this kitchen project, including painting the tile backsplash, converting a recessed can light to a dropped pendant light, and sourcing and de-lacquering solid brass cabinet hardware.)
My kitchen remodel happened right after the house purchase, when the entire property was getting an overhaul (new windows, doors, refinished wood floors, gutted kitchen and bath, etc.)  As such, the budget was tight and I had to make do with selecting wood cabinets that were passable for the time being and that I knew could be painted at some point down the road.  I went with this deep espresso wood tone and a simple, Shaker-style door.

Shaker-style cabinetry has clean straight lines, all 90 degree angles, and a recessed flat center panel, versus more stylized doors embellished with rounded decorative molding (known in builder terminology as "ogee" molding...pronounced "oh-jee.")

Another "before" photo ... 

I explained and listed sources here about my process of choosing the warm grey cabinets and utilitarian-feeling brass hardware.

BM Eagle Rock is the same gray that I used on this campaign dresser from the English Colonial master bedroom reveal ... see how the warm greige color looks really great paired with brass tones?

The countertops in the kitchen are Caesarstone quartz in "oyster," a white base with flecks of glass in various tones of grey.  I love the look, durability, and low-maintenance aspect of Caesarstone.  It NEVER is marred by wine, oils, or acids, and they offer a sort of unbelievable lifetime warranty.  I once had a heavy appliance fall out of an upper cabinet and chip off a huge chunk from my counter's edge.  Within a week Caesartstone had sent out a repairman at no charge, no questions asked.

The Eagle Rock Grey paint tied in nicely with the Caesarstone counters, but that green glass backsplash just didn't provide enough color contrast with the other materials.  I wound up having success with painting it, and I broke down that process for you here.

Here's where I have admit to you that I may have cheated a little bit on this DIY ... I took full advantage of the fact that I have a relationship with a great refinishing shop where I send all my furniture projects to be lacquered or stained.  I had them uninstall and lacquer all the cabinet doors and drawers, and while that was underway I hand painted all of the cabinet boxes myself ... basically everything that was affixed to the walls.

BUT if you're doing this at home you can absolutely follow these steps for painting everything yourself!  This is the process I used to paint all my cabinet boxes, and I would done the same thing for the cabinet doors and drawers as well.

*steps and materials for painting kitchen*

1) clean cabinets with a TSP and water solution.

2)using a foam mini roller apply Zinsser's BIN shellac-base primer.

3)using a foam mini roller apply numerous thin coats of Benjamine Moore's Advance line high-gloss paint in your color of choice.

4)in between paint coats sand lightly with fine grit sandpaper to level out any roughness or imperfections.

Both the special Zinsser shellac-base primer and Benjamin Moore's Advance paint are integral to this process.  They're formulated to act like oil-based paints even though they're water-based and super easy to use and clean up.  They give a smoother, glassier finish and don't show brush strokes like regular latex paint does.

I chose to only paint the exteriors and the face of the cabinets and shelves, not the interiors which would have taken eons longer ...

(SIDE NOTE: I myself have never used a paint sprayer but it sure would make a full cabinet painting job easier. If I went that route I think I might get this little spray gun that Jenny over on Little Green Notebook has been raving about.  Of course you'll need an air compressor as well.)

At project's end, once the brass hardware was installed and tile backsplash was painted white, this is what I wound up with!

I'll be honest, I put this cabinet painting project off for a long long time because I was daunted by it, but in the end the results are SO worthwhile to me ... I only wish I had done it sooner!