Foreclosure Renovation: Kitchen Edition

I'm a transfer student from West Florida University to Northern Kentucky University. I moved to be closer to home and Northern Kentucky University was the closest I could come to that would still accept my credits. While it was in my home state, it was still 2 hours away. So I had to find some sort of housing.
I stumbled across this foreclosure while apartment shopping. The house was a mess. I'm talking wood-grain everything, dark paint colors, blood red carpet, ugly linoleum mess. But it was cheap. and the issues with it were purely cosmetic. And did I mention it was cheap?
Luckily my dad is a contractor and has dealt with a train wreck or too and we had talked about flipping a house before, so after a roller-coaster of trying to get a hold of the property, we finally got the title to the property.


The kitchen was my favorite reno because of how minimal touches really impacted the feel of the room. I had planned on keeping the cabinets and just painting them white but the missing door, warped shelves, and amount of sanding and assembly required were too daunting. So we opted for newer cabinets. This ended up being a good style decision as well because it unified the cabinets and I wont have to worry about chips and scratches in the paint.
That window looks really interesting and quirky in pictures but it lacked luster in person. And we had to replace the other ones around the house because the old ones were broken and not as energy efficient. So replacing that one brightened the room and unified the house a smidge.






The cabinets came off easier than I was anticipating and we were able to give it to a family friend, so it didn't go to waste!
Once we had a fresh canvas to install cabinets onto, it became glaringly clear that the kitchen was going to have to have a huge table or an island. We have an island back home and it's become a place where the kids would come sit at and talk about our day, even if it wasn't time to eat. And we really wanted a similar feel. Plus, as a college student, it'd be nice to be able to entertain friends at the table while not having such a formal sitting area, like at a large table.






The light fixtures have become quite the conversation piece of the room. I liked the industrial/modern look of the chrome can lights, the chrome really helps the piece from straying into rustic, which I am not huge on. Also the the track lights were a perceived necessity. We were afraid that the center piece would not be as bright as we needed for that room. Also we needed something to balance the eight pendents in the center and the flush track brought the much needed balance.






The bead-board was already installed and I liked the texture of it. The chair-rail piece helped ease the transition from that texture to the flat wall. I had intended on white-washing the entire wall but the gray was a happy accident that just kind of grew on me. It's the same gray that I have in the living room and with the open connection to the rooms, it tied together the two rooms.
Even without the flooring, I couldn't believe my eyes. This kitchen just looked so transformed with a touch of paint and the installed cabinets. Even with the Island, there's still a large amount of space that I have yet to decide what to do with.






Normally that kitchen door is used as a front door but it was discounted and it fit the dimensions. Again, cheap is big selling point for me. The color wasn't decided on until I had some decor in the kitchen. I wanted a pop of color that wasn't going to be compete with the elegance of the white/gray combo. The Midnight Fog was dark enough to stand out but not so saturated that it didn't mesh with the established color scheme.
The chairs were thrifted at a steal of a price and the wicker seat is very comfortable! You wouldn't believe how hard it was to find sturdy chairs that still looked semi-decent!
Thanks for reading! I love the way this kitchen turned out and I've been wanting to share! Please feel free to comment with any questions and I'll try my best to answer! Thank you!







Original article and pictures take http://www.hometalk.com/14209138/foreclosure-renovation-kitchen-edition site