Organizing the cabinet under the kitchen sink

Organizing the cabinet under the kitchen sink was one of those projects I had been putting off forever. I might have even taken "before" photos a couple of years ago with good intentions of tackling it then. But who really wants to organize the cabinet under the sink? Plus, I couldn't really decide what to do and what sort of organizational storage I needed. Indecision and procrastination are buddies at my house.

But I could never seem to find what I was looking for down there even though it was often right in front of me. Something had to be done.

I am shocked to admit that all it took to make this space a lot more manageable was a couple of plastic drawer units from Target. (And relocating some of the more rarely used cleaning tools. That window squeegee certainly sounded like a good idea once upon a time.)

That's it. It was a stroke of luck that the drawers fit perfectly in my smallish cabinets (especially since I forgot to measure the cabinet door openings before shopping). Still can't believe it was actually that easy. Small victories.

This drawer corrals all the loose items like cat treats, water filters and magic erasers and the other drawer holds cleaning rags. Everything finally has a home!

Hiding things in the walls, part 2

I love hiding things in our house for future residents to find. We don't plan on moving anytime soon, but it's fun to think about someone finding things I've stashed in our walls.

This time, I printed up before and after photos of our recent kitchen renovation and slipped the page between the wall and the counter top. No one's finding this one until they rip out the cabinets!

See more things I've hidden >>

Eat Fruit, Be Healthy Updated WPA poster + FREE printable

Searching through the WPA poster archives, I was totally charmed by this "Eat Fruit" poster, but the original color scheme was sorta wacky. Red, green and purple? Hmmm.

So I traded the colors for a simpler black and white and cleaned up the image in Photoshop. Then I printed it on a piece of off-white card stock and popped it into a glossy black frame. So much better, right?

I probably shouldn't need reminders to eat healthier, but I do. And maybe you do too! So I'm offering my doctored version as a free printable, available to print at 5"x7" or 8"x10".

Download the printable here >>
For personal use only, please.

In exchange for this free download, could I ask you to pin this post or share it with your friends? Thanks!

Printing on Con-Tact paper + Utensil holder makeover

I'd been on the hunt for a colorful utensil holder. You know, the canister by the stove where you put all your spatulas and slotted spoons.

There was nothing wrong with the one I had, but it was stainless steel. And next to a stainless steel toaster, in between a stainless stove and a stainless fridge under a stainless hood... well, things were looking a bit too samey. I wasn't finding anything I loved, which signaled it was time to change up the one I had with some paint.

I decided to make a sticker/stencil of sorts with Con-Tact paper. This is one of my favorite techniques for creating custom designs. The poor man's version of a crafter's die cut machine, if you will.

First, I found a shield shape via Google images and re-sized it in Photoshop. 

Then I printed it out on the paper backing side of a piece of clear Con-Tact paper with my normal home ink jet printer. Warning: Don't print on the shiny sticker side! And you probably don't want to send Con-Tact paper through a laser printer because they can get very hot and who knows what kind of mess that might make.

I cut the shape out with a scissors...

And stuck it like a sticker onto my surface, making sure to burnish down all the edges really well. I also masked off the top/inside and bottom of the can with some painters tape and paper so they would be protected.

Next, I spray painted the utensil holder for a smooth, glossy finish with aqua Valspar spray paint (Tropical Oasis). Valspar must have changed the formula recently because this dried a lot "harder" than when I worked with the same paint in the past. Much better! Plus it has a built-in primer and you can spray upside down and it dries super fast and it's cheap (only $3.98!). Winning x5.

After the paint had dried, I carefully peeled up the Con-Tact paper sticker. There was a little bit of gummy residue leftover, but I was able to remove it with some vegetable oil.

Sharp lines! The paint seriously looks like a factory finish. And the shield, my own personal superhero insignia. But if I ever get tired of the shield, I can just spin the can around to reveal the plain backside. Two in one!

Painted wood molding kitchen backsplash

This is the story of how I took a weird problem and turned it into a design feature.

I ordered our new laminate counters without that four inch integrated backsplash so they would look a bit more high-end. But our old counters had that backsplash, and we didn't know what was behind it.

It was a risky move. I expected I would have to do some wall repair (sanding and repainting), but I didn't expect to find this:

Weird holes in the paneling where the electric had been run. Under every outlet. These two walls are masonry, so the wiring isn't really inside the wall. And that left me with these unpatchable holes.

But I also didn't expect to find this.

Big gaps between where the countertops and the walls were supposed to meet. Nearly three quarters of an inch in a few places! Our countertops are square, but we discovered the room is not. Ah, old house. You got us again. So even if I had been able to patch the holes in the paneling, I would still have been left with the gaps.

I gave it a lot of thought, looked at a lot of photos for inspiration, and adding molding was the most elegant solution I could think of to solve both issues. Maybe not ideal, but making the best of the situation I got myself into.

I didn't want it to look like we were just slapping some lumber up on the wall to hide the ugly. Too obvious. So we added the decorative lip to make it look more intentional and to blend with the rest of the trim in the room.

My dad made all of this from some scrap barn wood he planed and smoothed out. (It's the same wood he used to make our cottage style shutters too!) I think he bought the decorative trim for under the lip, but all the other wood was from his stash. After he installed it all, I filled the screw holes and painted the trim and the lower half of the walls the same shade of white (Valspar's off-the-shelf Ultra White).

Throughout this entire process, I had my doubts. Would it look strange? Would it stick out? Truthfully, it wasn't until I got it all painted that I was completely sold. Now it blends right in with the rest of the trim in the room. Like it's always been there!

DIY Kitchen makeover reveal

The kitchen makeover we started way back in January (when I was seven months pregnant, no less) is finally done! (Or more like "done," because nothing around here is every really done.)

This wasn't a gut job to reach unattainable "dream kitchen" status -- more like a very practical and realistic update. We kept what worked (the layout, the cabinets, the tile floor) and replaced what didn't (the aging appliances, the pinkish counters). A new paint job did wonders for brightening the space. I ended up re-painting the white portion of the wall and all the trim as well just to freshen it.

I didn't add up every last penny, but I think were all-in at around $4000, and about $3000 of that was for the appliances alone. Not bare bones, but totally affordable for such a dramatic change that better fits our style.

I still want to figure out a solution to make our countertop microwave look more built-in and I might hang a few more pieces of art, but when things are 95 percent complete, you might as well call them done and show everyone the before and afters.

And more photos...

I have a number of posts coming up on some of the details, but if there's anything you really want to know about, give a shout in the comments!

p.s. I'm kind of dying that I didn't get a photo with my schoolhouse light in it. It's one of my all time favorite things, and it really caps off the room. Maybe next time.

See all the kitchen related posts >>

Sources
Appliances: Whirlpool
Microwave: Frigidaire
Range hood: Broan
Counters: Wilsonart 'Oiled Soapstone'
Faucet: Kohler
Paint: Cliveden Gray Morning (Valspar)

Easy upgrade: Bargain kitchen cabinet pulls

Good news everyone! I got new kitchen cabinet pulls!

The existing pulls were fine. I wasn't crazy about the way they spoon out on the ends. They were also hollow on the back and that felt a little cheap to me. I lived with them for five years, and I have deemed that long enough.

I decided I would just replace the pulls and leave the existing knobs just to save a few bucks. Nothing offensive about a simple round knob.

I got kind of obsessed about funding the perfect pull at the perfect price. I tend to shop without end when the options are seemingly endless.

So to shorten my search, I put together a secret Pinterest board of all my options. This was my first time using Pinterest as a tool for comparison shopping. And it was so much easier than bookmarking things and opening them up in multiple browser tabs, which was my old dysfunctional way of doing things.

After much online shopping, I decided on these satin nickel pulls. They are simple, but a little vintagey looking, I think.

I found them at an online knob store for $4+, and was coming to terms that I might just have to pay more to get what I wanted. But before I bought anything, I googled for a better price and found them at Amazon for an unbelievable $1.45 each!

That was such a huge savings that I treated myself to the matching knobs too at $1.22 each. The shape resembles my schoolhouse light fixture, and I couldn't resist. In the end, I paid $46 for 29 pulls/knobs including shipping. A pretty great deal, if I do say so myself.

I know trading one satin nickel pull for another is not a dramatic change. But it's one of those see-it-everyday, touch-it-everyday upgrades this kitchen needed. Details matter!

More kitchen posts coming soon, including the full reveal. Stay tuned!