Before & After: Dark Green Cabinets Make All the Difference in This Dramatic Kitchen Makeover
There are lots of kitchen layouts out there, and many of them can be functional depending on your routine and your cooking preferences. For Cara Martin (@yellowbrickcourt) and her family, an L-shaped kitchen works best.
She and her family (her husband, son, and French bulldog) liked the existing layout of their inherited kitchen when they moved in because it flowed well with the living room, but what they didn’t like was the Shaker-style white cabinets that didn’t match their style, that the flooring wasn’t seamless across the two rooms, and “the layout of the corner cabinets didn’t work and made the kitchen shorter,” Cara says.
The kitchen got a complete reno with modern, glam, pink and green style.
The kitchen required a total demo — and that part was DIY.
Cara and her husband demolished the kitchen themselves and then worked with professionals to create the pink and green kitchen of their dreams. “We’ve painted cupboards and replaced worktops before, but this was the first time we literally ripped the kitchen out!” Cara shares. “As fun as this was, we were a little daunted when we discovered not one but two layers of tiles on both the floor and walls! Out came the jack hammer!”
(And at the suggestion of the pros, they salvaged their old kitchen cabinets for their utility room!)
Cara’s best advice if your kitchen makeover requires major construction is to consider the order of operations. She and her husband now would like to replace all the doors in their home, and this would have been easier (and less messy) pre-kitchen reno. They also had to have their ceilings and walls re-plastered after the cabinets were installed. “Rookie mistake,” Cara says. “The plasterer wasn’t very happy about this!”
Her best advice? “Consider your renovation alongside other jobs in the house,” she says. “In hindsight, we might have completed other jobs first … it was difficult logistically to coordinate all the tradespeople.”
The color scheme feels much more personal.
Still, the long renovation process, aka “the chaos of living without a functioning kitchen,” as Cara puts it, was worth it in the end. She especially loves the new green cabinets and the pink (Farrow & Ball’s Calamine) walls.
“I think with any new home, a family needs to make it feel their own,” Cara says. “I love the green and pink color combo and always wanted to use this in my kitchen.”
Cara says the wall color is “a soothing shade that creates such a relaxing, nurturing space” and “also complements the green of the cabinets beautifully.” Another detail she loves — and that she and her husband have always wanted — is the white quartz waterfall counter. “We feel it works perfectly for the breakfast bar,” she says.
Brass details add a bit of glam.
Cara says when it comes to kitchens, “it’s worth considering the little details! Satin brass sockets and statement lighting will elevate any space!” There was one slight hiccup with a brass detail in her kitchen, but now it’s a star in its own right.
After Cara and her husband consulted with a kitchen cabinet company to find a layout and style they loved, they couldn’t find any hoods to match or fit. “We commissioned a local company to create the cover for the extractor fan,” she says.
The result is a glam kitchen with pops of brass, and Cara couldn’t be happier. “The layout functions for us as a family, but what I most love is the way the space makes us feel,” Cara says.
“The color palette, the addition of plants and mirrors — it creates a little haven that we’re all drawn to,” she adds. “We all want to chill in the snug area that overlooks both the kitchen and the enclosed garden. The only problem is we might need a bigger sofa, as there’s often a wrestle for who gets the seat!” (Cara, check out these spacious sofas and sectionals, and enjoy the kitchen!)
Inspired? Submit your own project here.
This post originally appeared on Apartment Therapy. See it there: A Dated Kitchen Gets the Most Glam Pink and Green Makeover (The Brass Details Pop!)