Before & After: A Builder-Basic Kitchen Goes Glam

We know what you’re thinking: Haven’t we seen this kitchen before? Well, sort of. So many of the kitchen renovations we see here at The Kitchn start with a space that looks like this — white or cream walls, honey-colored cabinets, and bland countertops. Our favorite term for this type of kitchen? Builder-basic.

So today’s builder-basic kitchen comes from Jim. He and his wife recently remodeled their kitchen, and now it’s anything but boring. Take a look.

Talk about glam! That is one glossy black kitchen. (Remember this renter remodel? It was one of our favorite black kitchens.)

Jim and his wife did most of the remodel themselves, and luckily didn’t have to change the footprint of the kitchen at all. The drywall was in good shape, so they were just able to paint the walls and tile the backsplash area between the counter and the cabinets.

They also upgraded their appliances and installed a deeper double kitchen sink. The linoleum floors were replaced with new grey flecked tile.

The two biggest changes, however, were the cabinets and countertops.

The cream-colored formica was replaced with a black-and-white granite, and Jim and his wife stained their cabinets themselves. (Which was quite the impressive task, considering it took six coats of midnight-colored stain!)

Jim writes that they completed the remodel in about five weeks by doing two to three hours of work each day.

Thanks so much for sharing your remodel, Jim!

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