Kitchen Before & After: From Blah Brown to Gray and White For $700

Cambria Bold
Cambria Bold
Cambria Bold is the Executive Editor of Cubby, and one of Apartment Therapy Media’s first full-time editors from way back when. She was The Kitchn's founding Design and Lifestyle Editor as well as Managing Editor of Re-Nest, Apartment Therapy’s late '00s green living site. She…read more
updated May 2, 2019
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(Image credit: House For Five)

Deme’s Dayton, Ohio kitchen “was definitely drab,” she writes on her blog House For Five. “And dirty. And really, really blah-brown.” We see what she means. The enormous lightbox in particular “made the ceiling feel like it was grazing the top of your head,” especially for her 6’4″ husband. It was time for a change.

To give her kitchen new life and spark, Deme embarked on a plan to transform the space by updating, repainting, or replacing almost everything while keeping the budget to under $700. How did she do it? See the amazing transformation below:

(Image credit: House For Five)

So lovely! Wow. We were so impressed with Deme’s kitchen makeover when we came across it, that we immediately knew we wanted to share it with our readers! Here’s what Deme writes about the project on her blog, House For Five:

I knew without a doubt, the best way to freshen up this kitchen on our teeny budget was by painting the cabinets. I’ve always loved a fresh white kitchen, but dang Pinterest got my mind wondering to other colors. I really loved the two-tone cabinet look with light uppers and dark lowers, but I was a chicken. What if I hated it in a few months? I knew sticking with a neutral would help fend off painters regret and I kept being drawn back to grey cabinets.

She eventually took the plunge and bought a gallon of gray paint (“Ocean Star” by Valspar in semi-gloss) and has never regretted the decision: “I don’t even know how to describe how happy I am with the grey choice. It completely makes the kitchen, and is perfect for our family with 3 kids under 6 years old. The dirt and fingerprints are much less noticeable.”

(Image credit: House For Five)

Other Notable Changes

  • Got rid of the overhead light box and replaced it with spot lighting
  • Replaced the backsplash with new tiles from CostCo
  • Swapped out the hardware with polished pewter knobs from Home Depot
  • Replaced the range hood
(Image credit: House For Five)

You can see many more photos and get a full budget breakdown at Deme’s blog:

Read More → Our Kitchen Reveal! at House For Five

Thanks for letting us share your kitchen, Deme!

Have a kitchen tip, project, or renovation you’d like to show off?Every week we feature a reader kitchen project, and we’re always looking for submissions. To submit your own project, follow the instructions in this post and you could see it end up here on The Kitchn.

See more home Before & After surprises at Apartment Therapy!

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