Hey there and welcome back to the second space reveal, the kitchen, in the coastal grandmother’s cottage, a home that I’m decorating in the internet’s biggest kept secret for my mom. She actually spent Thanksgiving with us and I had a chance to show her this space so this secret is thankfully, no longer a secret.
Want to see the other spaces in this project?
Primary Suite // Living Room // Exterior // Guest Bedroom and Bathroom
Now let’s hop right in. I set out to freshen up this space knowing that I wasn’t changing out a single solitary appliance or fixture. Thankfully, we renovated the major items in this kitchen before we moved out of this house. So, this refresh was a light touch. I needed to update the lighting, replace the range vent -which we hated and meant to change while we lived here- and of course, paint.
Befores of the Kitchen
This is a before in the truest sense. This is what the kitchen looked like when we moved in, give or take a small project or two. The appliances were brand new since we bought them at closing and it was totally functional. We did wish the cabinets extended to the ceiling and that the window in the kitchen had a bench. So we added those things in over time.
Here’s where the kitchen stood early this fall. I loved it because I chose most items but it did require some work. The cabinets and the ceilings were in desperate need of more paint and that range hood has seen better days. Other than that, still functional and very much both my mom’s and my own style.
Kitchen Afters
Paint Color
The biggest changes to this space are the cabinets. I painted the cabinets Good Jeans, the most perfect moody blue, gifted by Clare Paint. I had Zinsser primer tinted to match Good Jeans to give myself less work. Two coats of this perfect primer meant, I only needed to do two coats of paint. I probably could have even gotten away with one. That’s how good the coverage was. Because my mom isn’t moving right away, the cabinets are going to have an opportunity to harden and cure for a full month. This paint should be incredibly durable.
I paired the blue with Clare’s Snow Day, a fresh warm white. This color bleeds into the living room so I wanted to make sure it was one that was bright and clean so that my mom could pair any of her belongings with it. If I were living here myself, I may have added a visual divider between the living room and the kitchen so that the living room could go a moodier color. But alas, to my mother I will be true in this space.
Light Fixtures
I warmed up the space with brass finishes with the School House mini pendants from Progress Lighting. They feel so elegant and take up less visual space than the previous lighting. These pendants feel so warm at night and give much needed ambiance lighting. They play so well with the unlacquered brass knobs that I found on Facebook Marketplace. They remind me so much of Rejuvenation ones that I longed for.
The only non-brass fixture is this nickel faucet at the apron front sink. I’ don’t necessarily think that all metals have to match and this was an instance of, if it ain’t broke. I’ve used this faucet endlessly. It’s in this house, our current house and several of our friends now. And as for this sink, I would say it’s the best value in this house. It’s deep, holds heat well and actually came with the metal grids in the bottom of it. So I’ve never had a problem of broken dishes against this hard material.
I love the way the light plays in this space off the cabinets. The colors above are probably the most accurate the sun rises in this kitchen and the bright early light makes these cabinets look less gray than blue and it’s magical.
Art
I kept the art really simple in this space with only a large scale DIY piece of art on the largest wall and this fun lighthouse print from Artfully Walls. Fun fact, the lighthouse is in the Outerbanks in North Carolina, a nice nod to my mom’s new state.
It was so important to me that this space be truly reflective of my mom. All of the details are hers. From the dishes to the cookbooks that I grew up cooking alongside my mother from, to the framed photos of my grandmas signature pound cake recipes, all of these pieces are meaningful to my mom and her life. For a huge transition, this place will feel like a home, her home, from the very start.
A functional change that we made to this space before we moved out was to add a pantry under the stairs. With a house this size, space is at a premium and we desperately needed more food storage when we lived here. We added this pantry to one of the only unused spaces in the kitchen, which also gave us a moment for art.
Seating Area
We built this window seat while we still lived here. It honestly is one of our favorite places to gather in this house. By adding this extendable table from Ikea, new bistro chairs and some simple pillows, this area feels welcoming but also functional.
And that’s a wrap. Stop back for the rest of the rooms later this week and don’t forget to check out the other rooms from the One Room Challenge Reveals.
Full List of Sources
- Paint Color: Good Jeans by Clare and Snow Day (gifted)
- Lighting: Progress Lighting (gifted)
- Lighthouse art: Artfully Walls (gifted)
- Sink: Nantucket Sinks
- Faucet: Kingston Brass
- Knobs: Facebook Marketplace, similar
- Range hood: Lowe’s Hardware
- Floor: Home Depot
- Towels: Weezie (gifted)
- Shades: old Home Depot
- Stair tread rugs: Rugs.com (gifted)
- Table: Ikea
- Pillows: Rifle Paper Co (gifted)
- Chairs: Facebook Marketplace, similar
- Curtains: World Market
- Trashcan: Old Target, similar
- Cane wrapped vase: At Home Store
- Picture Frame: At Home Store
- Curtain: Target napkins
- Cafe Curtain rod: Target
