Kitchen Cabinet MAKEOVER!

Hello and happy Tuesday! Just typing the title of today's post filled me with joy because we have FINALLY finished re-doing our kitchen cabinets! This is a project that has been on our to do list for a little over four years (literally since we moved into this house). Don't get me wrong, we've done A LOT to the kitchen in those four years. We've added a backsplash, changed the countertops, replaced the sink and the fridge, painted (painted again), added beadboard, etc. However, we always knew the last piece of the puzzle would be the cabinets. You know the old expression we've saved the best for last? Yeah, that doesn't apply when talking about re-doing cabinets. We ended up getting stuck at home for Labor Day weekend (boo) so the husband decided what better time to undertake this huge project we had been putting off for forever. Also to note, doing it labor day weekend did allow us to take advantage of Home Depot's many labor day sales. Thank you paint rebates! "We'll finish by Monday" he said. I still like to remind him that he once said this because clearly he (we) had NO idea what we were talking about. Per usual, I forgot to document the process...unless you count snapchat videos, which I will not bore you with. But, I can certainly list out the steps that we took and try to link any specific materials we used to the best of my abilities. Here we go:

1) Clean. The. Cabinets. You may look at your cabinets and think they're clean enough. They don't really look that bad. You would be wrong. I was absolutely disgusted with the amount of grease and grime that came off of ours (especially the range hood). Now to be fair, this could have very well been 30 years worth of nastiness that had built up. Our house, as I always say, is older than I am and the cabinets are the original. Either way though, they were NASTY and we spent the first night of this project scrubbing and scraping away EVERYTHING. We used this Method brand natural wood cleaner that we picked up at Target (my greatest love) and it was super effective. I'll link it here.

2) After we had them all cleaned and de-greased, it was time to remove the doors, drawers, hardware, and hinges. Now, this is a CRUCIAL step in this process, especially if you have a million cabinets and drawers like we do, LABEL, LABEL, LABEL. We used some blue painters tape to label every cabinet and drawer with their corresponding space in the frame. We also made sure to keep each one of their hardware and hinges all together in little ziploc bags and labeled those as well. This really turned out to be an unnecessary step because we ultimately decided to replace the hardware in the end, but it's still a good idea to do just to be safe.

3) Now, once you've got all that out of the way, it's time for sanding. We used an orbital sander and 220 grit sandpaper all over the doors and frames of the cabinets just to remove any grime that was left as well as the shiny topcoat so the surface underneath would grip the paint and primer more easily. 

4) Priming. Ahhh, priming. Not my favorite step by any means but let me tell you when it came time to paint, I was SO happy that we had taken the time to prime like crazy. We used a relatively cheap primer because we needed A LOT of it. We normally don't prime when we paint...so I was annoyed that this step was even necessary. But boy was it NECESSARY. This is the primer we used. I'll link it here.

We applied our primer with a combination of high density foam rollers (the 4 inch kind) and foam brushes (mainly for edging against the ceiling and whatnot).

5) After what felt like a million years of priming, it was finally time to start painting. I also feel like I should have mentioned, we painted all of the cabinet doors and drawers outside in our garage using my in-law's paint sprayer. I cannot even imagine how much longer this project would have taken if we hadn't had that thing. I highly recommend if you are doing any sort of cabinet makeover. Okay, back to painting. 

We used our favorite paint, the Behr Premium Plus Ultra in a custom color matched white shade. I tried so many different white colors that were recommended for cabinets, and none of them worked for me. I am super super picky when it comes to white. I know I know, white is white, right? Wrong! Some whites look yellow, some look blue, some look so bright they almost glow in the dark. None of those would do. Weirdly enough, what I ended up doing was taking a piece of the white primed beadboard and having that white color color-matched for our paint. I know, I'm insane. But it worked! We used the same paint to paint over the already primed beadboard in our kitchen just to cover up any finishing nail heads or imperfections. It is the BEST white. It is the perfect white (in my humble opinion of course). We got it in a satin sheen because that was sort of the minimum amount of shiny that was recommended for kitchen cabinets.

6) FINALLY after days and days, coat after coat, priming and painting were completed and it was time to seal. I'm not going to lie, the thought of putting any sort of sealant on the freshly painted cabinets was daunting. So many sealers are advertised as completely clear or non-yellowing, but they LIE! We have certainly been burned before. When we re-painted our coffee table somewhat recently, we were recommended a water-based polyurethane that would (supposedly) not alter the color of the table at all. False. It turned that thing yellow before we could even get it inside the house. I was so annoyed. I certainly was not about to take that chance on these cabinets that we had already sunk days and days of our time into. So, I started doing some research and came across this company called Artisan Enhancements. Now, let me just go ahead and say that this stuff was not cheap by any standards. BUT, it was totally non-toxic, low odor, and made SPECIFICALLY for bright white paint. I mean, come on. It's perfect. We have now used it not only on all the cabinetry but also on our kitchen table and our formerly yellowed coffee table. I LOVE IT! I'll link it here as well.

7) So, once we got every single inch sealed and let it dry completely (for about 36 hours) we were finally ready to put the cabinets back together. As I mentioned earlier, we actually decided during the process that we wanted to get new hardware for the new look. At first, we were looking at home depot but their prices were just way WAY too much for how many pulls and knobs we needed. So, I shopped around online and found a fantastically priced alternative on build.com

These are the pulls and knobs that we ended up ordering. They are satin nickel and we absolutely love how much they updated the cabinets (it's nuts). 

We ended up keeping our existing hinges in order to save money as well as the headache of trying to figure out exactly which ones we would need to order. They were super gross looking however so we soaked them in a de-greasing spray overnight before spray painting them with this satin nickel spray paint linked here. It turned out to be a very quick and easy process and we finished them off with a clear sealing spray as well.

So without further ado, here are the WAY befores (aka the photos from our house before we bought it) and afters. Just to show you the complete overhaul of the kitchen from the last 4 years.

I hope this post has been in any way helpful to you if you are considering re-doing your kitchen cabinets. I will say, though it was a TON of work, it we well worth it in the end! Thanks for reading!

My IKEA Ektorp Furniture (Finally!)

Hello all and HAPPY SUMMER! Just wanted to pop on here and let you know that I FINALLY,  finally got my dream furniture...from IKEA. Lol. Ikea. Probably not most people's idea of dream furniture. (This set is really a knock off for a much more expensive Pottery Barn set). However, ya girl has been drooling over this ektorp set for years. Almost every home designer I follow whether it be on blogs or instagram has. this. furniture. It's comfy, cozy, and white. It can be dressed up or dressed down for any occasion and best of all, the price was right! When my husband and I got married, one of the only things we purchased (furniture wise) was our original tan couch. We love that couch. LOVE it. It certainly did not go anywhere except for upstairs in the man cave where it is now being enjoyed in front of my husband's projector for movie nights. Our other den furniture was a hodge podge of hand-me-down and yard sale pieces that my awesome Mother-in-law re-covered and then I re-covered again (if you can call throwing a painter's drop cloth over top of "re-covering") when the color of the room changed. So, after several years of saving and convincing my lovely hubs that this furniture would be comfy and worth the change, we finally bought these 4 pieces in May.

 I know what most of you are thinking right now. You bought white furniture?! Who does that?! Is it just because you wanted it to be pretty to look at or are you actually going to sit/lay on it? What happens when you spill something on it?! What are you going to do when you have kids?! Pets?! Well, to answer those things I will simply say this: I wanted it. We have already spent PLENTY of time sitting and laying (and napping) on this furniture and let me tell you it is quite comfy! It's certainly not just here to look pretty (though that is an added bonus). I have already spilled several things on it but luckily my little bleach pen that I picked up from Target has come in clutch everytime. Kids? Yeah, they'll get it nasty. Heck, I will. Life happens. BUT, that is the best part. Every. Single. Part. of this furniture is machine washable. It's ALLLL slip covered. That means I can rip off these covers, throw them in the wash with some bleach and they'll be good as new. (It's already happened once!) I did a ton a TON of research on the durability and functionality of these pieces before deciding to purchase. And if for some reason there is a stain that I just cannot simply get off, the best part is, I can buy new completely new covers for cheap. That's right. I can replace the whole cover for a great price (and even change the color completely for that matter if I get tired of the white!) Anyways, I hope that answers some of your initial questions. I get it. I thought about every single one of them too. In the end, I just decided it was worth it to me. Now without further ado, here they are!

The first pieces we got are the EKTORP large sofa (yep, the new larger size they recently added to the collection) and the EKTORP ottoman. We did this in lieu of choosing the sofa with the chaise attached because the hubs felt like it didn't sit quite right when we tried it in the store. The great thing about this option is that we can move the ottoman when we need extra space/seating AND the top actually comes off so that it can be used for storage! Neat, right?

The other 2 pieces we bought from the EKTORP line are these awesome, comfy armchairs. We used to have our hand-me-down love seat in this spot and we have already LOVED having the 2 chairs here instead. The other day my husband said he had already sat over in that area so much more than he ever did when we had the loveseat there. Once again, these are totally slipcovered and totally cozy! Oh, also the new floor lamps are from Target! We had some black metal ones in this room before but I felt like the silver looked a little better with the new furniture. Thank you end of the year teacher gifts/birthday target gift cards!

Aren't they just gorgeous? I just love the way this set looks in our home. People may think I'm crazy, but I am totally fine with that! If it becomes just super obvious that this white is NOT a viable option once the hubs and I eventually have kids, I will stash the white slipcovers away for a bit and replaced them with the dark gray set instead. Well, that about wraps it up. Thanks for checking in! I'll link everything I can down below! Enjoy the rest of your summer, loves!

Ashley

P.S. I ordered everything with the "Vittyard White" Slipcovers!

EKTORP 3.5 Seat Sofa: Here

EKTORP Arm Chair: Here

EKTORP Ottoman: Here

Threshold Floor Lamps: Here

P.S.S. This has nothing to do with any of this, BUT after 5 years of marriage (and random, mismatched hand-me-down tables as nightstand)s, the hubs and I (really I should just say I because he totally doesn't care lol) finally got a matching set!

okay bye for real now!

Spring + Easter 2018

Hey y'all! Happy Spring (and for me, happy spring break!) I don't think I have ever been more ready for winter to be over than I was this year. Winter 2018 was a nasty one here in the South. We had snow, rain, and a nasty flu that just would not leave people alone. No thank you! I don't think anyone was too sad to say goodbye to the cold, even if it means we are welcoming in the pollen that comes with this change in season and turns EVERYTHING a lovely allergy-inducing shade of yellow. The husband and I have been trying to take advantage of this warmer weather to FINALLY get that screen porch of ours finished. You know, the one we started back in...July? Lol, oops. We basically took a break from November-March, but we are back at it now and are SO close to finishing! I cannot wait! Hopefully by the time it's all screened in, this pollen will subside and I can spend all of my free time sitting out there with a cup of coffee and a good book. I'll keep ya posted. Oh, speaking of coffee, I finally decided it was time to invest in a coffee pot. 2 years into my coffee drinking adventure, I realized I needed to add one to my ever-growing collection of coffee making devices. So here it is in all its Costco glory.

It's a Cuisinart Brew Central 14 cup coffee maker and it has already been put to great use.  In case anyone is in the market for a new one, I got mine for $60 and I highly recommend it if you have a Costco membership. I think the normal retail price is somewhere around $90-$100. If I can find it for a good price, I'll link it at the end of this post. Thank you, coffee. Thank you for existing. Sorry it took me so long to discover your beauty.

Okay, sorry that got weird. Moving on. Decorating for Spring/Easter is one of my favorite things ever. I have always loved color (lol probably wouldn't guess from the way my house looks, huh?) and as an adult, pastels have really become my thing. I'm secretly contemplating just leaving my egg decor up all year round. Until fall when I have to add my pumpkins to the mix. That's totally normal, right? Don't answer.

I found this amazing egg wreath at a little family-owned flower shop and I am obsessed. I've never been able to find a full-size egg wreath with all of my favorite pastel colors and this wreath has it all. Clearly I love it because I ended up moving it all over the house trying to decide where it looked best.

I mean, seriously? How cute is that thing?! I just love it so much. I also ended up buying a couple of Target Threshold brand egg topiaries this year to add to my decor. They have them every year and I have never been too interested...but this year they chose the most perfectly pastel color scheme and I could not resist! I did somehow stop myself from buying and keeping every single thing in the collection. Just the 2 arrangements were enough. That's willpower, people. Target is my life.

I mean, just look how perfectly it matches my Bethany Lowe Designs Easter tree! It was meant to be. I have had the tree for a few years and I don't think it's very easily available these days but if I can find it, I'll link it at the end of the post!

Sadly it's the same thing for these adorable bunnies. I got these a few years ago at At Home (formerly Garden Ridge). They originally had shiny gold inside of the ears but me being me, I painted over it with white acrylic paint. I know, I have a problem.

Speaking of bunnies, I actually added a few more of those to my collection this year as well. Darn you, Target dollar spot!

I mean, they were $3 a piece...I couldn't just not buy them, right? Once again, I painted over the shiny gold in their ears with my acrylic white paint that I also (surprise) get at target. I'll try to link it below as well! I really wish I could link these cutie little bunnies, but of course they aren't on the Target website. I really think they need to change that! Hopefully if you're interested, your dollar spot still has some available. Grab that stuff quick. It goes fast!

Oh! One last bunny related item. I promise I'm almost done here. A few weeks ago, my Mom, sister, and I were at Williams-Sonoma (for like the second time in my life, lol) and I spotted the most ridiculously unnecessary yet needed kitchen item that I had ever seen. This. Bunny. Pan. Oh my word. It was over-priced and oh so random but I just knew I had to have it. I have actually already used it twice! First to make these cutie little chocolate chip bunnies that I made for the hubs a couple weeks ago.

Hand mixer, bowl, and canisters will be linked at the end of the post!

(and the platter too!) It's all from the same beaded collection at...guess where? Target! I have the entire line of it. Plates, mugs, bowls, serveware. It's gorgeous, it's white, it's cheap, and it's easy to find. You just can't beat it. I consider it to be a much less expensive dupe for the Pottery Barn Emma line! Just FYI.

Then yesterday, I actually got to use it again to make some lemon bunny cakes for my family's Easter celebration! I mean come on, does it get any cuter? I will have the amazon link for this pan down below as well!

Alright, I guess that about wraps it up. Thank y'all so much for reading. This is the first time in forever that I have actually posted a holiday/seasonal post in a timely manner. I can hardly believe it myself. I hope you all had a wonderful Easter and have a very happy spring!

LINKS:

Coffee Pot: Cuisinart Brew Central 14 Cup Programmable

Egg Topiary: Target Threshold Egg Arrangement

Bunny Pan: Nordicware Bunny Cakelet Pan

Desk Lamps (on my nightstands): Crosby Schoolhouse Desk Lamp

Beaded Platter: Threshold Beaded Platter

Beaded Bowl: Threshold Beaded Serving Bowl

Glass Canisters: Heritage Hill Glass Jar

Hand Mixer: Kitchenaid 5 Speed Hand Mixer

Ceramic Bunny (Similar): Ceramic Standing Bunny

My Favorite Acrylic Paint: Hand-Made Modern Acrylic Paint

My White Beaded Dishes: Threshold Beaded Dinnerware

Extreme Catching Up: Holiday Edition

Well hi there 2018! You sure did sneak up fast. Once again, months and months have gone by and I have failed to post even one tiny thing on this neglected blog of mine. We've started on some big house projects (over the summer and still have yet to complete them...COUGH...), and finished some smaller ones. Yet, have I remembered to photograph steps or keep detailed notes about the processes? Nope. Not even a little bit. Our super close but not quite done screened in back porch has been a work in progress since July. The first deadline was September. Then it became October. Then November. Then...well, you get the point. The new projected finish date has quickly become: whenever it isn't this dang cold so we can stand to be outside for more than a second! I'll keep you posted (maybe...let's be real probably won't). Fingers crossed by the SPRING, we will have a beautifully painted and screened in back porch. One of the smaller projects that we have successfully started AND finished (gasp!) was adding beadboard to the back wall of our master bedroom. I can't really tell you why I decided I wanted that...I just did. One day, out of the blue, I wanted to do it. Luckily, it was a relatively cheap and easy DIY so the hubs went along with it and we got it done on a frigid December Saturday. Here's a not so great picture of the beadboard behind our bed. I really do love it. A lot.

Anyways, now to continue catching up, holiday style! Per usual, I started decking out the house with pumpkins as soon as September hit (much to my husband's dismay). I cannot help myself. Pumpkins make me so happy. I would leave them out all year long if I could!

I found this wreath at Marshalls this year and I cannot even explain how excited I was. My husband was actually embarrassed by my intense jumping for joy in the store. Ya see, I saw one the year before at Home Goods and for some STUPID reason decided to pass it up. I regretted it almost immediately but when I went back to grab it, it was gone. Fast forward a year and there it was sitting on the shelf at our new Marshalls store. The BEST surprise!

These cutie little pumpkins that I have a million of are from World Market and I love them dearly.

These beauties are from Target from the past few years.

Then came October. All of my neutral pumpkins got replaced with orange and bats started to slowly take over the house. I blame myself mostly...and Amazon.

If you too want a copious amount of bats for your Halloween decor this year, you can order them here! My adorable pumpkin string lights were a care package gift from my Mom in college! She always sent me the cutest holiday decorations for my dorm room and I have been putting them out for Halloween ever since!

Now onto November!

I don't do a whole lot for November besides put my bats and orange pumpkins away and get my more neutral fall decor back out. I also get out my FAVORITE rose gold metal banner from Target a few years ago.

This year was also my turn to host our annual Friendsgiving dinner and I had SO much fun getting to use all of my Pumpkin and Publix Pilgrim serveware.

I made this Apple Cider Sangria recipe that I got off of Pinterest and ohhh my word was it tasty. Needless to say, it was all gone by the end of the evening.

The day after Thanksgiving has become my Christmas decorating day. I cannot help myself. I used to wait until December 1st...but that has since gone out the window. This year, I kept it super, super simple which I ended up really enjoying. I used all of my pre-lit flocked trees and garlands that I bought (mostly) over the summer while it was on super sale. Score. My Christmas trees all came from Walmart and are by FAR the most reasonably price flocked and PRE-LIT trees I have found. The lit wreath and garland are both from a website called King of Christmas and turned out to be amazing quality. The lights are LED but aren't too bright at all. I loved them.

Our stockings are from Target and I love them oh so much. I also have the matching tree skirt but forgot to take a picture...oops!

This picture has nothing to do with Christmas really but can we just talk about how my dawgs are going to the National Championship?! What?! I could not be more pumped for this!

This tree in our kitchen is the 6.5 foot one from Walmart and it was literally $60. I mean seriously?! It's flocked and pre-lit. It just doesn't get better than that.

To finish off, I thought I would include just a few pictures from our INSANE snow days that we experienced at the beginning of December. It was beyond beautiful and the fact that our home was decorated for Christmas just made it all the more magical. I could not stop taking pictures. It was unreal!

I mean...tell me that doesn't look like a Christmas card! I was in awe. Complete awe. Anyways, so here we are in the beginning of January and I have finally taken down all of our holiday decor. I honestly feel like the house looks naked. I haven't had it without any sort of holiday touches since September after all! It is taking some getting used to but hey...Groundhog Day is right around the corner right?!

Haha, Happy Friday Jr. my friends! Hope you all have a wonderful weekend!