Mod Vintage Life

Saturday, February 14, 2015

A Great Kitchen for Little Money

Ok, not that one above. That one will cost you an arm and a leg.

That kitchen is a kitchen that dreams of made of or in.

I was talking to my Mom the other day about some little things I want to do to my kitchen.

They involve adding molding to the top of the cabinets and crown molding around the room.

Perhaps taking another door or two off the cabinets.

Taking doors off a couple of the cabinets made the biggest change in my little kitchen.

It made me not mind the long expanse of cabinets that I have "quite" so much.

Of course I need a new floor in there desperately and new appliances would really make a difference.

But right now...I found some new drawer pulls that I can switch out to freshen up the look.

Mom says...as I'm talking about this...
"Well, the thing to do would be to knock out the back wall of the kitchen and expand it into the backyard about three feet."

Well, yes....that would be awesome. And if I did...I'd put in a wall of windows like that above

and lose all my cabinet space all together.

I said to Mom...."Yes that would be ideal...but that is not going to happen. Unless I win the lottery

and I have to play the lottery to win."

I have to make do with what I've got...like most of us.

I have to embrace the idiosyncrasies of my kitchen and work with them.

I happened upon this photo of a new kitchen the other day when searching for gray paint colors for a client.

I adore these cabinets! Love all the moldings. I love the detail of the cabinet above the stove although

I'd have done a hood. The only thing this kitchen needs is a white subway tile backsplash.

And it would be perfect. Love the feet on the cabinets too.

But that is a major overhaul of a kitchen.

Today, I am thinking about kitchens that are great that did not cost a lot. Like the examples below.

Embrace the Quirkiness!
Ok, so perhaps that marble backsplash cost a pretty penny but it looks like it's been there awhile.

This kitchen is great just cause it's an unexpected color and has quirky styling.

I'm really kind of digging that paper towel holder mounted to the wall vertically.

That's something I could easily and cheaply add to my own kitchen.

Add simple shelves and bins
This kitchen is full of charm and it comes from simple shelves and bins anyone could install.

Use Furniture in your Kitchen
I've posted this kitchen before cause it amazes me in it's ingenuity.

One small free standing counter with a small cabinet above and the rest is

furniture! Furniture you'd normally not find in a kitchen.

Lesson learned?

Add a piece of furniture to your kitchen.

Of course you have to have the room.

Add practical and pretty display pieces
Look at the charm added just by setting a wire plate rack on the counter!

It's all in the details.

Add a mirror to the kitchen
I've also shown this kitchen before.

A very simple shelf and a vintage mirror make this kitchen special.

Ok, so the counter top and the sink are pretty amazing...

but still this idea could be applied to a not so special kitchen.

Use what you've got
This kitchen belongs to Courtney of French Country Cottage.

It's not her main kitchen. (that one is beyond pretty0

No...this one is in her guest house.

A salvaged cabinet in its original color provides storage.

Small shelves above the stove also provide interest and storage.

I really like that she put a chalkboard above the vintage stove.

Use salvaged wood pieces...add a skirt
Upon first glance this kitchen just gives off a very chic look.

But look closely....the things in it are not expensive.

Except for that stove.

Simple raw wood counters with skirts provide support for the sink.

Plank shelves above are an easy install.

The island appears to be a junked work bench.

Add some vintage knick knacks and this kitchen is over the top gorgeous.

style those shelves
Again...here's a kitchen that is way pretty but its parts are simple.

The most expensive thing about this kitchen is the wall of large subway tile but you could

easily do beadboard instead for a similar and less expensive look.

It's the rough wood shelves styled perfecting that make this kitchen sing.

Add freestanding unmatched thrifted cabinets

This little kitchen is super creative in its cheap ways.

It's made of of all stand alone pieces, open shelving, skirts, and mix and match stuff.

and it is precious!

Kitchens like these make me wish my kitchen was just a plain room with no cabinets

and that I could just salvage all that goes in to it.

Start from scratch and build it all from thrifted items.
Vanessa of Vintage Whites Market ripped out all the cabinets in her house and
filled it will all salvaged pieces. I don't know that I would have had the courage to do that.
But it looks wonderful! I love the vibe of this kitchen.

For my own kitchen....I said taking the doors off two of my cabinets made a huge change.
Covering the black tiles in my backsplash with white vinyl made the biggest transformation.
Adding a skirt over the existing cabinet under the sink...added charm.
And adding vintage knick knacks here and there have made me love it more.

Add brackets below your upper cabinets
I added iron painted brackets under portions of my upper cabinets to make this section feel more like a hutch.

cover up rather than remove tile you hate
I hated my kitchen before I covered the black tiles with white vinyl.
See how I covered my ugly black tiles with vinyl here.

Add lots of silver stuff
I have a weird box thing over my stove top. Lately...I'm debating ripping it out.
It's original to the house. A previous homeowner installed the stove hood.
It has a shelf on top that I display things on.
A silver tray is always good as a backsplash behind a stove.

Style your open cabinets
I tried to use this open cabinet for actual every day storage at first.
That was not for me. I needed some pretty in the room not just stacks
of dishes waiting to be used.
These shelves have had more added to them since this photo was shot, can you believe?
Lots more white china and cutting boards in the basket.
I'll show soon.

A small thing that really made me love my kitchen more was the adding of this
silver spice rack I made.

You can read here how I made it.
Next up?
new drawer pulls, a new faucet, an island, bits of white marble, moldings, paint

all small ways to update your kitchen and make it one you'll love

All these photos from different blogs see my Kitchens Pinterest board for sources.

Friday, February 13, 2015

Vote for Me!

Isn't that exciting!

I'm one of 21 finalists.

Just click above and vote for me.

The winning blog gets to pick a charity of their choice.

That charity will receive $1,000!

Thank you to whoever it was that nominated me.

You can vote up till 11:59pm on Friday night.

Winner will be announced Saturday, February 14.

Let's see...what is up with me?

Well, Violet is not well. She had a seizure about a week and a half ago.

The vet said to watch her and see how she is.

She has been very good since then.

But she had another tonight.

She is 14 now.

(very very scary and makes me so upset)

Her sister Daisy died three weeks ago. All of her illness started with a seizure back last summer.

Blood tests showed she was in kidney failure.

But tests on Violet came back saying she is in good health.

So that leads the vet to think it's neurological.

He said if she has one more seizure, we'll put her on meds for it.

I'm just wondering...have any of your dogs developed seizures later in life?

On to better news...

Last Sunday I went on a Craigslist run after work and snagged this wicker settee for the front porch.

This is it just plopped down as is.

It needs a paint job but is in good shape other than that.

I've been wanting a wicker loveseat for the front porch for a long time but new

weather proof ones were out of my price range. Cause I'm like trying to spend no money.

I should be spending no money.

They were asking $45 for it and I got it for $35...which makes me very happy.

(I really should not have been even spending $35)

I already have a cushion for it and pillows.

I just need to paint it.

My porch is totally covered so it not being weather proof is ok.

No rain or snow gets in here.

The guy that sold it to me was super nice and met me half way between his place and mine.

Hi! David!

(he said he'd start reading my blog)

It was a great Craigslist experience.

Remember that scary one I had?

You can read it here.

So until I can paint this thing I went ahead and put the cushion on it and pillows.

I won't show until I've painted and got plants out for spring.

Now I keep driving by my house and admiring how welcoming it looks with this wicker

loveseat on it. I had an iron one before and I really liked it but it wasn't nearly as inviting.

See? That is my iron one. I had way too much iron going on.

I don't know what I was thinking when I kept buying all these matching things!

The iron settee will show up somewhere else in the yard this spring.

I'm so ready for spring...aren't you?

I searched through my Pinterest files looking for wicker ideas.

I'm trying to decide what color to paint it.

I've loved that photo above with that old wicker for a long time.

I may just give it another coat of black paint.

Or I might go the same color as the trim on my house only a couple of shades darker.

My cushion is similar to that color above.

I have to say dark dark brown looks pretty perfect and that is what I'm leaning toward.

I love those huge urns...tonight I saw a similar one for a really great price.

Too bad I'm too poor to buy anything...especially with Violet being ill.

So it most likely will not come home with me.

I love that porch above.

All of these photos came from my Pinterest board... Patio Wicker.

Don't forget to go by and vote for me!

Sunday, February 8, 2015

Mod Mix Monday #180

via

The week before Valentine's Day...is a time for romance and I think this is one of the most

romantic and dramatic apartments I've seen in a long time.

I love the mix of feminine and masculine in this room.

First of course I love that huge vintage Hollywood photo.

But who would have thought a black leather chesterfield cold be romantic?

Pile on the floral and retro pillows and it is!

Here are my favorites from the last time we celebrated.

Let's start off Valentine's Week right with a bit of the antique Valentine collection from Penny's Vintage Home.

Jamie of So Much Better with Age made lots of clay valentine hearts.
precious

And this is Jamie's Industrial Vintage French Dining Room.
Lots of good ideas, here.
So Much Better with Age

Of course Darrielle of DD's Cottage is in my favorites of this group.
Is there anything she does that I do not love?
But Oh...My! I love the color and patina of this piece!