Mini Kitchen Make Over

After being inspired by one of my favorite blogs, and the fact that this was my first weekend staying in the adorable, but not-so-happening town of Wald-Michelbach, I decided to give my kitchen a much needed make over. It was not a full make over at all, seeing as I am only an amateur painter and had no intention of changing any of the major appliances, but it does fit my tastes better!

And voila, here is the finished product!

It looks much more impressive when you see the before pictures, including the sponge-painted 70's style cabinets and absolutely no organization, at all.

I knew from the moment I moved into this apartment that those floral cabinets had to go. But also the way the Germans do their trash (four separate trash pickups: excess food, paper products, plastics, and then everything else) calls for four separate trash bags, which I had failed to organize at all. Also, the refrigerator door opened the wrong direction, which resulted in my 5'10 self smacking my head almost every time I went to open it. Needless to say, there were plenty of reasons this mini make over was a must-do and it was the perfect project for this weekend.

So, after a weekend of painting and trying to render every artistic bone in my body, we have the after pictures. And a kitchen that is much more pleasant for me to see every time I want food.

Firstly, I rearranged to make a much more user-friendly set up. This move alone made a huge difference, but then I painted two coats of basic white paint to cover up the orange and green flowers, then adding a the teal handles to give the cabinets a pop of color. I also bought a wonderful cinnamon candle so my kitchen not only has a fresh look, but it also smells fresh! And, now that the fridge is more accessible, I wanted to add some decor.

I couldn't find cute magnets in town, so I decided to make them with cloth and buttons (it pays to teach at a school with a great craft room!). With those magnets, I put some cards, pictures, and one of my favorite verses on the front of the fridge as happy reminders. On the side, I cut up small pictures and bits and pieces of favorite postcards, making mini-magnets of some of my favorite people and place. (Also the blackberries pictured are what I picked today, stay tuned for my next blog post on them!)

And after organizing my dishes and small appliances to make my countertops look less cluttered, I bought some basic white hooks and painted them to match the cabinet handles and hung them for my dish towels and my keys. The little brass birds on the shelf are something my mom found when she was helping me move in, so I bought some more the other day when I was buying supplies to do this little kitchen fix up...aren't they cute?

xoxo