One of the areas I'm most excited about in Our DIY House is our kitchen. I love to cook and bake and the kitchen is where we often spend time together as a little family.
I've always loved classic, white cottage kitchens, but I also like to be creative and think a little outside of the box.
When I came across several photos of two-tone black and white kitchens, I instantly fell in love:
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With black lower cabinets and cottage-style white upper cabinets, you can get the look of a cottage kitchen with the drama and unexpectedness of a more modern kitchen. (To see my initial concept, have a look at my Vintage Industrial Cottage Kitchen mood board.)
I achieved the look using cabinets from Ikea (black-brown Ramsjo cabinets for the lowers and white Lindingo cabinets for the uppers) and got to work planning the best use of space with Ikea's online planning tool. Most of the upper cabinets are glass windowed, but I did leave some with solid doors for practical purposes (a.k.a. hiding junk).
At first, the island was too small:
Then, I thought a peninsula would be a better choice, but I decided I didn't like how it cut off the kitchen from our dining nook (in the foreground):
Finally, I flipped the island around, added an overhang for stools and I was happy!
We'll have to hack a couple of cabinets to fit (plus, we're making one fit a microwave), but so far the cabinet building process has been really simple. We already have a lot of it installed this week!
Polished chrome light fixtures and knobs along with stainless steel appliances will give our family kitchen the vintage industrial farmhouse look that I love.
I'm also going to attempt to stain and seal some butcher block in a unique colour that will coordinate with our beautiful floors. Wish me luck!
This post is part of my "Our DIY House" series where I'll share with you my most exciting DIY ever - building a country house from the foundation up with my talented hubby! We're crazy, we're creative, we're on a limited budget and we're planning on having it finished in the Spring of 2013.
Jess Burrell
This is going to look so fantastic! Love your vision! AND I didn't know Ikea had an online planning tool!!! UHOH.
Christina Dennis
Thanks, Jess! My mom thinks I'm a little crazy for doing the two tone cabinet thing, but I'm pretty excited about it.
Brian - Kitchen Remodeling Philadelphia
Been trying to figure out what to do for my next big remodeling project, the kitchen. These are all beautiful and very functional ideas. Thanks for the inspiration!
Christina Dennis
Thanks, Brian. Good luck on your kitchen [email protected]
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Stella
Hi,
We recently relocated to San Jose and are in the process of remodeling the home we just bought. Can you give any idea how much it could cost to give an approx 200 Sq. Ft. a complete new makeover in this area?
Selena
This should help me to initiate the renovation work in the new home I bought. Presently, I am fortunate to have the company of a good interior designer. Coupled with the ideas illustrated here, I am sure the outcome is going to be something wonderful.
Lindsay - The DIY Mommy
That is so wonderful, Selena. Thank you for stopping by 😀
Macs
Great post. This is a good idea. Looking forawrd to seeing the photos of your new kitchen. Excited to see the finished project.
Airy Kitchens
We like the island option and light wood. Looking great!