Coastal Kitchen Makeover - The Complete Before + After

We are about to get a huge snowstorm here so what better time to start dreaming of the beach? Perfect timing to share the coastal kitchen before and afters! I know, I know - this is the slowest quick renovation in the history of time but I think it was worth it.  So much brighter, beachy (without being too over the top thematic) and functional. You have already seen most of the work in prior posts which you can access at the end of this post, but it was time to do a complete post with sources.
  As you might remember, we wanted to keep the renovation tab down so we decided to keep all the plumbing exactly as is. The only real structural change to the room was tearing down half the closet and opening up the space on the left. Essentially we made a galley kitchen into a L-shape – giving us more counter space, a more open feel to the room and allowing the light from the kitchen window to spill into the rest of the apartment. After that it was just finishing work. We went with stock cabinetry and affordable tile flooring to offset the splurge of the marble countertop. The room is so much more open and clean looking now – I really love how it all turned out. It does need a few more accessories (perhaps a bigger shell or wood bowl under the jellyfish print?) and some artwork in the seating area (maybe a new whale chalkboard or some old window art?).  I haven't found just the right thing but I'll stumble upon something eventually. All the details are below (or at least as much as I could remember) but if I missed anything or you just have random question, do not hesitate to ask.

Coastal Kitchen Source List

Cabinetry: Ice White Shaker via Forevermark. We ordered through a local dealer but they are widely available and can be purchased online. Base cabinets and wall can even be purchased on Amazon. Flooring: Roca Orion Unpolished in 12x24 purchased at Classic Tile. We wanted slate look without the slate price. At $3/sq foot it was a steal.
Countertops: Carrara Marble
Cabinet hardware: Window Sash Lifts in Satin Nickel
Backsplash: Mother of Pearl Hex Tiles
Kitchen Faucet: Delta Faucet Trinsic Touch2O in Arctic Stainless
Open Shelving: Corbels and Wood Boards
Wall Color: Glidden Jade Frost
Table: Ikea Docksta
Light Fixture: Custom designed and built by Pickett Furniture (read about it here)
Chairs: Tolix Knockoffs Tolix knockoffs by Zuo Furniture purchased on sale at Joss & Main
Fridge: Summit Counter-depth Bottom Freezer
Drapes: JC Penney Turning Point in Lead
Runner: Target Striped Runner
Artwork: Jellyfish photo print by moi

To see more of the Coastal Kitchen Makeover check out:

Coastal Kitchen Countertops
Coastal Kitchen Cabinets
Coastal Kitchen Paint Colors
Coastal Kitchen Flooring

Shore Kitchen: Artwork

I was hoping to have properly "finished" shore kitchen and living room photos to share by end of summer but as you can tell from the calendar, it's just not going to happen.  Oh well - at least I can use the excuse that we had fun at the beach this summer while my to-do sat collecting dust. We'll be back over the colder months to get a few more to-dos completed. Thankfully the kitchen is nearly complete (see here for more of the reno and here for the before) and I did get the task of hanging that jellyfish print up in the kitchen complete.



I love it!  The only thing left to do here is add a few accessories (I wish I could say the same for the sad state the living room is in!).  I promise the next time you see this room, I really will be calling it the "after" and sharing lots more photos and all of the sources.

Any suggestions for accessories?  I always find putting those finishing touches a challenge so I'd love a little inspiration.

Shore Kitchen *Almost* Done

It was just about a year ago when we started our shore kitchen reno and its done. Well almost but I'll get to that later. No terrible backstory for the delay - we just weren't in a big rush since the complex and town was a bit of a disaster last year. Sorry, I know that isn't very blogger of me - a faster before and after is a lot more exciting - but that's not my life.  So for those who have been following along, thanks for bearing with me.


It was definitely worth the wait.  The space is so open and clean.  The whole apartment feels bigger and brighter!  It's by no means perfect - we tried to keep a reasonable budget nor did we radically change the layout but I love it.



I just have a couple of things left to do.  First - it needs some artwork on the bare wall.  I'm pretty sure I'm going to go with a jellyfish print but I'm still debating. (Maybe those jellies would look better in the living room?)  The only other thing on the punch list is to change one of the backsplash outlets to a GFI so it matches (its driving me crazy looking at the mismatched outlets but I keep forgetting to buy a new one)

Once those things are done, I'll post all of the sources, etc. but if you have any questions, just ask.

In case you missed some of the prior posts, here are the shore kitchen project cliff notes:

the shore kitchen "before" / the inspiration board / artwork options

in progress demo, cabinets, paint, floor, details

Taking a chance on the Ikea Docksta

Despite a lot of mixed reviews, I just couldn't resist the beautiful form (that is blatantly stolen from the much more gorgeous but too much of a splurge Saarrinen tulip tables) of the Ikea Docksta.



It fits perfectly in the eating nook of the shore kitchen.  Time well tell if it was a worthy purchase. The only sort of review I can give right away was that it was easy to put together and it seems stable to me right now.

Time has had its way with my no sew draperies.  I've been looking for some ready made options but nothing really jumping out at me.  Any suggestions?

Shore update: Update In Progress

Some of you might be wondering what is happening at our shore place. Surely by now we should be finished! Well, what started out as some hurricane related water damage repair turned kitchen renovation uncovered some further water damage that required a little more work than we anticipated. We are nearly at the end of the project and really excited to have it all ready by summer but a few more small things need to be done and then I've got to go down there and give it a cleaning of a lifetime (this place has dirt on it dirt!) before I can start doing some fun decor stuff.

In the meantime, here are a few in progress snaps...


The living room is the biggest challenge right now since I want to update it a bit without replacing the key pieces. I've already painted it Glidden's granite gray and have this Keno Trellis rug that I can't wait to roll out!  But I still need to decide what to do with the draperies, the artwork and the accent furniture. I'm keeping the existing coffee table, couch and chairs.  Ideas are welcome.


The kitchen is nearly there. Still needs a table (pretty sure I'm going with the ikea docksta despite its drawbacks), drapes, art and accessories.


Ironically the bedroom - where almost no work occurred - is in the worst shape now as it was the storage/dumping ground for the rest of the apartment for the whole year.  I will probably do just a little sprucing up in here and call it a day but its very far from useable right now.

Thankfully, the bathroom suffered no damage that can't be fixed with some deep cleaning so nothing to report there.

So there is the update.  With the winter we've been having, it sometimes feel like warmer weather will never get here but I know its coming. The question is can I be ready when it arrives?

Shore Kitchen Update

We are now down to just a punch list of things to finish up at the shore kitchen. Woo-hoo!

The backsplash is up, the hardware is partially in, the touch faucet is operational (and I could not be more enamored with it!) and the open shelves are up.   I'll be posting more details once I have better photos.

Aside from small fixes, its pretty much there.  Then it will be time to work on the styling - kitchen table, artwork and accessories.  My favorite and considerably more fun than construction.  Any suggestions?

What's cooking in the shore kitchen renovation?

As if you didn't already know renovations don't happen at the snap of anyones finger, our shore kitchen is especially good at illustrating that point.  But its all good because we haven't been in any rush - as long as its all done by spring, I'll be happy.

That said, it's shaping up nicely.


All done:
Electrical repaired
Partial wall removed
Cabinets Installed Good quality and look fine, not amazing but better than I expected for stock cabinetry
Floors tiled Cheap and they look great
Marble counters installed I just lurrrve them
Walls painted I think the Jade Frost color looks great but the minty shades are haunting me
Window and cut out molding complete
Fabulous light fixture rehung
Appliances in hate the look of the micro and oven but I'm too cheap to spring for the nicer looking options
Tolix chairs purchased  yes, I went with the knockoffs

Left to do:
Hang Open Shelves
Finish installing super cool Delta touch faucet
Install tiles on right wall
Install hardware
Buy table (I'm almost sure I'm going with this table because of the price but open to suggestion)
Buy and hang art - I still can't decide between these two options!
Decide on window treatments - I could rehang these but I might want to go with somthing else

Despite the to do list still being longer than I would like, it feels like a real kitchen now so I'm very happy. The living room was also painted and the floors need to be redone (all due to the Sandy damage) so I'm going to have to tackle that room next.  I sense a few winter projects coming up!

Shore Kitchen: Bright or Black & White Artwork?

Now that the practical bits of the shore kitchen have been completed (or at least decided), its time to move on to the much more fun part: decor!


paradise beach club  or sunbathers

There is a spot right when you walk in (first photo in this post) where we took out part of the wall that definitely needs a bit of art.  My original idea was to use this bright beach print but I recently found this black and white sunbathing photo that I just might prefer ever so slightly.  Decisions, decisions!

Have you seen anything else that might work even better?  As you can see in the photos here, the spot needs a portrait orientation but other than that, I'm pretty open to suggestion.  Id love to find something longer/skinner to better fill the space.

Shore Kitchen Cabinets? Check.

The cabinets are in!  Hooray. You can also see the floors a bit better in this shot.  I'm really happy with the dark gray.

A few more to-do left on the list.  Aside from the painting, a little finishing work and the countertops, we have to figure out exactly where those open shelves are going.  Obviously they will be on the left side of the galley but I'm waiting to see how it looks with the sink and faucet installed before I decide on placement.


Speaking of countertops...


Huzzah.  After my tour of (what seemed like) every marble yard in the tristate area, we have our slab of marble. Naturally we have to wait a few more weeks to get that templated (this is the longest short project ever!) but  the home stretch is in sight.

Thanks to everyone who commented on the paint colors.  Dusty Miller seemed to be the winner but since we are repainting the living room darker, I wanted to keep the kitchen lighter. Mint is still haunting my mind but Mr. Limestone said it simply enough when he told me "you are never going to be happy with a bright mint kitchen".  I couldn't really argue with that logic so instead I'm going with a shade that is a cross between the dusty miller and the soft mint: Glidden's Jade Frost.  (Look how fabulous it looks in Centsational Girl's home).

Finally I somehow completely forgot I had to get cabinet knobs or pulls so off I go to find some.  Any suggestions?

Shore Kitchen: Paint it Mint, Sage or Gray?

I'm having a little internal argument with myself about what to paint the shore kitchen.  I've narrowed it down to three options: Mint, Sage or Gray.



Mint would definitely be the more bold and brighter choice. Love mint in accents but I'm not sure if I can take a whole wall of it. I don't have a pastel personality.  Not to mention the flashbacks of 1980s leg warmers in this exact shade.  Hmmm...minty.

Sage is the safest choice in that I already have a very similar color (Restoration Hardware's Silver Sage) on the walls and like it very much.  Why fix what isn't broken?

And then there is always gray.  The old standby for good reason - it's beautiful, practical and plays beautiful with accent colors. I'm just not sure if its the right color for what I have envisioned.


glidden almost aqua, glidden soft mint, martha stewart granite gray
martha stewart sea anemone, glidden dusty miller, martha stewart driftwood gray

As you can see I did 6 tests.  I think I've ruled out the granite gray for being too dark and the sea anemone for being too light (although I think those two colors together on a piece of furniture would look pretty amazing but I digress).  That leaves me with Soft Mint or Almost Aqua (which are very similar); Dusty Miller (a slightly darker Silver Sage) and Driftwood Gray (a pale gray)

I know its impossibly hard to tell from snapshots like this but what do you think?

Shore Kitchen Floor Installed!

Yea the shore kitchen floor is in.  Excuse the post grout grimey mess.



The original plan was to use the same tiles in the bathroom and carry them through to the hallway and kitchen.  Instead, we went with a sort of similar tile that was half the price.  Still not sure if it was the right decision but I do like it a lot better than the laminate that was there before.

The cabinets are being installed now.  Woo-hoo.

In case you missed it, catch up on the shore kitchen by checking out an unplanned renovation, the idea board and the demolition.

Kitchen Renovation Demo? Check.

Well, there is no turning back now.  The kitchen has been demo'd.  It used to look like this and now it looks like this...

The plan is going to have a very simple, clean look when its complete. Stock cabinets, lots of white and as much open space as possible. I've already made some compromises on what I wanted to do just to save cost - its the way all renovations work but annoying none the less.We have taken out part of the left wall (but will leave a piece so we can still have a washer/dryer in the new smaller hallway closet).  Let's keep our fingers crossed it all goes smoothly from here. 

Shore Kitchen Idea Board

Here is what I'm thinking for the shore kitchen.  I want to keep it simple and clean - lots of whites and grays -  punch it up with a pop of colorful artwork (cheap!) and finish it with the beautiful structure of the light fixture.



We are going to remove part of the left wall to open up the feel of the apartment which means no upper cabinets on the left hand side.  I might include a set of open shelves on the remaining part of the wall but that is still TBD.  I'd like to see how it feels completely open before I add those.  I'm debating tiling the whole wall on that side.  It's a bit of an expense and a painted wall might work just as well.

On the right hand side of the kitchen will be the real workhorse with almost all of the appliances so I have to keep the wall of cabinets.

The internal debate about marble vs. quartz is still raging in my mind so more to come on that but right now I'm leaning toward classic Carrara.

At the end of the galley, we will be keeping the eating area (its the only one in the condo).  I'm debating about whether we should add a built-in bench at the end for both easier seating and storage.  It all depends on the cost.

Naturally we haven't even started the work yet and I'm already aggravated at the poor response time from the contractors we are working with.  Is it really so hard to get back to your customers on time?

An unplanned renovation.

what the kitchen looked like the last time i photographed it in 2011

Remember my shore kitchen? I hated it so much! Then I painted the cabinets, painted the countertops, added a fabulous fixture and made some drapes.  All of those little things made it a lot more more tolerable but no amount of sprucing was going to change its poor set up and hodgepodge materials. Eventually we were going to renovate but kept putting it off.

Well here we are. As I mentioned last week, we some damage during Hurricane Sandy that is making it uninhabitable right now. Overall, we were very fortunate to have escaped the worst of it but we still had to do some repairs. This prompted the thought that perhaps we should renovate the kitchen since we are already going to need to find a contractor and all the fun that goes with managing work to any home. (Which has already been a major pain and we haven't even started yet!)

Do I want to take on a kitchen renovation right now? Not really. Aside from the cost (boo for unexpected expeditures!), we have a bit less time now than we did pre-baby. Ultimately its the smart thing to do since we can get it done in one shot without ruining another summer but I'm not as gung ho about the process as I would usually be. (I love to help friends with their renovations!)

Naturally I know exactly what I want it to look like when its all done but I'm struggling with just how much I want to invest here. We don't plan on selling so resale isn't usually in my mind but I don't want to throw money into the trash either. At the same time, cheap materials tend to look just that - cheap. So this renovation will definitely be a balancing act!

Wish me luck nailing down a decent contractor. Right now that is our biggest struggle but layout, material selection and finishing will soon follow. Lots more to come in this space!

And while I'm at the drawing board, I'd love to hear your suggestions on what I should consider in terms of materials and design.  Yes, I have a pretty solid picture of what I'd like here (which of course I'll be sharing just as soon as I can nail down a contractor!) but there is always room for improvement.  Anything new in the kitchen design world I should be considering?  Did you renovate a galley kitchen you want to brag about?

No Sew Grommet Drapes

After weeks of pushing it off, it was time to face these shore kitchen windows head on.

I was on a deadline - we had company coming and I didn't want to be working on this while they were there. Without further ado, here are the no-sew grommet curtains I whipped up on Saturday.



I started with the usual tools - fabric, scissors, fabric glue, tape measure, an iron and some curtain grommets. I should have had 12-16 grommets but I only had 8 - I figured I'd make do and add more later. BIG MISTAKE #1 (more on that later.) The width right off the bolt worked perfectly for these decorative panels so I only had to cut once to make sure there was enough fabric for two panels that reached the floor. I cut so that there would be plenty of room at the bottom to hem in place.



Using the marked ends of the fabric as a guide, I folded over twice (ironing for each fold as I went) to make my left hem. When I was happy with how it looked, I applied a bead of glue to hold it down. When I had completed one side, I flipped the whole thing over and did the other. Technically you should wait until the glue is completely dry before moving on but I didn't wait and it didn't seem to be an issue.




At this point I had one big rectangle with two unfinished sides (top and bottom). Now it was time for the curtain header. I made another simple 1 inch hem with the glue but when that was dry I made a large 5 inch fold and glued again.

At last it was time for the grommets. Here is where I got tripped up. Somehow I didn't realize that I needed an even number of grommets until after I had completed the first drape. DOH!! MISTAKE #2: YOU MUST HAVE AN EVEN NUMBER. I added another grommet right next to the center one and that worked to make them functional but it will be a lot harder to add more now. Oh well, live and learn.





I hung them via the rod I installed a while back (its a closet rod!) and hemmed them in place to get a perfect fit. I was worried the glue wouldn't look as crisp but it looks great.



A very easy (yet extremely tedious) project complete. I think they add a lot to the room in terms of looking more finished and makes the whole seating area much more cozy. Excuse the droopiness - more grommets are on the way.



This room isn't quite done yet but I think its summer ready. I just need to find that marble cutting board several of you sugested (great idea!) and maybe something on the walls. What do you think?

Room Details:
Fabric is Waverly Cross Section
Light Fixture is custom made by Pickett Furniture
Walls are painted Restoration Hardware Silver Sage
Cabinet bottoms painted Martha Stewart Wrought Iron
Countertops painted with custom tinted Rustoleum Countertop