How I Updated My Kitchen On a Budget

My kitchen has come a long way in the three years since I bought our fixer upper. I wish I had more before pictures to show you just how dirty and rundown this place really was. Sometimes even I forget our home didn’t always look like this. Since I only had a small budget to work with, I did 99% of the remodel myself. The only help I had, was with hanging the drywall in the bathroom.

I want to share with you the upgrades I have done in our kitchen. These upgrades didn’t cost much, but they work for us and make the kitchen look clean and bright.

#1. Stained the kitchen cabinets

The first thing I tackled were the kitchen cabinets. I didn’t like the look of oak with gold knobs, so I stained them with my favorite gel stain. Three years later, the stain is still holding up great. I used the same stain on my bathroom vanity.

#2. Updated cabinet knobs

I updated the gold knobs with simple, silver knobs. The quality of these knobs is outstanding.

#3. Installed vinyl tile

The floors in this house used to be horrible. Old, dingy carpeting, full of pet stains and cigarette smells, ran throughout the house (even in the kitchen). Under most of it were beautiful hardwood floors, which I restored.

The kitchen, unfortunately, didn’t have wood floors so I chose a vinyl tile. It’s super durable and easy to install.

#4. Created a pantry

When my oldest graduated and moved out of her college apartment, we found these two generic bookshelves , left behind by college kids. When I saw the bookshelves I knew I could turn it into a pantry, which my kitchen was lacking.

I added doors and knobs, which match my kitchen cabinets.

#5. Updated light fixtures

The “boob” light as well as the table got a makeover. I replaced the light with this black pendant.

The light above the sink was replaced with this $6 pendant. I love the simple design (and the price).

#6. Built a kitchen island

A few months after we moved in, I built this kitchen island. It’s made with 2 x 4’s and gives us the much needed counter space.

#7. Made a new table top

Our old table worked fine in our old apartment, but wasn’t very functional for this kitchen. I built a new, larger table top but kept the legs. I then took the old table top and placed it on my island. Now I have even more counter space.

#8. Installed a backsplash

I added a board and batten backsplash made from leftover faux wood blinds.

#9. Painted the walls

I painted the walls a light grey color – Moonshine by Benjamin Moore.