#kitchenhack Archives - Slave to DIY

Mashup Monday: 16 Inspired Kitchen Rangehood Vent Surrounds That Will Make You Swoon

Posted on January 28, 2021February 2, 2021 by admin

We are in the middle of a kitchen renovation, which is sure to last through the next century (the renovation part, I mean). However, the pace of said renovation gives me the time to make sure that EVERY detail is correct. As I have been researching the perfect forever kitchen for the last five years (who am I kidding, it’s been more like forty) I absolutely fell in love with the concept of rangehood surrounds.

Since I have smoked the house out searing steak on a weekly basis for the last decade, I already knew that we needed a kitchen exhaust fan, or more specifically, a rangehood. Having a kitchen hood vent is imperative for people who actually cook. We were living in a kitchen with AN UNVENTED microwave over the stove. Also see: “why bother” in the dictionary. That is the worst ever possible solution to sucking smoky air out of your house and is honestly something builders like because it’s cheap and easy. Well, I’ve got their number.

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Anyway, have you seen all of those delicious British kitchens? Well, they’ve had this figured out for… well, I think forever. Duh, if you’re cooking, you need a hood. Even if theirs are a bit more understated than their more extravagant American counterparts, the idea is the same:

A command post, at the center of the kitchen, from which you rule your house: where you sing to obnoxiously loud mom music and shout back at kids from across the house “I can’t hear you” as you prepare something you weren’t sure what it was going to be until you started adding ingredients (or on rare occasions, trying to follow a recipe). Read: the maternal-Zen-zone from which location you create foods made of pure love and chubby mom sweat.

These spaces must be both beautiful and functional, so I have a few rules:

I absolutely must have counterspace on either side of the range. Seriously, the enclosures I see where it’s only the stove would in no way be conducive to actual cooking (but they sure are pretty). I recommend AT LEAST 24 inches of countertop on either side of the surround- we’re going with 30 a side.
Use materials that can’t get scorched. If you’re cooking so professionally that you need one of those gigantic hoods that you have to keep the cat away from (lest they are sucked into the intake like a runaway tornado) don’t you think you might risk some cabinet scorching? What about grease splatter? There shouldn’t be ANYTHING THAT CAN GET BURNED within the surround. (We are doing a mix of copper sheet backsplash with sealed marble tile, METAL UPPER CABINETS, and a copper hood. Everything will be safe from harm.)
It must be able to do whatever I want it to do. If I want to cook hibachi and make three-foot high flames, the hood better be able to handle it. Even though adding a hood that is anything over 400 CBMs requires an air exchange system, it is absolutely worth it. I usually get the most powerful ANYTHING that is offered, just to be sure.

(Speaking of which) Quick story: When I was researching hoods, I had the most appalling experience with an HVAC tradesman. I called him to get a quote on installing ducting in our kitchen for a range hood. He asked me how many CBMs my hood was going to have. I told him it was 1200 CBMs and he said, “Oh, you don’t need one with that many CBMs.” Please play that back in your head with the most absolutely misogynistic Eastern North Carolina accent you can conjure.

I took a deep breath, and said, “I’m listening.”

He proceeded to explain to me, in the most demeaning manner possible, how EVEN HE only had a 600 CBM hood and he had a big house made for entertaining, unlike mine, which he had never seen.

Now, I have strict rules about phone etiquette. I have taught my children by example that it’s very important (and almost ALWAYS works in your favor) to be kind to anyone on the phone. This applies to calling ANY CUSTOMER SERVICE ever. They deal with complaints all day, right? So, when you call them be the most patient customer they’ve ever had and be the one little bright shining light in their day! I have literally had customer service folks send me free stuff and thank me profusely for being nice to people whose fault it WASN’T that whatever problem it was happened. Catch my drift? Now here’s this guy, who I am about to ask to do a job for me, and I know that griping at him or complaining is not going to get me anywhere.

Well, I can tell you, I was two more condescending comments away from breaking my own phone rules. If I could’ve reached through the phone and grabbed him by the neck, I would’ve been unmoved by him choking on the gum he was loudly smacking in my ear between patronizing tidbits of advice.

He ACTUALLY said to me: “your husband’s going to be pissed at you if you’re running that fan in the kitchen and he can’t hear his football game.” I almost fell over.

So, after this man had given me his dissertation on why women like me don’t know jack or dog-poo about ducting or machines in general, I politely asked him, “So, say I wanted you to install this AND an air exchange system. Could you do it?”

“Well yeah, but it would be more money.”

“Okay that’s fine.” After he complained for a few more minutes about me wanting something I clearly didn’t need, he stopped short and told me if I was getting a rangehood it absolutely HAD to be a Wolf and nothing else would do (and I was being cheap if I decided to go with anything else), and pointed me toward “his” appliance salesman buddy in the next town.

By the time I got off the phone I was bewildered and… well…. I was PISSED (which is a relatively unnatural state of being for me). My husband got home from work and got a half an hour recount of the conversation I had with this… well I’ll leave out what I called him.

So Rainman politely asked me, “So, why don’t you call someone else?”

To be honest, this thought had not occurred to me. I was so wrapped around the axle I wanted to meet this guy so I could beat him at his game.

But I slowly deflated… and used a lifeline. I called my friend next door that had just had a beautiful new house built, and she gave me the number of their HVAC contractor- who came to the house, asked what I wanted done, devised a plan, and gave me a price. Oh, and he didn’t treat me like I had recently come to our world from another planet. They will have my business until I die.

Pro tip: The one thing that kept coming up over and over again during this discussion is that anything over 400 CBMs empties your house of air very quickly and that air is replaced by OUTSIDE air via the air exchange system (you know, the one Captain-pompous-pants didn’t want to install). I was warned that if that happened my home would be suddenly muggy in the summer or suddenly freezing in the winter. That is true, and it’s a concern. But it is also true that every time I sear meat it smokes my house out and we have to open all the doors and windows (and wrangle cats and a dog). You know what this does? You got it! Muggy and hot in the summer and freezing cold in the winter. I hope you can see me rolling my eyes from here.

But I digress. Here are a few neat ideas for rangehood surrounds I think you’ll enjoy:

Via @edwarddeeganarchitects and @karenloffing on Instagram

Via @thebrittanyhouseatoakhill on Instagram

What do you think? Could you see your space with a rangehood surround? I’m dying to show you ours!!!

Check out more of our design inspiration and high-end DIYs over on the blog!

Cheers!

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Kitchen Crush: Things That Will Make Your Kitchen Feel Dated in 5 Years Or Less

Posted on July 24, 2020 by admin

Are you planning a kitchen renovation? One of the fears many people have when they’re planning a big renovation is the concern that the kitchen will feel dated soon after they complete the renovation. It can be very daunting to lay out the money for an extensive renovation and then consider that you might be doing it again in just a few years.

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ikea hack (1)

To help you in your planning and design process: Here are the top things that date your kitchen:

A Trendy/Patterned Backsplash: Don’t follow backsplash trends (trust me here… this is THE FASTEST way to date your kitchen). Both material and pattern date the backsplash. Unless you’re flipping a house, skip the trendy stuff. Plain white subway tile is a safe choice, as is brick. Ignore me at your peril: if you do something trendy, you’ll be updating this every couple of years.

Kitchen Backsplash from Hawaiihomemag.com — Kitchen Crush: Things That Will Make Your Kitchen Feel Dated in 5 Years Or Less, Backsplash from Hawaiihomemag.com

2. Arches and Busy Woodwork. If your thick, wood doors have an awful 80s/90s era arch on them, there is simply no fixing that. If there’s an arch/bridge over the kitchen sink, just take the whole thing down. As for the cabinets themselves: If you stick with basic rectangular doors you can always update those, but you can’t undo an arch. Also, if you MUST have fancy woodwork on your cabinets, adding appliques that can be removed later is your best bet (anyone who has those grape inlaid cabinets is giving me a silent high five right now).

Inlaid Grapes — Kitchen Crush: Things That Will Make Your Kitchen Feel Dated in 5 Years Or Less grapes from Kitchen-Design-Ideas.org

3. Trendy/Patterned Floors: You’ve seen it: The vinyl planks, the wood-look-alike tiles, etc. None of them stay in style very long. Instead, think of classic materials: travertine, limestone, brick, wideplank wood floors, terra cotta tiles. Any of these are classic choices that last! Try them in herringbone or antique formations (travertine) that will make them look as if they’ve always been there and are forever chic. As a rule of thumb, I avoid anything that has the word “faux” in front of it (remember the original Corian? It cracks and melts under abuse). If you go with authentic materials and shapes, you’ll be happier in the long run.

Busy Patterned Floors — Kitchen Crush: Things That Will Make Your Kitchen Feel Dated in 5 Years Or Less, Patterned Floors from Tileoutlets

4. Shiplap. Skip it. (Trust me here, there are going to be oodles of ladies cursing Joanna Gaines in a few years when they have to undo all that faux shiplap they put up). Don’t get me wrong, even though we have VERY different design styles, Joanna Gaines is a design superstar, and if she’s anywhere close to as cool as she appears on her media, I’m a big fan of her as a person. I’m a little bummed that she singlehandedly ruined shiplap. Shiplap was a classic element in coastal homes (especially on the East Coast), with a white wash or watery white wash… it was beautiful. Now it is faux farmhouse and COMPLETELY overdone. It is dying a slow death from over-popularity. It’s going to be the 2010s equivalent of seventies porn panelling in a few years. Just trust me!

Shiplap from "This Old House" — Kitchen Crush: Things That Will Make Your Kitchen Feel Dated in 5 Years Or Less from “This Old House”

5. Trendy Appliance Finishes: This can be tricky, because we all remember when white appliances were the ONLY thing, then black came along, then stainless, dark stainless, copper, etc. If you can’t decide on a finish, choose a commercial-kitchen-looking option (stainless, stainless, stainless). Stainless was introduced to the residential arena a LONG time ago and the most expensive brands are still sporting the look. Why? It’s what commercial kitchens use, and when we’re designing kitchens, everyone’s a wannabe chef/foodie. We want what the pros use. (The exception: If you have a retro or mid-century house, the sky’s the limit… you can do colorful or plain, and it all works).

Kitchen Crush: Things That Will Make Your Kitchen Feel Dated in 5 Years Or Less, Copper finish from Kitchensource.com

6. MDF Painted Cabinets. Do you remember when painted cabinets weren’t a thing? Solid wood cabinetry was very popular once (it was sort of the only game in town) and is still around. It’s very versatile… if you don’t like it you can paint it. Want it to be stained again? Strip the paint and stain it again. I know they’re cheaper, but, if you opt for MDF painted cabinets those can’t be stripped and stained. You’re going to have to replace the cabinets, or at least the doors if you tire of painted cabinets.

Kitchen Crush: Things That Will Make Your Kitchen Feel Dated in 5 Years Or Less, MDF Doors from Thefrugalhomemaker.com

7. Any cabinet style that is not inset or full overlay. For all of you that painted your 80s or 90s cabinets, the appraiser can tell that you did a very “mini” flip on your kitchen. How? The cabinet style. If you can see the frame around the outside of the cabinet doors, the cabinets are old. Full overlay is the cheaper of the two timeless choices and you can get away with it… probably forever. For a pricier option: Inset cabinets were found in historic homes and have stayed in style for cottages and period homes for the duration. This is my choice for something that may NEVER be dated. Less expensive that completely replacing your cabinetry? Try a cabinet door company. With careful measurements they can help you build a full overlay look that will look like you’ve done a complete gut on your kitchen.

Kitchen Crush: Things That Will Make Your Kitchen Feel Dated in 5 Years Or Less, Traditional overlay from secondsandsurplus.com

8. The Wall and Cabinet Colors. Seriously. Just paint it! Is your kitchen still stuck in a deep red faux Tuscany phase? It’s time. Go on Pinterest and search for kitchen paint colors. There are some really talented ladies that will tell you which wall colors best complement your cabinetry (if you’re planning on painting your cabinets, skip the paint brush and check out our article on How To Use An Inexpensive Paint Sprayer For Painting Cabinets or Furniture).

Kitchen Crush: Things That Will Make Your Kitchen Feel Dated in 5 Years Or Less, Red walls in the kitchen from pinterest.com

9. Your window treatments. If you’re looking at them right now and pondering, chances are they need to come down. Heavy, dark window treatments, broken blinds, vertical blinds, and valances (unless you live in a multi-million dollar home, take it down) need to come down. You can thank me later. Every one of your windows is better off naked than with outdated window dressings.

Kitchen Crush: Things That Will Make Your Kitchen Feel Dated in 5 Years Or Less, Dark Valance from Prioritywindowvalances.com

10. That weird soffit over the cabinets that serves no purpose whatsoever. First, please check to make sure that it’s not housing plumbing, venting, or electrical. Then, rip it out! For some great ideas of what to do in that newly opened up space, check out our post on The Best Ways To Transform An Outdated Kitchen On A Tiny Budget.

Kitchen Crush: Things That Will Make Your Kitchen Feel Dated in 5 Years Or Less, Soffit over cabinets from Pinterest.com

That doesn’t mean that your new kitchen has to be boring, it’s just that if you keep the bones of your kitchen neutral-ish and classic, you’ll avoid design mistakes that will end up costing you money again.

Trendy things you can purchase for your new kitchen (that are easier and inexpensive to swap out later):

Kitchen faucets and fixtures
Hardware
Pendants/lighting

But, as for the rest of it… keep it classic, keep it in historic home color families, and you’ll never have to do a full renovation again.

What are some kitchen elements that date your kitchen?

Cheers and check out more of our great content over on the blog!

*Legal stuff:

I am honest about my experiences with different products and write because I enjoy it. I do however, have the opportunity to earn money for my writing, also.

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Kitchen Crush: The Best Ways To Transform An Outdated Kitchen On A Tiny Budget

Posted on May 27, 2020May 27, 2020 by admin

What I remember most about my first condo was how much I hated the kitchen. Actually, hate might not be a strong enough word. It was dark and depressing, with a weird window and aged-orange vertical shades, all illuminated by a florescent fixture with brown burn marks on the plexiglass cover. The condo itself had space and was the right price, but the kitchen was awful. It was tragic. However, my total budget for transforming the space was right around ZERO dollars. Even the grocery budget was tight, at the time, so much that I sometimes worried about being able to buy diapers for my one year old. So, how the kitchen looked wasn’t a priority, regardless of how depressing it was to cook in it.

*This post may contain affiliate links. Please see full disclosure at the end of the post.

I’m betting many of you can relate. Stuck with dated, 80s arched doors or a too-dark 70s finish, or even worse, the orangish-tannish builder grade oak cabinets of the late 80s and 90s… the scalloped arches over the kitchen sink, the brown and orange vinyl flooring. All of this made MUCH worse by the endless taunting from Pinterest and Instagram: the gorgeous, highly edited kitchen photos of IG starlets showing off the latest dishes and gadgets they’re creating and using in their maddeningly perfect kitchens.

I understand. I’ve BEEN THERE. But, I’m going to tell you a secret: You CAN transform a kitchen you hate on a tiny budget. I’ve done it, multiple times.

Now, I’m not going to tell you that I’m still in that place, because I’m not. That was twenty years ago and I’ve been Blessed financially since then, so I’m working on planning my FOREVER kitchen in a MUCH larger home and loving every second (keep the FAITH, you’ll get there!). However, I want to share my secrets with you… I want to share how you can make your kitchen a place you like to cook, even take pictures of, especially if you’ve got a little bit of cash for supplies and energy to do the heavy lifting, I’ll tell you how to make BIG impact transformations for just a little bit of money.

So, here’s the big impact list: add molding, cabinet color, hardware, counter kits, counter stools & kitchen furniture, light fixtures, repurposed furniture island, and, yes, backsplashes.

Add Molding:

You may not realize when you look at those horrid 70s, 80s, and 90s kitchens what in particular makes them so hideous, but I can tell you for sure that one main thing is the soffits! Some of them are for no reason at all other than to close the space in above the cabinets, and others house vents, etc. However, this is fixable! You can add molding over soffits or close in spaces above cabinets to completely update cabinets and bring them into this century! There are some really neat molding stackups I’ve seen done and it can totally change the look of a kitchen for not very much money!

Check out this incredible makeover from Remodelandolacasa.com. A combination of paint and some smaller build projects, including adding molding to the ceiling, created a dramatic transformation in this great kitchen before and after:

remodelandolacase.com

Cabinet Color:

Cabinet Painting is ALL the rage these days, and with good reason. A new color can totally transform the space. On the positive side, if you have a 70s or 80s kitchen, chances are the cabinets are solid wood and will hold up really well to sanding and painting.

Pro tip: beware of the tutorials that tell you to slop on some paint with a brush. It’s going to turn out like poo and you’ll regret it. There’s a cheaper way to do this that has GREAT results. There’s a cute little basic paint spray gun that you can get for about $35 bucks that will take your cabinet paint job from “Yikes, she painted her cabinets” to “wow, how did you afford new cabinets?”

I recommend the paint from Benjamin Moore that makes it look and feel like a hard factory finish. If you’re one of those farmhouse gals that’s dreaming of a white kitchen, Benjamin Moore’s White Dove in CO-INSL-X Cabinet Coat is the BEST option. This is an enamel and will dry to a hard finish. It’s AWESOME. But, that paint is NOT cheap. If you can’t afford it, run down to the local hardware store and the paint guy should be able to tell you which paint to buy.

One of my favorite transformations is from Laura at inspirationformoms.porch.com. She did a heavenly flip on her kitchen:

Collage-before-and-after1 — How’s that for a fantastic before and after on kitchen cabinet paint (and did you notice the molding at the top of the cabinets???). To see this whole transformation go to https://inspirationformoms.porch.com/kitchen-before-and-after-reveal/

Hardware:

New hardware, and swapping out dated hardware, can completely transform a kitchen all by itself. It’s like remembering accessories when you get dressed up: the perfect necklace and jewelry to accent and improve your cute outfit. Think it’s expensive? Think again.

One of the coolest things that has happened because of Amazon in the last few years is that competition has SIGNIFICANTLY reduced the cost of cabinet hardware. The 3″ Stainless Steel Bar Kitchen Cabinet Pulls I purchased for a renovation in 2011/2012 at $25 each you can buy on Amazon today for a quantity of 25 for the same price (try to visualize the steam coming out of my ears). Yes, THEY’RE LITERALLY A DOLLAR APIECE. This is a project you can afford, and you don’t need any specialty tools to install them. If you purchase hardware with the same hole spacing as the old ones, you won’t even need to drill.

Country Living Magazine has a great blog post on easy DIY and inexpensive hardware updates. It’s amazing to me what a difference hardware makes, and how it can COMPLETELY change the style of a kitchen.

diy-kitchen-cabinet-hardware-ideas-1558648318 — From Country Living Magazine https://www.countryliving.com/home-design/decorating-ideas/g27572367/kitchen-cabinet-hardware-ideas/

Countertop Update Kits and Butcher Block:

I know you want solid surface countertops. I get it. I love them, too. But, guess what, you can’t afford them right now. So, you’ve got two GREAT options:

Tiny budget: Vinyl contact paper. There are very convincing vinyl self-adhesive countertop paper kits that can make your laminate countertops look like Carrera Marble. They have great reviews and cost about $29 bucks. But, be careful with these: they won’t stand up to abuse or hot pans.

Small budget: Butcher block! It’s super popular right now and I have a great post on Where To Find The Best Deals On Butcher Block Countertops if you decide that’s the right option for you! To give you a ballpark idea, when I wrote the article, you could purchase 50 inches of butcher block countertop from the Home Depot for $105 plus tax. You’ll need some special oil to treat it and some screws to install it. How awesome is that?

Pro tip: You can find left over granite slabs on Craigslist and letgo for around $50 if you scour the internet and be patient. It’s not an easy project, but if you have any experienced craftsmen in the family, they can help you, so be on the lookout!

One of my favorite countertop updates is from my friend Krystle at Spruceandabide.com. She and her husband did a kitchen flip and I just love how it turned out (and definitely give them a follow on Pinterest and IG, they are the cutest couple ever):

Counter Stools:

Maybe your parents and friends donated some furniture to you when you moved in, and you know what? They were so generous because they didn’t want it anymore. Because it’s ugly. How are your barstools? Kitchen furniture can make your space look dated really fast. You can buy some VERY reasonable new bar stools both on Amazon and, my personal favorite place to find deals, Overstock.

One of my favorite types of stools are tractor seat stools, they’ve been a thing in my native Vermont for several decades but have picked up steam more recently (thanks, Joanna). If you watch for antique tractor seats on Craigslist, you can add them to the top of a basic wooden stool, for about $25 each (plus the cost of the tractor seats and a little spray paint)!

Light Fixtures:

I’m not suggesting that you can get REALLY NICE light fixtures at this point in your life. But, what if they looked just like really nice light fixtures but were a lot cheaper (come to think of it, why are there more expensive fixtures when you can buy cheaper ones)? Once again, thanks to global competition, you can get some really nice looking light fixtures for a lot less than you’d imagine!

But, which ones should you swap out? Well, the giant florescent light fixture I would leave alone. I know it’s a bummer, but changing those out is not a straightforward process and I don’t want you to get mad at me for suggesting it (the replacement fixture isn’t that much, but it leaves an area of the ceiling needing repair and it’s a big mess). If you REALLY hate it, go get a new piece of plexiglass (they have seeded glass and rain pattern plexi panels cheap) for it and paint the wood on the outside to match your cabinets.

However, some light fixtures are very straightforward to swap out: if you have an outdated dome light over your kitchen sink, that’s a great opportunity to swap it for a pretty pendant for about $25 bucks. You can get a Three Pack of Industrial Edison Bulb Pendants to replace island lighting for $35 bucks! These might not be Pottery Barn fixtures, but I’m betting that your friends can’t tell the difference and YOU are going to love them.

Edisonbulbpendant — Edison Bulb Pendants (Pack of 3)Find on Amazon at https://bit.ly/2X53QN8

Repurposed Furniture Island:

One of my favorite kitchen updates is seeing furniture transformed into functional kitchen islands (for a LOT cheaper than a custom build or using store bought cabinets)! If you want to see lots of ideas on this, check out our design inspiration post on Kitchen Islands Out of Repurposed Furniture and Materials! Craigslist finds are my favorite source for these, or dressers you couldn’t find a purpose for, etc. The point is, the island adds counter and storage space for next to nothing in cost if you’re creative!

My favorite idea is fancy antique pianos that are no longer working… how cool is this?

Mashup Monday: Kitchen Islands Out of Repurposed Furniture and Materials: From This Old House “Salvage Projects You’ve Got To See”

Backsplashes:

What’s popular right now? At the Home Depot you can get 3X6 Bright White Subway Tile for 15 cents each (and they generally ship free to your house)! That means that for the entire run, let’s say you have 10 linear feet of counters (and an 18 inch tall backsplash), the tile would cost you $19 plus tax. Now, once you add in the mortar, grout, and basic tools, the total will probably be closer to $100 bucks. But, what a HUGE impact! One of my favorite subway tile transformations is from my friend Krystle @spruceandbide on Instagram. Isn’t it cool???

kitchenremodel-spruceandbide-5 — Kitchen backsplash update from Krystle @spruceandabide on Instagram. Check out the whole kitchen update athttps://spruceandbide.com/our-rustic-kitchen-makeover-a-mini-tour/

The point is, just because you’re broke doesn’t mean you have to live and cook in your depressingly outdated kitchen. There are absolutely ways to update your kitchen without spending a bunch of money!

How have you updated your spaces on a small budget? I’d love to hear about it!

Thanks for stopping by and check out more design inspiration and DIY on our blog. Cheers!

*Legal stuff:

I am honest about my experiences with different products and write because I enjoy it. I do however, have the opportunity to earn money for my writing, also.

Slavetodiy.com is also a Sovrn affiliate advertiser which works similarly.