Dogs Don't Eat Pizza

The kitchen? A problem? But you just redid it?!?

I did. And I liked it. A lot. But it still has some issues that are starting to drive me crazy.

And no, I’m not talking about the open shelving. (Take that, haters!)

I’m talking mainly about the cabinets.

The cabinets in the kitchen are not original to the house. They were installed sometime around 1990 – because I found a receipt when I did the demo during my budget reno in December.

They were white. Then the realtor, before selling the house to us, had them painted Sherwin Williams’ “Anew Gray.” They were sprayed with lacquer, which is now chipping off in many places.

Two of the cabinets don’t close correctly, and I’ve tried adjusting the doors to no avail.

So, this is really the problem/downside to doing a mini-renovation on a room. I fixed some of the issues, but not all of them. And the more that we live in the kitchen, the more I’m thinking about how I can fix the problems. The upside to a mini-renovation is that it only costs a fraction of what a big ol’ renovation costs and, thus, you can live with it for a bit before committing to a major reno. The downside is that it’s not a complete fix.

When I did the mini-reno, the goals were to:

1. Make the kitchen lighter and brighter. I removed the upper cabinets that also were painted “Anew Gray” and that let more light in.
2. Add useable storage. The cabinets that were hung on the wall were too high for me and my short self.
3. Make the kitchen pretty.

Did I accomplish those goals?

1. Sort of – the kitchen is brighter than it was, but the remaining gray absorbs a lot of light. The “Anew Gray” color is not only on the cabinets, but also on the windows and trim, and I can’t help but think the room would be so much brighter if all that were white instead.
2. Yes – I have useable storage. That said, I’m thinking that having at least one white cabinet with a glass front might still keep the room light but also provide more storage than the shelves.
3. I did do this, I think (IMHO).

Why am I thinking of all of this now? Because I’m redoing the laundry room, which has the same “Anew Gray” trim. That same color is on the doors that the laundry room and kitchen share. I’m painting the laundry room – including the trim and doors. Hence the “If You Give a Moose a Muffin” problem mentioned in the laundry room post: one project begets another.

If I paint the trim in the laundry room white (Ultra White in semi-gloss finish by Behr), I should continue around to the trim in the kitchen. I don’t have to, I realize, but I think it would look better. If I paint the trim around the windows and doors in the kitchen, I have to paint the window frames in the kitchen (to match). If I paint the doors to the laundry room, that means painting both sides the same color.

Spoiler alert: I painted the trim in the kitchen the same white – you can see the finished trim here!

And now I’m back to the cabinets. If I am already sanding, priming, and painting the trim, doors, and window frames, shouldn’t I also paint the cabinets?

But if the cabinets don’t work – literally – then shouldn’t I replace them and not bother with the paint? Then I could be officially finished with the kitchen.

I have been thinking about this for the better part of the last two days. I’m torn between painting the cabinets as a temporary fix or going whole hog and replacing them (which I would DIY with cabinets from IKEA, most likely).

What do you think? I’d love your thoughts because, frankly, I’m just not sure what to do.