My Kitchen Update Reveal

by Jehan Powell on Oct 26, 2018 2 comments »

Today is the day that I will be revealing my kitchen update and I couldn’t be more excited to share it with you. If you haven’t been following along, a few months ago I partnered with Lowe’s to add some affordable upgrades to my kitchen. We had a list of projects that we wanted to tackle and staying on budget was very important to us. When we built this house a year ago, we had a list of things we wanted to change or add, some of which we simply opted not to get from our builder.

I knew that I wanted to upgrade our appliances as soon as possible since the kitchen is my zone and I wanted modern, sleek appliances with all the bells and whistles. I’ve shared my plans for my kitchen and which appliances we chose and why in previous posts – be sure to head on over to read both posts if you haven’t already. You can read up on the details in these two posts below:

BUILDER GRADE KITCHEN UPDATE

KITCHEN UPDATE: WHICH APPLIANCES WE CHOSE AND WHY

The very first task that we tackled was the backsplash. We wanted to keep cost low so after doing some research we decided to do it ourselves. Lowe’s has wide a selection of tile and tools to help get the job done so we got all that we need and got right to work. It took us a total of 3 days to do it all and while I will say that it wasn’t difficult, we did have our challenging moments.

One moment that sticks with me was when my husband almost left a tile in place which cracked after he spent quite some time cutting it just right to fit around one of the 8 outlets on our backsplash. Let’s just say that we don’t make the best decisions at midnight. Yes he eventually removed the tile so don’t worry, there are no cracked tiles on my backsplash. We chose a subway tile that was on the larger side which had texture and curves which we love! It really brightened up the kitchen and the light gray grout adds a nice contrast.

The next update was the appliances and what a difference it made! I am a huge fan of Whirlpool and these do not disappoint. Apart from the fact that the gas range, fridge, microwave and dishwasher gave my kitchen a modern touch, the functionality of all four exceeded my expectations. I swear I hear angels sing every time I open my fridge and the LED lights come on. Yes, I’m in love! I won’t get into too many details about what I love about them all because I’ve already shared that last week so be sure to head on over and read about it by clicking here.

Another update which made a huge difference was the pendants that we added to the island. It’s a small change that made quite an impact. I love the huge clear glass globes which make an impact but doesn’t block the view and leave the space feeling light and airy. One thing I will say about these lights is that I finally understood the importance of finding the right bulb because it took me several trips to Lowe’s to find one that I loved. Some were too bright and some weren’t bright enough or just didn’t work. I finally settled on Edison light bulbs (which I had all along) and they were perfect!

Now to get to the 2 things that I didn’t get done but still have plans of completing in the future. I wasn’t able to add the wine cooler to the island because it turned out to be a little more challenging that we thought (and by we, I mean me). I took measurements, watched a ton of videos and said “my husband can do that”…well upon closer inspection it requires a lot more than just cutting a hole so we will have to hire professionals to get the work done. In the meantime, it’s in my husband’s office and has a selection of wine, beer and water. I also didn’t change the cabinet knobs because I’ve been so indecisive. I thought originally that I wanted to replace the current mushroom knobs with a square knob but then I changed my mind and wanted handles, then bin pulls, then knobs and handles…you get the idea. Since I couldn’t decide, I decided to put it on hold until further notice. I’ve learned from experience that sometimes you have to take a step back and take your time when it comes to decorating and home and not try to force something that doesn’t work. You end up spending more in the long run. So what do you think about my choices? Be sure to leave a comment below. I would like to give a huge thank you to Lowe’s for providing me with the appliances!