Kitchen Makeover Part 1: Countertops

Last week I told you about how we got all of our bathroom and kitchen counter tops reglazed, and showed you how the bathroom counter tops look now. This week, I wanted to show you guys the first part of our kitchen makeover. The original countertops were sponge painted by a clueless DIYer before we moved in, so they were pretty worn out by the time we had them redone. I am not saying they don’t look good, but anything and everything left its mark on these counters.

Not too ugly right? The colors were very warm and inviting, but I love white kitchens and since the kitchen is smaller, I wanted to brighten it up some! Plus we are repainting all the trim white and I didn’t like the white/brown combo that would have resulted. But here is where you can really see how torn up the counter tops were.

Again, they would have been alright counter tops had somebody not gotten a gallon of paint and sponge painted them like we did on paper back in kindergarten. That type of art is for mom and dad to hang on the refrigerator, not for the counter tops.

So we hired our local contractor who came out and fixed us up. This is what the kitchen looked like for three days! Remember, we had NO sinks and no access to anything in our cabinets. And again, has anyone seen Dexter? (These pictures are from after the first day, before they sprayed the thick, clear coat of glaze.)

And here is the final product! We love love love the counter tops, but that awful 1970′s off white has got to go! It just looks yellow and dirty against our pretty new counter tops. So, there was a long weekend of painting that followed this reglazing!

Here is a close up of the glaze. It is white with black and tan specks. The tan matches our wall color incredibly well, and the contractor said the black worked well with stainless steel and black appliances. We must say, we agree!

Oh, how much nicer is this than the old brown sponged style? It’s light and airy and I love looking at it now! Plus, it makes the kitchen feel bigger and the natural light really reflects off the lighter counter tops.

And did you notice our new sink and faucet? He included the installation in the price, so off to Home Depot with went with the trusty credit card to find a deeper sink and taller faucet. Now I don’t have to wash dishes in what felt like a shoe box.

Don’t mind the peeling paint, it came off when they took the tape and plastic down. Just one less spot we have to sand later!

What do you think? Do you like the white counter tops better than the old brown ones? Later next week, once they’re dry, I’ll show you guys the new cabinets! I can’t wait for everyone to see our remodel (although it’s not completely done after that)!