i'll take my kitchen black, please

I seem to decorate with my emotions, my moods. I recently changed several rooms from deep crimson, terra cotta, and gold to black. What does that say about how I've been feeling?

I have 3 connected rooms. The living room, the family room, and the kitchen. It's hard to change one without changing the others. So I tackled all 3 rooms at once.

IN THE KITCHEN...
I didn't have the money to purchase new cabinets, so I opted to paint them. I also raised the top cabinets 7" and installed hardware. I used long stainless handles, and places them horizontal along the bottom of the doors. I did this because I like it, and because most people would hang them vertically. It also means that the horizontal placement of the handle on the drawers and the doors are the same.


Yes, I said that I am decorating with black, when the color is actually called Lincoln Cottage Black*. It's actually a charcoal gray that looks pretty much black depending on the light and time of day.

Saving money by not purchasing new cabinets, I splurged on new stainless steel appliances. The refrigerator, stove & microwave. I didn't purchase a new dishwasher. I just changed the front panel to the black side so you hardly notice it's there. (unless it's running, a new one would have been so much quieter!)

My favorite change: The sink and faucet! My dad installed both for me, with my brother's help. (including a new disposal.) The sink is very deep, and with the addition of the industrial-look faucet, can easily fill 5 gallon buckets - which I often do!

I painted the walls a light mushroom color. I carried this color into the living area, the family room and up the staircase and through the halls.

I turned the pantry door into a chalkboard. My original door is white and paneled. That original door is still there. I removed the handle and placed a piece of 1/8" hardboard cut to size at the hardware store. I used several pieces of removable double sided foam tape to adhere the board to the door. Several coats of chalkboard paint were applied, letting each coat dry before applying a new one. A new nickel finish door handle, and some chalk, and voila! a reversible and very handy door. I use it for homeschool, grocery lists, favorite quotes, and to do lists. My daughter uses it for fun. Her cousins have fun drawing away when they are visiting and hopefully I don't send them home to later draw on the walls there. whoops!


Raising the upper cabinets allowed me to add magnet strips, shelves and more for additional fun storage. The neutral color palate allows me to change accent colors and pieces on a whim. Right now, apple green.

Check out more of my recent decorating obsession:

take time for family, room

i'm dreaming of a living room (we actually use)

*paint: Valspar Lincoln Cottage Black from Lowes (4009-2) in Satin. (It's only available in Satin and Semi Gloss - and I'm usually a flat and eggshell person.) I used the tinted primer recommended for this paint. It is a color from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.

i'm dreaming of a living room (we actually use)

This is the living room. The first room you walk into when you go through the front door. "Living room?" you say. "That's an office!"


Again in my way, I have to do something to a room that has an intended purpose, but I want it to be very different and actually useful for our family. An art studio and office works perfectly for us. I made sure I had plenty of storage in black/brown finish to store clutter away. (Although I took these photos at a moments notice and do have clutter on the desk and a few other surfaces.)


I installed the "track" lighting on the right. It's basically a kit that you double stick to the surface you want it on. I then painted the "rail" to match and you hardly notice it. It's plugged into an outlet behind the cabinets. I also have my printer in the cabinet behind the desk. Fun, easy to use and maintain room.

Although I may be timid in many other areas in my life, changing and decorating is not one of them. This room has been painted 2 to 3 prior to this by me. I've been known to paint a room while my husband is at work, somehow thinking in my twisted head that he won't notice. But even a low VOC paint leaves a smell. I'm sure he knew, but didn't say a thing! As long as I leave his paintings out he'd let me do pretty much anything I wanted. Whoooo hooooo! A perfect match for a girl who dreams decor and doodles in floor plans on a daily basis.

take time for family, room

So, if form follows function, how usable and comfortable the family room became was the basis for all my design choices in this room. It had to have comfortable seating, places to put your popcorn and drinks - and let's face it - your dinner plate, games, dvd's, tv, blah, blah, blah. If a room isn't usable, it isn't designed.


I painted a wall in my family room the same black as my kitchen cabinets. This wall is directly opposite those cabinets, a nice juxtaposition. I had already installed the hard wood floors and base moldings. I wanted to replace the slate tile, but ran out of time and money.


True to form, the furniture placement is now completely and totally different than pictured here. I change rooms around on a monthly, or sometimes weekly, basis. A no cost way to make your space feel different.


My husband is an artist and I love these picture ledges from Ikea. This way the paintings can be moved, added, and changed at anytime, without further holes in the walls. I purchased 6 45" ledges, placing 3 side by side (total 135") at 2 levels. The bottom one is about 6-8" above where the back of the couch would be. I would never place the couch up against the wall (placing furniture around the perimeter of a room is a big personal no! no!) but I can make sure that the line of sight to what is on the walls is not obstructed.


From the family room looking into the kitchen. I also painted the railings here and up the staircase in the same Lincoln Colonial Black. (Mental note, need window treatments in kitchen.)

As you can probably tell from my mental note, changing my living spaces is an ongoing process. I can't clean a room without changing things around. As I lay in bed and try to go to sleep, visions of rooms, paint and decor dance through my head. Oh, if only I had unlimited time and unlimited funds. Yup, my life would be totally out of balance. Maybe it's okay that I have to get creative with money and find the time to do the work myself. Maybe....

*paint: Valspar Lincoln Cottage Black from Lowes (4009-2) in Satin. (It's only available in Satin and Semi Gloss - and I'm usually a flat and eggshell person.) I used the tinted primer recommended for this paint. It is a color from the National Trust for Historic Preservation.