There’s only this small space to move around while doing dishes, cooking or whatever. Definitely tight. We loved all the counter space when we first saw the house.
(Ignore the cover missing on the dishwasher-had a leak we had to find. Found it and fixed it!)Yes, it was lovely, until you started using it. You learn quickly that there’s not much room to move. While the dishwasher was open, you had to stand to the side and lean over to put the dishes away or load, or you had to stand in the little space that wasn’t covered by the door next to the oven. The oven and dishwasher couldn’t be open at the same time, nor could the cabinet under the sink be with either of the previously mentioned. You also couldn’t have someone doing dishes while another was cooking. And you know, when you are cooking, all the kids want to be in the kitchen!
The cabinets are original from the build and while still very sturdy, they have seen their years and damage. What used to probably be a very lovely golden oak had turned into a orangey/yellow color. And let’s not even talk about the hardware! Oh my. Some brass, some silver, some with cream centers, some with white. Needless to say, we got SICK of this kitchen quickly, years ago. And for years we’ve been trying to figure out/planning/hoping that we could make-over our kitchen. A few weeks ago, we finally got sick of it and Jared snapped and went crazy with the circular saw! (Kidding, he didn’t go crazy. We spent two weeks prior planning it out)
And the kitchen make-over began.
Of course, we aren’t rich so it had to be cheap. So with stain, hardware, blood, sweat, and tears the new kitchen came to be. And special thanks to friends for the borrowed tools and some supplies.
First step was getting rid of the protruding counter. Yes, you might think we were insane for getting rid of such a large counter space but we did and quite honestly, it really doesn’t feel like we lost any.
Next was removing the end cabinet and cutting it down from a 30” wide cabinet to a 12” one…and we did a fab job. We even managed to take the large door and make it small to fit. (It is the one on the end of the dishwasher)
Floor repair being next. We aren’t thrilled with how that turned out but it will work until we can replace the floor. We also had to replace some countertop. Not new countertops now, but one day. The old stuff will work for now. All glued on and drying.
Then, the fun (and extremely scary part!) Cabinet staining! Oh yeah, this took some wild rides. The originally planned color didn’t happen. During the staining process I discovered a color that I thought looked just lovely. So I started doing that. It was this really nice dark brown with a hint of red in it. I didn’t really think about it at the time. Once I started doing that, I was committed and during the process there was a LOT of prayer that it would look okay in the ‘NEW’ kitchen.Oh I was so pleased as everything came together. It looked better than I could have hoped!
We splurged and finally bought the above the range microwave we’ve been wanting for a few years. It was going to be in a couple months but once you start changing one thing, everything else follows. So we removed the old hood. It was hardwired into the wall. Oh well, no big deal. We read the installation directions on the OTR microwave and saw where the outlet needed to be (in the cabinet above it) so Jared figured that one out. His idea was to figure out where in the cabinet we wanted the outlet to sit, then cut the hole out of the cabinet, place the cabinet against the wall and mark where the hole in the wall will be. Worked great! Not the prettiest cut (and will look better when I clean the marks off around it) but it is in an overhead cabinet and few people if any will ever see it. 
Sweet, worked perfect. Love how easy those are to install. Glad they make electrical boxes for existing walls. (As a side note, we did this TWICE. The first time, I didn’t like how high the microwave sat so we had to lower the cabinet and the wall outlet. No big deal. That went much faster than installing it in the first place.) The final piece was my pot rack. 
My friend has this in her house and I’ve envied it for awhile now. Yes, we got rid of a cabinet (but really we have more open space in our cabinets then we did before!!) but the trade off was SO worth it. So while the kitchen had been ‘done’ for a few days, we still needed that trip to IKEA. Took that trip yesterday, installed our stuff (and the awesome knife rack by the stove. Jared really wanted that)
And YAY, finished kitchen! 
Now it is just little things. I need to get a new window covering and eventually we’ll be installing an in-sink soap dispenser. Until then, I’m in love with my new open kitchen. It turned out so well. If you didn’t know better, you would think the cabinets were always that way (layout and color). And I don’t think I’ve had to tell my kids once to get out of the kitchen while I’ve been cooking lately! They just run around it more now!
Does it look better? To Jared and I, YES! It wasn’t necessarily ugly before but definitely wasn’t functional. Some people will prefer the old color, some the new. Honestly, I think more than anything, it is about ‘different’. But who cares, we love it!!
Some little extras:
I wanted my cabinet hinges to match but they are this special kind of hinge that is so hard to find. When I did find them, they were around $5 or more a piece! and I needed 28! So we went cheap and bought Rustoleum's Metallic Satin Nickel primer and paint. $8 and new hinges that look great and match!
Also, when we pulled the cabinet off the wall, it had the old paint color behind it. We didn't have any extra paint for this room (I don't even know when the previous owner's painted it!) So I gave Home Depot's coloring matching a try and we got a perfect match! Can you tell where I put the new paint on?
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