Need Advice on New Living Room and Kitchen - See Pictures

michigan

This is my my new living room and a kitchen Any suggestions how to make them really great???

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mysterd429

Can you post pictures taken from the opposite sides of the rooms or even a floor plan for each? What sort of stuff do you want to do in your living room? Will you want a TV? The placement of the doors and fireplace look like they'll make it hard to put seating across from the TV if you don't put the TV above the fireplace.

I like the Benjamin Moore historic collection paint colors. They seem to go well with everything to me. And congratulations on the new place!

anjaleena

The kitchen looks good and spacious. Well in your living room you could decorate your walls with real good paitings, or photo frames.

joecaption

The kitchen looks to me like it's stuck in the 70's.
I'd suggest at least new cabinet doors and drawer fronts, veneer on the boxes, new counter top (check out the new style Home Depot is stocking, looks just like stone tops) new faux stone sink, get rid of that scolloped valence.

Pianolady

Are you interested in updating, or are you interested in going retro/original? You need to decide on a style and go from there.

Dan101

I agree with Joecaption. reface those cabinet doors, get rid of scallops and new countertops will do wonders for this kitchen.

happyface

But where people buy cabinet doors separately and what do I do with the rest of cabinets? Maybe paint them? They have been painted before
Can the new doors cover them completely? This would be great...

Blondesense

So much depends on your budget and ability (DIY). Paint is always an inexpensive easy DIY project.

As a start I'd replace the kitchen pulls. I've gotten great deals on ebay. Just remember to look for pulls that have the same hole measurement (and buy a couple extra).

KevinPh

I agree with other posters that you must determine the style. Do you want a country, Victorian, rustic or modern style? It will completely change whatever improvements you decide to do.

For the kitchen, I would definitely change the color of the cabinets. Don't be afraid to go bold. Here's a photo of my own painted MDF board cabinetry. http://www.home-additions-startup-gu...ecorating.html As you can see, we wanted a contemporary style. You can also get new kitchen doors if you want a wood look. If you have standard size doors, you can buy them online usually for much less than at your local building supply store. I would get rid of the scallops unless you want a country kitchen.

For the living room, you could add in some wainscotting and paint the walls all one color, depending on the color of your furniture. You could also put more prominent white decorative trim around the door and window to make them stand out.

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happyface

I can't put seriouse money in this kitchen right now. So, I am lookin for a temporaly solution that will minimize the cost but make things relatively pretty.
What do you think if I do that:
1. kitchen
I paint cabinets and the wooden piece above the window chocolate brown.
Paint cabinet doors red (try to match countertop's color)
Change hinged and pulls (to what design?)
Put blinds on the window (white or brown?)
paint everything else white
2. living room:
paint the door and windows white, paint that wall blue/grey, paint the rest of the walls off-white.
Do you think I can use some paintable wall paper in the living room to cover the existing panels on the walls? . Change the light fixture. Think of a new wooden mantel around the fireplace.
What do you think??? )

creeper

If it were my kitchen I would try to downplay that counter. Painting the doors to match will really stand out...in your face kind of way. Especially adding brown into the mix. All those dark colours will suck the life out of it

The good news is that its only paint and you are the one who has to live with it. Try what pleases you and if get sick of it, change it

The curtains look tired

happyface

What would you do to downplay the counter?

JulieB

If you can't afford to remodel I would paint the cabinets and woodwork (including the doors in your living room) white. You may want to get a bunch of samples and see what it looks like with the white of your appliances (if you dont intend on replacing them right away) as you don't want them to clash. I would paint them the right way by taking the doors off and sanding the prior paint off every single door, drawer and cabinet. You could add boards to the doors to create more of a "shaker style" door. Like this...



Take off the scalloped deal above the window, if you want you could replace it with just a straight board with no scallops and such. Change the hardware on the cabinets, ditch the curtains on both the window and doors (what's behind the doors in the living room?), replace them with something cleaner like maybe shutters, something without a print, or woven wood shades. Paint all the walls the same color in the living room, like a nice grey taupe color. I like the advice someone gave you to put some wainscoting up the wall (painted the same white as the rest of the trim. Get rid if the ceiling fan, find the perfect fan or put a light fixture there.

I'd like to see a picture of your fireplace if you have one.

klmeenan

We need to know what style you like. I still can't get a feel for what you like. I can say that I personally would not paint the cabinet doors red. My first suggestion is to change the hinges/pulls on the cabinets. I personally went with brushed nickel but I also like a more contemporary feel. Second, take down the lovely curtains and curved wooden piece above the sink. These first 2 steps will help.

You won't be able to downplay the countertop. You have a few choices. Paint it, replace it or make it look purposeful. If you paint the cabinets white, get a white faux wood blind, and put white tile on the backsplash. You can then add pops of yellow (flour canisters, vase...). Then it would look bright cheerful and like it was done on purpose.


Good Luck

klmeenan

I forgot your living room. a nice chunky wood mantle would be nice for your fireplace (from what little I can see of it). Painting the trim white would brighten the space as well as a lighter paint color. Again knowing what style you prefer would help. Do you need the doors? It looks like there are curtains on the other side of the door. If you don't need them I would remove them if possible. Replace the fan with a better one or a nice light fixture. (I have fans all over my house, sorry guys, but I need to move the air in my house) Try a nice beige that will contrast nicely with your white trim (once you paint it). Bring in pops of color with art and pillows. Do you already have furniture for the space? It looks long and narrow so you will have to make sure that you don't use bulky furniture that will cramp the space.