From the moment I first saw my kitchen, I thought to myself… “Poor thing, just needs a little love”. That being said, that “poor thing” has haunted me for the better part of a year and made it veeeeeery difficult to love, even just a little.

I admit that a lot of the grief it has given me has stemmed from the fact that I just couldn't make up my mind about what to do with it. It wasn't even just that it was such a small space. It was that the small space was dominated by five floor-to-ceiling windows. Now I know what you must be thinking… “How on earth could that possibly be a bad thing? The natural light it must provide!” If, in fact, that was exactly what you were thinking, you would be right… to an extent. The natural light in that kitchen is perfect. The view is great! That’s where the praise ends. The windows wrap around the edges of the room, effectively cutting off 25% of my potential cabinet and counter space. And I can’t put anything in front of them because they are floor-to-ceiling.

While one half of the kitchen was going to stay the way it was in terms of placement, I had only one measly little wall to turn into a fabulous spot for my refrigerator, trash can, recycling bin, food pantry, and extra counter space. Not going to happen. At least not the way I wanted.

My first idea was a small island. I even started building it. I got pretty far along before I made my first big kitchen mistake. I bought a new refrigerator. The hubby was asking for a while for a new one. I finally gave in and we ventured over to HH Gregg with our height and width measurements. You may have already figured out by the last sentence what our issue ended up being. Yup… depth. We did not measure the depth of the new fridge because we did not think it would make a difference. But guess what? It did. It very much did. We got it delivered and installed within a few days and we loved it! That is, we loved it for about 5 minutes until I stood in front of it and opened the doors. That's when I realized that I was standing in the middle of the kitchen. Oops! No island for us anymore.

The original fridge was a lot smaller, and now I could see why. It was also white. New fridge… stainless steel. So of course, we're going to have to replace all of our other appliances eventually.

Back to square one. We ripped out the cabinets that were above the original fridge and moved the fridge closer to the windows. I measured the big blank space on the wall and went to work in search of a dresser I could put there with some shelves over it. I went to every thrift store in the area several times each week. I swear they recognize me now. It took me a while, but I finally found the perfect piece. It was different than I was picturing in my head, but the moment I saw it, I knew I had to have it.

I would love to say I purchased it, had it placed in my car, and drove home with it, but that’s not exactly how it all went down. I did purchase it. I did have it placed in my car. Well… sort of. I had the bottom of it placed in my car. The top would not fit. I tried my mom’s car. Wouldn’t fit. I drove to my brother’s apartment, measured his car, thought it would fit, then had him drive his car out to pick it up for me. Wouldn’t fit. I called the U-Haul store two miles down the road. They told me they had a pickup I could rent right then and there. I arrived within 5 minutes of the conversation. The guy in front of me in line had rented it. The lady I spoke to called another store a few miles further down the road. They had a pickup available. This time she reserved it for me in the system. So finally, after many failed attempts, I managed to secure a truck that would haul my baby home.

Once I got it there, I set it in the garage. Normally, the garage is where projects go to die. It seems ironic to me now that I placed my new hutch next to the skeleton of my unfinished kitchen island that I had pillaged for parts. If I hadn't had a reason to finish my kitchen ASAP (company…ahhhh!!!), that hutch might still be sitting in the same spot. But as fate would have it, this was a project that I finished in a timely fashion.

As you can see, it was a dark wood color when I bought it. But as you might know from my Cabinet Magic post, my new kitchen cabinets are white. I decided to paint the whole thing white. However, I did want it to have a different color counter top. I planned to put our Keurig there and coffee and white just don’t mix. So I decided to re-stain the counter top portion and paint the rest white. I eventually want to get rid of the counter tops in the rest of the kitchen and install DIY butcher block, so it seemed like the perfect solution.

I removed the top portion of the hutch and started with that piece. Don’t ask me why. Probably because it seemed less threatening. I was wrong, of course. The top was much harder to complete than the bottom. I removed the shelves and starting sanding everything. Once I had it sanded, I used an oil-based primer and applied two layers with a cheap brush, sanding in between coats. Per the usual, it looked TERRIBLE with just the primer on. Luckily, this wasn't my first rodeo, and I knew not to panic. I painted two more layers of white paint over the primer, sanding in between coats. I used the same paint I used to paint my kitchen cabinets so everything would match.

Once completed and dry, I had the hubby help me get the finished product into the kitchen where we reattached the two parts and placed it in its new home. It was perfect!!!!

I went a little crazy with the hutch décor. At first, I thought about displaying dishes or cookbooks on the shelves, but after some Pinterest research I got a better idea. I went out and bought some new food containers. Displaying food out in the open is such a space saver! I even bought little black labels for my mason jars and wrote the names of the foods with a chalk marker. I purchased a basket for all the items I didn't want to display. Then I installed some hooks on the bottom of the lowest shelf to hang my coffee mugs over the Keurig.

Once I had everything placed, I took some well-deserved pictures. I was really impressed with the way everything turned out. The hutch matched the kitchen perfectly. And it solved the kitchen storage space issue without affecting any of the space in front of the windows.

Long story short... this hutch is clutch!

Materials List:
Thrift Store Hutch
Primer
Paint
Sandpaper/Sanding Blocks/Sander
Brushed Nickel Spray Paint
Painters Tape
Walnut Stain
Polyurethane

Step Recap:
1. Sand all parts that are being painted or stained
2. Stain the part that will be the counter top
3. Allow the stain to dry for a few hours and apply another coat
4. Apply a coat of Polyurethane on top of the stain, allow to dry
5. Apply another coat of polyurethane and allow to dry for 24 hours
6. Apply two layers of primer to all parts that will be painted, sanding in between coats
7. Apply two layers of paint, sanding in between coats
8. Spray paint the hardware using a small cardboard box
9. Flip the hardware over when dry and spray the other side
10. Re-assemble the parts and hardware
11. Take lots of pictures!

A kitchen cabinet makeover was one of my first BIG projects in the new house.  It was my first real test as an official DIYer.  I talked about the endeavor for months.  “My ugly cabinets this, my ugly cabinets that, my new cabinets will change everything…”.  

My mom came down for a visit and decided that all this talk about cabinets was just that… talk.  So, she set down her glass of wine, picked up a screwdriver, and started removing cabinet doors while I made some half-hearted excuses.  After a few minutes I realized that she was probably right.  Maybe all I needed was a little push.  And so it began… the kitchen cabinet saga.

I'd settled on the color white.  After all, white goes with everything, right?  WRONG.  Though I still believe that white was the right choice, it has since made me loathe every other part of my kitchen.  Thus, adding to the long list of projects needing completion - new sink, new trim, new back splash, new counter tops, etc.

Below is the list of materials I used for the project.  I already had most of the items, but I was able to find the rest at Lowe's.

Materials List:
1 Gallon Kilz Original Oil-Based Primer
1 Gallon White Paint
Paint Brushes
Foam Paint Roller
Drop Cloths
Painter’s Tape
Sanding Blocks
Power Drill or Screwdriver
New Drawer Handles and/or Knobs

We (mom, hubby, and me) started by sanding down the cabinets and doors using sander blocks.  I chose not to remove the cabinets from the walls and not to paint the inside of them (too much work).  Once we had everything sanded, I wiped it all down with a damp cloth to remove the dust. We put down drop cloths on the counter tops, and used painter's tape to protect the floors and walls.  I used a paint brush to paint the first layer of primer on the cabinets while Mom did the doors.  It took FOREVER!  I used the cheapest brushes I could find, because I had no intention of cleaning primer off of them.  Those babies were getting tossed.  

After the first layer of primer went on everything looked AWFUL!  I started to panic just a little bit.  I mean, these were the original cabinets.  If I'd overestimated my own abilities and ended up ruining them, replacements were going to cost me a fortune!

Here's where the story gets good... my mother went home the next morning.  At that point, the hubby also decided that his participation in this event was unnecessary.  After all, his painting skills were not up to par, he said.  I would have argued, but that last part was a direct quote from me, so I essentially dug my own grave.  Lesson learned.   

So I was left with the task of applying one more coat of primer, and two coats of paint on my own.  AND I had to sand between each layer (the most tedious, but completely necessary step).  After the second coat of primer, my fears subsided.  They were already starting to look better.  My motivation waned a little, and it ended up taking me at least another week to finally finish.  I hadn't taken into account that each door would need to fully dry before I could flip it over to finish each coat.  So they took twice as long as the cabinets themselves.  Rookie mistake. Bah! 

Once the paint finally dried, I went about the task of drilling holes for the door handles.  I measured them out myself, but the drill kept slipping on the new paint, and some of them looked a little off.  I finally ended up just buying some templates from the store that helped me finish the job with better results.  I would recommend doing that from the start.

Once I finished adding the new door handles, I started screwing the doors back on and putting the drawers back in.  As I did so, a calm fell over me.  The finished product was everything I hoped it would be!  

Never mind that the white of the cabinets made the cream (built-in) sink look old and dirty.  Or that the white appliances were no longer the right “shade” of white and would need to be replaced with stainless steel.  Or that the dark stone back splash was now the main focus point of the room.  Those were all items that I would add to the list of new projects.  I was just thrilled that I had new cabinets! 

Quick Step Recap:
1.    Select cabinet color
2.    Remove doors, drawers, and all hardware (label with numbers to make reassembly easier)
3.    Use preferred sanding method (I used sanding blocks) to prep all cabinets and doors
4.    Use a damp towel to wipe off dust
5.    Apply two coats of primer, sanding and wiping between coats
6.    Apply two or three coats of paint, sanding and wiping between coats
7.    Add or replace door handles (optional) 
8.    Put all hardware, door, and drawers back on
9.    Marvel at your own awesomeness 

Next Steps: 

At some point in the future, I plan to add some crown molding to the top of my cabinets, and possibly some trim to the bottom in order to give them a more polished look.  Keep an eye out for that tutorial. 

I also added a hutch to our kitchen to replace some cabinets I removed from the original setup. That tutorial is in the works!

This particular coffee table has to be my most crowning achievement to date.  I generally try to be humble when it comes to most projects, but this was the first time I attempted to build a piece of furniture, and I was just too proud not to gush about it.

Granted, I owe my success to another blogger.  You may have heard of her.  Her name is Ana White.  If you haven't been on her website, you must go NOW!  http://ana-white.com/.  She is amazing in all ways. 

Before the hubby and I got our hardwood floors in, we were using a coffee table in our family room that we got from my mother.  It had passed to her from a friend of hers who moved out of town and couldn't take it.  It was HORRIBLE.  

Don't get me wrong, we were glad to have it.  It served its purpose like most of the other furniture that was donated to us.  However, there was one small problem with this particular donation.  Actually, in reality, it was not a small problem at all, it was a very BIG problem.  The table top was made of stone, and the legs were made of metal.  The thing weighed more than I did... by a lot.  No joke.  Also, it was an ugly brown and tan monstrosity that didn't match anything we owned.

Like most of our other furniture, I considered giving it a makeover.  But after nearly throwing my back out moving it from the family room into the garage to clear the room for the floor installation, I decided I wasn't letting that thing back in the house no matter what it looked like.  So naturally, it sat in our garage for weeks before we finally loaded it into my car.  Hubby drove it to the nearest Habitat for Humanity Restore and unloaded that puppy for them to sell to the next unsuspecting victim.  Funny thing was... they thanked him for it profusely and went on about how generous the donation was.  HA!

So that brings me back to my search for the perfect coffee table.  At first, I thought I would just bite the bullet and pay for a nice new piece.  After all, we had new floors and I needed something to distract from our old couch and chair.  However, after doing some research, I decided that I just wasn't willing to spend several hundred dollars when I was already on a furniture makeover kick.  So I began the quest to find a thrift store table that matched my criteria.

I quickly became discouraged.  Coffee tables are apparently a hot commodity at thrift stores. The good ones get snatched up right away.  I just couldn't find anything that was big enough for the space we had.  And with my rule in place that nothing was allowed in the house that wasn't staying for the foreseeable future, we had no place to put our food, drinks, remotes, etc.  We certainly couldn't entertain guests in that room.  

Desperate times called for desperate measures.  I hopped on Pinterest and got to work.  At first, I was looking for alternative coffee table options.  I saw people using crates or benches, but I just couldn't picture that in my family room.  That's when I came across Ana White's option. She was claiming I could build my own coffee table for less than $85.  Being the ambitious (and desperate) DIYer that I am, I decided to take her up on this offer.

The tutorial that I used is here: http://ana-white.com/2012/07/plans/rustic-x-coffee-table

I needed a specific color scheme to match the recurring theme in my house: white and wood. So I did do a few things differently, but the basics all came from Ana.

First, I copied the shopping list word for word and went to Lowes.  I didn't have everything on the tool list, but I had enough to get by.  I'm pretty resourceful when I need to be.  Once I had the wood, I used the miter saw to cut it all just like the cut list suggested.

I'd never used the miter saw to cut angles before so I had a very difficult time with some of the cuts.  I actually gave up on the 2x2s for a while and started assembling the base instead.  

I used my mini Kreg Jig kit that I got off of Amazon to drill the pocket holes.  The structure was a little wobbly so the hubby graciously used his brute strength to tighten up the screws.  Once I had the base assembled, I stained the wood that I was using for the top and the shelf of the table with a walnut wood stain I already had.

While I waited for the stained wood to dry, I painted the already assembled base.  Like most of the items in our house, I wanted the coffee table to be white and walnut.  So I painted the base with two layers of primer and two layers of white paint.

Yes, that is yet another furniture makeover in the background of that picture.  That is my kitchen table that will surely be another post in the near future.

Once the base was painted, and the top and shelf were stained, I began the task of assembly.  I had to drill some more pocket holes with my Kreg Jig in order to install the shelf on the bottom of the table.  It took me a while to hammer the shelf in and screw it into place.  There was a lot of sanding going on in order to get it to fit.  Nothing is ever easy.  

Once I had the shelf in, I stained it with a layer of polyurethane.  I chose to apply it after installation in case I scratched up the wood while I was putting it together (which I did).  The layer of polyurethane smoothed everything over.

Once the shelf was secure, I flipped over the wood for the top of the table and laid the base on top.  I pre-drilled some holes through the base and then put the screws through to secure the top.  I put one screw on each side of the wood planks.  I don't have any pictures of that part of the process because I did it at 5:00 in the morning and totally forgot the get my photographic evidence.  Once secure, I flipped the whole table over.

I waited to apply three layers of polyurethane to the table top after I assembled it for the same reason I waited to apply it to the shelf.  I knew I would scratch the wood in the assembly process, and once again, I did.  The polyurethane covered the scratches and made it look perfect!

I almost left the table as it was.  After all, it looked fine.  However, the thing that sold me on the Ana White plans was the "X braces" on the sides of the table.  And even though I was having a hard time wrapping my head around the angles on the miter saw, I decided the table had to have them.  So instead of trying to decipher the instructions on the cut list, I decided to just wing it.  I know what you are thinking... "If she can't figure out how to do it with step-by-step instructions, how on earth does she think she is going to be able to guess it?"

I went with the old school approach.  I held my 2x2s up to the empty space and drew lines on them where the cut lines needed to be.  Then I adjusted the angle on my miter saw to line up with those cut lines.  I didn't even bother looking at what the actual angles were.  I'm sure that if I did, they would have been exactly what Ana White had instructed from the beginning.  I'm sure there is some logical right brain vs left brain explanation for those who learn better by doing than by reading, but looking that up would require me to read...

BIG thank you to Ana White for the perfect solution to my family room problem. 

Side Note:  This project did something to me.  Building furniture had never even been on my radar until I found these plans.  And after managing to have such great success on my first try, I have been on a Pinterest tear.  I have pinned A LOT of DIY furniture projects for the future.  I even started a buffet table for my dining room.  I'm not even using plans.  I just started building the other day, and I am super excited about the progress.  Here is a sneak peak.