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Bettijo’s Urban Farmhouse Kitchen Tour

Hello! I’m Bettijo visiting from Paging Supermom today to share a tour of my new kitchen. We’ve been working on our urban farmhouse kitchen transformation since July. Check out #SeventiesKitchenRehab on Instagram to see how far we’ve come. In true DIY fashion, we did almost all the work ourselves, including installation of all the new cabinets, a farmhouse sink and lots and lots of tile! We did have some professionals help with electrical wiring and drywall finishing. Plus I was super grateful to have Savannah and Mallory’s styling input and help photographing the completed space.

Bettijo's KraftMaid Kitchen is so bright -- love it!

Bettijo's KraftMaid Kitchen is so bright -- love it!

I’ve been dreaming about this kitchen makeover since we bought our house over six years ago. Back then it looked like this…

The old kitchen

After living in the house for a few months, I had changed things up as much as possible to make it more pleasant until we could do the full-scale renovation…

Bettijo's Kitchen Before

And now it looks like this…

Urban Farmhouse Ktichen

KraftMaid Cabinets

One of the first things I wanted to do differently in the remodel was double-stacking the cabinets in this vaulted area. The second row of upper cabinets really makes the space feel larger. Now that the double-stacked cabinets are in, the space finally makes sense, and it seems crazy to think of having them any other way.

Bettijo's new Urban Farmhouse Kitchen

I fell in love with KraftMaid’s Hayward, shaker-style door in Dove White. I was so excited that they agreed to partner with us on this project. I purchased my KraftMaid cabinets through Home Depot, but you can find them at Lowes too.

I have always wanted a white kitchen, but I have been nervous about the upkeep. I’ve seen white painted cabinets that had a slightly sticky feel to them, which is difficult to clean. I have found that KraftMaid’s painted finish is incredibly hard and durable. We’ve been living with the cabinets for a couple months now, and they’ve survived marker, lots of gooey fingerprints, and even a bit of spray paint. I have a stockpile of magic erasers, but I’ve hardly used them. I’ve been wiping everything down periodically with just water and a microfiber rag. Oh and here is where you can find that adorable blue-stripe dish towel.

Urban Farmhouse Kitchen -- love the rug and lights

KraftMaid offers lots of great organizational solutions with their cabinets. I got drawer dividers for my flatware, cutlery and other utensils, but I also had adjustable dividers installed in a couple of my larger base drawers, and they are so handy. They keep plastic containers, lids, sippy cups and the like, all neatly organized. In fact, I wish I’d opted to put in more dividers. I also got a vertical divider in the base cabinet beside the stove for storing baking sheets and cutting boards.

This is the coolest pull-out trash can I've seen -- from @KraftMaid

My favorite cabinet option is the pull-out wastebasket drawer. I chose the larger style, which has space for two, full-size cans. I use one for trash and the other for recycling. When designing your kitchen be sure to think about placement of this cabinet. I put it beside my sink which makes after-meal clean up more efficient. Also it’s right below my preferred cutting and assembly space, making it is so convenient to push the mess directly into the trash can by just pulling open the drawer.

I really wanted a white farmhouse sink, but since we were DIY-ing this whole thing I almost chickened out. After getting some encouragement from the kind folks at Kohler, we decided to go for it. It really wasn’t as difficult as we expected. I’ll be writing a tutorial on how to install an apron-front sink to share soon.

Bettijo's farmhouse sink and faucet from Kohler

I’m one of those people that has to know what is THE BEST when I’m buying something. Even if I can’t end up affording the best, I must know what it is. So I spent way too much time researching the best materials for apron-front sinks. There was so much conflicting information online, and I got pretty confused and frustrated. Eventually I decided to write a guide for how to pick the best farmhouse sinks (read it or pin it). Spoiler alert: my pick is the Kohler Whitehaven sink but seriously read this post so you’ll know why, especially if you plan to DIY.

I am so in love with my faucet! It’s also from Kohler, and they just came out with it. Lucky timing since I’d been struggling to find the perfect one. I absolutely adore classic bridge faucets, and I feel like that’s what belongs with a farmhouse sink. However, I just couldn’t convince myself to give up the practicality of a one-handled kitchen faucet — I mean I’ve got four, young children, so I’m essentially one handed. This Artifacts faucet has a vintage vibe that feels right, and I didn’t have to sacrifice any convenience.

Kohler Artifacts Faucet is perfect for a farmhouse kitchen

Oh can we just oooh and awww for a second over that adorable sprayer? Not only is it SO CUTE, but it also has two different spray functions… a softer berry mode and a more high-pressure sweeper mode.

Bettijo in her new KraftMaid kitchen!

There I am trying to look all natural while Mallory takes my picture. I really do love arranging flowers — I get a bunch almost every week from Trader Joes. That clock was a fun Ikea hack. I couldn’t find a clock that was the style I wanted and large enough for the space, not to mention the fact that most carried a steep price tag. The Ikea Bravur Wall Clock was the right size, but I completely transformed it. Wasn’t hard at all, and I’ll be sharing the tutorial soon, including a free download of the new clock face I designed inspired by retro schoolhouse clocks, so you can make one too in whatever color you want!

Love that open shelving and #IkeaHack clock!

Love this #IKEAhack clock DIY from @PagingSupermom

I got rid of all the upper cabinets on the sink side of the kitchen to make things feel more open. We also removed a couple of ceiling soffits that did nothing but make the room feel dated and small. To keep the open feeling we opted for floating shelves. I thought we’d have to build our own shelves because I didn’t realize that KraftMaid actually offers shelving to match their cabinets. Maybe that is common knowledge, and I’m just dense? Either way I’m so happy I figured it out before we placed our order. On the open shelving I keep frequently used dishes handy (including my favorite rectangle plates), but I am careful to store just clear and white items there, to maintain an airy, uncluttered feeling.

I want floating shelves in my kitchen!

By now you’re probably wondering about that tile. It’s pretty fabulous, right? The pattern is Coastal Skies from Jeffrey Court Tile. It’s part of Jeffrey Court’s exclusive Home Depot collection. The tile comes on netted sheets that cover approximately a square foot, so it’s not as hard to install as you may be imagining.

Before we installed the backsplash, everything was looking very white, which is what I wanted — open and airy — but it also felt kind of flat. Check out this picture to see what I mean. The tile adds texture and dimension that make the whole room more interesting. I really like having tiled backsplashes go all the way to the ceiling, and it’s another way we made this room feel bigger.

Love these industrial looking lights!

Okay I’ve been dying to tell you about THOSE LIGHTS… truly they make me smile every day. I lucked into them at a vintage store here in Phoenix. They were actually a fun gray color, and I considered leaving them that way, but in this space I really needed them to be yellow. (I used Rustoleum Sunburst Yellow spray paint.)

Love these cool vintage lights painted bright yellow

At the last minute, I got a stroke of inspiration and decided to add this window seat where the old dining nook used to be. It really is the perfect use of that space, and it is quickly becoming the family’s favorite spot. They all love to hang out there, look out into the backyard or talk to whoever is working in the kitchen. That’s all great, but do you know what I secretly love most about it? Having a spot to add fun throw pillows! Most of these are from either The Land of Nod or World Market, which are my favorite places to shop for pillows.

Window seats are the best!

Previously the frames on these windows were medium-brown wood. I was planning to leave them, but at the wise urging of Mallory and Savannah, I decided to paint them. It made such a difference. They also convinced me to add window treatments. We don’t really need to cover the windows since we live on an acre and no one can see in, but these DIY faux roman shades — that I whipped up in just a couple hours — really complete things. For the record, I am NOT a seamstress, but my sweet cousin Laura is. She was kind enough to cover the window seat cushion and make a couple pillows for me. Since I’d already cashed in my sewing credits with her, and didn’t want to push my luck, I was determined to figure out a really simple way to make faux roman shades myself. I checked out a bunch of tutorials, most of which called for using a bunch of tensions rods. I tried that approach and hated how you could see the rods on the side. While at the craft store, I was struck with an idea, and it worked beautifully. These shades could be done with absolutely no sewing at all if you used a glue gun or fusible webbing for the seams. In the end I decided to sew the seams. (They were just straight lines!) I made all three of the shades in a couple hours the night before the kitchen photoshoot. I think they turned out great, and maybe one day I’ll have enough energy to make a tutorial.

DIY Faux Roman Shades

Painted Concrete Floors for less than $100!

The tractor stools were another DIY salvage project. We pulled the bases off a couple old stools that had been left in our barn, and attached actual seats from some old tractors, a nod to my husband’s childhood on a farm in Wyoming. Being a farm boy, he was handy enough to fit them together somehow. Then I spray painted them that same Sunburst Yellow that is on the clock and lights.

We actually pulled up the old flooring (a combination of really dingy carpet and vinyl) about a year ago. We were so disgusted by it and couldn’t stand it any longer. Since then, we have been considering different flooring options, but we’ve gotten used to the concrete. Of course properly acid-washing and epoxy-sealing concrete is as expensive as some of the wood floor options we’ve considered. For now, since our budget is spent, we decided to just paint the concrete gray. This was one of the last projects we did. First we gave the floor a good cleaning. Then we painted with a gray flooring paint from Home Depot. Next we sponged on some texture using Ralph Lauren Metallic paint thinned with Floetrol. It’s not perfect and probably a temporary solution, but it’s pretty great for a flooring option that was less than $100!

Love this ikat runner rug from RugsUSA!

The Classy Clutter girls also insisted that I add a couple rugs. Like window treatments, these accessories are not something I’ve ever been comfortable incorporating, but they’ve made me a believer. It is these extra touches that really make a space feel complete. The girls introduced me to Rugs USA, which has a very extensive collection plus they offer free shipping on all orders! Thankfully Rugs USA was happy to provide the rugs for this kitchen project.

For the runner in the kitchen we wanted something more colorful, and I found this blue ikat rug. Savannah already had this braided jute rug in her house, and she highly recommended I get one to help delineate the dining space.

Bettijo's new, 10-foot kitchen table

Our family was literally too big for our old kitchen table, and the dining nook couldn’t accommodate anything larger. So we took over the adjacent family room and made it into a large dining space. We built this nearly 10-foot table using a salvaged tire rack for the base. A 10-foot table might be a bit overkill, but since I homeschool my kids, we really love having so much room to spread out.

Love this HUGE kitchen table!

I was planning to build a wood bench and buy wood chairs to surround the table, but when I had the Classy Clutter girls over for some styling input, we agreed that the dining space was feeling pretty heavy, and we needed to pull over some of the white from the kitchen. After chair shopping I shared a round-up of my favorite bargain-priced modern dining chairs (read it or pin it). We picked these mid-century inspired Evie Chairs, and World Market was kind enough to send them over.

The cutest knobs!

Another really tough decision was cabinet hardware. The easy part was picking out the brushed nickel knobs for the upper cabinets, which tied in to the faucet’s styling. I liked the design of these knobs with a larger circle at the base (where they mount to the cabinet). They feel more substantial and are just right. For the base cabinets I kept changing my mind, mainly because I couldn’t find anything I completely loved. I finally decided to do bin pulls, and I even ordered these. Then when I held them up to the cabinets, I just didn’t feel right about it. Hardware is a scary decision because once those holes are drilled you’re pretty committed. I changed my mind and ordered these straightline pulls. I had been worried that they were too straight for the faucet, but since I was going for a more clean, modern look I actually think the last-minute hardware switch was a good move — the straight pulls tie into the lines of the backsplash and kept things from going too traditional.

Love these straightline drawer pulls

I had not planned to replace my stainless steel fridge, but it had black side panels, which quickly became an unsightly black hole in the midst of my beautiful, white kitchen. We switched it out for a white fridge with stainless handles, and it now blends in perfectly with the cabinets.

I want a bright laundry room like this!

Our laundry room is directly off the kitchen, so it made sense to also fix it up, while we were at it. We installed cabinets all the way to the ceiling and continued the tile backsplash. Opposite the washer and dryer we added a cabinet with storage for laundry baskets, swimming towels and our shaved ice machine. (We live in Phoenix, enough said.)

How cool is this laundry room with a shaved ice machine?!

Cutest Shaved Ice supplies

Of course when we’re not making shaved ice the countertop doubles as a folding surface, and we installed a rail with hooks on the upper cabinet for drying clothes or hanging shirts while ironing.

Laundry room utility rail is smart!

WOW! That was a lot of info, and I really appreciate you taking a tour with me through my new Urban Farmhouse kitchen. Here is my inspiration board and a handy source guide. Might I suggest pinning it for future reference?

Urban Farmhouse kitchen inspiration board

SOURCES: (1) Kohler Whitehaven Sink & Artifacts faucet (2) yellow barn lights similar to mine (3) KraftMaid Shaker-Style, White Cabinets (4) Amerock Allison knobs & Liberty Straight Line pulls (5) milk glass soap pump (6) aqua circle pillow & bright H pillow (7) tractor stools (8) Lagoon quartz countertops that look like marble but are less maintenance! (9) Coastal Skies backsplash tile (10) cotton stripe dish towels Not pictured in the inspiration board: (A) blue ikat rug runner (B) braided jute rug (C) Evie mid-century dining chairs

PHOTO CREDITS: Photography and styling by Classy Clutter and Paging Supermom, all rights reserved. We love sharing, but please repost only ONE image from this post and be sure to include a visible credit a link back to this page. If you’re interested in featuring more, please contact bettijo@pagingsupermom.com.

DISCLOSURE: Several of the brands were kind enough to provide products or discounts for our kitchen project, but we freely chose only our favorite products and no company had any influence over our opinions.

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5 Comments

  1. I realize this post is a couple years old, but I’ve been searching high and low for a wall paint color match to Kraftmaid Dove White cabinets! Could you share the wall color you used in your kitchen? Many thanks!

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