A Modern Kitchen Update – Week One of the One Room Challenge

I’m so excited to be participating in the One Room Challenge as a guest for the first time. I’ve always loved viewing the transformations the challenge highlights and hoped that I might be able to participate one day. When I started my décor blog two years ago, I knew it was something I would pursue, but the stars didn’t align until just now. While I’ve renovated just about every room in our home in the past five years, most of that was before I started blogging. I’ve been contemplating making a few changes to our kitchen in recent years and decided that I could tackle all the jobs at one time to make a substantial impact on the overall look (and functionality) of the kitchen. What better way to motivate me to pull it off than to commit to it via the One Room Challenge? In the next eight weeks, I’ll be sharing my modern kitchen update. I’ll be sharing some easy to moderate level DIYs and crafts that I hope you will be inspired to try in your own homes.

The One Room Challenge

In case you’re not familiar with the One Room Challenge, it’s a twice-yearly event that features 20 designers and many guest participants. Over an eight-week period, participants renovate or refresh one room and share the process on their blog. There’s even an Instagram only option now for home décor enthusiasts that don’t have a blog.

A Modern Kitchen Update: The Plan

As I have already mentioned, I’ve had a running list of a few changes I have wanted to make in our kitchen, namely, replace our terrible hood fan, install new lighting, and make new window coverings to make our kitchen windows look more balanced. I love our kitchen cabinets, so I won’t be changing them. I also won’t be spending a lot of money on new appliances or new countertops. As much as I’d love new countertops, it’s not currently in the budget. I’m interested in sharing budget-friendly and creative ideas that my viewers can also do at home. I must note that this challenge is occurring during a province-wide lockdown, meaning that we are only able to leave the house for essential purposes. Therefore, everything I need for this project had to be purchased months ago or online. If I am in need of additional supplies during the challenge, I may have to get very creative!

My list of projects I want to complete during the challenge period (in no particular order):

• Install a new light fixture above the sink (I ordered this beauty in the image below)
• Make new roman blinds for the windows behind the sink to visually enlarge the windows up to cabinet top height
• Install a new hood fan and custom wood trim
• Make a plant stand to display my plant babies
• Create a new wreath for above the hood fan
• Update our island bar stools by painting and/or making new slipcovers

Additionally, there are a couple ideas that I’m still on the fence about. This is normal for me and the less-than-straightforward way that I work. We could just say that I like to allow for creative inspiration and spontaneity during the design process. Additionally, I like to evaluate my progress midway through a project and see if additional changes could further enhance the new look. So, I plan to make the decision on these final two ideas mid-project:

• Paint the kitchen walls a white colour
• Update the kitchen table/breakfast nook area

Before Photos

I do love our kitchen, but there are a few changes that will make it more functional and freshen up the look. See how our kitchen window height doesn’t line up with the tops of the windows? This design has always bothered me. I also plan to install new lighting here to improve the night-time lighting situation and to add a pretty decorative detail.

Also, our hood fan is subpar and just makes a lot of noise without actually circulating much air. We make a lot of home-cooked meals in this kitchen, so a good fan is a must-have item.

I’m planning to give these barstools a refresh. They have been reincarnated several times over the years and this time I plan to paint the legs black and make new slipcovers in a graphic black and white pattern. I think this will give them a new modern look and really give this space a modern kitchen update.

I’m also debating changing the wall colour from the blue-grey Behr Sparrow to a soft white (Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee at 75% strength). What do you think? I painted our kitchen just over five years ago and I’m ready for a change. However, painting the kitchen means painting the breakfast area and the family room since we have an open concept home.

Inspiration Photos

I’m hoping to add a little bit of modern style to our kitchen through black and white accents, plants, and accessories.

This photo from The House of Silver Lining is my inspiration for the window treatments I’m planning for behind the kitchen sink. I feel like everything kind of flows from this beautiful fabric by Tonic Living in Toronto. I’m using a black and white colour scheme, modern accessories, and even a few touches of gold in my design. I’m even considering painting the inside of our window frames black.

This is another inspiring photo by Ten June Blog, as I love the hidden hood fan with custom wood trim. I plan to install a new fan and create a decorative wood trim. I love the simple modern feel of this hood fan.

I also love this photo by Studio Mcgee because our kitchen cabinets are a similar creamy white colour. I’m inspired to paint our walls a creamy white colour too because I think it will brighten our kitchen and make it feel fresher and more modern. I also love the simple, rustic accessories used in this image. I plan to display my cutting board collection, cookbooks, and plants in our kitchen too.

Summary

So those are my plans for a modern kitchen update. I’d love to know what you think, so please leave a comment. I’m so happy that you are joining me on this journey and I can’t wait to share my weekly projects and updates with you. The final reveal is June 24. Don’t forget to check out the posts for all the other participants here.

To see week two progress: My New Favourite White Paint – Week 2 of the One Room Challenge