# Need Advice on New Living Room and Kitchen - See Pictures



## mysterd429 (Sep 25, 2012)

michigan said:


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


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!


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## anjaleena (Oct 8, 2012)

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


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

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.


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## Pianolady (Jun 28, 2012)

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


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## Dan101 (Jul 1, 2007)

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


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## michigan (Dec 10, 2011)

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...


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## Blondesense (Sep 23, 2008)

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).


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## KevinPh (May 25, 2012)

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-guide.com/best-kitchen-decorating.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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## michigan (Dec 10, 2011)

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??? )


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## creeper (Mar 11, 2011)

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


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## michigan (Dec 10, 2011)

What would you do to downplay the counter?


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## JulieB (Sep 9, 2012)

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.


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## klmeenan (Apr 28, 2011)

*style question*

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


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## klmeenan (Apr 28, 2011)

*oops*

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.


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## henrylarry6 (Nov 2, 2012)

I think a wall decal would look really great in the living room. That large wall is so nice and a wall decal could create an excellent mood for the room. There are also many sites that sell discount wall stickers and wall stickers that are easily removable. Using wall decals typically ends up being an alternative to painting our walls.


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## timkitchen (Apr 12, 2013)

Hello Dear, I am happy to help you. Your Room and Bedroom are looking nice. But you can easily renovate them into better looking and safe structure. If you want to upgrade your kitchen then start from window first. Because window and ventilation are essential for worst time like gas and smoke passing. This make your kitchen safe and also a source of natural light? Then you need a strong oil paint which keeps your kitchen walls safe from water. According to your room picture, you can use shag carpet on your floor which will be good looking. You also need good wallpaper. You can also use different color classes on your room window which spread multicolour light through sunlight.


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## Donna J. Carrol (Apr 14, 2013)

michigan said:


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


Your Kitchen looks perfect. Don't try to mess up with things. Kitchen usually looks good when they have minimal stuff there.

Living room can be lightened by some antique lamps combined with large canvas pictures of yur family. This will look great on your dark wall. I suggest you to look for some good sites who can do this for you like magnipic .com online and order some good pics to canvas.


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## Oso954 (Jun 23, 2012)

Living room - I'd get rid of the green wall paint. Nothing wrong with an accent wall, but I would want a much warmer color than that green.

Kitchen- Those curtains would go. If you like curtains great, but those have such a busy pattern, they look out of place to me. 

Most important are the doors on the sink cabinet. Someone hung the left door on the right, and the right door on the left. If left the way they are with both opening towards the middle, they will be a PITA.

And yes, I would probably change the counter top to a different color. Laminate tops are not that much money, and would totally change the appearance.


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## timkitchen (Apr 12, 2013)

Amazing pictures! First and foremost I would like to reveal that I like the way you design the room. Is this job done by you?

For home transformation, we should apply light colors on walls. It has one more advantage that it makes a figment on visitor’s imagination that the room is bigger. And you have done the same. Furthermore, you have coordinated the shade of curtain according to wall. It makes your room more stunning.


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## timkitchen (Apr 12, 2013)

Hello Michigan, I am happy to help you. You can easily remodel your living room. First you may choose a right combination of color for walls to give a great look. Ceiling color is good and would be suitable with each color according to your living room picture so you should not change this color and design. You may also use some items like: lighting, mirrors, photo frames, wall art to give a great look to your living room.


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## Jonathon C. (Mar 11, 2014)

Personally, I love wood, wooden furniture, doors and windows. Natural materials bring comfort to any room. Yes, they are quite expensive. However, today, you can choose from a variety of materials that imitate natural wood and don't cost a fortune.


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