Back in December, I mentioned on social media and several times in my weekly newsletter that we had started a kitchen makeover. That this makeover was all about how to update kitchen cabinets without replacing them AND how to repurpose an old hutch into a kitchen pantry and small island.

Then Christmas happened and Valentine crafting happened and well I completely forgot to share it. Until recently when some of you emailed and messaged me asking when I planned on sharing the kitchen update.

So sharing the evolution of our affordable kitchen refresh is long overdue and my apologies for not sharing it sooner. Especially considering we've already moved onto the bathroom.

An Affordable Kitchen Refresh

If you are a regular here then you'll remember last March during lockdown we decided to use our time stuck at home painting all the interior walls of our home. Of course, it didn't stop there and every room ended up getting a mini-makeover with a maximum budget of $400 per room.

If you missed them, you can catch up here on our Budget Home Improvements page. It includes the DIY home decor projects for each room as well.

We painted all the walls Behr Toasty Gray (N320-2) with accent features in the color Behr Mined Coal (PPU-18-18). Before we dive deep into the kitchen makeover, let's start from the beginning.

Our house is a modest raised bungalow (bi-level) built in the 1960s and the kitchen is quite small by today's standards. While I'd love nothing more than to completely gut and reconfigure this room, it isn't in the budget.

So instead we made the best of what we have with an affordable kitchen makeover by updating the existing oak cabinets, building a small pantry unit, and a small kitchen island.

But the inspiration for improving the footprint of our small kitchen came from this 1990s dining hutch.

I should mention that this is the second kitchen refresh since purchasing our home. The first budget-friendly makeover happened a few years ago. I loved the additional food storage, counter space, and spot to enjoy our morning coffee.

But there were some things I wasn't 100% happy with and so we addressed those in this last makeover. I am so pleased with the results and for the first time in twenty-three years - yeah you read that right - 20+ freaking long years, I finally like our kitchen!

Before we get into the nitty-gritty of the small kitchen transformation I should mention that we are self-taught DIYers and not trained professionals. The DIY projects shared below are based on our building knowledge only. However, if you are a do-it-yourselfer like us, you may find them helpful and inspiring for your home.

Almost all of the DIY projects shared here at Interior Frugalista have step-by-step tutorials so why not get your budget DIY on and subscribe. You can also follow us on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

So let's start from the very beginning. This is what our kitchen looked like before the first makeover. It felt like we were living inside a golden oak wood box.

And here is the kitchen after the first makeover in 2016. Much better, right?

Or so we thought...

Now, this is what the kitchen looks like after the recent makeover in December. I'll talk about what changes we made and why further down in the post.

This post contains affiliate links so you can see what products we used or recommend for these projects. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small commission from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

So you understand the evolution of our small kitchen, I'm going to break it up into three sections, starting with the small built-in pantry.

Small Pantry Makeover

A repurposed dining hutch turned small pantry makeover. We separated the top and bottom sections of our small dining hutch and repurposed the upper half into this custom built-in pantry.

With so few kitchen cabinets, food storage was very limited in our tiny kitchen. By adding this narrow pantry unit on the back wall, it increased storage substantially while also becoming a focal point in the kitchen. It was stained dark walnut to match the lower kitchen cabinets.

In 2019, I decided it needed a farmhouse kitchen pantry makeover by removing the original stained glass and replacing it with chicken wire. I also distressed the dark stained wood.

While I didn't regret replacing the dated original glass in the top doors, I did regret replacing them with chicken wire. No surprise, the constant dusting drove me crazy!

We also decided the dark walnut was too heavy for our small kitchen and wanted to lighten and brighten the small space.

What We Did Differently

1. Removed the chicken wire and replaced it with clear glass.
2. Painted the pantry white to match the upper kitchen cabinets. You'll see why painting it white makes sense when we move to the other changes made in the room.
3. Replaced the handpainted ceramic knobs with clear glass and the bronze pulls with chrome.
4. The back of the upper section is painted Mined Coal, the same dark gray accent color used in every room throughout the house.

Kitchen Island Makeover

A repurposed dining hutch turned small kitchen island makeover. The downside to having few lower cabinets is that we were lacking counter space for food prep.

Also, a small kitchen table or banquette made the room feel crowded. Our solution for both of these problems was to repurpose the lower half of our dining hutch into a small kitchen island.

To modify it we removed the original wood skirting along the bottom and added small feet. Then we installed a small wine fridge on the end and stained the island dark walnut to match the pantry unit.

We also made the island table height because I'm vertically challenged and thought it would be more comfortable for food prep.

But after living with the kitchen island for a few years there were a few flaws with our design.

1. The lower height ended up not being comfortable for food prep and it was too low for the swivel bar stools.
2. The feet were too short for a vacuum to go underneath and so dust and crumbs got trapped under there.
3. The small wine fridge would overheat from not having proper ventilation plus it was too small for these two wine lovers.
4. The island felt disjointed simply butted against the pantry.

We purchased a much larger wine fridge and installed it on the kitchen side of the island, properly vented this time.

It is recommended that built-in wine fridges have front ventilation but the price tag for those models is double what we were willing to pay. So we improvised by adding ventilation both on the back of the island and underneath.

While some may find the decorative metal panel on the back of the island unflattering it was the compromise we were willing to make in order to purchase a less expensive wine fridge. Ideally, a front ventilated model is the ultimate option if you're willing to pay the price.

What We Did Differently

The first thing we did was remove the feet and raise the island to counter height. To do that we built a 2 x 4 kicker plate frame on the bottom.

We also increased the depth of the island by adding three inches on the back to accommodate the larger wine fridge.

1. All the doors were removed for open shelving for easy access to mixing bowls and such.
2. The drawer fronts were changed with ones found at Habitat reStore for $8.
3. Instead of increasing the size of the second drawer to fit right to the end for a more balanced look, we filled the empty void by increasing the size of the drawer front instead.

1. The paintable beadboard wallpaper was replaced with wood tongue and groove beadboard and painted white to match the pantry.
2. The knobs were replaced with clear glass to match the pantry.
3. The island corbels were moved closer to the edge rather than inset-like before.
4. We added a small spacer between the island and the hutch so they have a more unified custom built-in look.
5. The base of both the island and pantry are trimmed as one built-in.
6. Last but not least, we raised the height of the light fixture to 30-inches above the island so it doesn't obstruct the view.

See the original China Cabinet Hack post for more photos of the island and hutch build.

How To Update Kitchen Cabinets Without Replacing Them

How to update golden oak kitchen cabinets without replacing them. You can see in the original kitchen makeover we painted the upper cabinets white and stained the lower cabinets dark walnut. In that makeover I included step-by-step tips for painting cabinets for a lasting finish and I've included a link further down.

We grew tired of the high contrast two-toned look and like the island and pantry, we unified the upper and lower cabinets by painting them white.

What we hadn't intended was having to repaint the white upper cabinets again.

Why? Because after we hung the freshly painted lower cabinets, there was a noticeable difference in color from the uppers. Despite painting them the exact same color, the water-based clear coat had yellowed over time.

Pro-Tip

When painting cabinets white, make sure you use a non-yellowing diamond wood finish. We used Varathane Indoor Diamond Wood Finish in satin.

What We Did Differently

1. On the lower cabinets, we removed the doors and drawer fronts and sanded them back to the natural wood with this awesome compact mouse sander.
2. Then they were brushed with this stain-blocking primer.
3. We used a high-density foam roller and two coats of Behr Premium Plus Ultra Stain-Blocking Paint & Primer In One paint in the color Ultra Pure White (1750).
4. On the upper cabinets, we removed the center panels on the two corner cabinet doors and replaced them with glass. I didn't let those routered cutouts go to waste and made these Repurposed DIY Cabinet Door Signs for the holidays.
5. We also painted the back of both corner cabinets the same dark grey accent color as the pantry.
6. The bronze handles were replaced with chrome and unified throughout the kitchen.

Tips For Painting Cabinets For A Lasting Finish

For more detailed step-by-step tips on how to paint kitchen cabinets for a lasting finish, visit our original kitchen makeover post.

For the fun of it, let's take another look at the original golden oak box we lived with for far too many years.

And how the cabinets look now refreshed in white.

We are so much happier with our lighter and much brighter kitchen now. This makeover was all about getting the best look for our small 1960s kitchen on a small budget when replacing cabinets is not an option.

Exactly one year after starting the first room makeover, we are finishing the last. We gut our main floor bathroom but the budget for this room makeover far exceeds $400 like the others. You can see how we completed an $8K bathroom renovation for under $4K by doing it ourselves.

Thanks for stopping by the Interior Frugalista today! I hope you found some inspiration with our budget kitchen makeover adventure. If you have any questions, please leave them in the comment section below or the Contact Me tab at the top to drop me an email. I love hearing from you!

If you enjoyed this small kitchen makeover, I'd be so thankful if you shared it with a friend and pinned it to your Small Kitchen Ideas or Budget-Friendly Room Makeovers board on Pinterest.

I share my projects at these inspiring link parties.