
From a Million-Dollar Home to Yours!
How the Spence family updated their kitchen with this gorgeous set of gently-used, high-end knotty alder cabinets. Pandi Spence has remodeled four kitchens (and counting!)
By going off a 45-degree angle at the corner, you give yourself a lot of options. You could install just about any 18-inch cabinet with a drawer base at this angle. Another idea would be to put in just a cabinet door with open space behind it. How you fill that space is then up to you! If you want to go bigger, use the corner as your pantry. Either add a pantry cabinet or frame in a small room with a door for a walk-in option. We’ve also seen customers use this part of the kitchen for a corner cooktop, range, or oven/microwave combo.
Using a blind corner cabinet is a great way to utilize that corner space without the need for another cabinet front. The term “blind” refers to the fact that one side of the cabinet is hidden from view, while it’s still able to be accessed from one of the cabinet fronts at the corner. All you need to achieve this is a cabinet base with two doors or two doors and two drawers.
Blind corner organizers, such as the one in the photo below, are very popular and can be purchased online as well at your local big box stores. They come in various styles such as swing out, pullout, and even soft close sliding that attaches to the door!
Another option, if you don’t have the means to make a blind cabinet or just don’t care too much about utilizing that corner space, is to just leave it as “dead” space. Looking at the photo above, you can see that it’s not even noticeable. Just use a piece of filler, to give the cabinet at the corner some separation, and you’re good to go!
Any of your small spaces can easily be filled by a piece of filler. All you need to do is go to your nearest Home Depot or local hardware store and find a section of wood and match it to your cabinets. You may have to bring in a piece so that an employee can match wood type and color. Then all that’s left is to install it.
If you’d like to go a step further, a spice rack is a great addition and can be done very simply. To accomplish this you just need to find the spice rack you want. A quick Google or Amazon search will pull up all kinds of cool shelving options and builtin organizers for this space. (Try searching the brand Rev-A-Shelf!). After you’ve found the shelf or rack that you want, then you can just attach the filler piece (that you bought and finished in our last step) to the front.
Some other options could be something like adding some shelves for wine bottle storage or even just filling the space with a rolling cart for storage or, as you can see in the photo below, a coffee and tea station. There really isn’t a limit (other than size) to what you can do with the space. That really is the beauty of remodeling a kitchen with used kitchen cabinets. It forces you to be creative, which means the end product may include some really cool features that you wouldn’t have even thought to include otherwise, and It’s these little details that result in a space that is uniquely you.
One of the easiest ways to fill in gaps caused by missing upper cabinets is to use open shelving. This solution isn’t only practical but also very trendy right now. Although you could paint or stain to match, open shelving also looks very good when it works as an accent. That could be using a natural look wood with a live edge, metal, or even glass (which creates this really cool floating dish effect)! You could also change how they’re mounted, as you can see in the photos below, floating or suspended.
If you want to avoid building cabinets that exactly match the rest of your kitchen, a gorgeous option is to use glass or lattice-style doors. The idea here is that it’s not hard to get an upper box that serves it’s purpose and matches the rest, and by using a glass insert cabinet door you can bypass the need to match cabinet doors, which can be very difficult!
As always, you can never go wrong with a well placed wine rack, which is easily made with some wood planks, but you could also add plate rack. These could be made to match or presented as an accent to the rest of your kitchen design.
We think it’s pretty neat how this kitchen island base incorporates upper cabinets that have been flipped upside down!
30inch tall uppers create a regular height island. Taller uppers could be used for a raised bar seating portion. The only caveat with this, as you may have noticed, is that upper cabinets are usually 12″ deep and base cabinets are 24″ deep. The best place to use uppers in this way would be in a place like the back of an island, where it doesn’t matter if the cabinets are a little more shallow.
At the very least you can use the cabinet fronts from the uppers and attach them to a deeper box, which is a lot more affordable then ordering a whole new custom cabinet to fit.
Instead of adding more cabinets, how about a beverage fridge, an ice maker, a second dishwasher, or a wine fridge? These options can be fun and are generally more cost effective than purchasing a custom made cabinet. The appliances all come in a variety of widths, some even as narrow as 6″, which means you’re bound to find something that’ll fit the space your dealing with. Rolling the mouse over the photos will reveal the widths they come in.
If you’re wanting to differentiate some of the open shelving in your kitchen, add your own storage such as a wicker or wire basket! They can both be bought at any Walmart or Target, or you may even have a couple of your own that you can use!
Your cabinets do not have to be all the same color. In fact, two-tone kitchens are stunning! We’ve even seen examples where the homeowner incorporated not only two, but three or four colors throughout their cabinets, shelves, and island. Contrast isn’t only limited to colors either. You could contrast styles such as modern and rustic, distressed and polished, or traditional and contemporary.
Island don’t have to be overly complicated or consist of a large amount of cabinets. The most important part of the island is going to be the countertop, so really your goal here is just supporting that piece section of countertop. This can be done easily with as few as one or two cabinets. As you can see in the photos below there are a couple ways to do this. The island top could fit the cabinets exact, such as the photo on the right, or the top could extend out further and be supported by columns, like you see in the left photo.
If you do want to install crown molding though, it’s as easy as going to your nearest hardware store or lumber yard and getting the necessary crown molding, boards, or trim pieces. Then painting or staining and installing them.
Rather than finishing their toe kick boards, some of our customers choose to overlay it with a rubber cove base, such as you see below. These come in different colors and provide homeowners with an option that resists a lot of damage.
If you’re feeling really creative, you could even turn your toe kicks into more storage space, like you see in the photo to the left.
For the purposes of this demo, I’m going to use the Marilyn Montana kitchen pictured here. This gorgeous knotty alder softclose kitchen comes with a whopping 40 cabinets and 3 appliances, so that gives us lots of flexibility
(Red lines show the walls, while black lines show where cabinets are placed)
We have two customers, John and Jane, who are interested in this kitchen and want to see if it will work in their space. Their kitchen layouts are quite different from the original, but let’s see how this works out. Remember, cabinets are all different sizes, so you can put them together in almost countless different configurations.
Now here are a couple photos showing how we were able to fill those gaps and complete the design.
On the island, we just had to create a matching pillar and get some paneling for the back. There’s a decent chance the paneling could be obtained from the existing trim pieces, but if not we just need to take a piece of the cabinetry into our local paint store and have them match the stain for us, so that we can apply that stain to whatever paneling pieces we purchase. We would also use that stain on the unfinished pillar we found.
The second issue that needs to be addressed is the right corner.
Now here are a couple photos showing how we were able to fill those gaps and complete the design. John’s kitchen is Ushaped, as many of our customers’ are, but not many of our million-dollar home kitchens have multiple corners, so that often requires us to be a bit creative. In this case, we just added some trim pieces (either from extra pieces in the set or by purchasing and staining pieces, as mentioned above), leaving some dead space in the corners that isn’t visible from the outside.
If you really don’t want any corner dead space, there are other things that can be done, such as making a blind corner cabinet from a two door upper.
From the pictures above, you can also see that we created an open shelving cabinet to fill in the space to the left of the fridge.
Again, we can easily get matching stain (or paint if applicable) from our local paint store, so creating something like this isn’t too difficult. I would strongly recommend doing something like this instead of going to the trouble of trying to order an additional cabinet from the manufacturer.
Notice how we were able to turn the wine rack and add a glass rack underneath to make it work for this space.
Plus, we also took some extra cabinets and created a sideboard buffet piece to go in the living area.
Just as an example, see how we were able to utilize these cabinets in a completely different kitchen layout, while still having plenty left over to finish out a nice laundry room and master bath.
Step 1: Clean the Surface
Before touching up your kitchen cabinets, make sure the surface is clean and free of dirt and grease. Use a mild soap and water solution to clean the area, and then let it dry completely.
Step 2: Choose the Right Color
When selecting a stain pen or wax stick, it’s important to choose the right color to match your cabinets. If you’re unsure of the exact color, take a small sample of your cabinets to your local home improvement store for a color match.
Step 3: Apply the Touch Up Material
Once you have the right color, it’s time to start touching up your cabinets. If you’re using a stain pen, shake it well and then test it on a hidden area of your cabinets to make sure it’s the right color. Apply the stain pen to the scratched or dented area, and then wipe away any excess with a clean cloth. If you’re using a wax stick, rub it across the grain of the damaged area to force the wax into the void. Most wax pens come with a small, plastic spatula. Use it (or something equally as soft to avoid further damage) to rid the area of any excess wax. Stain pens are going to be more applicable to smaller, surface scuffs, whereas wax sticks will work better to fill in deeper gouges.
Step 4: Blend the Touch Up Material
After applying the touch up material, use a clean cloth to blend it in with the surrounding surface. Make sure to use a gentle touch, as you don’t want to create any new scratches or marks. If you’re using a wax stick, sometimes it’s beneficial to apply a small amount of wax to your cloth and blend that into your repair. In some cases this is the further you need to go in your repair process, but if you’d like to learn more about sealing your repair then continue below.
Step 5: Apply a Finish Coat
Once you’re satisfied with the touch up, it’s time to apply a finish coat. Though it’s not mandatory, applying a finish can help you attain the gloss you seek, help seal the repair from moisture, and can also help keep dust and dirt from sticking to your newly repaired area. If you used a stain pen, a finish coat isn’t necessary and could actually make your repair more noticeable than you want it to be. If you used a wax stick, simply buff the surface with a clean cloth to create a smooth finish, and then you can use an oil based polyurethane spray to seal it.
Step 6: Enjoy Your Refreshed Kitchen Cabinets
With your kitchen cabinets looking as good as new, you can sit back and enjoy your refreshed kitchen. Remember to keep your cabinets clean and protected with regular cleaning and maintenance to ensure they stay looking their best for years to come.
In conclusion, touching up used kitchen cabinets with stain pens and wax sticks is a quick and easy way to refresh the look of your kitchen. By following these simple steps, you’ll be able to touch up any scratches or dents and keep your kitchen cabinets looking their best.
The purpose of the corner brace is to retain the shape of the corner. Oftentimes the corner brace of a cabinet box becomes damaged during the uninstall process, specifically the countertop removal process. It’s a simple and cheap fix that can be resolved in a few ways.
If you notice the frame has become detached…
If the hinge itself breaks then it just needs to be replaced. You can buy new hinges here: Cabinet Hinges | The Home Depot. For loose hinges, check out our tips below.
Start by unscrewing the loose hinge to see the extent of the damage. Generally after much use, the screw holes securing the hinge to the cabinet box can become worn out, which in turn causes the screw to spin or just not fit as snuggly.
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