
photo credit alexhdphoto.com
The big day has finally arrived. My big kitchen reveal is here. This remodel has truly been a dream come true and everything went very smoothly and happened in a timely fashion. From start to finish, the entire remodel was completed in about 5 weeks, with exception of the oven, which was in a little bit of a backorder situation. But again, considering the timing of everything, we were extremely lucky to have it completed as quickly and efficiently as we did. I know you all have been waiting to see the space so I am just jumping straight into the before & after.


Honestly, I can’t even believe it is the same space. It feels like a completely different home. A huge reason why everything went so smoothly was in large part due to my beyond amazing Contractor, John Odahara with Kusaka Builders, who truly helped me make my vision come to life. (You can read more about my initial thoughts and the design process here.) John and his son are some of the kindest and nicest people I have ever met and to say we are happy with our final result is an understatement. There are so many horror stories out there about nightmare contractors and I truly feel like I hit the Jackpot with John. He was always open to changes and made them happen along the way. I can’t tell you enough about how he paid attention to every little detail. I have been sharing the remodel on Instagram and in my stories and created a highlight reel with everything. If you are local and have a project you are planning in the near or distant future, you need to give this man a call. You will not be disappointed. You can also follow him on Instagram here.
MY BIG KITCHEN REVEAL IS HERE

Without further ado, here is my new, bright, and airy coastal-inspired kitchen. I am in love! From the day we purchased this home 5 years ago, it was my dream to make over the kitchen and give it my own touch. I love the ocean and the beach and since we live so close to the water, I knew I wanted it to feel like a cozy beach retreat. I have been collecting inspiration for years and when it came time to actually do the remodel, I knew pretty much exactly what I wanted. My goal was and always has been for people to feel welcome and comfortable in my home, so I never want anything to feel too fancy so people have to worry about messing anything up. Also, since this is most likely not our forever home, we had a pretty tight budget for everything we wanted to accomplish and John really helped me decide where to splurge and where to save, with my goals in mind.
My Kitchen Cabinets & Countertops

I knew I wanted simple, elegant cabinets without too much fuss. I ended up choosing shaker-style cabinets. I knew I needed all new cabinets since my old ones were cheap, builder-grade laminate cabinets, so we wouldn’t be able to paint them or re-use them. A huge chunk of my budget went into building all new cabinets. I looked at a few options including Ikea, and a local cabinet store, but ended up going with John’s suggestion of having them custom build them for me in Pennsylvania. It turned out to be the most affordable option and the biggest bang for my buck. Who knew? The cabinets were built off-site and then installed later, which kept the mess to a minimum. Also, John donated my old cabinets to a church that could use them, cutting down on waste and doing a little bit of good.

Kitchen Sources: Pendants | Beach Art | Faucet | Sink | Hardware| Woven Tray | Soap Dispenser | Soap Tray | Brush
My husband was really good at letting me do what I wanted, but his one request was no white cabinets, which was my initial plan, so we went with this gorgeous, neutral grey color. I am so glad we did. It adds a nice touch and some dimension to the space. The hardware took me forever to choose. I was messing around with some amazon options and trying to match the golds, and it wasn’t really working out. My other initial choice seemed too modern and cold and it just didn’t feel quite right. I finally saw this hardware and knew instantly that it was the right choice. I absolutely love it. It adds just the right amount of warmth and traditional touch to the otherwise bright and light space.

Kitchen Sources: Faucet | Sink | Hardware| Woven Tray | Soap Dispenser | Soap Tray | Brush
The countertops were the other major splurge, taking up another huge chunk of my budget. I knew I wanted super low maintenance, but beautiful countertops. With teenagers in the house, I wanted something indestructible and not have to chase after people with a coaster for fear of stains. John said Quartz was really my only option. I needed 2 slabs to accommodate for the much larger island as well. I ordered a lot of things for this remodel online, but I want to stress the importance of choosing your countertop in person. You really need to feel it and see it and it is such a big part of the final products. I thought I knew exactly what I wanted and ended up changing my mind after seeing it in person. My kitchen is on the smaller side and the pattern chosen initially was too large for such a small space. Also, it had some gold in it, which I knew I didn’t want after seeing it. I ended up going with this one, Calacatta Mirragio Quartz, white quartz with some light grey pattern running through it. It was a perfect choice.

Kitchen Sources: Pendants | Beach Art | Counter Stools | Vase | Faucet | Sink | Soap Dispenser | Soap Tray | Brush
My Appliances
Christy and Rob at ADU appliances were so super helpful in helping me choose the appliances I needed. I really had an open mind as far as style, but I knew I wanted stainless. Again, I wanted good value for the money and a clean and simple look. A few things I knew were important to me were, that I wanted a gas range, a good vent hood, a quiet dishwasher, and an oven with an air fryer option.

Kitchen Sources: Pot Filler | Charcuterie Board | Pots | Hardware | Runner
They made all of my wishes come true and I absolutely love cooking in my new kitchen. I have since air-fried many chicken wings (my boys’ favorites) and will even attempt to air fry our turkey for Thanksgiving this year. I can even turn it on and off from anywhere with my phone. How cool is that? The custom vent hood is amazing and I couldn’t be happier with it.

The dishwasher is super quiet. It has many different features, including the option to wash only the top rack, and a few different washing and drying levels, making it super energy efficient. We use it a lot and run it every single day and it stores a ton of dishes for its size. It also has a top rack for utensils.

Kitchen Sources: Beach Art | Counter Stools | Vase | Candle | Faucet | Sink | Soap Dispenser | Soap Tray | Brush | Dish Towels |
Kitchen Island Details
When re-designing this space, I knew I wanted to maximize the kitchen island and make it as large as possible. We also decided to put the sink on the island, which is a choice I am happy with. It lets me see outside into our backyard and also chat with my kids while doing dishes or prepping food while they are sitting at the island.

Kitchen Sources: Beach Art | Counter Stools | Faucet | Sink | Soap Dispenser | Soap Tray | Brush | Dish Towels |
The garbage cans are to the left of the sink and the dishwasher is to the right and it is the ideal setup. Since my kitchen is so light and bright, I wanted to add some warmth and natural wood elements throughout and the stools and pendants are the perfect touches for that.

I initially wanted these really expensive stools, but they were on backorder and I needed something fast so I went with this way more budget-friendly option to tide me over, and I am so glad I did. My son pretty much-stained one of the cushions on his first go around, and I don’t even worry about it. I have since re-considered splurging on the stools because I truly don’t want to stress over ruining them.

My Open Shelving
I was initially undecided on whether or not I wanted open shelves. I loved the idea of them but didn’t want anything else to keep clean and tidy. I ended up having these 2 open shelves put into the corner and I love them.

The shelves are made out of reclaimed wood from John’s brother’s farm in Pennsylvania and they are gorgeous. They are purely decorative and I love changing things up and having fun decorating them.

My Floors
I knew from the get-go that re-doing my floors was going to be part of this project. I hated my old floors. They always looked dirty with footprints and I never felt that they were clean. I could vacuum 3x a day and still see dust. Again, with a dog in the mix now and rowdy teenagers coming in and out, I knew I wanted something durable and low maintenance. The floors were in great shape, so we just re-finished them. I initially thought I wanted them whitewashed, but ended up loving how they looked in their natural state and went with that. My floor guy, who incidentally is also a missionary and does floors to fund his mission trips, recommended a matte finish for durability and I am thrilled to pieces with how they came out. They are now super low maintenance and look clean all the time, no matter how long I go between vacuuming. It is fabulous. ( It will be our dirty little secret)

There you have it! I hope you love it as much as I do. I have been enjoying it every single day and it brings me so much happiness. I still need to complete some details and will share a whole bottom floor tour very soon, including the changes we made to my powder room and fireplace and some details we added to the main space. Let me know if you have any questions.
XO,

*This post contains affiliate links for your shopping convenience. A big thank you also to ADU Appliances for collaborating with me on the appliances used in this makeover.
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