I am often asked for advice on how to update kitchens on a budget or without too much work and with this kitchen we pulled out all the tricks. It is the kitchen of Bri Emery of Design Love Fest, we gave her kitchen a major upgrade with almost no heavy lifting and I’m here to tell you all the secrets.

First thing first, we got pretty lucky… when Bri and I met to chat about what she wanted to do in her kitchen, the first thing I checked was who made her existing cabinets and we both celebrated when we found out it was already an Ikea kitchen. The reason for the big celebration was because that meant we could use the SemiHandmade doors and drawer fronts that I designed without having to change out any of her cabinet boxes (which also meant we didn’t have to touch the beautiful marble countertops either).  All we had to do was swap out the Ikea doors and drawer fronts for the SemiHandmade ones for a different look. It really is the ultimate Ikea hack.

When Bri bought the house it had just undergone a complete renovation. The finishes were well chosen for a flip so while they might not have had a ton of personality, the kitchen wasn’t offensive in anyway. There was already the great marble countertops (remember how when I did her dining room we added an overhang behind the range so we could add a seating area with stools?) but when paired with white semi-gloss flat cabinets, white shiny subway tile, and brushed nickel/stainless hardware, overall the space was pretty cookie cutter. It didn’t reflect the personality or style that Bri is known for.

Another simple way of updating a kitchen that we’ve all heard 100 times, but if you haven’t tried you will be surprised as to just how much it works, is switching out the cabinet hardware. The silver ones she had were nice and modern but by using a more unique shape and color, the whole space fees more bespoke. We used the hardware I designed for Park Studio in the half moon, and the ottawa.

Next was where things did get a little construction dirty but for a full kitchen update it was pretty minimal and only took a couple days (like 3!). We had her backsplash demolished and re-tiled with this stunning Tabarka Studio tile. It is a cement tile with a brass inlay and after mulling over the backsplash tile for months, we saw this one and knew it was it. I then created a more unexpected pattern using them vertically on one half and horizontally on the other half, having the pattern meet in the middle on the diagonal.

And finally, in order to utilize some vertical wasted space, we added a SemiHandmade floating shelf above a bank of cabinets to give her some extra surface area for storage and utility items.

If all that is still too much for your budget or time commitment and you are desperate for a change in the kitchen… lay down a new rug, and pick some fresh flowers for an instant kitchen pick me up.

Shop the look:
Cabinet Doors by Sarah Sherman Samuel for SemiHandmade, On Ikea Cabinets // Hardware by Sarah Sherman Samuel for Park Studio // Tile by Tabarka Studio // Stools from All Modern // Glass Storage Canisters  // Mortar and Pestle by Sheldon Ceramics 
Pink vase by Lux Eros // Cutting Board

Images by Tessa Neustadt

Here’s a look at a couple side by side before and afters.

This is facing the opposite direction but you get the idea…

And let’s not forget about what we did in the dining room right next door…

Read all about the dining room here. 

And her back yard patio, here.