One of the last tasks at the bed and breakfast, is to finish painting the kitchen cabinets. There were built in place by an old time cabinet maker in 1982. The job is excellent and he was indeed a craftsman, though the materials were not top notch, only plywood and veneer. The oak was then varnished with a shiny finish which has been durable and lasting.
But the look is very dated and although I love real wood, I do not love real plywood. The ceiling at the bed and breakfast is pine, tongue and groove 4 inch boards, so there is plenty of real wood to be seen. The cabinets actually contrasted with the pine and were not a choice I would have made. So, I decided to paint them and antique them to give the kitchen a brand new look.
Technically, the cabinets should have been washed with TSP and rinsed, then lightly sanded to help the paint adhere since the finish was shiny. I did not do those steps because with the new look, some scratches and a bit of paint peeling is simply adding to the weathered and worn appearance. So, the paint is a light pink, which over the orangey oak will give a warmer colour without the yellow in it. I have done two coats and a coat of oil stain over the top of the paint. The oil stain does not really adhere to the paint either, but creates a very special appearance that is appealing. The bottom cabinets are already done, but today I spent hours trying to put the doors back on. One would think that two exact size doors would face each other opposing the knobs for one cabinet module. Yet, because these are hand made, I, for the life of me, could not make the doors work. They obviously came off the cabinets so do work and I will try again tomorrow.
I painted the hinges this time. For the lower cabinets, I took the hinges off, but I am running out of time and energy, so I left the doors on and painted over the hinges. They will look just fine. Tomorrow I will do a second coat and then the next day, do the oil stain. Depending on the weather, the oil stain can take almost a week to dry fully. That is another reason I did not remove the upper doors. A top cabinet from a buffet with hutch (the hutch) was also painted, stained and installed since there were few upper cabinets and not much storage for dishes in the kitchen. I will be using my hand made pottery dishes there now. The kitchen is painted a vibrant green, not quite lime, but close, and the dishes are all green hues, so they are perfect. They were at my own home prior to being installed in the renovated kitchen.
The faucet and sink were replaced as well. There was an inch of ice on the windows above the sink during the flood, and there was previous water damage already, so the unit was replaced. The last bit of work in the kitchen will be to 'paint' tile mosaic on the wall as the back splash. It is done with a one inch square sponge and various colours of paint, and lastly, it is coated with a clear matte varnish to seal the 'tile' and to waterproof that portion of the wall. The kitchen is painted with clay paint. Since the ingredients are clay, earth pigment and water, basically, the walls can stain with grease and will not wash off. By installing the fake tile and clear coat, the most likely areas to be splashed with grease and oils from cooking, will then be protected.
So, by the end of the week, the kitchen should be complete. I have been doing loads of dishes and putting them away already. The silver will have to be sorted and the pots and pans washed and put in easy access cupboards. The following week will be for tying up loose ends, getting the inspection done, reinstalling fire extinguishers and doing a final cleaning. Then for October 1st, I do believe Moose Hills Inn will be opened! Yay!
But the look is very dated and although I love real wood, I do not love real plywood. The ceiling at the bed and breakfast is pine, tongue and groove 4 inch boards, so there is plenty of real wood to be seen. The cabinets actually contrasted with the pine and were not a choice I would have made. So, I decided to paint them and antique them to give the kitchen a brand new look.
Technically, the cabinets should have been washed with TSP and rinsed, then lightly sanded to help the paint adhere since the finish was shiny. I did not do those steps because with the new look, some scratches and a bit of paint peeling is simply adding to the weathered and worn appearance. So, the paint is a light pink, which over the orangey oak will give a warmer colour without the yellow in it. I have done two coats and a coat of oil stain over the top of the paint. The oil stain does not really adhere to the paint either, but creates a very special appearance that is appealing. The bottom cabinets are already done, but today I spent hours trying to put the doors back on. One would think that two exact size doors would face each other opposing the knobs for one cabinet module. Yet, because these are hand made, I, for the life of me, could not make the doors work. They obviously came off the cabinets so do work and I will try again tomorrow.
I painted the hinges this time. For the lower cabinets, I took the hinges off, but I am running out of time and energy, so I left the doors on and painted over the hinges. They will look just fine. Tomorrow I will do a second coat and then the next day, do the oil stain. Depending on the weather, the oil stain can take almost a week to dry fully. That is another reason I did not remove the upper doors. A top cabinet from a buffet with hutch (the hutch) was also painted, stained and installed since there were few upper cabinets and not much storage for dishes in the kitchen. I will be using my hand made pottery dishes there now. The kitchen is painted a vibrant green, not quite lime, but close, and the dishes are all green hues, so they are perfect. They were at my own home prior to being installed in the renovated kitchen.
The faucet and sink were replaced as well. There was an inch of ice on the windows above the sink during the flood, and there was previous water damage already, so the unit was replaced. The last bit of work in the kitchen will be to 'paint' tile mosaic on the wall as the back splash. It is done with a one inch square sponge and various colours of paint, and lastly, it is coated with a clear matte varnish to seal the 'tile' and to waterproof that portion of the wall. The kitchen is painted with clay paint. Since the ingredients are clay, earth pigment and water, basically, the walls can stain with grease and will not wash off. By installing the fake tile and clear coat, the most likely areas to be splashed with grease and oils from cooking, will then be protected.
So, by the end of the week, the kitchen should be complete. I have been doing loads of dishes and putting them away already. The silver will have to be sorted and the pots and pans washed and put in easy access cupboards. The following week will be for tying up loose ends, getting the inspection done, reinstalling fire extinguishers and doing a final cleaning. Then for October 1st, I do believe Moose Hills Inn will be opened! Yay!
you can easily see the original upper cabinets and the newly finished lowers in this photo
these are the uppers that were painted today
Again, the contrast between the oak plywood upper and the painted and antiqued lower.
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