Classic White Kitchen Remodel

I’m thrilled to get to share our classic white kitchen remodel with you! This kitchen was certainly a dream come true for us! Get comfy and follow along as we dive into all the details!

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I feel like I should give a little background since we’re all new around here. We purchased our home back in 2009 while I was expecting our first child. The house had a lovely kitchen with creamy white cabinets, black countertops, stainless steel appliances and hardwood floors. We were thrilled! However, after several years + the addition of another child, we realized that the layout wasn’t functioning as well as it could for us. We were forever bumping into each other, trying to work around the awkward butcher block island. Our old home had a peninsula and I never realized how much I would miss not having open counter space. That, combined with the fact that the finish on our cabinets was falling apart, led us to the decision to remodel.

It was a very long process! I had no idea how much work and time goes into the quoting and design phases. Unfortunately, we had a last minute issue with our original contractor just a few weeks before demo was set to begin. So we kicked it back into high gear to find a designer and contractor that could get the ball rolling. Thankfully, we ended up with a great team and we’re so happy with our classic white kitchen remodel.

Before

Please excuse the poor quality of this picture – it was the only before shot I had!

After

Isn’t the change incredible? Going with a classic white kitchen allowed for the light and airy space I had always dreamed about!

Cabinetry and Hardware

  We decided on a classic white Shaker style cabinet with a small twist – there is a small beveled edge on the inside to give it a little extra depth. I agonized for a long time about what type of cabinet to get. With all of the issues we had with the paint peeling off our old cabinets, I was really concerned about seeing paint lines in the joints on traditional wood cabinet doors. It’s something that you really just can’t avoid with a solid wood product since it expands and contracts so much. For many people, it isn’t an issue but I knew that it would make me crazy.

In the end, we actually ended up purchasing an MDF door from Conestoga Cabinets. I’m thrilled with the finish on our cabinets! They are smooth and while they don’t have a glossy finish, they do have a slight sheen to them that I love plus the added bonus of not having to worry about joint lines.

Our vent hood is a bit more traditional. We had the choice between this design and a flat front. In the end I went with this one, but I think if I had a do-over, I would choose the other version. I certainly still like this one though. Hindsight in a kitchen remodel really is 20/20!

I really wanted to do a wide, white oak plank floor but new flooring was just not in our budget. Instead, we had our floors sanded and sealed with a clear finish. It was a much better choice for this space than the darker color we previously had.

Hardware

This one was a no-brainer. For the hardware, I knew exactly what I wanted: brass drawer pulls and knobs from Lew’s Hardware. Simple and traditional – a perfect pop for this classic white kitchen remodel!

Cake stand | Canister | Wood cookbook stand | Round cutting board | Salt Mill |Pepper Mill   | Wood platter | Coffee maker | Brass drawer pulls |

Fixtures & Backsplash

Choosing the fixtures and backsplash was the easy part of this classic white kitchen remodel. I had been saving products and images on my phone for quite some time so it was just a matter of coordinating what lights paired well with the backsplash, sink and faucet.

The backsplash is a simple, iridescent hexagon that has a mother-of-pearl sheen to it, perfect for the beachy, coastal look we were trying to achieve. I won’t lie, there was a lot of drama in getting it installed properly but in the end, it looks beautiful. The sink is a Blanco granite double basin (anthracite color) and I couldn’t be more thrilled with it! It is virtually indestructible and I am really hard on my sinks. It hides dirt well and has a beautiful, smooth finish that has a small variation in color. I absolutely could not recommend it more.

Oh, the faucet! It’s so pretty! We chose the Delta Cassidy in polished nickel. The polished nickel color looks like they took gold and silver and swirled them together. It appears pretty silvery in these photos but I swear, it has the loveliest hint of gold to it in person. We opted to not do a soap pump and instead installed a single, simple air button for the garbage disposal that matches the faucet.

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Countertops

Let’s talk countertops! We looked at granite but we really did just want a simple white countertop and it can be difficult to find that in granite (depending on the stone yard). Marble was definitely not an option for this classic white kitchen remodel. I adore how it looks but we use the heck out of our kitchen and I just did not want to deal with the maintenance issues. Some people are perfectly fine with the staining and etching that can happen but I just wouldn’t be happy with seeing those everyday. Totally a personal choice – I love looking at it in other people’s kitchens!

We ended up choosing a Zodiaq Quartz in Neve for the countertops. It’s the perfect blend of a white background and veining that can look grey or blue, depending on the light. I will note, there is a pretty common misconception that quartz counters can’t stain. Guess what? I proved that wrong really quickly, when I accidentally left a sheet pan out to dry overnight and it left rust stains right on the middle of our peninsula. It was a total panic moment, you guys! Thankfully, a very light coating of Soft Scrub got most of it out but I won’t be making that mistake again.

Lighting

I adore the three different lights that we chose. I think they all really helped pull together this white classic kitchen remodel! The pendant over the sink is the Suzanne Kasler Morris lantern in gilded iron. It looks much darker online but it’s a true gold color in person. All the heart eyes for that one.

Our peninsula pendants were a great find at under $40 each! They are a lovely clear glass with a gold band around the bottom. And last but most definitely not least, is our dining table chandelier. The capiz scalloped chandelier from Serena and Lily is just stunning in our kitchen. It really helped tie in the beachy, coastal vibe that we were looking for.

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Capiz scalloped chandelier | Morris pendant | Gold rimmed pendants | Delta Shield Spray faucet | Blanco sink | Lemon soap | Striped dishtowels | White canisters |  | Plant

Floating Shelves

Rather than adding another upper cabinet in this area of the kitchen, our designer asked how I would feel about adding in open shelving. I couldn’t say yes fast enough! The shelving is useful to be able decorate for any season or occasion. It really adds to the open feeling of the peninsula area which was a must-have for me.

Paint

All of the walls in the kitchen are painted Sherwin Williams Crushed Ice. My designer nailed it on this color. I love it so much I want to use it in the rest of our house! It’s the perfect grey  – not too purple or blue.

Gold rimmed glasses | Recycled glass balls | Pink bowl | Wood beads |

Pantry Cabinets

If you go back to my before photo of our kitchen, you can see that we used to have both upper and lower cabinetry in this area. The lower part had a wine rack and it was awful! I couldn’t ever get it clean and it just got more and more beat up as the years went on. The upper cabinets were pretty with glass drawer fronts but it also had a plate rack. Normally, that looks nice, except ours was installed in such a way that the slots at the end of it were smaller than those in the front. I could never find a matching set of plates that fit in it! It also had a set of very small drawers that basically turned out to be complete junk storage.
I was thrilled when our designer recommended floor to ceiling pantry cabinets. Our old walk-in pantry is actually down the hall from the kitchen and I love having plenty of storage right at my fingertips. The cabinets are large and hold a lot, but at the same time, they aren’t so massive that I can fill it up with a bunch of stuff we don’t really need or use.

Our hardware for the lower cabinets are the same Lew’s Hardware pulls as the rest of the kitchen. We wanted to do something a little different on the uppers so I chose these Anthropologie blue and white knobs. They also have a slight bit of gold so they really blend in well with the rest of the classic white kitchen remodel.

Brass bar pulls | Blue and white knobs

Dining Area

Last but certainly not least, is the dining area. It’s a pretty small space and it came together fairly easily. We have a under counter bar refrigerator next to the bar stools, so we opted for just two of them. (2 kids + 2 barstools = perfect). We did buy a third that we store elsewhere in case we ever need it while guests are over or if one gets ruined somehow.

Table, Chairs and Barstools

I was so pleased with these barstools when they arrived. They have a nice, thick padding and while they are lightweight, they feel substantial. They got bonus points in my book the day that my son dumped a chocolate smoothie all over one of them and it cleaned right up with no stains!

Our kitchen table, chairs and rug turned out to be a perfect fit. We needed to find an oval pedestal table that was small enough to fit in the space but sturdy enough to withstand our family. The Avalon dining table from Crate and Barrel was a great choice! The chairs are the Ely cane back side chair from Pottery Barn (our Seadrift color is available in stores only) and I love them! They are heavy and sturdy and add to that beachy, coastal look we were going for. Finally, to pull it all together, we have a simple jute rug from Wayfair. It hides A LOT of crumbs and stains which was essential in this household.

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If you’ve made it this far, thanks for hanging in there with me! I really wanted to get into the details of this classic white kitchen remodel. Have a question about my kitchen? Send me an email – I’d love to hear from you!

I’d love it if you’d follow me on my social media channels for more inspiration. Thanks for visiting Newport Lane!

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