America's Ugliest Kitchens (and How They Became Beautiful)
See how these homeowners turned the (often hideous) kitchens they had into the kitchens of their dreams
Before
A '60s redo had nixed this kitchen's stylistic connection to the 1920s house.
After
The new great-room kitchen has lots of seating and open sightlines to neighboring rooms, as well as more than twice as many storage cabinets. Now the homeowners can monitor both their homemade Italian "gravy" and the kids' TV time from inside, and there's plenty of room for friends and extended family to gather. They capped the bay windows, richly stained cherry cabinets, and granite countertops with a detailed coffered ceiling. The result? A kitchen with 21st-century function tucked in a space with the finely crafted details of decades gone by. See more of this breathtaking transformation in Reviving a Tudor Revival-Style Kitchen.
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Before
Dingy vinyl floors, yellow laminate counters, and dark cabinets made this 1970s kitchen feel dated and gloomy.
After
The pro-style range by Bosch was on Craigslist for just $700, compared with $2,000 for a new one, and was still under warranty. A bigger score was the used 30-inch vent hood from Viking, which was just $100, versus $1,000 retail. The oak cabinets look like new after a few coats of oil-based paint in Soft Chamois by Benjamin Moore. What These Homeowners Saved. $3,500 on cabinets; $2,200 on range and hood. See more on this kitchen remodel in We Redid Our Kitchen for $6000.
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Before
Earlier upgrades brought in open shelves and white walls, and, later, a niche for the fridge and bamboo floors. But the place still needed some help.
After
Nothing revives an old room like an energetic new color scheme. In this 1940s ranch house in Laguna Beach, California, a previous remodel left behind a washed-out white kitchen, save for the sensational 1945 stove Sue inherited from her mother. The cabinets and counters stayed the same, but a carefully composed riot of colors makes the remodeled room as warm and welcoming as its 1940s stove. See more of this kitchen in Bold-Color Kitchen Makeover.
RELATED:Read This Before Your Remodel Your Kitchen
Before
Worn cabinets, pink-and-white laminate, and an acoustic-tile ceiling dated this kitchen. But, few well-priced nips, tucks, and fixes gave the dated cook space a new look and lots more function.
After
With the couple eager to shave costs while gaining function, style, and a home office, Dodson rejected a pricey apron sink, granite, and stainless steel for a drop-in basin, laminate, and basic white workhorse appliances. Molding gives the room a finished look-and hides signs of a former dropped ceiling. She replaced base cabinets to get needed drawer space but kept the uppers, simply adding new doors and hardware. For more ideas from this remodel see A Kitchen Renovation Adds Charm Using Smart Savings.
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Before
This old space had faded tile counters, vinyl floors, ceiling-lowering soffits...and no place to eat.
After
Ten long years passed before Kristin Sharpe and her husband, Mike, finally did something about their kitchen's bumpy tile countertops, crammed cabinets, and lack of gathering space. But as they pondered every possibility, from demolishing a wall in their Southern California ranch house to building an addition, they also refined their vision. The result: A more spacious feel, they enlarged a pass-through to the family room, where their twins, now 9, hang out; added a skylight; and restricted the palette to vanilla and chocolate-right down to the walnut floor. Light-reflecting glass tile and pendants as delicate as soap bubbles brighten the space. For more on this remodel see A Kitchen With the Same Size but Sunnier Spirit.
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