All things {farmhouse} kitchen

There are two small DIY projects in the kitchen this week that I want to share with you. 🙂

Russ enjoys cooking outside (Big Green Egg is his other love) and we entertain and dine on the patio often when the weather allows.

The dresser stores his BBQ and smoking tools near the door and patio. The numbers will be helpful in reminding him where things are.

farmhouse kitchen

I painted our “microwave cart” dresser a pretty shade of dark distressed red and numbered the drawers. The wood tone shows through…

aged distressed red dresser

I also made a “Farmer’s Market” sign for the bulkhead above the kitchen sink and windows.

farmhouse kitchen

Farmhouse kitchen details:

farmhouse kitchen collage

  1. Cow canvas (wuslu.com)
  2. Area rug (OneKingsLane.com) – with DIY red detail
  3. DIY distressed Farmer’s Market sign (tutorial coming soon)
  4. DIY door clock
  5. Two teacher’s desks create a temporary island/eat in area
  6. DIY lazy Susan spice rack, DIY sliding ladder and antique chicken feeder cook book library 
  7. Numbered red/glazed dresser {microwave cart and storage}

(more links to painting kitchen cabinets, marble subway tile installation and more kitchen DIY at the DIY Show Off home tour)

And since the kitchen’s clean, I couldn’t help sharing some updated pictures:

desks as a kitchen island

Still on our DIY to-do list:

  • baseboard trim
  • stove/range back splash
  • a DIY taller kitchen island with storage and seating
  • work on the pot rack
  • pantry in another area of our home
  • framing a window
  • kitchen curtains

Kitchen when we bought the house:

Kitchen now:

farmhouse kitchen

From all angles…

DIY farmhouse kitchen

farmhouse kitchen

farmhouse kitchen

mail sorter, butler's pantry

farmhouse kitchen

farmhouse kitchen

farmhouse kitchen

farmhouse kitchen

DIY farmhouse kitchen

desks as a kitchen island

farmhouse kitchen

desk island

marble subway tile backsplash

eclectic kitchen

I’m entering the contest at WhisperWood Cottage!

Funky Junk's Sat Nite Special


DIY from The Space Between

I’d like to introduce you to Karah from

the space between

today. Karah lives in a dream location and invites us each into her home. Well, via her blog. Not literally. Because if it was a literal invite, we’d all be on the next plane and I don’t think she has room for everyone. Darn! 😉 Her blog posts make me smile and her creativity is an inspiration. Meet Karah:

Hello, hello DIY Showoff readers! I am really, totally kind of pinching myself right now.

OK, to let you know how much of a dork I am, I just typed ‘pinning’ instead of ‘pinching’. You know when you finally get the chance to meet someone you’ve been stalking admiring for a long time and you say “it’s nice to meet me” instead ”it’s nice to meet you”? Yeah, I just did that, in the privacy of my own home, but just can’t seem to keep it to myself. I’m a bit of an over-sharing, too honest for my own good, trip over my own words ALL THE TIME type o’ gal.

My name is Karah and I blog over at the space between. You know the space, that one between where you’ve been and where you’re going. It’s nice to meet me, er …. you. 😉

After being a homeowner and avid DIYer in the US for many years I found myself transplanted to a Caribbean island over 2 years ago. I know, I know … try not to hate pity me.

We absolutely LOVE it here. My biggest personal challenge was definitely shifting from homeowner back to renter. It took me a few years to find my DIY, home improvement groove in a home that is not my own.

But I turned my habit of collecting random beachness into a habit of decorating with said random beachness. Like these two extra large pieces of driftwood I hung in my kitchen and now call open shelving. It sounds very trendy really, open shelving does.

My little blog actually started with a post about a driftwood Christmas tree. I am quite infatuated with the stuff.

And, on this little island, there tends to be a constant supply of homes in some state of construction, providing an endless supply of pallets. I first made the pallet word art hung in the kitchen (seen in the picture above) and my new favorite project, the free, little storage crate I just made to house our canned goods.
I even stenciled the word CURACAO on the front. It’s kind of like a crate of goods headed to our island.

You might be thinking, ‘seriously, all of your canned goods fit in there?’. Yep, they do. I affectionately refer to our rental as a breadbox, and as that nickname insinuates, it’s itty bitty and I need to be pretty creative with storage ideas.

And … in addition to the endless pallet supply, I elicit many a strange look as I peruse through their roadside dumpsters. Not too long ago I came home with this guy.
And turned her into a handy message board to support my listing habit. You can read about all of the lists I’m dreaming of writing on my cork/chalk/dry erase/pin board here.

I even managed to make my own chalkboard paint because I knew I didn’t want it to be black. So many fun options now that I know I can make chalkboards in any color. Check out the how-tos here!

It has been so fun to have the opportunity to share just a few of my favorite projects using quirky things to try to make a home out of our breadbox of a house with you. A HUGE Thank You! to Roeshel for giving me the opportunity. And, an equally HUGE Thank you! to you, the readers, who have lasted to the end. 🙂

I appreciate you taking the time to learn a little bit about the small space I keep in the world wide web. You will also find homemade canvas silhouettes, number art and easy decor ideas if you have an opportunity to come by the space between. I hope to see you there soon.!

-Karah