Budget-Friendly Kitchen Updates From Expert Designers

Amy Bubier, AB Design Elements LLC:
1. Clean out the clutter, remove everything from the walls, counters, windows and on top of the cabinets so you can see the kitchen as a fresh clean slate.
2. Identify a design style that speaks to you. Do you respond to a minimalist modern interior space or a more layered, richly colored and accessorized space? Every good design begins with a plan and identifying your design goals is the first step.
3. Grab a measuring tape, a ruler and a piece of graph paper and draw an ‘as built’ floor plan. Measure the room and draw it to scale where 1/4-inch (one square on the graph paper) equals one foot. Draw in the cabinets and appliances. Now you’re ready to begin the planning process. Though your $200 budget obviously won’t cover a full remodel, you may find that the as built (and overlay sketches that you may want to do) will help to spark ideas for a new idea file. Maybe plan for a remodel for next year! Sometimes seeing your kitchen from a different perspective gives you new ideas.
4. Time to spend that $200 and you guessed it. Begin by painting the walls with a color that you’ve seen in one of those inspiration photos, and even consider painting the cabinets if they are old and drab.
5. Remove the old flooring, rent a concrete sander/grinder to prep the slab and use a soy-based concrete stain, like Soy-Crete, to give the concrete a non-toxic, easy-to-apply coating of sheer color.
6. Accessorize with a few well-proportioned, well-placed items to re-invigorate the room with a new style. Toss the old clutter and dusty faux plants!

Check out more of Amy's transitional design style on Designers' Portfolio.