Giving Your Kitchen a Facelift

If your kitchen is old, and in need of a make over, here are a few tips that can help you to spruce things up a bit, and not put a deep whole in your pocket.

Paint, Paint, Paint!

A fresh coat of paint can make even the most dingy room look good. If you already have a specific theme going in your kitchen that you want to keep, you can simply pick a paint color that will match your current decor. If your starting your decorating from scratch, you can let your imagination run wild! If your the type of person that likes to change things up often, when picking your basic decor such as paint, curtains, tile, etc. you should stick with neutral colors that can easily be made to match with other themes.

The most basic color of course, that will match anything is white. There are many different shades of white that you can choose from as well. From bright white to off white, any of these shades can be made to match your style. White makes a room look larger, brighter and cleaner. On the other hand, white also gets dirty easier and in my opinion doesn't have much of it's own personality. Even so, you can use white as your base color, and add bright colors through out the room to add your own style. Light shades of brown and tan, and pale yellows are also colors that can be easily adapted when changing your kitchen theme.

When choosing your paint, make sure that you choose a good quality paint. It can be tempting to buy a cheap paint, however if you buy a low quality paint you can actually end up spending more money in the long run, because you may end up needing more coats of paint. Preparation of your painting surface is extremely important. A good paint job is only as good as the surface your painting on. If you are painting over a dark colored paint or wood, it may be necessary to use a primer first. The primer helps to seal the surface, and can seriously cut down on the number of coats of paint you may need. Before priming however, check your surfaces. If you have pulled any nails out of the wall, you should fill these in with a putty and sand them until smooth. Any bumps, divets or holes will show up when you paint and can make the over all job look bad.