Saturday, December 31, 2016

Homestead Experiment-No Money Pantry Makeover

Happy Happy New Year's Eve!! Before I write more, let me just wish all of my dear friends and family a wonderful weekend and prayers for a peaceful New Year! (Rabbit Trail: As I get older, I am not praying as much for prosperity or improved looks, but peace! It is amazing how our priorities change with age and adult life. haha!)

Okay, so here is the summary. I know, if you're at all like me, you're not going to even read this but scroll straight to the pictures. So, I will keep it short with my trademark bullet summary:

*Did not like the look of our cave/pantry.
* We knew that we could paint the panelling when we bought it, but have been waiting for a good time to unpack our pantry into our tiny cottage without too much disruption.
*Didn't get to it do it this summer with a little Septic Saga we were dealing with.
*Christmas break! Time is right, but off-season for our biz which means money is tight.
*Idea: Could we do this without spending ANY money at all? Not a dime?  Let's try!

BEFORE Shots: Coffee Counter

On Christmas Day, we began picking at the white Contac paper to see what was hidden underneath. All along, I had thought it was an MDF slab or something equally unusual, and planned to build a wood counter top. What we found was a wonderful surprise!


It was a beautiful piece of ply with cedar trim! All it needed was to be finished. Thankfully I had plenty of leftover stain and Spar Urethane from various projects to keep my $0 budget! 

And now the rest of the pantry. The pictures speak for themselves; dark and hard to organize.




And now the AFTER pictures! Drum roll please!



 I was extremely tempted to go to Joann's and buy some black buffalo-check fabric for this curtain. But thankfully, I found this blue gingham which works well. It is a little more 'vintage farmhouse' than the trendy 'modern farmhouse', but it goes well with the rest of the decor.

And, are you curious what that little blue cabinet with the wall paper patch on the right is? It is an old sewing cabinet that I scored awhile back that I have been using as a trash cabinet. It hides our trash can, and more importantly, keeps the dog out of it! It perfectly fits out plastic can, and the recycling can snugs in right next to it as if it is a custom job. Bonus-the front of the cabinet swings open like a door, so it is simple to slide the can in and out to dump it. I appreciate it greatly!

 You can't really see it here, but there is about an 8 inch gap between the fridge and the cabinet on the right. Before canning season, I am planning to make a rolling shelf that will hold my mason jar treasures.
 These organizers were left by the previous owners, but hung in really inconvenient spots. I moved them over to this blank wall, and it flows well. 


 Originally I wanted to paint this room white, but since it is the back entrance to the house, we thought white would not be such a good idea with traffic. So, I had a couple of gallons of 'Orchard Hills' green left in the bucket from our living room transformation this summer, and decided to go with that. I am so thankful that we did! Now, it flows so nicely from the main space, and since you can see in the doorway from the rest of the room, it just looks like an extension of the kitchen and makes the whole room feel so much larger! Win!

To wrap up, I call this experiment a HUGE success! We love the room in its light airy-ness, and in spite of the work and late nights painting, it works so much better for our family.  I am so grateful that we had everything on hand to make it happen. It is such a gift and blessing to my homemaking heart!

Again, Happy New Year to you all, and thank you for standing by us during our 2016 rollercoaster!

Blessings,
Hillary At Home


5 comments:

  1. What a great way to start the new year; organized, fresh and clean. You're amazing Hillary. Jeanny

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    1. I don't know about amazing, maybe just desperate? ;) Happy New Year to one of the strongest women I know!

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  2. It looks sooooo lovely!!! Good job!

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  3. It looks amazing and you met your goal too!

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