This feeling that the kitchen is the heart of the home is especially true for me as a recipe developer, where the kitchen is my workspace. and I was feeding my family. For six years I cooked in a small, poorly designed space with a barely functioning stove and stained original cabinets. And my time in that kitchen reinforced my belief that cooking doesn't have to take place in the kitchen. nice When the chance finally came three years ago to renovate my kitchen so I could prepare delicious meals, I considered every nook and cranny, fixture and finish. I am really happy with the results of our kitchen renovation, but like any big project, there are always some small changes. There's one thing I'd do over again: paint the cabinets dark navy..
Most of the cabinets in my kitchen are a light gray shade and are in very good condition. They wipe clean of the grease, water stains, and spills that inevitably come with daily cooking. There are no visible dents, scratches, or chips in the finish, despite opening and closing the doors and drawers dozens of times each day.
The same can't be said for the navy blue cabinets in my kitchen island. The island is where I prepare breakfast for my two grade-school-aged kids who sit on bar stools. It's where I try out all the recipes I write for The Kitchn, and where I slice frozen pizza and scoop ice cream into bowls when I'm too tired in the kitchen. The navy island cabinets are constantly in use and with absolutely no consideration for kindness. As a result, it's painfully obvious to visitors which drawers get the most use.
The first thing I noticed was that the paint was peeling around the edges of the pull-out trash can. After I noticed that flaw, I started to notice peeling paint all over the island, including the knife drawer and the bottom corners where the vacuum rests and where shoes rest. What made the island's peeling paint even more noticeable was the contrast between the dark navy blue finish and the lighter wood underneath.
Fixing this would require touching it up with a color-matching paint job and installing a protective guard on at least one of the drawers, but of course, since it's just an eyesore and doesn't interfere with the functionality of the cabinets, these repairs haven't yet disappeared from my ever-growing to-do list. While I still love the idea of using dark cabinets to accent the island, I wish I had realized that this choice would require more maintenance and upkeep than I had time to spare.
Is there anything in your kitchen that you regret? Let me know in the comments below.
