So one night I got home from dinner, shopping, and a movie with a friend. I said hello to Adam and the boys and moseyed into the kitchen for a delicious glass of water. That’s when I saw them, sitting on the countertops…the kitchen shelves that I had been nagging politely asking Adam to build for nearly a year.
My eyes got big and I stared at them excitedly. Then I heard something….it was the shelves, they were speaking to me. They said “Ashley! Look how much your husband loves you! He listens when you talk. He would do anything for you. He thinks you look great in baggy old pajamas and drool soaked t-shirts. In fact, he thinks your hotter than Kate Beckensale and Heidi Klum combined. And he’s sorry about leaving dirty diapers all over the house and feeding the kids frozen pizza for dinner.”
Man, those shelves really know how to talk to women.
But the awesomeness didn’t stop there. The next day put on his sexiest socks and sandals combo and got to painting.
Then he installed the rear supports…
…and made skins to cover the ugly cabinet undersides.
And then he even put another coat on the cabinets, since they were looking a little yellow.
Next came a ton of sanding, caulking, and touch up paint, and then…shelves! YAY! I love them!
They are attached with eye bolts, hooks, 1/8 inch cable, and aluminum ferrules. To “squish” the aluminum ferrules you will need a swaging tool, (I prefer to call it a “squisher tool”) to see what the heck that is, go HERE (This is the same method we used on our living room shelves). Oh, and I forgot to mention that the shelves are just made if two pieces of 3/4 inch MDF held together by wood glue and brad nails.
Do you love them? I love them. I can’t wait to start decorating and make it a fun, colorful, functional kitchen. And you know what else? I don’t have to climb on top of my counters to get my dishes anymore. Whoop! Unfortunately this means I may have to actually start exercising.
Here is a quick before and after(ish) pic to refresh everyone’s memory about what we started with…
…and now!
If your new around here and want to catch up on all the kitchen posts, here are links to the highlights…
New Appliances, Painting and Raising the Cabinets, Butcher Block Countertops, Organized Pantry, Farmhouse Table, Penny Countertop, Planked Walls, Painted Walls, Pantry Door, Plate Wall, Windows, Command Center, Kitchen Reveal
Love love the shelves !! Oh yeah – only in Texas can you wear socks and sandals and be rockin !!
Great job Adam !!
Karen in Texas
Ashley, your whole kitchen looks amazing–you guys have been very creative in making things happen with not much money! I can’t wait to see how you decorate your new shelves!
Diane recently posted..The Burning Barrel
Oh my gosh, I haven’t been by in awhile and shame on me! I LOVE your kitchen! It looks awesome with the two different colored cabinets and the shelves are perfect =)
Kristin @ Little Corbin Hill recently posted..The beginning of a craft room
I think you and I have the same love language, because those are exactly the kinds of things I hear when Andy does projects for me. These shelves are ALL kinds of cool. I can’t even stand it. I bet you’re going to have a blast styling them!
Kelly @ View Along the Way recently posted..LAUNDRY ROOM REVEAL (!!)
Love your new shelving Ashley! Your kitchen is so beautiful, love the white cabinets combined with the butcher block counters! Pinned!
Heather recently posted..Pantone Color 2013 Emerald with Sherwin Williams Chip It
As I’ve told you before, I love your writing style. Makes me laugh! Adam did a great job and the kitchen looks amazing.
Thanks Cindy, that is really the best complement. I try to keep it fun and entertaining around here :)
Brilliant idea!
The cabinets look fantastic (as does the whole kitchen)! And Adam looks very stylish in his socks and sandals. ;)
Megan @ The Running Doc recently posted..My Gray Hair and Baby Fever
Lol, I remember when Adam was getting out of the Army and he said “its going to be so nice not to have to wear green socks everyday”. But guess what? Yup, he wears them almost every day!
Seriously love your whole kitchen. Are your counters always that clean?!
Oh goodness no….times a thousand. The only reason the counters look like that is cause we had just finished installing the shelves and had moved the piles of crap from the counters to the dining room table!
Looks amazing!!
Love love LOVE those shelves!! What a great hubby!
Rear supports? I NEED some! Though that would be a bit too personal to ask your sweet hubs to provide, more like something a bazillion more squats and a bit of cosmetic surgery (NOT!) might help with, though. :-)
Sorry, couldn’t resist.
Bless the hub’s sweet little ole Texas heart. I’m betting he’s lookin’ a lot more Tim Riggins-ish lately, huh?
Kitchen is lovely – so very sweet and cheery and ORGANIZED – congrats to all of you. I hope to get there one of these days myself. Til then I’ll keep living vicariously through your great posts – they make my day every time. :-)
Lol, thanks so much Carla! If I could get Adam to grow out his hair and stroll around in boots and pearl snap shirts then we probably wouldn’t get any projects done ;)
I LOVE LOVE those! Can’t wait to see how you style them!
What a change! It is looking beautiful!
Lauren recently posted..Library Stairs
Love those shelves!! can’t wait to see the once you’ve added your finishing touches – are you going to be using them for storing your everyday dishes and glasses?
Ashley recently posted..Oh, beautiful emerald.
Yup, they are meant to be totally functional. Except for above the microwave, that’s for pretties :)
Ash, that’s so cool! Good job, Adam! Brownie points for you! I love that idea of open storage. Is it for functional items or decorational? A mix probably?
It’s going to be entirely functional, except for above the microwave.
WOW this is beautiful, love the shelves!!!
I think he might be a keeper, huh? ;) The kitchen looks wonderful! I especially like those planked walls AND the new shelves.
wow- thats a neat idea – i like it- the colors too
Seriously, I am in love with the shelves! They look fantastic!
Wow, it looks great! The before and after is just amazing!
Melissa-TheHappierHomemaker recently posted..The Best Bakery Style Blueberry Muffins
As prateleiras disseram tudo!
E deram ainda mais charme à sua cozinha.
Beijos
I love this idea! Looks marvelous!!!
Wow, I love how the shelves are “hanging”. What a unique look. :)
I love those shelves, I love the whole kitchen! The contrast of the white on top and the darker color on the lower shelves is beautiful, something I always wanted to try. So much better than the original look of your kitchen, it now has personality
Lois recently posted..Living without a refrigerator
I’m loving how it is coming along, though I have to admit it now really what I had in mind when we started to years ago. It’s just developed along the way and I’m loving it. The kitchen before was terrible, I’m sure it’s the main reason that our house sat on the market for forever and no one was interested. It needed lots of work (which is the reason I bought it!)
It never does turn out the way you first think it will, unless of course you hire a contractor and do the entire job at once. I too like to look for a place that needs love, it’s cheaper first, but also I want to be able to put my own touch on the space. Like they say find the worst house in the best neighborhood.
Ashley, that just looks so good! What impresses me the most is that you raised the cupboards to the ceiling and got an expensive, designer look for a teeny tiny fraction of the cost. That kind of thing (and thinking) impresses me!
I really like how Adam finished off the bottoms of the cupboard. They went from something that wasn’t meant to be seen, to seamless perfection!
You must be really happy with how this turned out. It was worth waiting for! :)
Thanks Jan! I love it. The best part is that the actual process of raising the cabinets and adding a shelf cost something stupid cheap, like $50 or so…and totally changed the look of the kitchen. Thats DIY at it’s finest :) If only replacing the floors was that easy and cheap!
I’ve recently been considering butcher-block countertops. Day-to-day how practical have they been? Are they holding up well? I LOVE the look – but also want something that can handle kitchen tasks!
My butcher block counters are actually holding up great. I am pretty careful with them though, I always use hot pads and cutting boards and don’t let water sit on them. They have a few dents where my kids have dropped things while “helping” me, but they aren’t noticeable. For the price they are fantastic and I love the look, though I don’t think I will do them again in our next (forever) house.
Super cool!
So cute! Love the rustic/industrial look of the connectors. They are fun!! Those shelves had quite a lot to say. hehe. That’s how my hubby shows he loves me too. And it’s better then diamonds!!
Lovely! I love the white and the dark gray-blue cabinets. I love LOVE the open shelving underneath. What a clever way to add storage!
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Hello!
I found you from the Mop it up Mondays link up. I would love to have you come share your post with my readers over at Sassy Little Lady’s Show and Tell Saturday. Hope to see you there!
Kathie
http://www.sassylittlelady.com/blog/show-and-tell-saturday/show-and-tell-saturday
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And once again positive thinking works! I love your shelves. Who would have thought of hanging them! Wow!
Sinea Pies recently posted..Kitchen Cleaning – “The Counter Attack”
What a wonderful kitchen transformation. I have been toying with the idea of raising my cabinets. My only problem is the bulk head. Who know’s what lurking behind there. I love your color choices, gray on bottom and white on top. You have given me a lot to think about as I have been putting off my DIY kitchen renovation far too long.
I absolutely love what you have done to your kitchen. Amazing! Love the shelving too! I am featuring this at somedaycrafts.blogspot.com
Ashley, your kitchen is looking gorgeous!! Love the 2 toned cabinets and these neat shelves your hubby built. You are totally going to have a custom kitchen and wow, how far has it come! Lovely.
Thank you so much Rhonda! I love the way it has turned out…now if only the floors and lighting would magically redo themselves we could call it a wrap!
Great tute… I love the industrial touch of the front support things. Little Bit from http://www.DecorateWithaLittleBit.com
Love your writing style! (and I had to laugh as I share your paint clothes style — and we handle paint drips the same, as well!)
This is exactly what I was thinking of doing, regarding adding shelves. In our case we have soffits that need to come down first before we raise the cabinets. Plus our older home has ceilings that are a bit higher than normal and may cause problems. May I ask you a few things?
•How many inches between the countertop and the shelf bottom?
•How many inches between the countertop and the cabinet bottom?
I’m thinking I’d need a step stool to reach the upper, and possibly the middle shelves in the cabinets once they are raised. Do you find that an issue? I imagine the things you use on a daily basis are handily stored on those easily assessable shelves.
One last question:
•Do you find that a grease glaze settles on the shelf items, especially near the stove? I read that once as a con to having open shelves. Personally the improved look and added storage will make up for any need to pre-wash.
The shelf is the standard 18 inches above the counter, and it is 10.5 inches from the bottom of the shelf to the bottom of the cabinet. I’m only 5’3″ and I can reach the top shelf on my tippy toes, but usually I just climb up on the counter. If I was just a couple inches taller I wouldn’t have a problem! I very rarely need anything on the top shelf though, so it’s fine. I haven’t had a problems with grease (or dust even)…we use everything on the shelf so frequently that stuff doesn’t have much opportunity to settle. Hope that helps and good luck, you will love it!