I had fun working on a presto chango for a gal named Beverly this week. She sent me an email asking for some sunny-style design inspiration for her tiny galley kitchen. It’s open to three other rooms in her house, and here’s a couple of the shots she attached to her email for me to work from:
She also asked about how to create a more “open feel”, and mentioned that she only uses the upper cabinets on the right side of the room to store things she doesn’t really need to get to.
I think we all know what needs to happen to those cabinets.
My inspiration pics are all pretty much the same, but I did pop a few different rugs in so that she could see what different patterns, colors and textures looked like down there.
Wanna see? Just move your cursor on and off of the photos below…
(Note: My drawings are for inspirational purposes only, and the ideas suggested here are just that. Spontaneous, flexible, just-for-fun, ideas. And since this is a just-for-fun-photo-consultation, and not an actual-and-perfectly-to-scale-virtual-consultation, I have no idea if any of the furniture, accessories or appliances I used would actually fit in this room. Boom.)
My overall goal was to accentuate the positives, and to give Beverly some ideas for the challenges, in her small, window-less, galley kitchen.
Let’s start with the positives…
Positive: The room has a nice rectangular-shaped ceiling. Accentuate it with: A big ol’ sheet of bead board panelling, or some planks of white (or light blue) painted wood. (Use a nail gun and construction adhesive to attach it to the ceiling, but don’t forget to cut holes for new light fixtures before you put it up! Need step-by-step inspiration? Check out Shelley’s post!)
Positive: Three cabinets above the counter to the right of the fridge. Accentuate them with: Glass-fronted doors. You can buy new ones at Ikea, or follow Susie’s lead and make your own. It’ll help open up the space a little more visually, and since there’s not a lot of wall space to hang frames or accessories on, pretty dishes can act as art instead!
Positive: The wall at the end of the room. Accentuate it with: Something that’ll capture your attention and make a bold design statement! Not into the high contrast of the black chalkboard wall? Make your own custom color chalkboard paint by following these steps instead. Not into the chalkboard wall period? It’s all good. Maybe you’d rather paint it a cheerful color, stencil it like Ronda did, or wallpaper that wall instead of the wall I showed papered in my drawings. Â No matter what- just have fun with it!
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Here are some of the challenges I was inspired to throw my 2 cents in on…
Challenge: There’s only one place to put a single-doored fridge. Solution: Make it a snappy one! I chose a cool, aqua blue model from Big Chill to add a little whimsy and color to the space.
Challenge: One, off-center, fluorescent light. Solution: Two, schoolhouse-style lights, spread apart by a few feet will wash the entire space with light. Yay! Under cabinet lighting will also help brighten things up, so I’d suggest looking into that option as well. Sarah showed how to do-it-yourself here.
Challenge: Short, upper cabinets. Solution: Paint the drywall that’s covering the soffit above them the same color as the upper cabinets to create the illusion of taller cabinets. Seeing white all the way up to the ceiling will make it feel like the cabinets are a foot taller than they really are!
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I used colors like barn red, cool cream, crisp white, dusty aqua, medium brown, sunny yellow and chalky black all around the room for a classic cottage-meets-farmhouse kitchen vibe. (Beverly- if you’re not into these colors, please feel free to choose a variety of colors that makes your heart sing. That’s what’s most important!) I also injected a variety of patterns and colors, to visually give the room more depth and dimension. Right now, all the colors and patterns are very similar. Adding some variety in those areas, will make a galley feel less…well, galley. (You’ve got a great foundation to work from Beverly…now all you have to do is add the spice!)
Here’s an inspiration board I put together that just about sums everything up too:
(Chalkboard Wall, Dash & Albert Rugs, Anthropolgie Dishtowel, Big Chill Refrigerator, Red & White Plaid Wallpaper by Thibaut)
If you weren’t able to view the presto chango in action above, here are the still images…
Beverly’s photo:
My inspiration drawings:
Thank you for the opportunity Beverly! And thank you to everyone who submitted photos so far. I look forward to randomly selecting another one soon!
Wanna submit a photo for our Pick My Presto series?
Send an email to PickMyPresto [at] aol [dot] com titled, “PICK MY PRESTO”. Make sure to include your name, your blog name (if you have one) your design likes & dislikes, and one photo of the space in question. (No links please.) It should be clear, and measure at least 400 pixels high x 600 pixels wide. (In other words: 4″x6″) Make sure it’s a photo you’re comfortable with me showing and writing about on our blog. Then, whenever I’m feelin’ the urge, I’ll randomly select someone’s email and have a little fun creating some traditional or cottage style presto chango inspiration. Oh, and since I love surprises, I probably won’t email you to let you know I’ve “picked your presto” unless I have a specific question for ya about your space.
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Wow! Love this kitchen and love the bead board on the ceiling! The colors are absolutely lovely and subtle enough to allow the fantastic details like the fridge to stand out. Thanks for sharing . . . loving this Presto Chango series! Very inspiring!
Incredible transformation!! You rock, Layla!
Oh, Layla
that’s amazing~!!!! You never cease to amaze me!
Lots of Love
Ashli
Wow, Layla! That is amazing!! I love each of those changes! The colors are beautiful, and so much fun!
We just got finished doing a lot of work in our kitchen. I am so happy with all the changes. Knocking out a wall and removing a bunch of the contractor cabinets and installing open shelves helped lighten up the kitchen A LOT. Here is a link if you want to see: http://the7daggetts.blogspot.com/2011/02/kitchen-update.html.
Beth @ Beach Cottage in the Desert.
Love this so much!! I want that rug in the second picture – may I ask where it came from? Thanks!!
So glad I found your blog…I was in real need of some inspiration and you have surely given it to me!
You are so incredibly talented!! I really need to send in a picture of our living room. I live in a box….blah!
“I think we all know what needs to happen to those cabinets.”
AMEN, Sista! The first order of business, too! Great transformation.
All I could think as I stared at these incredible ideas, was, “How can I convince Layla to help me with the kitchen in the home we just purchased??” You are amazing…
And total side note because I brought it up and all… I have so many ideas for my new place, but it’s like 100 years old, with original cabinetry, and seriously, I know my man is not going to want me doing anything much to it. The cabinets have a hundred coats of paint on them, ending in white, and are actually really sweet, but there is about 10 inches of clearance between the counter top and the underside of the cabinetry! I don’t know how it’s all going to come together, but it should be a fun house regardless. If only you lived in the Pacific NW and could go shopping with me!! 🙂
Great ideas and what a fun kitchen it can be. The chalkboard is such a fun thing in a kitchen and I love the frig.
WOW!!!! This is awesome. The color scheme is one of my favorites. You outdid yourself on this one. It’s beautiful!
Fantastical! As ALWAYS, Layla. Are you absolutely, positively, without a doubt, really, really, really sure that you don’t want to continue your virtual consultations? Sigh. You can see I am wishing you would 🙂 but, if you can’t, these presto chango-s are inspirational awesomeness!
Blessings,
Sindy
Love the Presto!!! That fridge is so fun!
Shannon {aka}|design
Love love love those ideas!!!!!!
I have never commented before, but I just had to say I love how your mind works! This is just an amazing transformation. Thank you for sharing this.
OMG! Layla, I must have missed this post. I have wanted to buy one of your virtual consultations for a long time now but I saw that you were not doing them anymore. I’m so excited that you are doing this series! Pick me, pick me. I have so many rooms I need help with. I will send you a picture. Have to figure out which room first. lol Can you submit more than one room?
Squeal!!!! Omy my gosh – I absolutely LOVE it and I can’t wait to get started! I promise I’ll send updated pics so that everyone can see want I do (of course, $ is tight so it will be a few changes at first). Layla, thank you so much for giving me inspiration and a vision. You are truly blessed with your talents.
Love ya,
Beverly
p.s. should the soffit stay when I take the right side cabinets down?
Hey Beverly!
So glad you like the drawings! 🙂
As for the soffit- I say…”not if it doesn’t have to!”
XO
Jeepers, Layla. . . this is amazing! The ideas, the photos, the inspiration pics, everything! Thank you so much for including the still photos at the end–sometimes it’s hard to make the “magic” work with my cursor, so it was nice to be able to see the still photos.
I think this is going to be one of the most popular things you’ve ever done! 🙂
Layla… YOU ARE AMAZING!
I just love all of your ideas. Thanks for keeping us all inspired! 🙂
Hey Layla,
I read all of these comments and I can’t believe it takes 6 hours to do a presto change! Wow! Now I feel really priviliged and blessed. Thank you again, Layla.
p.s. Love you last name!!
I am in serious love with that kitchen!! It’s close to what we just did to our own kitchen, but that fridge is beyond sweet! I also love how you gave her a red kitchen aid mixer 🙂
I am going to snap a pic of my 25 foot long living room that is only half furnished and then cross my fingers and toes that you will pick mine and fix it for me because I cannot figure out what to do with it!
Get rid of the soffets! It’s a great area to display wonderful treasures (unless you have a cat like me)!!!!
I love it! I would love to send you a photo of my studio, it’s the size of a ONE car garage and I don’t have much to work with (considering I am renting and cannot paint or even hang anything with screws on the walls) :/
I love it. Now I need to get a house so yu can work your magic on it!
These are so fun! I love that you are doing this! These presto chango’s are some of my favorite things about your blog!
You rock. I love your website. I love your kitchen design. And, I LOVE your house! I am in the beginning stages of completely redoing my home after the death of my spouse 2 1/2 years ago. I am now ready to just start fresh with things I love. Your blog inspires me.
What a gorgeous transformation! I love your site, and now I am thinking I should submit a photo myself! You are so inspiring!
Love the presto changes! It is amazing that all three presto changes are the same with only the rug changes, each one brings out a different contrasting color pop in the picture! Homegoods here has had that fridge in its store for the past month, I might caress it every time I am in it **wink wink**. It is to die for with its curves, chrome and beautiful color. Thanks for making me love it even more and showing how it can work in a ktichen without turning the kitchen into a total throwback theme type kitchen! Wish I could incorporate more style like this into our military housing!
I have a similar kitchen and would love to do beadboard on my ceiling, but my kitchen is 12.5 feet by 12.5 feet. Which means if I used the boards, I’d have seams everywhere. Any suggestions on how to avoid that?
We’re going to use it on the ceilings here at TLC too. We plan to cover the seams with long, thin strips of wood.
Say you had white cabinets like this post and a floor that looked just like this kitchen’s too, but laminate countertops in a dark bluish/blackish and cream walls (cottage white by behr to be exact). And say you had oh-i-dunno a sliding glass door that needed a window treatment of some sort and a double window on the adjacent wall that would need them too. A white pedestal table and some Pottery barn red iron outdoor chairs. Would you:
~Paint the white PB table turquoise or leave white?
~Window treatments- plain creamy neutrals or fun print? How to dress that double window? Cafe curtains or long drapes? I love a retro feel but don’t want to be SUPER over the top. I love the balance you created in this presto.
In any case, I LOVE LOVE LOVE what you did here and pretty much everything on your blog. You and your husband are such a talented team!
Gotta say, I positively covet (I know, bad to do) the AQUA and pop of red in the kitchen! So I will just say I am enamored of your presto-change-OH Layla.
Your ideas are great! Thanks for sharing!
that is a pretty amazing outcome. I love the way computer imaging can be used to visualize the results. AND really like the new colors.
I am so in LOOOOVVVVVEEEEEEEE! Super great job!
Love This!!! Love the beadboard ceiling. Love the new lights. Love the wood counters and especially love the fun refrigerator.
Layla,
You are so talented and have such an incredible eye for putting together such great designs!!! I love this feature of your blog and would love to try to do this myself with several of the rooms in my home. I have a basic working knowledge of Photoshop Elements and was wondering if you would consider posting a brief tutorial on how to “presto” your own home using Photoshop!?!? I haven’t done anything like this before and have been trying to google a tutorial to figure it out myself, but have been unsuccessful. Just wanted to see if this was something you might consider someday 🙂 Thanks again!!!
Becca
THANK YOU! The places I am looking to buy all seem to have kitchens like the before. (Older condos in my price range)
I never would have thought of the things you came up with but you give me hope that I won’t have to live with an ugly kitchen unless I take out a 2nd mortgage.