Our Sad Kitchen
This is our kitchen. Our house was built in 1950. The kitchen has been semi-updated. I'm looking for ideas on how to update this space in a cost-effective manner. My husband and I are working on one income as he completes his grad school. We also don't have that much time as we run to various activities with our 2nd grade foster daughter.
If you want to stop reading now, feel free. Below are more notes on the space. I am interested in whatever ideas you have. I stare at this room constantly looking for inspiration.
Details of the Room:
We absolutely hate the floor and the fact that it isn't level. There is a small peak running from the stove to the fridge where it clearly didn't settle right or they put too much cement for the tile. I have no idea. The house inspector thought it was a bad tile job versus a problem with the actual floor as there appears to be no issue looking up from the basement. We want to remove the tile. (That's going to be a nightmare.)
Anyway, my husband and I would like to live her for another 5 years or so and then move. We know the kitchen need an update. I personally think it just looks sad. Our plans right now are to remove the unknown number of layers of paint from the cabinets, sand and repaint. We're not sure of the color. Thoughts?
The countertops are a painfully ugly in a marbled laminate green. They must go! Oh, and there's no backsplash. To me, all kitchens should have a backsplash. It makes that part of the wall look naked.
I'm not opposed to rearranging the stove & refrigerator. I would also like an over the range microwave. I may look into having a carpenter create more cabinets to mirror what we already have if they come out decent. The cabinets are in great shape structurally. Of course, they do look very dated.
Oh, we need to install a dishwasher too. I'm thinking I'll get an 18" since we're not going hog wild and replacing the cabinets.
Our "style"
The living room is a (for lack of a better description) subdued Miami Dolphin green color. I would describe our house as comfortable. Tan couch, hard wood floors, eclectic paintings (abstract and professional painting from Italy from husband's parents trips abroad before he was in the picture). My design and color choices should be relaxed. I shy away from anything formal, trendy or tooooo neutral. I want color! I need color! To me, the colors should bring some life to the place.
If you want to stop reading now, feel free. Below are more notes on the space. I am interested in whatever ideas you have. I stare at this room constantly looking for inspiration.
Details of the Room:
We absolutely hate the floor and the fact that it isn't level. There is a small peak running from the stove to the fridge where it clearly didn't settle right or they put too much cement for the tile. I have no idea. The house inspector thought it was a bad tile job versus a problem with the actual floor as there appears to be no issue looking up from the basement. We want to remove the tile. (That's going to be a nightmare.)
Anyway, my husband and I would like to live her for another 5 years or so and then move. We know the kitchen need an update. I personally think it just looks sad. Our plans right now are to remove the unknown number of layers of paint from the cabinets, sand and repaint. We're not sure of the color. Thoughts?
The countertops are a painfully ugly in a marbled laminate green. They must go! Oh, and there's no backsplash. To me, all kitchens should have a backsplash. It makes that part of the wall look naked.
I'm not opposed to rearranging the stove & refrigerator. I would also like an over the range microwave. I may look into having a carpenter create more cabinets to mirror what we already have if they come out decent. The cabinets are in great shape structurally. Of course, they do look very dated.
Oh, we need to install a dishwasher too. I'm thinking I'll get an 18" since we're not going hog wild and replacing the cabinets.
Our "style"
The living room is a (for lack of a better description) subdued Miami Dolphin green color. I would describe our house as comfortable. Tan couch, hard wood floors, eclectic paintings (abstract and professional painting from Italy from husband's parents trips abroad before he was in the picture). My design and color choices should be relaxed. I shy away from anything formal, trendy or tooooo neutral. I want color! I need color! To me, the colors should bring some life to the place.
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More Discussions
Are you thinking of improvements for less than $1000?
Also, have you tested the 1950's kitchen paint layers for lead?
I have "glue down stone" tiles...yes, it is thin stone slices mounted on cork...looks like slate!!! That, at $4.99/sf, you could resurface your counter tops! These can be sealed against spills with water based polyurethane (food grade...of course). You could even use the stone (just in case you don't use them for counter tops) as back splashs. No grout, no mortar. No expensive "install" or labour.
For a more modern "update" you should look at refacing/replacing doors and hardware. A sleeker, more contemporary (as opposed to 50's) look is to have the doors edges "touching" and the hinges on the INSIDE. If you strip/prime/repaint, the "old" look of the 50's is still going to "shine through" simply because of the door sizes. That's just a "thought". It is what is causing the "sad" part of the kitchen.
As for the floors, if those are ceramic tiles, you may be able to get away with "sinking" them in concrete (like a skim coat) and then laying down another resiliant floor - cork or our stone-cork would do well here (that would be using the cork and stone as it was "meant to be").
Check out the floor below...it is a "bamboo" effect. It could be glued onto the surface of the cabinets (tiles are 1ft x2ft x 1/8th inch). It might help with the Miami ideas going on here.
For flooring, if you can get it flat, I can get you anything from blue, to white, to "Diva" red (it might be too close to the floor you have), to marble black.
Just some ideas. Thinking outside the box. Budgets are something I deal with every day.
White cabinets will go with anyone's colors as will white subway tile or white beadboard for a backsplash. Adding picture frame moulding to the cabinet doors & drawer fronts will be a simple update and you may be able to use the current knobs/pulls. You can then accent with any color you desire bringing in lots of color in the curtains, counter items, even a teapot on the stove!
Put matching panels over the two spaces at the sink - make them tip-outs even.
Hang a pendant style light over the sink or a lantern style or a mini chandelier!
On the side of the stove (or if you put the fridge there) where the shelving unit is, build a floor to ceiling pantry with doors. An over the stove microwave will also get rid of the current fan/light unit (love mine).
With the double cabinets on either side of the sink, convert to open shelving and bring the white subway tile all the way up behind them. If you do the pantry idea, you'll still have plenty of storage.
Place dishwasher on whatever side of sink works best. You'll still have the "pantry" to take on the items that were stored there.
There are plenty of "granite" look molded laminate counter tops. Maybe one that pulls charcoal gray would sell well. :) There are some great grey wall colors that would work well with that combo, too, as well as most any color you like! Something in the same saturation range as your living room.
At some point, the color of the stove/fridge/over range microwave/dishwasher should match unless you're taking the stove/fridge with you (that looks like a giant fridge!). Then go for white or stainless steel for the microwave & dishwasher and let the someday buyers deal with the others.
The floor...well, to bring matching hardwood in would be awesome! Okay, not least expensive. There are a myriad of tile choices out there.
I came at this from the selling/buying point of view as you plan to sell so advance apologies if I stayed too neutral :) Also, there are two blogs that have redone their kitchens in the past year. Just Google Beneath My Heart blog by Traci and Southern Hospitality by Rhoda. Also, Addicted to Decorating blog just made her own cabinet doors for her bathroom vanity that originally looked like yours. They did wonders!
I haven't tested the paint layers for lead, but due to the age of the home I'm just assuming its under there.
Yeah, the frig is overwhelming. It's mainly visitation and school schedules and artwork and such. I may have to come up with a different center for all that so it doesn't clutter up the kitchen even more.
$800 GE 18" dishwasher and installation (http://www.ajmadison.com/cgi-bin/ajmadison/GSM1800N.html)
$600 Formica laminate countertops
$50 light fixture over the sink
$200 paint
$150 tile backsplash
$200 contingency
BTW, the fridge is likely to stay covered in school stuff until she graduates, just clear it off at the end of the school year every year. Some things are inevitable. You can keep it clear when the house is for sale. An over the range microwave and installation are likely to run $250 plus $125 installation, if not more for installation (you need electrical power, I assume you have a vent already).
The floor is a big deal, as you say. However, removal will go faster with rented equipment. You may want to hire this job out. If you are really going to do the floor soonish, wait to put in the dishwasher until the floor is done because you will want to be able to slide the dishwasher in and out which you can't do with a lip of ceramic tile in the way.
apple_pie - thank you for taking the time to break this all down. The husband and I just get so overwhelmed when we actually walk into the store and are faced with all the options. We need a clear idea of what we want before we start purchasing anything. This is helping us get closer.
noankwaters - I found your post extremely helpful. Since we do want to relocate, I do need to ensure that this will help the house sell. It's only a 2 bedroom/1 bath. We love the layout and that it's a ranch. To us it has been the best starter home and I think would make a great house for a downsizing couple. I will check out those blogs.
The bathroom has the original layout with 1990's stock cabinetry and a terrible vinyl flooring install (the seams don't meet!). We will redo that too but, that'll be quick and cheap.
cabinet doors easier on the eyes....just redid and decluttered my kitchen- it's working for me
Take away the curtains and replace with a roller blind or wide blade venetian blind.
I would take off the doors of the wall cabinets either side of the window and fix them up to have them as open shelves with perhaps a strong contrast colour painted on the back of the cabinets. Some down lighting there to show off some colorful culinary items you have on display on these shelves.
I would like to see perhaps another base cabinet with a door on it beside your range to continue the flow and perhaps you could re-use the doors from the wall cabinet betside with window. Also safer, as a buffer from getting too close to hot things on the stove.
Color for cabinets? I'd do them in plain and simple brilliant white with new chrome handles.
Splash back- thats where I'd introduce the color. I could imagine a mixture of 4 colored square tiles around 5 x 5 inches in beige,blue, teal/blue and brilliant white. Maybe even a metalic silvery tile here and there. Match the display items with these colours. It would also work with white, beige, cocoa and black colored tiles.
Benchtops- pick one of the colours from the tiles and try to match a laminate. If your budget doesn't stretch to a new bench, think of using your favourite colour from the range in the splash back and cover existing bench with tiles (just one colour) or use a laminate paint. I have actually seen cheap plywood, painted with a colored wash paint suitable for timber and glued over existing benchtops.
You need to finish the edge with timber treated with the same paint and then seal it very well with a non-yellowing clear coat. Not a long-term solution but might last you long enough.
Good luck...hope it works out well. Sorry about my spelling, I am Australian and our spelling is a little different.
If you plan to keep that shelf unit, I would paint it the same color as the walls or the cabinets. You could add a piece of luaun or 1/4" wood to the sides and add the same moulding to the outside as you use on the cabibets.
What colors are in your kitchen curtain fabric? Photo? Paint the wall and add a large area rug and you will be good to go.
There are several good how-to's on adding moulding but here is a link to a simple one. http://www.hgtv.com/kitchens/streamlined-kitchen-cabinet-makeover/index.html
Have fun!
I'd pick up one of the off whites or whites from the new fabric for the paint color. The current green marble countertops go best with the blue "flour" design.
If this were my kitchen, I'd get an estimate on removing the floor tile from the pros before doing anything else. Then decide what to install instead.
I would paint the cupboards an off white or ivory, walls a nice light blue-green to go with the terracotta tile floors which are going to be expensive and hard to remove. Update to a nice brushed nickel hardware and roman blind in the windo or bamboo. Well under 500-600 for that.
for the backsplash, the smartiles will be the smart way to go. as for color, do not think of what you like but resale value. therefore cannot go wrong with white or cream. take the color in the backsplah. do not bother stripping especially with a child in the house.
as for countertops go to a home depot or lowes and get a price for different materials. ask when they have sales, every 4 months or so they have big sales on something. then go to a stone place and ask for their cheapest granite. sometimes they get pieces with some "defect" like irregular veining, etc. and they end up being only a bit more than corian, etc. but they do add tremesdous value to the house.
get some nice knobs, there you can go for fun.
if I were in your shoes I would do a white as in BM "white" paint on cabinets, which saves you the pain of finding the right cream with a red floor. I would paint the kitchen in a grey, do a tile with colors and the countertop in black. with the black and white scheme you do not have to worry about appliances too much because they are black and white.get your dishwasher, even 18" are still 18" of bliss.
get a nice, classic fixture like a schoolhouse one. check lampsplus open box outlet for great stuff at good prices.
changing the shelf for microwave/hood is a great idea and not too expensive/difficult.
at the other end of your range get a butcher block kitchen island. if you have an ikea near they have great stuff. some they deliver. http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40201916/ buy online have it delivered. or http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/80116997/. they are 149 and 199 each plus shipping. also look for unfishedover that cart get a framed cork and use it for pictures.
get a new faucet for about a hundred.
[White & Black Kitchen][Austin Patterson Disston Architects][houzz=Santa Fe Country French Kitchen Remodel][houzz=Montecito Residence]
you can do miracles on that budget if you choose wisely. when in doubt.... post in houzz !
http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/show/segments/view/i-want-rachaels-kitchen/
A few years ago my wife and I bought, rented out, and eventually sold the home next door to us that had similar kitchen cabinets. Here are some pictures showing what we did since we didn't have the money for a complete re-do. We used a router to cut in some subtile contour lines into the flat plywood doors (see pic), we painted the cabinets a creamy antique white, tiled the floor, and added new hardware and countertops. It ended up looking very nice and didn't cost us a ton of money. In addition, if you were to add crown molding, a nice tile backsplash and appliances, and you might be surprised at how good it could look.
Oh... BTW - the kitchen we did already had crown molding. We also removed the cabinet doors above the sink and added a couple shallow arches to dress it up a little. Good luck!
The counter tops you could do a couple different ways, easy redo with a more updated laminate, or "bang for your buck" an upgrade to granite done DIY... thats a small slab with two turns , probably a few hundred dollars....go to a granite yard not big box store with your dimensions to get a price .. they cut ,you install..
Flooring - you must get rid of the hump....I agree with Cancork Flooring... a skim coat of cement , but this is not for everyone , it takes skill and the product to use is a self leveling compound, its very heavy, messy and not cheap...you need the right tools etc, but the outcome is great. Home depot sells a specialty flooring its is is a vinyl peel and stick, super easy to install and looks just like tile , in fact you grout it and costs only about $2.00 a sq ft. Myself I would take an afternoon and scrape off the existing tile going over existing is sometimes more work in prep and not the best out come.
When you paint, move the knobs to the corners of the upper and lower doors. The odd placement adds to the off-kilter look.
We did only purchase items that we were going to use that month. It kept us in budget and we did not have to store boxes until we used them. We did find doing small parts of the kitchen worked best for us. We do work well together, would never of attempted this project if we didn't. We did not have any babies under foot just two dogs.
Good luck.
There are a lot of comments and suggestions here for you to consider, so I'll be brief. I used the image you posted of the fabrics to choose colors. Medium to dark brown counters, creamy off white cabinets, light aqua blue walls, and either blue tiles or a mosaic that incorporates blue for the backsplash. All the tiles/mosaics are from our site, the other surfaces/colors are labeled. Hope this helps, and good luck!
http://www.blindsdirectcanada.com/blinds-toronto/shades-toronto/roller-blinds-screen-shades.html
Good luck.
Keep us apprised of your progress. I'd love to see after pictures.
By the way, your website needs a spellchecker.
My unprofessional two cents:
There will be a substantial cost in getting the dishwasher in vis a vis electrical and plumbing; I think that means you don't move anything else. Have your kitchen electrics already been GFCI'ed? If not, that will be another expense. While you have the electrician there, and before you tile your backsplash, think about new wall outlets, including one for your microwave. I think a microwave over the oven is inconvenient, though; I hate reaching over a kettle to get in there. Will it (or a smaller one) fit in the cabinet currently hanging over the microwave? Because of the flat panels you could have the door cut down and the edge routed to match fairly easily, I think, or go for another section of open shelving over it.
I would get rid of the curtains; if the view is unappealing, use a window film. Once you get rid of the curtains, those cabinet walls flanking the sink will reflect natural light into the kitchen. You could also hang colorful decorative elements -trivets, potholders.
I loved the ideas of taking the doors off the two cabs next to the window and painting inside the cabs with bright colors. I'm not sure taking the shelves off will look quite right; the classic 50s would have had shaped shelves there instead of a open bookcase --but it is mighty cheap to try.
I now own a Victorian and I have stripped a *lot* of paint. Lead paint can be stripped safely, even with little children in the house (and my poor kidlets had the lead testing to prove it) but it may not be worth the effort when the flat panels repaint so easily. If you are really keen, look it up on the web and try just one pair. Test for lead so you know what you are getting in to. Do them outdoors (number the hinges and draw a map before you start!) with a heat plate. Even if there is lead paint, stripping with a heat plate is actually pretty safe as it produces neither tiny inhalable lead particles (like sanding will) nor vaporous lead (for that you would have to set a door on fire). I leave it up to others to advise you on color, but I like the style. Magnetic latches are cheaply installed and will crisp up how the doors close with minimal effort.
Now, about the tile floor.... this could be one of those mushroom effect projects, but really, if you hate them, you should totally try getting them off yourself. If you can see the underside of the tiles from the basement, the floor is probably not all that well engineered. I think you owe it to yourself to see how hard it would be, and my guess is that the cement float they are on (if any) is probably not all that deep. (We took up a small floor in 40 minutes once, when we had nervously allotted a whole weekend.) Look up how to replace a floor tile on the web, move the fridge, and have at one or two of them! You'll have to put a new underlayment down anyway, so you don't have to get whatever is underneath perfectly smooth.
Best of luck!
I would paint the cabinets bright white and paint the walls possibly a lighter shade of what you have in your living room.
If your foster daughter is into art and drawing, consider painting the refrigerator with either chalkboard paint or whiteboard paint... You can look up tutorials on how to do this online.
Your countertops don't have to go; you can paint over them. I painted over my countertops and they turned out lovely. It costs around $20 or so. Just be sure not to splash water onto it, it WILL leave a mark.
Perhaps you could change the lighting fixtures as well? Maybe something a bit brighter. Ikea has a lot of cool lighting fixtures, if you're wondering. I don't know much about lighting, though.
http://www.thesmarttiles.com/
also look at ikea, they have good countertops. even the current laminates are pretty good looking
I will risk stripping down the cabinets and will do it outside likely in spring. At some point I feel there just become too many layers on an item for it to look nice when painted again. They are definitely at that point.
I've contacted a local woodworker who made an awesome sewing desk for me (custom to my tiny height!!). He has done work like this before and will be coming out soon to estimate the routing. He's very reasonable and darn it, I just like the guy and don't mind giving him business.
Since I want to move some appliances and add in some extra surfaces we will definitely have to spend the money on new countertops. I've already purchased my faucet on super sale and keep looking for sinks at Lowes and Home Depot which are just around the corner. Unfortunately our closest ReStore has closed and I've got to make the hour trek to it now.
Not always necessary to remove it. Since you have issues with level, you could pour self-leveling compound over the asbestos and go from there.
I think I can advise but first I do have to advise the entire situation. The housing market has and continues to increase in prices and go up. See my blog. http://tgmcabinets.weebly.com
A 15 year old kitchen or older gets a 90-125% percent return on investment that you fix your kitchen with. ANy money you spend anywhere on the planet is throwing money away but this...is an investment. Find the $2000-$3500 more and buy new cabinets and a new countertop first. Thermofoil is going to be best on a budget and you can get all wood cabinets at this price. Make the investment since you'll see it again. Otherwise putting lipstick (tile on a old pig doesn't make the pig not a pig).
If I had to and I refused to get new cabinets...which painting in my mind will look just like they were old and were painted. This isn't cool guys. The style is old. The measurements are going to reflect this. The height is probably 29.5 instead of 30-31" which screams old house and old kitchen cabinets. Anything else would be decreasing the value of the home. Doing the wrong diy would hurt them not help them and with cabinets this old, they need new ones desperately.
If all you want to spend is $2000. Save it for getting the whole thing. Go to Home Depot and get tile for 1.88 a sq ft or look for a sale better than that cause at times, they do have it. Then do the Tile /backsplash, redo the floors, and paint the room until the funds are there to get new cabinets/countertop. It's too old to do anything else with and refacing...I can do the kitchen at the same price in brand new cabinets and countertop.
But do go to the thirft store and look for different handles that cost pennies. But I have new handles for about $2 and the thirft stores around here would probably not have them for less. I don't know about where everyone else is located.
If we had $4000 to work with. I'd give new bottom cabinets, shelves seem to be a trend right now that is acceptable for wall cabinets and new countertops. Then Install them yourself, paint the room, do the tile/ backsplash. And buy the 6qrt ninja that cooks, bakes, sears, roasts off QVC until all new appliance set can be obtained. OR check craigslist like someone said. You can find people pulling them out of apts too and often a reseller has a shop where he fixes them up. Course that will give you about a 30 day warranty and then maybe minimal repairs later...but it's another shortcut. I just don't like shortcuts. Sorry. But that is what I would suggest.
There is a ceiling fan in the kitchen. I'm not sure why.... maybe I'll have my dad run the electric into the center of the living room and install it in there and switch the main light fixture out in the kitchen. The large fan looks really heavy for the space. Do people usually have ceiling fans in kitchens?
My husband prefers solid surface for countertops with a built in sink. I'm just not sure if the little extra on that is going to make the difference when trying to sell.
Oh, our fridge is huge... way too big for the space. I love it though. I can always see exactly what we have. Plus it fits in all these meal organization baskets. It's great.
I am currently "settling" on the 18" dishwasher due to plumbing. There is only about 19" inches between the sink and the corner cupboard. I will have our woodworker come do an estimate at the house though. Since he's done stuff like this before I'm sure he's got an idea or two about the stuff we could run into.
The cabinets are complete built ins. There is no division in space between one cabinets contents and the next. In that sense, I think I'd do better off making a glass or fiberglass insert to open up the space. If I made shelving a divider would have to be installed. The orientation of the pulls really stands out in the photo so that'll definitely have to be changed.
Here's my issue with the flooring... I have original hardwood throughout the front of the house. I plan on getting that redone. I want the laminate but am afraid that it'll look TERRIBLE with the real hardwood in the house. How does one transition from real hardwood to that?
Regarding the posting about old houses being torn down, I hate seeing the old houses bulldozed too. I used to do deconstruction on teardowns and rip out cabinets, sinks, flooring, doors, windows etc for resale through the local ReStore. Now that I have project houses of my own, I go to demo sales to see if I can find items to be used in my rehabs. The large gut job historic house we rehabbed ended up having material from probably a dozen other houses. We had cabinets from one house, kitchen flooring from another, newer oak flooring from one house and older oak from two or three different collections sold by ReStore. Then, we had the original tub and woodwork from the house and managed to reuse one older solid wood door (2 inches thick!) between the back entry and the basement stairs. We salvaged bathroom fixtures, doors, trimwork, wire closet shelving, solid surface shower surround and even the power vent hot water heater. I hate to see those good quality older products ending up in the landfill or burn pile.
Maybe someone else has an example of where it looked good?
Also, is it better to paint the cabinets before putting new countertop? Or other way around?
The second is at our cottage. We painted the cabinets with Benjamin Moore Newburyport Blue and changed the hardware to create a more country feel. Instead of a tile backsplash, we used beadboard and painted it a lighter blue green (can't find the name, but also BM). We ended up keeping the countertop, as it matched the cabinets and we are super cheap!
Photos below.
You've had some fabulous advice on here. I've attached some pics of what I've played with to give you an idea of the outcome of some very quick fix options. To summarise:
1. Definitely sort out your floor (the peak in the floor will only raise alarm bells for any potential buyers about any further structural problems). I would put in the hard work of removing the tiles so you can assess what's going on. You may be able to lay an economical substrate material to then lay new stick-on tiles (think black and white chequered or recycled timber boards as suggested earlier).
2. Paint your existing cabinets white (doing whatever prep is necessary to get a perfect finish). I feel you could live with your existing hardware. I love the feel of the exposed hinges (make sure you don't get any paint on them - replace if they're rusty).
3.Tile your splashback with white subways (you could also go for a pop of an accent colour).
4. Replace benchtop (sorry countertop - another Australian here) with a laminate or whatever is most cost efficient over there. I would go for predominantly black (so possibly a black granite or similar) and I would just run it back to the wall (no return on the wall). This way you can bring the tiles right down to the countertop and hopefully reflect a bit more light in there.
5. Replace curtains with a simple roman blind in a striking fabric. You could keep it to the black and whites or go for a strong contrast colour.
6. Organise the interior of your cupboards to counteract their age with storage solutions to maximise the space (IKEA is a good starting point). I'm sure you have many others over there as well.
7. Clear off all your benchtops and start from scratch with accessorising to a colour theme. I know it's hard to keep them clear, but it's one of the best ways to maximise the impact of your kitchen. Keep the fridge free of any pin-ups. That doesn't mean they don't have a place in the kitchen. I just think with the black fridge, it's best to make an impact with that as a solid block rather than broken up with bits. Not sure what's on the wall opposite the sink but maybe you could add a magnetic or pinboard there to accomodate all these treasures. Another option would be to paint this wall a strong colour (ie the red or yellow and include a chalkboard section).
8. Most of all…HAVE FUN WITH IT!!!
any house built and painted prior to 1978 has lead paint! PERIOD
that is all there was prior to 1978 so unless someone has completed the huge, costly remediation process, there is lead paint still in the house.
It may have been painted over many times since 1978 with non lead paint and is best left undisturbed without professional guidance.
If lead paint is a concern, move forward with that knowledge.
AND don't chew on the doors and moldings.
#1 though would be to clear the fridge completely and find a new home for kiddie stuff, even if on the side of the fridge that's less visible - if not possible then mercilessly throw away old items, scan if you must and save digitally, rearrange by shape/color, throw away tchotke magnets and buy little strong ones of the same color. Then remove as much as possible from the countertops. With your new, blank, white and black canvas, unify the decor and use the necessities like artwork - kitchen towels in balanced locations, curtain fabric (agree on roman or just box top so the pattern is clean), framed kiddie art work above the cabinets, color on the fridge top boxes.
Have fun! and sounds like you could do a lot with $2000 to make it a space that is as happy and fun as you are!