My New Kitchen!

Ok...so it's not exactly "new", but it did get a nice facelift!

Saturday, I called in the troops (aka Tina and Yvett) to help me paint my kitchen while Hubby was at work - it was a nice little Valentine's surprise for Hubby, since it was done and he didn't have to do it. It was pure luck that he decided to go in a tad early to take care of some issues. The second we saw him drive away, off Will and I went to Home Depot to pick up supplies. We cruised through the self check out, and made it home just in time for Will to go down for his nap.

Yvett arrived as I was clearing off countertops and picking up Will's crumbs off the floor. She brought us all some breakfast too. YUM! Tina arrived shortly after and we started taping off the ceiling, baseboards, cabinets, and countertops. Yvett and Tina talked me into pulling the fridge and range out so we could paint behind them properly. I got a jump start on my spring cleaning after seeing what it looked like behind the fridge. Yuck!

The job went really fast! We were done with the first coat in no time. We took a break, ate our breakfast, and played with Will for a bit. Thankfully, Saturday was the beginning of this tired spell he's been under so he took 3 naps. Perfect for painting while he's sleeping! Tina was also a big help entertaining Will when he was awake while I cleaned and put the kitchen back together. I had forgotten how much easier life is when you can focus on completing the task at hand and not have to bounce back and forth from your task to entertain the baby.

I tried out the new Behr Premium Plus Ultra paint that has the paint and primer all in one. Since the original color was a flat finish and lighter than my new color, I wouldn't normally have put a primer on, but this paint was easy to apply and it went on thick. I loved it! The second coat we applied helped even out just a few spots and fix a few streaks. I was very impressed. The color is Ozone, and I love it. The swatch I got is exactly the same color that is on my walls. That hardly ever happens! Usually it's close, but not exact. I bet if I taped the swatch on the wall, you wouldn't be able to find it. I chose a satin finish because semi-gloss is just way too shiny, even for a kitchen. We have eggshell finish throughout the rest of the house, but I wanted something a little more durable in the kitchen, especially with Will's grubby hands all over the walls in there.

It's a tad more expensive than just the basic Behr paint, but I think it's worth it. This new Behr Premium Plus Ultra paint is scuff resistant, has a new molecular make-up so it stays looking new longer, and is designed to resist stains. PERFECT! And it has all of these properties no matter what sheen you choose! YAY! The only downfall to painting the kitchen is that now I look at our living room and want to paint it a fresh new color... ha ha!