mini kitchen makeover

the other day i decided i wanted to clean out the lower half of my kitchen cabinets. 

the whole deal. ya know? take everything out, assess what you use or haven't ever used or haven't used in years and then process that item accordingly. but then also get out the dawn dish soap/vinegar combo and scrub the everything? this was such a satisfying endeavor that i continued to do the drawers as well. next will be the upper cabinets which are, arguably, the worst. and no, i am not doing this all in one day. or even 2. more like a cabinet a day. 2 drawers a day. that kind of thing. it's working for me. i find that if i do 2 drawers or a few cabinets a day that i clean them more thoroughly than if i had tried to get it all done in one day. i mean i scrub till the old paint comes off.

but all this purging and cleaning has me wanting a little kitchen re-fresh. 

look this is not my dream kitchen because i can't rip it out and start over. which, if i bought this house i would do. so instead i have to find little pick me ups, like a shiny new faucet, toaster, paint and towels, etc. 

it got me looking into budget/mini kitchen makeovers. 

you know the ones...the owner or renter worked with the existing cabinets and layout and maybe replaced the countertops or backsplash...or maybe painted over them? yeah those.

those are my favorite anyway. 

 

like from this....

to this...

 

or this...

to this...

 

so i've been thinking about painting my cabinets which are a hideous yellow cream. the walls are an awesome green i had mixed at benjamin moore to copy ben pentreath's london kitchen. and the dining room just off the kitchen is farrow and ball's teresa's green. so i kind of want to stay in that green/blue family for the cabinets. just brighter. because why not? 

 a few simple fixes like a new pendant, faucet and accessories and i'd be pretty happy. 

 

back to schoooool

today marks the first 6 am wakeup call (on purpose) in approximately 80 days. 

i don't mind getting up that early except for the fact that that's more hours in a day to shove food in my mouth. 

guys. i have a 7th grader. 

when i started this blog she was THREE. 

now we're shopping for bras and extra strength deodorant.

 

here are some kewl back to school things we either own or are in a virtual cart...

if you're kid is like mine hooks are to him/her as wooden spoons are to a giraffe. 

if it goes on a hook fiona still puts it on the floor. 1 foot from said hook. mind boggling. 

these greetings hooks from anthro are cute. plus if she rolls her eyes at them for saying what i try to then only one of us has hurt feelings. 

 

basics from h&m are a staple around here. black on black is her preference. so i get her a cute little contrast-y boot so she doesn't look like a shooter.  black t-shirt here. and black jeans here.

 

these water bottles from klean kanteen are great. stainless steel, eco friendly and come in a variety of colors.  

 

fiona wanted a space backpack this year. 

this roller skates backpack would have been my choice if i was 12. 

 

i'm an idiot sometimes. (many of you are nodding. that's cool. i get it. i am.)

i sent fiona to school for an entire year with heavy glass food containers in her lunch bag. 

because a. i'm an idiot. and b. plastic is really bad. 

some of my mom friends told me about reusable sandwich and snack bags. 

i felt like a superdumdum. i mean why wouldn't it even occur to me to get these?!

well idiot no more. i got these by art of lunch. 

get a few sets. throw 'em in the dishwasher to clean. 

 

want to know how else i am an idiot?

in addition to an entire year of heavy glass food containers fiona also carried around a GINORMOUS ice pack in her packit foldable, FREEZABLE lunch bag. 

so basically i could have been throwing the lunch bag into the freezer to freeze it's BUILT IN FREEZER PACKS. but no. i just assumed that was insulation to keep the food cold from the ice pack you added to the inside. 

total donkey. 

 

fiona loves space and cats. these decomposition books are made from 100% post-consumer waste recycled paper that was processed chlorine free and printed with soy ink so that it can be recycled again. there are loads to choose from if your little isn't into kittens in space. 

 

and i managed to sneak this sweet embroidered blouse from zara into the back to school clothing mix. 

 

in addition to all that...

i think these healthy no bake peanut butter breakfast bars might make life easier.

and if you're in need of some school lunch ideas check out my pinterest board. some real successes here. like this one. this one. and this one.