Welcome back to the next to last installment of our kitchen series!
(You can catch up here: Part I, Part II, and Part III!)
Just as a reminder, here’s what we are dealing with…(well, dealt with)…
When we moved in and the kitchen was livable, we knew we wanted open shelves but waited a while to let our budget recover slightly.
We made this work fine for a year but I was ready for two and knew my style was evolving (and my photography skills!).Ā
Later in the year, Russ added the open shelf-using stair treads and we loved them just like that for an entire year. But I knew in my head I always wanted two…so this past weekend…we jumped on it!
The pictures are pretty self-explanatory…the frustrating part was that the original shelf we hung was not quite centered so we had to take it down to adjust. So when you see holes, that’s what they are!
We used stair treads from Lowe’s and a 1×12 that we painted white.
The other tricky part was making sure they were level with each other.
We definitely had to use dry wall screws to help secure them to the wall!
The NEXT tricky part was lining them up with each other!
I had to let the white cure slightly before we could screw it in on top! That was so frustrating (only to me!) because I really, really wanted to style them. If you follow me on Instagram, you saw the china I scored Saturday morning to finish them off! Can you believe all of it was so cheap!?!?
We used a combination of things collected to style and I absolutely LOVE walking in the kitchen now!
We used IKEA mint plates (that they no longer have) and white IKEA plates, some white plates we picked up at Ross (one of those clearance sets of 6 YEARS ago!), and the rest came from a thrift store! Well, minus the cake stand (Southern Living-gift, white pitcher-my mom’s, and white scalloped bowl-Pier 1 from my mom!).
Next week will be the full reveal! Can’t wait to see you then with some close up shots and more details!
Linking here:Ā One Krieger Chick
Simple Details | Dimples and Tangles | Driven by Decor | Shine Your Light

It looks great. I can’t wait to see the whole reveal!
Thank you, Michelyn!!!
I think this would be my dream kitchen!! You have it decorated so beautifully.
Thank you so much, Courtney!!!
well i would love walking into my kitchen too, if i walked into that! gorgeous!
Oh my goodness, thank you so much, Cassie!!! I feel so cheesy saying I love looking at my thrifted dishes but it makes me so happy to finally have it all set out!
oh, wow–those shelves are beautiful! I love all the white with just a little aqua (and now I’m mourning a little that Ikea doesn’t sell that color anymore!)
Me too, Gretchen!!!!! I’m kicking myself for only getting one set! Thank you for your kind words!!!!
Amber!!! This is so gorgeous, and the only thing better than your beautiful open shelves is your styling with those amazing scores!! What a talented team! Thanks for sharing at Best of the Nest!
Thank you so much, Pam!! I could not believe how it all fit together…it’s like it was meant to be! š thank you for hosting!
Absolutely gorgeous!! We just updated our kitchen this last year (not near as much work as you put in) and I understand what you mean about loving to walk into your kitchen now!! Such a rewarding feeling to have a space you love – that you created š amazing job Amber!! Visiting from Best of the Nest
Thank you so much, Denise! You’re right on! It is such a rewarding feeling…one that I often forget about in the middle of the mess! Thanks for the reminder! š Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment!
Its beautiful..everything about it!
Great job! Love the styling:)
Thank you, Sherry!!
This kitchen is just about one of the most inspiring things I’ve ever seen. The fact that you did all of this on such a tight budget really gives me hope that I can get somewhere with my project. I’m in awe!
Wow! Thank you so much, Andrea!! Yes!!! You CAN do it on a budget!!
After having this for a while how do you like it? The open shelving? I’m pondering it but I’m nervous about dust, about it looking cluttered and lack of storage. Do you like it after living with it for a while? Truth please!!!! š
Hey, Heather! I actually just contributed to an article answering this! Here is the link! http://www.restlessarrow.com/2015/02/10/open-shelving-questions-answered/
We LOVE them because we truly use all of the items so much!
Awesome!! Thanks so much. Love the blog!
Thank you, Heather!!!!