We live in a vintage one bedroom apartment in Toluca Lake, a tiny borough of LA between North Hollywood and Burbank. When we first moved in I immediately fell in love with the kitchen. I still love it...I do...but I'd definitely update the cabinets if I had the autonomy. Unfortunately I just have to work with what I've got here. I decided to embrace the the warm, almost amber tone and compliment it with a fresh pop of light, avocado green. Our fridge was generously gifted to us by my parents when we moved here over 8 years ago and it's barely hanging on so I felt okay about giving it a little makeover.
Let me start by admitting that I initially went about this all wrong and ended up spray painting the whole thing. BIG MISTAKE. Huge.
Don't do what I did. Instead, start out by sanding all the areas you intend to paint. I'd use a medium or fine grit sand paper. You don't want to scratch it, just give it a little texture so the paint will stick. Wipe clean, then get yourself a small roller brush, a little jar of paint, and get to work. Make sure to let the paint dry fully between coats. for the color I used, I needed about 3 coats. I didn't get any sort of special paint/finish. Just a sample size of a valspar paint from Lowe's. You'll want a bigger size if you intend to paint the whole thing. Since our fridge is tucked away in a corner, I didn't paint the side near the wall at all.
I looked into getting new handles but they are so expensive to replace so I just spray painted them with a chrome spray paint and they looked great. I made the mistake of using this horrible clear top coat which just pooled and never fully set so I have since had to refinish the handles a couple of times. I don't mind doing it, they pop on and off, but if you don't want to deal with it, just splurge on the new handles. Especially if you are planning to keep the fridge for a long time. Or maybe yours aren't as aged and yellowed as ours had become. Are we just garbage people?
Supplies:
Fine grit sand paper
Paint: I used Valspar paint from Lowe's in Zen Garden
Small paint roller and pan
Chrome spray paint for the handles (or replacement handles if you fancy)
And that is truly it. I have not tested it with magnets (scratching) or had to really clean it more than a light wipe down. I'll keep everyone posted via instagram if any new discoveries are made but for now, I'm in love with it. It is just the pop of color and freshness this kitchen needed. Sometimes, you just have to work with what you have and not gut your rental kitchen and put in new shelves...especially if you want your deposit back.
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