BEFORE & AFTER: DIY Wooden Play Kitchen Makeover
I don’t do very many furniture makeovers for kids, but when I do, like this cute little DIY wooden play kitchen makeover, I love it! Usually, with these pieces, you can be a little more whimsical and adventurous, right?
When I picked it up from the thrift store, this ugly little wooden play kitchen looked like this:
Well, here’s how it turned out!
I strongly feel that boys can play with wooden play kitchens, too, right?
It’s actually a slight miracle that I pulled it off and that I like it so much, because I was >THISCLOSE< to scrapping the whole project!
But I’m sooo glad I hung in there.
DIY Wooden Play Kitchen Makeover
The “red” and “blue” came from some girl’s outfit that I saw about 8 months ago at a family naming ceremony. I’m sitting there sipping my wine and in walks this girl wearing these brilliant blue pants and blood red shirt. AHA! Inspiration!! I discreetly snapped a pic of it, but for some reason, I can’t find the pic to show you. Grrr………
When I discovered this awesome Annie Sloan Emperor’s Silk, I knew this would be the red that would bring my inspiration to reality! Mixed with Napoleonic Blue, and I’ve got a recipe for major cuteness.
Related: What’s the Best Paint For Furniture?
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This wooden play kitchen was a bit more “expensive” than a similar wooden kitchen makeover that I did for only $2.50, but heck–$7.00 is still an awesome price!
First thing I did was remove the years of nasty stickers that accumulated, with my awesome HomeRight Heat Pro Deluxe II heat gun. That thing is awesome.
Then I sanded it down a bit. I normally don’t sand, but this surface needed it.
But I’m not kidding when I say that I almost scrapped this project when I first painted it and saw it looked sorta like Papa Smurf! HA!
What to Do When You Lose Your Creative Streak
By all means, consult your Daddy. Otherwise known as GOOGLE, who basically owns you 🙂 I knew it needed some “oompf” so I Googled “red” and “blue” and suddenly, I kept seeing these nautical-themed outfits. I realized that I could do a nautical theme and totally rock this piece! I don’t think I have seen a nautical theme kid’s furniture. So…why not??
So I pulled out my Silhouette Cameo which cuts vinyl that you can use to make stencils very easily (amongst many other cool tricks I have yet to discover).
Next, I cut out some anchors to use as stencils on the front.
The stencil worked really great! You just have to be mindful to get it on there properly.
….because if you don’t, the vinyl ends up a warped piece of crap you can’t use. 🙂 And vinyl ain’t cheap! It sticks to itself like you wouldn’t believe!
No Time For Perfection!
Next, I outlined the anchor in red. Sorry, I didn’t get pics of it, but I basically just free-handed it. I wasn’t too happy with the free-hand results, but you know what?? I’m not perfect. And I’m not going to pretend that my projects are, either. In fact, I wanted this piece to be a little “DIRTY” and not-quite-so-precise.
I decided to add white paint trim all along the edges on top and then use dark wax to muddy it up a bit. Who needs crisp perfection?
I showed a friend of mine preliminary pics of the project, and she had the nerve to point out faults! (Did I mention she’s not crafty ONE BIT??).
‘Nuff said. Keep it movin’…..
I really wanted to pull in some rope somewhere, so I decided to just add a little bit to the side, to hold a DIY dish towel.
Next, I decided I would DIY a little dishcloth to hang from the rope. So I pulled out my trusty Silhouette Cameo again and cut out a sailboat to use as a stencil. Then I stenciled some boats onto a scrap piece of cloth.
Last, but not least, I painted the handles a cleaner red (not shown) and painted the plastic sink bucket that goes inside the sink. It was pretty worn.
Overall, I would say it was DEFINITELY a successful project!
What do you think?!?!?!
BEFORE
AFTER
And all I had were Trader Joe’s Black Beans! HAHAHA.
I guess someone lost interest….. LOL
Here’s another look:
And then my boys made me breakfast….BEANS and CHEERIOS. How sweet it that??
And who cares if the two projects don’t match? When you’ve got 3 cute boys playing “cooking” with Cheerios, nothing else seems to matter.
My oldest son must like it because he asked me, “Mommy, you’re not going to SELL it, are you?”
So what do you guys think?!?! Do you like it?
Check out these other DIY projects for kids!
- How to Make a Backyard Bean Bag Toss
- How to Make a Superhero Shield
- How to Get Kids to Listen and Limit Electronics
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That is absolutely adorable. (And you were very polite to the person who wrote the nasty comment. Blogs aren’t places for nastiness 🙂
Hey there, Diane! Thank you! And yes, I would rather be polite than nasty 🙂 At least she commented! 🙂 I’ll take it. LOL
Hate it how you say “for boys”
Cause this is 2013 Im fighting for Equality and you’re Raising your children that Boys and girls are diffrent and cant have the same things
The 50’s called and want their DISCRIMINATION Back
Thanks for your comment. I totally disagree with you, but hey, free speech, right? 🙂
Absolutely adorable and the nautical theme is perfect. Just a little sad that my 23 and 21 year olds wouldn’t fully appreciate such fun stuff anymore :(. Seems like yesterday they would be thrilled to have such a cool item!! I guess I could make one that is really a cabinet for a beer keg :).
Noreen, hahahaha, I think I would like a cabinet for a beer keg, too! LOL
I just love your ideas.
This turned out great. I love it and what a great deal too.
Vanessa
This came out so cute, and boyish looking but can go either way. Is this your second children’s stove? I remember the one also being done very cute.
And, I also agree boys should play with stoves, my did with my daughter. Also the makings of a future chef! 😉
Hey Anna! Yep, this is my second kid’s piece like this, but the first one was a stove, and this one was a sink. I think I am addicted to this kind of project! It’s so much fun! Thanks so much for commenting!! 🙂
That is AMAZING! Great job with that. I love how you can use the Silhouette for so many things beyond srapbooking.
Wow what a transformation! Such a cute idea, really digging the nautical theme.
P.S. Boys too can enjoy a play kitchen. They’ve gotta lean to become aspiring chefs too 🙂
Serena…your children are cute but your littlest pictured there is a cutie patootie. Great project. You are good. I have someone coming over today to price out some of my projects. Ha! Thanks for doing the link parties on haven. Wish more people participated. But at least I have the opp to get to know you more! Have a fab week.
Hey, Denise! Yeah, I’m loving the Haven link! I have seen so many other people’s creativeness and I love it! Glad to meet you, too!! 🙂