Makeover Monday

This week's Makeover Monday comes from the Apartment Therapy "Small Cool Kitchens 2011" contest. I was browsing through the entries when I found this little beauty. It quickly became my favorite out of all the entries I looked at and drooled over. The reason this kitchen caught my eye is because lately I've been wanting to put more glitz and glamour in my life. I figure that I should supercharge my life while I'm still young and beautiful, and this kitchen would help out with that.

This is the only before picture of this kitchen, but as you can see it is extremely small and cramped. The layout is awkward (note the oven and microwave at the end in the middle), and Saundra the mastermind behind this makeover noted that there was little/no usable counter space. Not cool for someone who wants to get a lot of use out of their kitchen. No wonder she changed things up!

Here is the after shot. Just moving the stove and microwave to the side instead of in the middle made a noticeable difference, especially when replaced with that eye-catching tile. One of my favorite things about this room, however, is the small chandelier. Because every room in your house should have one, of course. I love that they're no longer limited to formal dining rooms. I've seen them in bedrooms, bathrooms, and now a small apartment kitchen. They're an awesome way to add a touch of glam to your apartment, house, or even your dorm room if you can find a smaller one (like this one from lightinguniverse.com).

She also added in a ton of open storage space on the right side, and warmed up the room with lovely wooden cabinets and shelves.

Seeing the results of this contest made me wonder if my apartment complex would be okay with me changing things up a bit...Although from a recent reading of my contract I don't think they would be too happy with new paint or removed cabinet doors. *sigh* Well at least I can take a few of these less drastic ideas and apply them to my new abode. Not much longer until move-in day!