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bella tucker kitchen remodeling and kitchen cabinet painting

Bella Tucker

Kitchen Design-Cabinet Refinishing-Nashville TN

Tuxedo Kitchen Update- Before and After

By Dana Tucker 1 Comment

Tuxedo Kitchens. Love them! The longer I do this, the easier it is to walk into a home and be able to envision exactly what the kitchen needs to bring it up to date. I can do a quick SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis in my mind and formulate a plan of action. That was definitely the case with the kitchen I’m sharing today.

tuxedo kitchen
Tuxedo kitchen update

Strengths

I walked into this home and instantly fell in love with the beautiful warm stained cabinets built all the way to the ceiling. They also had a beautiful large wood stove hood.

wood stained stove hood
Before- warm wood and beautiful stove hood

Weaknesses

This kitchen was dark. Too dark. Dark wood, dark floors, dark busy countertops.

dark kitchen
Before- dark kitchen

Opportunities

Since the layout was good, I knew we could lighten it up with paint, new counters and tile.

Threats

A two-tiered countertop, formal old world corbels, busy granite counters and multi colored tile were a threat to the updated style my homeowner’s were seeking. 

two tiered counter top
Before- two-tiered busy granite countertop

The homeowners wanted to lighten things up, but I knew we could accomplish that goal and still keep the gorgeous stained wood. I started formulating a plan for a Tuxedo Kitchen. 

Tuxedo Kitchen

What’s a Tuxedo Kitchen? A kitchen is called a Tuxedo Kitchen when the upper cabinets and the lower cabinets are two contrasting colors. I’ve written about this trend before, but I called it a two-toned kitchen. Although the term “tuxedo kitchen” is new to me,  we’ve been painting kitchens in this style for a few years. 

The Plan

  1. Cut down the two-tiered island
  2. Remove all the corbels 
  3. Install a large farm sink
  4. Replace the countertop with a marble look quartz
  5. Install a new lighter backsplash
  6. Install bigger pendant lights
  7. Paint the upper cabinets white
  8. Re-work the Butler’s Pantry
  9. Install new modern faucets

The homeowner and I were totally on the same page with all the updates which made it so fun. She literally only needed to see one option for each of my selections. She was “all in” on my vision for the kitchen. Here’s how it turned out:

Our carpenters cut down the two-tiered countertop.

cut down countertop
We cut down the two tiered countertop

We painted the upper cabinets in Benjamin Moore White Dove.

white dove painted cabinets
White Dove upper cabinets
White Dove painted cabinets
White Dove painted cabinets

The countertops were replaced with MSI Calacatta Laza. 

MSI Calcatta Laza Quartz
MSI Calcatta Laza Quartz

We installed these gorgeous Hicks Pendants from Visual Comfort. 

Hicks pendant lights
New Hicks Pendant Lights

We replaced the backsplash tile with 3×12 white subway tile. I love the irregular lines which make them look handmade. 

3x12 subway tile
We installed 3×12 subway tile

We installed a new white farm sink and my very favorite- the Delta Trinsic Touch 2.o faucet.

Delta Trinsic faucet in Champagne Bronze
Delta Trinsic faucet in Champagne Bronze

We re-worked the Butler’s pantry to add an ice machine and wine fridge. We also added wine storage over the sink.

Butler's pantry update
Butler’s pantry update

We also added these fabulous barstools from Ballard Designs. 

ballard designs barstools
New barstools from Ballard Designs

Remember where we started? 

kitchen before update
Kitchen Before

A few more after photos. 

tuxedo kitchen
Tuxedo Kitchen after update

bar prep sink tuxedo kitchen tuxedo kitchen Painted stove hood- white dove white dove black hardware white wood kitchenDesigning kitchens is my very favorite thing to do. Let me know if I can help you bring your kitchen up to date.

I would love to help you fall in love with your kitchen too. Whether you are ready for a full kitchen update or just in need of cabinet refinishing, we would love to help. We do everything from custom cabinet refinishing and painting to full kitchen project management and design. Fill out the form below if you’d like more information. 

Final photos by Geinger Hill. 

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Filed Under: Cabinet Painting, Kitchen Before and Afters, Kitchen Design, Kitchen Updating Tagged With: tuxedo kitchen, two toned kitchen

About Dana Tucker

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