A (long) while back (I don’t think I ever posted about it) we built a vanity in the small alcove just outside the master bathroom. And we did it on the cheap. The dressers on each side are solid, natural wood that we painted white; we got them for just around $35 each from Ikea. The top is just a stock laminate counter from Home Depot (or was it Lowes?) that we cut to fit the space. Hey, laminate isn’t my favorite, but it wipes clean and has been wearing well.
So, now let’s rewind to even earlier.
When we first bought the barn, knowing that we needed to approach this project as economically as possible, and wanting to reuse and repurpose as much material as we could, we purchased a kitchen from Green Demolitions. Their work is pretty amazing, and their website can explain far better than I can. But essentially, here’s how Green Demolitions works:
- People seeking to renovate their luxury kitchen can donate their current kitchen materials to Green Demolitions
- Donors receive a tax write-off for the donation
- GD inspects, proposes a value, and removes it with “white glove” service, at no removal cost to the contractor or homeowner
- GD then resells the kitchen, and the proceeds of the sale are donated to charity
- Kitchens are often solid wood custom cabinets, usually countertops, and sometimes include appliances
TL;DR VERSION:
tax write-off + recycling materials + affordable quality + donating to charity =
GOOD STUFF
Anyway, we bought a kitchen from Green Demolitions. We weren’t in love with the countertops, but the rest was just beautiful. Solid wood custom cabinets that were painted white, glass door upper cabinets, a large butcher block island, and a Viking range. We didn’t have a kitchen plan when we made this purchase, but we thought it was worth it.
And it was.
We actually didn’t wind up using the cabinets in the kitchen. The plans didn’t quite match ours, and our kitchen ceiling height was too low for the tall upper cabinets. But we used the cabinets elsewhere throughout the house. We put the island and the butcher block against the wall in the laundry room for storage and for a folding station. And in the office, we made a library and desk with most of the other lower cabinets and two of the glass uppers. (And now that I’m describing all of this, I should probably get a move on a few blog posts that highlight those projects, eh?)
Which brings me to the point of this post:
We had two glass door upper cabinets left, and we decided to finish the vanity outside of the master bath with them. And so that’s what we did this weekend. We also added a piece of crown molding to complete the piece. (Actually, ‘complete’ is a generous word. We basically just hung a couple of cabinets. We still need to do a few things, like touch up the paint and add some barn wood on the wall as an accent. But hey, we made progress.)
Home Sweet Barn 