My faux granite "painted" kitchen counter tops

I've been trying for days to find the time get this post written but it's been a crazy busy week for me with one thing or another.  Finally though, I'm ready to share with you guys my freshly painted laminate counter tops.

The blue trim on my counters has been on my list of things that needed replacing since the first time we walked into this trailer. WHY would any person think blue trim on countertops would be a good idea?? The counters themselves were in great shape other than a couple little things and so replacing the counters has never been a priority with my husband. His thought process and mine are completely different when it comes to home improvement. He would have been content to look at those blue and white counters for the rest of our lives and it would have never occurred to him to replace them.  Sometimes I feel like nothing would ever be updated or fixed in our home if I didn't hound him. Knowing my husband the way that I do, and trust me, I do lol...I knew there was no way he'd be on board for new counters. So I started the research process to see what my options were and I was thrilled when I discovered that painting the counters was an extremely viable and affordable option. I broached the subject with him and he shot me down. Over and over he shot me down and I was beginning to get very discouraged. He just wasn't convinced that painting was a good option and "there was nothing wrong with the counters".
Let's just say that I'm a pretty decent contender when it comes to the hounding department and eventually I convinced him to at least watch a couple of the many YouTube videos relating to painting laminate counters.
After he watched the process and saw the results, he finally agreed that we could give it a try. I was super excited and we took off to Walmart for the supplies immediately lol.
I don't have any photos of the supplies we used but I will try to add one later. I can't get a photo at the moment because I have a sleeping 2 year old in my bed and I definitely am not ready to wake that particular sleeping dragon lol.  I'd rather face a grizzly bear than a 2 year old woken up from a nap too soon.

The first step in the process of painting the counters was sanding them just a little and then cleaning them very very well. We used mineral spirits for the final cleaning before the primer went on.  Once the counters are completely clean and dry you can start painting on the primer.

I'm going to share with you just a few of the photos I took before, during and after our painting.

Here is the *before* picture...You may notice that we also
painted the cabinets white and the wall a light gray :)

That's my youngest helping out with the sanding

first coat of primer

after 2nd coat of primer

This is after the first layer of paint was applied using
a sea sponge

This is after about 6 layers of paint and immediately before
the polyurethane process

This is a close up of the finished counter...the part that
use to be blue...how much better is this???

another close up of the finished counter

You may notice my "faux backsplash" behind the stove...
not sure if that is staying or if I'll decide to sand it down
and paint over it. I'm not sold on it but I'm also lazy lol

nighttime view

all tape removed and everything in place

Look how pretty and shiny!

And one final picture to show that we also painted the other side of the kitchen the same gray color we have in our living room so that the two rooms flow together quite well. Also painted the trim white...that was a job but so worth it.

And that's it...I absolutely love my "new" kitchen and especially the counters. Obviously, I can't speak as to the durability but I've read lots of good things and as long as we take care with them there should be no issues.

I can tell you that although the painting process was very simple it was also quite tedious. I actually practiced on a small area of the countertop itself before washing the away the paint and starting the sanding. I did that to get an idea for the look I wanted to achieve and also to reassure myself that I wasn't biting off more than I could chew.
We sealed with about 5 coats of polyurethane clear coat...I let my handy husband take care of that part because you don't want any inconsistencies or bubbles if you can help it. He first tried rolling on the topcoat but then decided to use a brush. It's not as smooth a surface as actual granite but it looks beautiful and it completely changed the look of our kitchen...and the total cost was under $40...now come on...how cost effective is that???
I'm sure this isn't something that everyone will feel comfortable attempting but if you're one of those folks who is considering painting your countertops then I say why not give it a try :)
One other thing I'd like to add is that there actually are products out there specifically made for this and you can google those. One of the products I came across during my research for this project is called Giani and they sell that in home improvement and hardware stores. I'm also pretty sure that Rustoleum has a similar product so if you would rather go that route then you will still find this very affordable. When I priced the Giani it was around $80 for the kit...not a bad price at all.

If you do decide to do this then be prepared to have your kitchen practically unusable for a few days...that was the most difficult part of the entire process for us.

I think that's it for this time...I hope you enjoyed my post and seeing my "new" kitchen. If you have any questions then please let me know.
Until next time, thanks for stopping to read and come again soon!
Rhonda

Living life in a mobile home

Being on summer vacation has put my mind into DIY over drive trying to divvy up my ideas into workable categories such as "want", "need", "doable", "affordable", etc. I almost always look to the internet when I decide to take on an unfamiliar project. For example, I'm not the smartest  when it comes to which paint to use on what surface and I've learned over the years that it does matter lol. While perusing different sites and blogs in my quest for information, one thing kept leaping out at me... and that, my friends, is the stigma associated with people who live in a mobile home. Apparently, you must fit a certain stereotype if you live in a trailer. First of all, you MUST be poor and uneducated. Second, you are most certainly a hillbilly or redneck (as if being a "hillbilly" is a bad thing!!) I'm not sure from where this concept originated and perhaps I have a different viewpoint because truthfully I have lived in trailers for much of my life. What I do know is that the idea that you are a lesser person because you live in a mobile home is completely ridiculous as well as outright discriminatory.
My husband and I chose this route because we have a common goal to be debt free as quickly as possible. And by purchasing a mobile home we will be able to attain that goal in less than a third of the time that it would take had we taken on a 30 year mortgage. When we came across this deal it was just too good to pass up. So we live fairly minimally with as few debts as possible. We are happy and content. It might also surprise some people to know that we actually aren't even "poor" (gasp!). Now the hillbilly part of the stereotype? Well, I like to think I am, in fact, a hillbilly. I believe that country folks are the best folks--living in East Tennessee has taught me that and I'm more proud of being from Tennessee than I could even put into words. The people here are incredible. I might have to wave at 10 people on my way to town but I wouldn't have it any other way.  So I guess in a way I do hold true to a part of the stereotype but I'm not ashamed of my home or my roots. And THAT is a great feeling!
 I hope that people are open minded enough to realize that different people have different priorities and nobody should be judged on the basis of their individual choices. And especially not when it pertains to the type of dwelling they choose to make into their homes.
Our home is approximately 1200 sq. feet of actual living space and plenty large enough for our family to be happy and content.
I didn't mean to go off on a tangent but this has really bothered me. I have always been a cheerleader for the underdog--which is just part of my charm lol and I certainly do feel that there is a social stigma attached to anyone who lives in a mobile home (trailer).
As I've stated before in this blog, I believe you don't have to live in an expensive house to have a beautiful or comfortable home. Our homes are what we make them and I like to think that we're making ours warm, loving and inviting.
And now that I've got all that off my chest, I'm going to go see what kind of paint I might need for these ugly plain Jane interior doors :)
I hope I haven't scared anyone off and that you check back again to see what I might have going on next!  I have a million ideas floating around in this old noggin...just might take me a while to get them all accomplished!

And before I forget I have a few before/semi after pictures for your perusal. I wish I'd taken better photos before we moved in but I just took them willy nilly with no real thought process. But at least I had the forethought to at least take a few even though they aren't great.



Also please remember that it's a bit intimidating to open your home up to scrutiny this way so I hope that everyone can be kind :)

That's the original refrigerator in the floor--that's where it was placed during the moving process. And please ignore my poor ugly dilapidated couch...I'm looking for a new one even as I type (YAY!!)...it's been a long time coming lol.

Looking at this photo I probably should have moved the high chair but it's not really worth a do over--I do apologize though :)

The kitchen has had the most "updates" with almost all new appliances, new light fixtures, new flooring, paint, faucet, cabinet paint and half finished counter top trim paint.

Gosh you don't realize how something looks to other people until you take a picture. The shelf you see at the end of the hallway holds all our family board games and a couple of photographs. The blue box behind the vacuum cleaner is a vintage scrabble game we 
picked up at Goodwill a couple years ago--it's a prized possession!

Eventually I plan on taking the vanity out of this bathroom and replacing with just a pedestal sink to give the illusion of more space.

And there is a glimpse of a few of the updates or improvements we've made. There are tons still to tackle but we do what we can when we can. My husband works 6 days a week and I try not to nag about projects very often...you're welcome, honey lol.

NOTE: Here are a couple links you might enjoy if you're interested in mobile home remodeling or makeovers!

Just bee'n me
Mobile Home Living

Mobile home kitchen update

I just wanted to quickly post an updated photo of our kitchen now that the floors are done. (The flooring will be the next post!)
I know that looking at this photo probably doesn't give anyone else the same satisfaction that it gives me but I just love my kitchen now. When we saw our home for the first time I loved the openness of the kitchen but everything else pretty much made me cringe. The floral wallboard so common in mobile homes was awful. The floor was horrible...I guess the previous owner had some kind of portable island in the kitchen and there were large rust stains on the floor. And you all remember my hate of the blue and white counter tops, lol.

If you haven't seen my post on my "faux granite countertops" then be sure and go check that out here:

faux granite countertops

And here is the updated kitchen photo I promised! Please ignore the fact that no floor trim is done yet. That project is NEXT on our list but my husband is still recovering from doing the floors last weekend, lol.

Be sure and come back soon for my next post covering the new laminate flooring :)

We still have a few kitchen projects on our list, including a new back door and door frame as well as a new hallway light. But the main part of the kitchen is finished and I have to say that I love my kitchen.

We've updated the lighting, countertops, walls, repainted the cabinets, replaced the stove and dishwasher, replaced the faucet, painted the trim and redid the floor.

Thanks for having a look...if you have any questions or comments let me know below!
Have a great day!

Our mobile home laminate floor process before and after

Finally getting my main living area floors replaced with laminate was a huge item on my "to do" list.  Maybe it's an easier process in a stick built home but in our mobile home which was used when we purchased it, it was a little more labor intensive. We dealt with a million nails and staples as well as some places in the floor that had some water damage and needed replaced.

I had originally picked out a flooring with a grayer color but it was sold out and because I really wanted to finish the floors before Easter I chose another flooring. The one we used is called "San Salvadore Cherry" and we got it from Lumber Liquidators in Chattanooga, TN. after checking what felt like 50 other places. We got it for an amazing price and turns out I really love it :)
I'm not going to go into a lot of detail..I'll just let the photos--LOTS of photos--tell the story.

DAY 1
Right after we started moving the furniture out.
It's shameful how much cleaner the carpet was underneath
the rug. I didn't think the carpet looked THAT bad until we moved
the rug and furniture...it's pretty embarrassing.

Making the first cut to the carpet so we could get it out
and get started!

I personally must have pulled up at least
a million staples. Here is our youngest son helping with
stray nails and staples.

Looks like Tim and Misha are doing a great job
supervising here. Actually, Misha wasn't happy
with the disruption.

All the carpet is out...just one piece of padding left.
Can you see right behind the couch all the nails????
Somebody went crazy with their nail gun when putting
down the carpet. WHAT were they thinking???

more nails...we were beginning to think we'd
never see the light at the end of that tunnel!

You can see the original kitchen flooring here.
That is actually the flooring that is still in our
laundry room.

It was unreal the amount of sweeping that had to be done.
We all swept and swept and swept.

My husband and youngest son <3 

Break time :)

Finally starting to see some progress!

Replacing some rotted flooring 

Grandson wanted to help too

We let him "hammer" the staples we used. Of course
his dad went behind him and really hammered them flush.

I just love this picture...there was a lot of
teamwork going on here.

Danielle managed to clear out enough counter space
to get all the lunch stuff ready after she went to the store
to get it. Maybe we were just hungry but those were some
delicious hoagies, lol. 

Furniture going back in!!!

Very last piece of flooring going in by the back door!

The house was still a disaster but the floor
was down and the furniture back in place.

Completely rearranged the furniture...I admit it
took me a week or two to get use to it.

Got new curtains to go with the new look of the living room!
It looks so open and bright now!

Main hallway

View from the front door

rare view from the backdoor. 

I realize that's a lot of photos and I apologize. I just really wanted to show the process we went through to get to the end result. I see some women who say they did the floors by themselves and I honestly have no idea how they do that.

I can't say enough how much more open and clean our home feels. I absolutely LOVE the floors as well as the openness conveyed in the way we placed the furniture. I loved my home before and I love it even more now. Not much feels better than seeing your thoughts and ideas coming to fruition.

Of course there are other projects still to come in the future :)