DIY Project: Turn an Entertainment Center into a Child's Play Disney Kitchen!  I am excited to share with you a very fun and creative project that I have been working on for the past several months.  I was at Pottery Barn Kids one day months ago and I saw the adorable kitchen that they have there.  Of course, it was out of my price range but I kept dreaming about making something like it for my daughter.  One day I was on pinterest and I found all these amazing kitchens made from an old entertainment center.  I was hooked, I had to build one too but I didn't want it to look like everyone else.  I studied dozens of pictures, dreamed, sketched and planned how to make this a unique kitchen with a Disney twist since who doesn't love Disney?  I am not sure who was more excited my daugther or I.  This project has been a labor of love.  Thanks to whoever started the ingenious idea of redoing an entertainment center.

BEFORE

I picked up this entertainment center on craigslist for $40.  The best part was that it had wheels on the bottom which ended up being a blessing since everytime I worked on it, I had to wheel it out of the garage and put it back everyday.  

BUILDING IN PROGRESS

The kitchen sink had me stuck for awhile.  I didn't want to spend a fortune on this project and I couldn't find a cheap sink that looked like a kitchen one and not a bathroom sink.  I drew the shape of a faucet on a piece of paper and then I thought about what shapes looked like it, I had it a shephards cane.  After looking at many different stores, I walked into Home Depot and I saw a large candy cane that I thought would work.  It ended up being perfect and it only cost a couple bucks.  

I loved the idea that I found online of using a small bread pan for an ice maker to put into the frig door so I thought I'd add that piece too.  I also painted the frig doors with magnet paint so that I could use magnets on the outside of the door like real frigs can.  Don't buy the magnet paint from a spray can, it may be cheapier but it doesn't work.  I knew I wanted to do a Disney theme so I took the doors off the entertainment center and turned them the other way.  I traced mickey ears on the door and then I cut the shape with a hand jigsaw.  My blade was smoking, oak wood is tough to cut, it was a slow process but I was very happy with the results like my daughter is too in the above picture.

Since the shelf where I was going to add the sink was too low, I had to add a few inches to the height of the space which ended up being a great idea.  I had room to put the sink without it appearing below where the dishwasher was going to be.  It also gave me space for the knobs.  As I was sketching out my design, I really wanted to add some counter space so that the kids had some room to cut food or put it together.  There just was not enough room so I added this drawer that pulls out as extra table space.  It just took some creative building to figure out how to make it happen as you can see from all the wood pieces and screws up above.

AFTER

I love how the window and curtains turned out.  I wanted to add a window sill with, of course, a picture of the Disneyland castle.  I tried to pull yellow into the kitchen without it being too much so I added it to the tile trim around the sink area and the daisy flowers by the window in honor of Minnie Mouse's best friend, Daisy.

BEFORE AND AFTER

After a few months of working on this project, I sprayed the entire kitchen with a sealant to keep it from chipping and to make it last longer just before Christmas (while being 38 weeks pregnant) and hid it behind a red blanket to be opened on Christmas day.  I love the look on my daughter's face as she opens it even though she had been around most of the time while I was building it.

I'd love to hear what you think about this DIY project, leave a comment, repin or reblog this post!  I have a whole list of other things I want to get to building now too.  On to the next project after this baby pops out of the oven.  Wish me luck, Saturday is the day we meet another little addition to our family!