If you’re looking for a kitchen makeover straight out of a Nancy Meyers movie, you’ve come to the right place. After four years and plenty of DIY projects, interior designer Orlando Soria recently completed the renovation of his 1992 Fish Camp, California home, affectionately known as the Londo Lodge. Located two miles away from Yosemite National Park, Orlando bought it in 2020 and spends half of his time there, so the kitchen had to be a warm, inviting room he’d want to cook in while still paying homage to the home’s historic nature. Learn how he pulled it off here.

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Determining the Kitchen Makeover Color Palette

“I wanted the room to feel neutral since there are a lot of other wall colors going on in adjacent rooms,” Orlando said. “I also wanted a timeless, bright kitchen.” For the cabinets, this led him to the aptly named paint color Timeless, a creamy off-white that envelops a space in warmth.

To complement Timeless, Orlando chose our light gray-green Rain Check for the ceiling to bring in the green hue from the pine trees outside. “The light in this kitchen is actually really blue,” he said. “There is a considerable amount of blue sky outdoors and the roof is blue so maybe that’s reflected in. But because the color read so much bluer in here than it would elsewhere, I went with a warmer, mintier blue-green Rain Check rather than a bluer color like Headspace.”

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After

To bring the entire kitchen makeover together, the delicate yet warm white Whipped was chosen for the trim. “If you’re going white in the kitchen, I’d recommend steering clear of a bright white,” Orlando advised. “I think warmer whites are going to feel a lot homier.”

Upgrading a Blank Canvas

“The ‘before’ of the kitchen wasn’t all that bad,” Orlando explained. “It’s actually one of the main reasons I bought the house. The house was rarely used, so the kitchen was mint-condition 1990s.” While the original kitchen was charming, it didn’t have the vintage, warm vibe that Orlando was after.

 

That is why the designer decided to combine the Cape Cod and Craftsman styles in the kitchen makeover. “I plan to implement this more historic style throughout the house, but the kitchen was the first area I got to play with that style, because it’s my first major renovation,” Orlando said. “I wanted the room to feel really grand, but also really approachable.”

Behind the 4-Year Process

Creating your dream space takes time, and Londo Lodge’s kitchen makeover is proof of that. “This whole entire room was overhauled from top to bottom,” Orlando revealed. “The kitchen project took almost four years from start to finish and construction took a full year.”

During that time, Orlando accomplished many DIY projects within the kitchen. First, he chose to hand-paint the cabinets instead of using a paint sprayer to give them a hand-touched feel. “A brushed finish really adds a layer of warmth that feels right at home in a historic-inspired renovation.”

In addition to giving the paint job, Orlando added custom millwork to the sides of the cabinets and a beam crossing the room. The latter helped provide a stopping point for the ceiling color. “Adding that little division made the room feel a lot more tailored and finished.”

To further complement the Rain Check ceiling color, Orlando hand-framed and hung an antique pine tree painting on the end of the china hutch. The greens in the art, along with other verdant touches around the kitchen, beautifully bring out the green in the ceiling paint.

Though Orlando admits that he may have gone overboard on the kitchen lighting, he’s still happy with his decision. “The brass lighting definitely helps warm up the room, as does the brass hardware and all the brass accents on the appliances,” he stated.

Unveiling the Final Look

“The paint colors really drive home the vibe of the room, which more than anything is meant to be soothing and neutral,” Orlando said. And while the entire kitchen makeover did take four years, the designer found it worth it.

“I guess the main lesson was how empowering it can be to just go for it and try to do things yourself rather than wait for someone to do it for you,” he concluded. “Sure, I messed some things up in the process, but I ended up with a much more handmade-looking kitchen than I would have if I had not done it myself.”

In order to create the space of your dreams, all you have to do is get started. Find a paint color that speaks to your vision, grab a brush or roller and get to painting.