This is a long time in coming, but I’m finally posting pictures of our kitchen renovation. We spent the first two years in our house complaining about our kitchen and now finally we have one we love!
It had looked fine at first glance when we were house hunting, but once we settled in we found plenty not to like. I hated the beige cabinetry that had been refaced so many times and was so old that it was actually slanted, which in turn made things like the dishwasher not fit in snugly. It didn’t come with cabinetry on one wall or a built in island, so we had kept the previous owners’ not very attractive rolling island and our very ugly but functional storage cart. Instead of backsplash, it boasted unfortunate wainscotting. And forget any modern amenities like under cabinet lighting or soft close drawers. It overall had too much of a country vibe for our otherwise contemporary house, and it was pretty run down.
Before: Our old kitchen |
I’d always been afraid to tackle a major renovation because you hear horror stories of $30,000 kitchen redos, and our time horizon in this house isn’t long enough to justify blowing so much on it. We got some bids from local renovation companies, but they were all bananas ($20K+ on average). We were aiming to spend something closer to $10,000, with the knowledge that you always go over budget.
My father is a real estate developer, so we were lucky to have him volunteer to play a contractor role, which saved us quite a bit of money. That said, we still found some great ways to keep things reasonable. We were gutting everything other than appliances, so we had lots to do!
I did a ton of research into kitchen design before I landed on a plan. You can see my pinterest inspiration board here. You’ll quickly notice I was attracted to all white kitchens. They are oh so on-trend at the moment, and I felt like they were classic enough that it would be reasonably easy to sell even after trendsetters move on to the next big thing.
After: Our new kitchen! |
New cabinetry was going to be our biggest single expenditure, and we found a great source – J&K Bath and Kitchen. It’s a Chinese company with a local (Norcross) showroom. Note, they only sell to contractors, so you need to have someone place the order for you. These cabinets are all real wood, unlike the composite cabinets you find at places like Ikea or even expensive vendors. It’s crazy that people are actually charging more for something that isn’t 100% wood. J&K’s cabinets also come with the soft close, and we’ve found them to be very high quality in the 6 or so months we’ve been using them now.
J&K sent out a cabinet installer sub-contractor who worked with us to design the perfect layout. We definitely wanted a built-in island to maximize on prep space, and we wanted to make use of all of the walls since the overall footprint of the kitchen isn’t huge.
On the island, we opted for an overhang where we could set up two stools, a built in microwave and bookcase for cookbooks. We also included add-ons like a a spice drawer on the island and an appliance garage next to the sink. I love how functional it is now!
I was shocked at how expensive built in microwaves are – we’re talking $500-1000. My deal hunting honey kept an eye out online and eventually found a Jenn Air that would have retailed for ~$1200 on close out at a retailer called Carlson’s for about $400.
Other less expensive but pricey details were needing to refinish the floors and pay for our handyman to do the wiring for under-counter lighting and new can lights. OPnce you counted in things we weren’t originally planning for, like refinishing the floors and splurging on a built in microwave, we ended up at about $13K, which was notably over budget, but way cheaper than the national average of $15-20K.
The renovation took a couple of weeks, and we’ve been loving it since this summer. I feel happy every time we are in it, and it’s so much more useful now. It wasn’t cheap, but I feel like we’ll more than make our money back in enjoyment and the extra value it’s added to the house.
Kitchen Renovation Sources:
Cabinets – J&K
Granite – Art Stone in Glacier White
Paint – Antique Tin from Behr
Counter Stools – Industry West
Rug – Flor
Tile backsplash – Daltile
Beautiful kitchen Lindsey! Now just wait for all those tiny fingerprints to be everywhere!! 😉
It looks great! I've been looking for a good cabinet place. And i love the light fixture!
Beautiful! My favorite part is the stone you chose for the countertop.
We remodeled our kitchen last year as well and went with a white kitchen. Our cabinets are from J&K as well.
Nice pics,After remodeling your kitchen is looking very nice and clean.I like your kitchen cabinets and counter top.Thanks for sharing.
Great job!! I really appreciate your work because you did this work own.Your project inspire me to do remodeling of my home also.Thanks for sharing.
Considering budget before doing kitchen renovation is important as it said to be expensive than the other home renovations.Thanks for sharing such a nice article here.
Make a note that all makeovers are generally carried out as per your intention. Acquire tips from plumbers, electricians along with tilers by neighborhood friends,buddies and do research on websites.
Renovating a kitchen on a budget is really difficult task to do but you almost did it very beautifully and carefully.
Hey there!
How are the cabinet doors,hinges and paint holding up?? We're getting ready to buy and can't seem to find many reviews and are concerned with longevity as they only have a year warranty.
Thanks!
Carolyn
We moved out of the house in July 2014, but we never had any issues with the kitchen.We would use the same vendors again!
J&k cabinets are a low grade wood cabinet. What makes them is the contractor who assembles them. We used Handsome Cabinets. Their guys were sloppy in assembly. If you use the proper assembly tools the cabinets are solid. Theses cabinets have been in US homes for 10 years. So they last if you don't abuse them. The price point is also one third their American counterparts. I give them a 6 out of 10.
I am also interested in how the doors, hinges and rails are holding up. I understand that the contractor who assembles and installs them affect the the sturdiness of the cabinets, but what about the other pieces? Do the doors' wood seem to be soft and tend to get more nicks and dents in them over time? Are the hinges still and rails still holding up over time with constant opening, closing, and sliding?