Another kitchen remodel 'before & after'

12 years ago

We went through a kitchen remodeling process that took about three months. It was pretty much a "nuke it from orbit and start over" process. All our appliances were beginning to fail, the old tile was crumbling and the paint on the cabinet doors was peeling.

The old radiant heat cooktop was at least 30 years old, and one of the burners had permanently failed.

We worked with International Kitchens & Bath (Santa Clara, CA), who is a Wood Mode dealer. We went with Brookhaven cabinets, which fit our needs well. The look we had in mind was more contemporary than traditional.

The peninsula is the same height as the main countertops, and used as a breakfast nook, as well as prep area.

Two small windows were replaced with one larger bay window over the sink. The linoleum floor was replaced with oak flooring that extended the existing hardwood floors from the dining area. All lighting is LED based.

The project is just wrapping up, with some trim work left to be done, but it's functionally complete and (so far) working well.

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Comments (34)

kellied
12 years ago
I love, love, love how your kitchen looks now!
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remodelfla
12 years ago
I love the clean contemporary look! It looks like a huge space. I hope you enjoy all that glorious prep space. Nicely done...congrats!
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Chris, I did to my custom cabs exactly what you want to do. They were solid wood, great shape, but after 15 years I couldn't stand the overall dark feel. I had them refaced and everything painted. new countertops, vent hood, splash, window, everything. The company I hired to paint also deals w/refacing. for an additional 2K, I got all new doors, drawer fronts. (I prob have twice the cabs you do, including a 4X7 island) The new doors are all solid maple w/center panels made from MDF. when painting, MDF is a better choice for the panels than solid wood. To answer your questions about getting new doors that aren't painted, yes, they would then have to use a veneer material to skin your base cabinets so that they would match. something else you should change over is the lower doors to drawers. a good refinishing company can also do this for you. I had them make two large drawers in my island where open shelving used to be. so much better for storing large pans have you had any estimates? If going the painting route, make sure you get all of the steps they take in priming. if getting them refaced, those should come raw, so all they have to do is prime and paint. you can also get soft closing hinges. You're prob looking at well over 6-7K for just painting, and then whatever extra they charge for refacing. as for the gap to the ceiling, there are diff ways to tackle that. since your current cabs have a large wood edge (the part above your doors) , it might be difficult to add on boxes to that. you see how the doors immediately transition into the added boxes? You have that 3-4" of wood above your doors. what you might be able to do is get taller doors to cover that, remove the crown, and then build the boxes above that. or, you could add on a decorative molding or large crown This one might work for you. another poster on here had these, but notice how her doors almost touched her crown molding. They removed that Built boxes and then added doors. I believe she told me this cost her 2K to have that gap closed like this these are mine, before. I'm sure people thought I was crazy for changing it. I didn't care. I lived w/it for 15 years, the finish was wearing and I was tired of dark. notice my drawer/door design. see how the top drawers are slab and the others shaker style? This is why I refaced so they would all match. all of the fluted / rope trim and corbels were removed. micro was moved. vent hood made. drawers in island made. doors added to desk area. We did the window ourselves. new marble/quartz, lighting, flooring, appliances. I did Wrought Iron on my island, bright white on the others. there's a double pantry to the left you can't see. You say you don't want white, which is fine, there are plenty of other colors. Revere Pewter edgecomb gray Navy Kendall Charcoal This just gives you an idea. what is your budget? If you say 10K, that may get you countertops and new tile backsplash.
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Bunny
12 years ago
Nice job, lcase! It looks so clean and spacious.
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lcase
Original Author
12 years ago
Thanks! It's early yet, but it looks like it's going to work out well.

You never really know until it's all in place. This was our first experience with something this major, so it was a little nerve-wracking to shell out a substantial amount and not be quite sure how well it would turn out.
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cawaps
12 years ago
Really nicely done! Modern, but warm.

Do you mind telling us a bit about the style/era of your house? And what is the name of the granite?
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cat_mom
12 years ago
Wow--what a difference! Love it, and love those stools!
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motherof3sons
12 years ago
Beautiful! The cabinetry is gorgeous. Congratulations and enjoy your new space.
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sas95
12 years ago
You did a great job. I love the clean lines and how warm the space looks.
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chicagoans
12 years ago
Fantastic! Everything looks great. Love those barstools! Congrats and enjoy.
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MichelleDT
12 years ago
Beautiful! Can't believe it is the same space.
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lcase
Original Author
12 years ago
The countertop material is Cambria Quartz, Praa Sands pattern. It looks like granite or marble, but it's quartz.

The house itself is a suburban home built in the mid-1960s. It's a weird dual split level -- take a two story house, saw it down the middle, and sink half if it in the ground. Our home offices are in the daylight basement, the kitchen right above the basement.
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gsciencechick
12 years ago
Wow, so sleek and modern. Love it!
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mudhouse_gw
12 years ago
The window (and light) is wonderful, and so is the transformation. I really, really want to sit in those chairs. Congratulations!
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bklyn2pok
12 years ago
Looks great! I envy the amount of counter space you have.
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dragonfly08
12 years ago
Wow! Looks fantastic! Loving the brown and the stools... so mod!! And the long, uninterrupted counter space shows off your countertops beautifully! Great job and congrats on finishing!
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breezygirl
12 years ago
You have acres of counterspace!! Wow! What a tremendous improvement. Enjoy!
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suzanne_sl
12 years ago
So much nicer!!! I'm looking at that little tiny space between the top of your cabinets and the ceiling. What's the plan? I ask because we also have a space kinda like that which hasn't been dealt with yet.
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theresse
12 years ago
Love the size of your kitchen, love how cool, streamlined and uncluttered the look is now, and love all your colors. Soothing yet sophisticated!
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flwrs_n_co
12 years ago
Brilliant! Cabs up to the ceiling, yards of counterspace, light, bright, and so sophisticated! A very classic MCM vibe. Love it!

Your layout is the closest to mine I've ever seen on this site (except mine isn't as long as yours--wish it was), so I have a few questions. How long is your peninsula? Could you please post a pic of the corner on the other side of the fridge? What are the dimensions of the counter between the fridge and the ovens? Did you make any of your counters deeper than usual? And last, but not least, what size pot lights did you use? Thanks so much for posting your kitchen; I'll definitely be studying yours again and again!
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User
12 years ago
It's gorgeous and spacious! I love that window and all that counter. It doesn't even look like the same room.
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mmhmmgood
12 years ago
Wow! A huge improvement! I'm mid reno at present but SO GLAD to be rid of the vile tile countertop that was in my house ...

Love the stools and the cabinets. It's warm, inviting and spacious!

Congrats on a job well done, hope you and your family enjoy your new space.
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lazydaisynot
12 years ago
Holy cow. I love your kitchen!
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lcase
Original Author
12 years ago
flwrs_n_co: The peninsula extends six feet from the wall. This includes the 3/4" depth of the backsplash. The countertops are 25" deep, so the peninsula extends 47" from the countertop edge. All counters are 25" deep (including the 3/4" of the backsplash depth and slight bulge from the pencil-nose edge.) In other words, the countertops are standard depth.

The main recessed lights are Cree CR6 LEDs, 2700K color temperature. The two lights over the sink are 4-inch, also Cree LEDs. The pendant lights are from Tech Lighting.

I plan on taking more photos soon, and will post those when I get that done.
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dianalo
12 years ago
I like how it is simple but dramatic. Your old kitchen had a decent size, but the rest was needing to go. Those tile counters kill me....

The new kitchen looks so much more functional as well as being quite cool. It was too spread out before and now the layout works better for the cook as well as for the diners.

I love your new light fixture and think it fits perfectly with the vibe.

If you don't add trim up top, I'd like to see the paint get a little further behind the cab by the peninsula. I had not noticed until the gap was pointed out, but now I see it...
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lcase
Original Author
12 years ago
@dianalo: We will be adding top trim. It will be a flat wood trim, the same finish as the cabs, but with a 3/4" stainless steel strip inlaid into it. That's why the pain doesn't extend into the wall above the backs of the cabinets.
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sjerin
12 years ago
Beautiful!! What kind of wood are your cabinetss made from? I'm getting close to deciding on cabs and like the look of yours. Do you love, love all the drawers??
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stephanie_and_tim
12 years ago
That looks great! So fresh and open!

Who did your floors? I'm in your area and would like to extend my original oak floors into the kitchen and into a bedroom addition.
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kaysd
12 years ago
It is a beautiful transformation. Your new kitchen looks very sleek and appropriate for the style of the house. I love the cabinets, counters and the mod stools.

I keep looking at the Praa Sands pictures on the Cambria website, but have not seen it in person yet. On my monitor it looks like there are smokey blue veins, but they may actually be gray or taupe IRL. I would love to see more pictures of your counters.
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lcase
Original Author
12 years ago
sjerin: The cabinets are cherry veneer (honey finish, if I recall correctly), over flakeboard. The cabinet and drawer hardware works very well. We've loaded up one drawer with all our daily dishes, and it still opens and closes smoothly. All the door hinges and drawer hardware are soft close.

stephanie_and_tim: The flooring subcontractor is Slaughterback Floors, in Campbell, CA.

kaysd: Praa Sands has black, taupe and teal veins running through. There are occasional blobs of muted teal and taupe as well. The taub is a gold-ish taupe, rather than beige.
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a2gemini
12 years ago
lcase
We were considering a similar layout but didn't think we had enough "butt" room to open the oven with the peninsula. How much space is between the oven and the peninsula? Thanks
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lcase
Original Author
12 years ago
a2gemini: It's roughly 41 inches from the edge of the countertop to the oven door. The oven is a Bosch 800 series, with a 22-inch high door, so it protrudes about that far out when the oven is open. One person can comfortably operate the door, but another person would have a tight fit trying to squeeze by at the same time.
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a2gemini
12 years ago
lcase
Thanks! I chickened out on the peninsula as I was worried about clearance (and I am quite thin)
It would have been slightly less than your space - so I think I made the right decision (and will keep telling myself I did anyway!)
If I had not chickened out on the peninsula - the set up of our kitchen would have been similar - but stayed more linear.
Great window - I am kicking myself for putting our new window in with our new siding and not waiting til we did the kitchen (I had not discovered gardenweb at the time)
Enjoy your lovely kitchen
Let me know how it works out. I will be posting soon.
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sjerin
12 years ago
Thank you, lcase. I hope I will end up with something similar! I will also look into Slaughterbeck Floors--were you happy with them? They get perfect scores on Yelp. :)
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lcase
Original Author
12 years ago
sjerin: The floor refinishing on the older part of the floors looks good. But the impressive part was how well they matched the new oak with the old oak. It really looks like a natural extension of the old floor.
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Another kitchen remodel 'before & after'

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