Prioritize what you want in your new space! And keep that list handy when you are going through the decision making process. Good luck!

Consider Craigslist and E-bay. I just bought a nearly new Bosch dishwasher for $100 on Craigslist and an $800 faucet off of e-bay (used but in great shape) for $60. It takes a bit of time and research, but saves a ton of money. I also bought my $2600 stove off of Craigslist 18 months ago for $395- looks and works great- so much better than the 1953 model it replaced. Only bummer was I had to drive 3 hours to pick it up. Oh, gee, darn!

Oldhouse, how were you able to ensure that the appliances were in good working condition?

I got my stove and wall oven from CL as well. We had to pick them up, but both have worked out fine. Ask to see it working before you arrive.
We went with Ikea cabs and love them. You just can't beat the price and quality combo.
You have to consider your whole life and your priorities when planning your kitchen. It sounds like you are making the right choices for your family. I bet your new kitchen makes you very happy ;)

I might be able to help you with the cabinets.I am a Kraftmaid & UltraCraft dealer and will be able to get you cabinets at 60-70% off of Retail price. I also can help you with the design process(using 20-20) if you provide the kitchen layout with dimensions and some pictures.The design services are free and you can proceed only if you are comfortable with the quote.You can contact me outside this forum if interested at the email: kraft_kitchens@yahoo.com

It's a great decision and you might be able to reuse the cabinet boxes when you do get a chance to add on later.

We've purchased appliances from CL and Sears Outlet for great savings and no problems. When purchasing appliances from CL just try to find out why they're selling. If the story doesn't sound right you can skip it and wait for a listing you trust.

You can even save a little money (not as much as CL) if you go to places like Lowe's and Home Depot and purchase appliances, no longer in the box.

Many people order appliances and then change their mind, when the appliances arrive. We got a brand new washer that way, with a nice savings, just because the woman looked at the washer as they opened the box and said...you know, I really want a front loader. It might be worth a try :)

Couple of things to remember: counters can be easily replaced, as can lighting, sinks and faucets. If you can get buy with cheaper stuff for a little while, do so. Flooring, same thing.

Good luck! I think you made the right decision financially.

Thanks all. I do think it's the right decision. I just really wanted more space - means I have to be smarter with how I use the space. I have posted a current floor plan years ago, but I think my measurements were off. Had my then 3-year old help hold the measuring tape! I'll remeasure with DH, draw up a floor plan on graph paper and then post here with advice.

I really like the ikea cabinets with all the extra organizing things you can have, but DH doesn't like the doors. So getting custom doors will work with that. Appliances I may have to compromise on because of space, but truly anything is better than what I have.

We won't be DIYing, makes more sense for DH to work overtime and pay someone to do it - we don't have the skills anyway.

I'll find bargains where I can. It's not a huge kitchen, so that will help too. We do have some issues with laundry which is beside the kitchen that we hoped to relocate, that will have to stay But I just had an idea of stacking wm/dryer and putting tall cabinet in space beside it - I can only reach 1st shelf in cabinet above washing dryer as it is, and this will help to get other things out of that tiny mudroom.

Anyways, I'll post pics and get advice for all of you here.

Sounds like the right decision to me. Your new kitchen will make you very happy.

I had the same dilemma. We have a 10x18 kitchen with 3 big windows (we made one smaller to fit new cabinetry) and 3 doors. My new kitchen is about 90% done and I can't remember when I've been so happy.

I explored the costs of expanding it and it just wasn't worth it.

Your priorities are spot-on straight.

Congratulations on making the decision to move forward with what you can do now.

Good for you. We've just readjusted our desire for the perfect kitchen and have decided to do what we can with what we have already. Our money needs to be put into retirement fund, not a new kitchen. I've seen kitchens much smaller than mine that are much more functional, so I'm sure you can be happy with a good plan in your space. Nancy in MI found a place to buy used cabinets online and she built a great kitchen with them. I wish I could remember the website. You can also check Home Depot/Lowes for discontinued or floor sets, and check craig's list too. I've seen builders list cabinets that either had the wrong stain or wrong measurements and are a fraction of the cost of new.

I really like the ikea cabinets with all the extra organizing things you can have, but DH doesn't like the doors. So getting custom doors will work with that.

Check the link below, to the Drawer Depot. My mom refaced her kitchen through them and they were great to deal with and fantastically inexpensive. She got solid maple door and drawer fronts, dovetailed drawer boxes and Blum slides, and they shipped them to her unassembled (i.e., she had to screw the door fronts onto the boxes and attach the hardware to everything), and unfinished (i.e., before screwing the fronts on etc., she had to paint the fronts and the doors to match her cabinet boxes). She hired a local contractor to do all that for her and attach them to her cabinet boxes, which added a few hundred bucks to the price, but you truly could not beat the price of the stuff.

They make everything to the exact size you choose, so you do need to measure carefully. But Ikea might have all the specs you need (such as the exact size of the openings for each drawer and door) on a spec sheet or something. If you have measurements you can get an exact quote from them straight through their website--just go through all the steps you would go through to place an order, and it will tell you how much it costs for what you want. Or you could get a good idea of the rough cost just by plugging in inexact measurements, if you want to guesstimate the cost before doing excruciatingly perfect measurements.

Here is a link that might be useful: The Drawer Depot

I wish you the best. I think doing the kitchen so that you can enjoy it now has a huge VALUE to you. Do the kitchen that you can afford and enjoy it. Keep affordability in mind so you don't get swayed to extend yourself. Even if it is smaller than what you really wanted, it WILL be better than what you have now.

You may try to find some used cabinets from homes where they are getting ripped out. There maybe Habitat for Humanity or other resale places. This may allow you to have a very affordable kitchen now so you CAN afford to extend a few years from now. If you only spend "minimally" now, then you feel that you can still expand if the time and money are right.

Just something different to consider.

Ikea cabinets are great value for what you get. You can't go wrong there either.

My best suggestion is to ignore a lot of the hype as you make your plans. Putting money into the high priority it-has-to-last-for-years things is essential, but not particularly glamorous. Don't stint on plumbers, electricians, structural advisors, and financial advisors. Be sure that your carpenters, installers, etc. actually know their stuff.

It's so easy to get caught up in the fun parts. Some months ago I was feeling that we needed a little sobering up on the GW and I posted a "don't stint on infrastructure" thread that was apparently a downer for some readers. But I also got some private mail from people who said "thanks thanks thanks." Safety, heat retention, efficiency, financial solvency, reliability, and durability are truly glamorous when compared to folly and catastrophe.

Anybody with money in their pocket can gussy up a kitchen, but doing the really useful stuff requires deep thinking and if money is tight, requires recognizing alternative options when they're available.

Serendipity sometimes does come into play--Craig's List or reuse centers or closeouts or such--but you can't plan around them. Since "chance favors the prepared mind" you need to know brand names, products, colors, options so that you can recognize a good deal when it appears. Give yourself permission to pay full price for something, though. You can't live on wishes and get this kitchen done.

There is a lot of distraction, esp fashion and advertising and peer pressure. You will do well to make lists of things that are Wants and Needs and Don't Needs. On the GW, I believe some of the most useful helps are the discussions of what is good or bad in a floor plan. It's also very helpful to analyze the finished kitchens so that you see what they're trying to illustrate. There are indeed smaller kitchens here--modest, attractive, functional ones. Using your Wants and Needs list, go find examples of them.

It's also important to try to fast-forward your family configuration so that the kitchen is designed for all of you as you grow older. Your kids become adults and you become old. This is inevitable so plan ahead. Also plan that as soon as your kitchen is done, fashion and product lines will change so you need to tell yourself that you actually are satisfied and not chase the rainbow.

You need to think about the importance of visual things vs functional vs personal and decide who gets to make the initial decisions and who gets to edit or veto. If necessary, create a straw person or two to include in the conversation. In my case, there was a fictitious old lady who would need things that might not be required right now.

But don't let things paralyze you--the quest of the perfect gets in the way of the quest for real life solutions. You've all waited long enough--get on with it!

Thanks for the advice. I am bummed about it, but when I look at the bigger picture, it's right thing to do. A friend of ours is older, suddenly laid off, but not quite ready to retire. He's been telling us to seriously consider where direct our funds. His house is amazing, but he can't get anything out of it and thinks less here and there wouldn't change their lives, but would have given them more cash for other priorities.

Answering your question regarding the appliances I bought on Craigslist- I saw them in use first. I also think when you see someone's home and talk to them on the phone, you can get a sense if they are honest, take care of things, etc. Yes there's a bit of a gamble, but so far it's worked out well for me. I used list-alert.com to do the searching for me and I received e-mail alerts for the items I was looking for. Made things really easy.

Kudos to you for not "drinking the koolaid" and overdoing your kitchen for your situation.

In a similar vein, when we were getting our house ready to sell, we did minor fixups that we would never have done for ourselves. But those minor fixups were so nice, we wondered why we hadnt done them, instead always thinking of the grand plan, Several friends who have readied their house for sale have said the same thing. A little can go a long way! Its not always about going down to the studs and going crazy!

No reason to feel down at all. As has been pointed out many times here, even those who could do more choose to just work with what they have for all different reasons. Your kitchen will be great when you're done. Focus on how nice it will be to have a great kitchen and not on what could have been.

No one knows what the future holds and not overextending or going into debt will help you be better prepared.