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Small kitchen remodel

15 years ago

After years of thinking, planning, budgeting, I'm starting a kitchen renovation. It's pretty much a complete DYI design and install job.

I know I'll have questions and also try to share good information.

It's my third kitchen remodel, the second in this house I've had 20 years. First time was the cheapest, stock, make-do, bad layout, quick upgrade I could do in a badly damaged (read "crack house") rental unit (half duplex).

This time I'm doing upgraded semistock cabinets, downsized built-in appliances, and a much simplified layout. Whole thing based on my DIY skills or lack of. Just so I can get a DW, use standard cab sizes, and I hope have what looks like a $20,000 custom kitchen worthy of a yacht for -- -- about $5K plus the electrician.

My challenge is trying to do it in a 6x2-foot alcove and opposite 8x2-foot space.

I'm a bachelor now and doing just what I'd like for my side of the duplex.

This is what I planned:

-- Single dish drawer. Had to have a DW since I don't have a DW (kidding!)

-- 2 burner radiant glass cooktop. Taking out range for base storage. I can do with 2 burners, I assume.

-- 22x22 single bowl stainless sink, smallest I thought usable as a kitchen sink.

-- an island on heavy-duty wheels, semi-moveable, 39-inch base cabs with 48" butcher block top (recycling an old but very nice maple trestle table)

No oven for now, but space for a 24" wall oven in another tiny alcove if I really need baking facilities. Or a microwavve/convection semi-builtin.

Keeping the current fridge and sizing everything to make it fit.

KraftMaid cabs, natural oak, white beadboard laminate for island

Porcelain 12x12 and 6x6 floor tiles. Maybe reddish brick-like

So here I am.

I've got all the appliances. All bought online, shipped for free with no tax.

Total $1643 for the KA diswasher (black), GE cooktop, Elkay SS sink and Delta hi-arc pullout SS single-lever faucet.

Cabinets coming in two more weeks.

Total $3,100 incl. tax & delivered, 9 cabs: 4 wall, 5 base -- avg. $345 each, all plywood.

I chose specific cabs to make it work:

3 horizontal 30x15 wall cabs (top hinge), a 24x16.5" base pedestal drawer for under dishwasher drawer, a 30" 3-drawer base for cooktop (better storage than stock cooktop base).

Electrician's quote expected Monday.

So DEMO STARTS TOMORROW !!!!!!!!!

David,

Keys cottage owner & inhabitant

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Comments (6)

melanie1422
15 years ago
I'd love to see pictures! Of what you have now, current floorplan and proposed floorplan.

I'd recommend an oven - you never know when a frozen pizza will come in handy! I couldn't live without my oven...microwave, I hardly use it, but the oven I use all the time.
shipshape
Original Author
15 years ago
That is good advice Melanie, thanks. I'm going to have to install the over I know, but I'm hoping to find something multipurpose like Microwave/convection. I assume that can handle pizza.
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Looks really lovely and very livable! In my 50s house we're about to re-do our kitchen, not completely like this. But we're extending our cabinets up to the ceiling and getting rid of the soffit (like you did). I am maybe more excited about getting rid of the soffit than almost anything else. Ha! I also like seeing that angled doorway you have which has nothing to do with the kitchen remodel. My house has a similar angled doorway, ours into our bedroom. I've always thought it was kind of fun and different.
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I was thinking along those lines, too, and when I saw this thread again, I was hoping the OP had come back to tell us whether the hall door could be moved. I'd also suggest 24" range and fridge. All the apartment-sized appliances are commonly available, so replacing a future broken one wouldn't be a problem. In the following plan the fridge could go up to 30", with a 15" drawer base to the right. MW would have to move to the upper to the right of the sink. If an integrated cutting board is used over part of the sink, prep space could increase to the NKBA recommended minimum of 36".To use a 30" range, the 15" drawer base could go down to a 12", and the run could overlap the door trim by 3" as it does now.
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First things first. A structural engineer or a competent builder / contractor can spec which (if any) walls can be removed. Check with a few real estate pros as to what is desirable in your area. In some regions a formal dining room is worth more than a casual "everyone in the kitchen" style. Good luck.
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Most of the darker kitchens I’ve seen have the hardware color you have. There are many different finishes and designs you can go with. But I think that with the rest of your hardware - I see the sink. And even appliances. I’d stay in this range. You can sample and try different. Obviously. But I personally think chrome works best here. If you paint and remodel you can change. But with the hood. The paint. The cabinets. The hardware. It sounds like a lot. And I’m for mixing finishes. Granted if this is your forever home and this isn’t the style you love. Change it. But I think it looks very nice and some upgrades can change a lot. ( I’m thinking a totally different style shiny chrome latch style pull.... )
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scootermom
15 years ago
Oh goodness, I second an oven. I have a convection microwave, decent sized one, but I wouldn't call it a good substitute for a real oven. Then again, I'm not a bachelor.

With your island -- be sure to consider the height of the wheels. My sister wanted a moveable island for her small kitchen, and she wanted the wheels to be heavy duty. They are, and it's a beautiful island, but she completely forgot to consider the added height of the wheels, and so it's too tall to use for chopping and other prep work. Still provides nice storage and a place to serve things, but she really regrets not paying more attention to the wheels because she would've liked to use it for prep work.

Just a thought -- for your purposes, it might not matter much!
davidro1
15 years ago
Are you going to undermount your sink? This will give you more counter space. You can even "negative reveal" it so the hole in the counter can be smaller than the 22 x 22 sink. It doesn't interfere with getting big things into or out of the sink.
shipshape
Original Author
15 years ago
Thanks for the tips. davidro1 -- I thought of undermount but went with surface for DIY ease. I just ordered a wilsonart laminate countertop sized to fit and I'll do sink and cooktop cutouts and installation.

I have thought about the wheels, and lucky for me I'm 6 ft tall, adding about 4 inches should be OK for surface height, or so I'm telling myself.
Fori
15 years ago
You can get a 24" range (if it's not too late). I always find an oven is almost as good for storage as a cabinet. :)

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