overwhelmed remodel mom
Leisa Owens
4 years ago
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Aglitter
4 years agoapple_pie_order
4 years agoRelated Discussions
Kitchen remodel planning... overwhelmed by first steps!
Comments (11)Back to the question about the "designers" at IKEA, HD, etc.: The folks who work at these places are a mixed bag and unlikely to be trained kitchen designers. There are exceptions, but generally expect to find people who learned what they know on the job at the store. Some kitchen and bath places have "real" designers. IKEA has free software you can download to help you design your space, but you have to know stuff like needing a landing space on both sides of your stove, and what to do with your two inside corners. (Maybe when you get rid of that wall you won't have 2 inside corners.) You could luck out - one of the members here works for a Big Box and is a "real" designer. Our guy at HD was great, but we were working with a plan that didn't have the big kinds of changes you're needing. Not to hurt your feelings or anything, but your current layout is less than wonderful. So, a couple of suggestions. Think about your time and your finances. If you have time, you can do a great design job using the resources on this board; people are so generous about helping you figure out how to use your space to it's best potential, it's fantastic. This is time consuming as you'll do a lot of measuring, re-measuring, drawing it out, thinking it through, but, in the end, it's very satisfying. If you don't have the time, then you probably need a real KD. There are several threads on how to find one. This will cost you money. Even if you end up hiring a KD, you can always come bounce ideas around here. There was a thread just the other day asking about peoples' 3 favorite parts of their remodeled kitchens. That was interesting. And don't forget to read the post that is always at the top of the first page of this blog. There is a link to the Sweeby test, among other things, and that's always a good place to start. P.S. You haven't started to soon on the planning. This will give you a good amount of time to get all your plans in order before summer. I've found that you just can't hurry the planning stages if you want a happy outcome. P.P.S. Painting those bricks to match the walls was a brilliant idea!...See Morefeeling overwhelmed - long and detailed
Comments (13)I've lived in old houses all my life and have been in the carpentry/remodeling business working under a 50 year carpenter for about six years now. Probably though, most of the advice I will summarize here has to do with what I've learned on my own. I've lived in the unliveable and lived in the luxuriously restored. First off, like others have said here, take a breath. Seems to me you have a good idea of your financial health and have a realistic view of what you need to do to survive -- most importantly, not getting sucked into the disease of needless consumerism. In summary here's how you should look at the issues in your house: 1. Basic functionality: a) will you stay warm enough in the winter to survive? b) will you have working plumbing to enable basic sanitary functions? c) will your structure be able to keep the elements out? That is, wind, water and cold. Why do you need your roof stripped now? If it isn't leaking, you can hold off probably until spring for that, you may, depending on the number of layers and the allowance of code, be able to get by with another layer for now if you have to. You mention that the bathrooms need gutting. That's a large and expensive project to undertake, do you need to do that now? What does the upstairs bath need to be operable? At least so that you can use the lav and the toilet? Are there major plumbing issues or are these more cosmetic issues? I'd say that your major issues are: Fix the plumbing issues if that is what is occuring in the baths. Improper or poorly functioning plumbing can lead to sanitary issues as well as further damage to the interior walls and floor of the rest of the house, much less more plumbing damage. Get some quotes and plan on doing that, do some research and see what you can attempt yourself. Make some friends who know plumbing. If the bathroom is gross and the flooring and walls are gross, rip out and replace on your own, recover the flooring with luan and sheet vinyl, paint the walls, fix the plumbing. Now you've got a usable bathroom with a little elbow grease and maybe a couple paychecks. You can go back later and do the real fix-up that you want. Is the wiring dangerous or just outdated? An electrician once told me when doing some wiring at one old house I lived in long before I got into the trades, "I always tell people to leave well enough alone, never touch old wires and don't rewire when you don't have a problem." Old wiring has old insulation that will flake and fall off if touched. Better to leave well enough alone. If it looks intact, works well then you are fine. Yes, we'd all love a re-wired house, but the cost is prohibitive and the payback isn't always so great. Removing plaster and scraping paint, removing old flooring and the rest will stir up a lot of lead and possibly asbestos, if you plan on having children, delay that until most of the rough work is complete. If you have children now, cordone off the areas you are working in with plastic taped securely around. Use a "zip-door" to enter and re-enter the work area. Since you are starting from scratch in a sense, I'd suggest also that you consider integrating more energy efficient design techniques with your design ideas. You could consider installing a solar hot water heater, or possibly a combination wood/gas fired furnace. You don't mention what kind heating system you have. Focus on: 1. Sanitation 2. Structural 3. Comfort 4. Aesthetics In that order. Of course oftentimes these four will converge, but when looking at a project from a budget point of view, you often have to ask yourself, "what can I live with, how can I live with it and for how long?" Oftentimes you can make small fixes now and as your budget, knowledge and ideas ripen over time, you'll have the flexibility to approach things from a different, wiser perspective. Unlike the stupid fix-it shows on teevee, remodeling and improving a house is in fact a long term process that requires a lot of forethought, planning not only in design, but choice of materials, relation of cost to function/value and of course, investment in sweat or dollars. The best fertilizer for that planning/development process is prudence, which often is exercised only when we have to....See MoreCabinet lines, remodel - Altogether overwhelming!
Comments (19)CabinetMakerSWP- I had plenty of good things to say about SWP. Don't take offense, I could mention a downside to every brand I handle, all more expensive. I am happy selling your product. These folks are here for information, and want it unbiased. They get the sales pitch when they are out shopping, they don't need it here. As a dealer I need to sell your product as effectively as I can. For me, as a designer, that means being straight with my clients, managing expectations, and being their advocate. Clients will discover anything they don't like eventually and I want to avoid disappointment so I list pros and cons up front, here and in person. The clients I have appreciate that, I have satisfied clients, and you benefit. Even a small glitch can throw people. As to the shelf clips- Anyone comparing the brands listed (as the OP is) could easily see what I see. I indicated that your cabinets fit well in the middle ground here, the clips don't. So I noted that they could be changed, makes them detract less. Which ones? for me the cost difference is minor so I use the Hafele 282.24.711, but any metal shelf clip would be fine. SWP has been very responsive, I have no doubt they will change them eventually. I've discussed this with my rep and the factory enough that you should be able to figure out who I am from that alone :) FWIW- I've been hanging around here a long time. It's very useful to see: what people care about, understand, misconstrue, styles choices, mistakes, what they think is important, problems, complaints.... I get a lot out of the forum and figure I can put something back. So I post (in spurts) when I can. I try to be mindful of where I fit here; (mostly)restricting posts to facts, an occastional solution or "this is available from ..." . I do my best to avoid any marketing. If I might be so bold (and I am)- have someone from development follow this board, all of it, every day. Just read, see what they are thinking, value, want, need, and do. Then evaluate it and use what you can. Occasionally have someone (maybe from tech) post something useful, doesn't need to have anything to do with your brand. If you see a problem-some dealer not doing their job, a misunderstanding, etc. then intervene and solve it- that goes a long way. You'll end up with a stronger brand, gain credibility, the forum will gain an asset, and maybe eventually my sales might go up :)...See Moreoverwhelmed remodel
Comments (1)Hire somebody local (an interior designer) to help you with this....See MoreK R
4 years agoPatricia Colwell Consulting
4 years agocurlycook
4 years agopartim
4 years agoLeisa Owens
4 years agokathleen MK
4 years agonjmomma
4 years agokatinparadise
4 years agoJ Williams
4 years agonjmomma
4 years agoDesign Girl
4 years agolast modified: 4 years agoPatricia Colwell Consulting
4 years agoPatricia Colwell Consulting
4 years agostillpitpat
4 years agonjmomma
4 years agoJ Williams
4 years ago
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Leisa OwensOriginal Author