Were you maybe going to paint the cabinets as well? That would go a long way to updating the kitchen. Quartz tops will be every bit of 4k. Is there a vent hood for the cooktop? A decorative semi suspended fixture in the middle of the room might be nice.

A couple other lighting thoughts: don't skimp on downlights; I'd do at least 6 in a kitchen this size. And you have a unique opportunity in that the cabinets don't go all the way to the ceiling, so I'd consider adding a crown molding to finish off the uppers, and putting LED tape uplighting on top to bounce light off the ceiling; a very pleasant light. Final lighting tip: do matte finish counters so the LED undercabinet lights don't reflect right into your eyes! Good luck!

No to painting cabinets. We like them and are t trying to make it look updated per se, just refreshed, get rid of the wall paper and get a more functional sink and countertop. The quotes on quartz are around 5-6k, out of our price range. We like the solid surface ones. Thanks for the tip on the matte countertops!

If you replace the peninsula cabinet, what happens to stove vent/hood? Maybe the labor for electrician and lighting and drywall etc adds up?

Laminate countertops would be closer to $1k installed, and might be more appropriate for the kitchen (won't have the "new counters/retro cabinets" feel). Consider top-mounted sinks with flush edges and beware the sink depths -- deep sinks can be hard on ones back. To save money consider DIYing the wallpaper removal and painting. A tiled backsplash can also be DIY.

An electrician to install two pendant lights and run the wire for a new circuit/switch should be less than $1k,

Removing the scalloped trim literally involves removing 4 screws, maybe only 2.

Id ask for a breakdown of what he is charging for each thing if possible. Removing wallpaper isn’t too difficult, and you could save money doing it yourself.

Gcubed, the stove vent is in the stove between the 2 sets of burners. It is by far the best stove vent I’ve ever had and actually vents to the outside.

Thor, I neglected to explain that we are also extending the counter to create a bar on the section where the stove is. Our contractor told us laminate would only be 1k cheaper because a special piece has to be made for the bar.

Cost seems fine. Your plans look good -- I'd be interested to see the final update. (And your 70's floor is a lot nicer than the 70's floor I grew up with!)

@User we've had the walls tested and they're lead free. House was built in '77 right on the cusp. I appreciate your thorough review. Knowing there isn't lead abatement, does that change your opinion on the estimate?

You might be able to save some coin by doing the demo yourself.

It’s not the current walls or current ceiling that’s the issue. It’s under that, that will be exposed after the cabinets are removed, and holes cut through. I’d fully expect painted walls to test negative. They will have been repainted at least a couple of times past 1978. It’s the archeology!

Wow, that is high for laminate.

Best wishes with your reno!

Why don’t you post the floor plan? Or more photos from Breakfast area side? Is there a way to remove the upper to the left of the sink when you remove the floating uppers and valance? Are the counters in good shape and is the sink just the issue or are the counters shot?

And even if you aren’t doing the floors I’d suggest selecting the material you will do someday as this will help you settle on the best countertop decision.

My home is also from the 70"s. Some of the wallpaper peeled right off and some of it was very difficult. Then the walls needed to have the glue washed off. You might try pulling up on a corner of the wallpaper and seeing how hard it is to peel off. If it is difficult, there are YouTube videos with steps for removing wallpaper that is more firmly attached. You can't hurt anything by giving it a try - unless you start to gouge into the walls. If you are older, you could ask younger relatives to help. I paid about 7K for quartz counters, Whitehaven apron front sink (short apron style), small bit of under cabinet lighting (best thing I did) and tiled backsplash - installed myself. (I am a few years shy of 60, but in good health.)

You could approach this in stages as your present kitchen is not at all bad. Remove the wallpaper and paint. Save a gallon of paint for the wall repair when the cabinets are removed for shelves. See if the cabinets are just screwed into the wall. If so, get some young strong family / neighbors to help unscrew them and access the wall damage - may just need some spackle, may need more. Once I got my under cabinet lighting, my poor ceiling lighting was less of an issue - so under cabinet lighting now and pendents when that run of cabinets is removed, but ceiling pots could wait - some will disagree with me there because lighting is so important, but my experience is that the under cabinet lighting helps so much, the rest is icing on the cake.

To save money by doing some of your own work - remember YouTube is your friend:)

Are those cabinets being held up by chains from the ceiling? I've never seen anything like that before.

Building open shelves, uncertainty about the wiring situation and possibly needing to bring things up to code, uncertainty about how hard it will be to get the wallpaper off. Retexturing? Drywall patching, cost of the new sink. Painting? Backsplash materials.. It can certainly add up. Only real way to see if it's reasonable for your area is to contact another contractor or two. (But don't go with some else just because they are cheaper. If you are already familiar with this one's work and it is good, that alone has a lot of value.)

I love that you are keeping some character and just refreshing. It's a very.. umm.. groovy kitchen!

I’m surprised it’s that cheap. It might actually be cheaper to just remove the ceiling drywall, do all the wiring and lighting that a modern kitchen needs, and which is more than you’re actually planning, and then put up new drywall after all of that is done. No sanding of possible asbestos or lead. One time spray all with water during demo to control the dust, bag it, and start fresh.

Are you considering removing the upper cabinets over the stove/cooktop area and replacing with a vent hood only suspended from the ceiling; it would give an open upscale look to your kitchen.....and have you considered stripping and re-staining all the kitchen cabinets? They look in great condition....we redid our oak cabinets and are pretty happy with them!

I like that you are confident about what you'be learned, what you want, and aim to keep the '70's flavor. We remodeled a '74 kitchen last year, very much like your. It pained me to do away wth the cabinets. They were well built but poorly cared for by 2 previous owners. We opted for Corian for a number of reasons. It is also very '70's.

I opted for a better primer and paint for the backsplash rather than tile because grout just stinks? The newer grouts haven't been around long enough to prove themselves. You have faith in your contractor. The price is probably reasonable because he/she sees things you don't.

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Glad you’re not painting the cabinets, they look great in the photo. For lighting you might be able to install LED cans in the ceiling vs the under cabinet lighting. Line up the light above the edge of your counter and you won’t have reflection or your own shadow on your workspace. We did it in our kitchen, with dimmer. When it’s up it’s just about like an operating room, or at least it seemed that way after our previous poor lighting.

"update the lighting from fluorescent to recessed can lights."

Make sure you will get enough actual light out of the canned lights. My parents place has canned lights and it is way too dim in the kitchen. I still like a nice big 8 tube (or more) florescent ceiling grid. You can have the light fixtures wired so they can be individually turned on, allowing you to have tons of light or simply one set on. A bright working space will make all the difference when you are using your kitchen. You may already have the ceiling space to just add new updated fixtures...

@suedonim75 yes! ceiling chains. We just took off the one on the end, and I don't actually think they were being held up by them as much as it was there for additional support. I know its so unique (LOL) but it already feels much better just having that one cabinet gone!

@tdemonti thank you for appreciating the 70's! Can you tell me more about your opinion of the grout and backspash?

Do some of the work yourself to save the money. Scraping wallpaper isnt rocket science and is expensive to have removed. Also instead of switching to cans how about switching to surface mount light fixtures. Also remember specialized trades are expensive and rightfully so as it requires a lot of eductaion and experience.

I wouldn't touch electrical or plumbing beyond changing surface or localized fixture otherwise you are opening a can of worms. Also get other bids and compare them.

Love your ideas! We had a similar 70s kitchen but with everything in much worse shape and without the charming lino floors, so we ended up starting over from scratch. The quoted $12,500 does sound a tiny bit high if you're not doing new cabinets, but then again, we're looking at a very basic kitchen for a house we're listing--just floors, stock cabinets and paint, no tile or major electric--and we're talking $10K. Even renting a dumpster costs money! Nonetheless, as others have said, it's always worth getting a second bid. You might also ask what you'd save if you did some of the demo/wallpaper removal yourselves.

@ljkallmeyer Well, because I work full time and wanted a kitchen that demands the least of my energy to care for and maintain in the long run, grout was not even a consideration. We use our kitchen heavily. My experience and research told me that grout discolors, chips, scratches, separates - especially with settlement or seasonal movement - and I just don't want to be bothered with cleaning an uneven surface.

Contractors (no offense) push the newer acrylic, urethane, epoxy grouts but they require skill yet to be perfected. And, when I asked if they thought the new grouts have been around long enough to prove themselves, the answer was a shrug, a no, or some diversion.

Tile is too trendy and committal for me. Though I rarely change things, I like to know I can with little effort.

All the same reasoning, and more, why I chose a solid surface. It can be repaired easily.

I used two coats of the best primer I could find and 2 coats of Benjamin Moore eggshell paint. It hasnt stained yet and cleans easily. I was very close to opting for a durable wallpaper.

What we did do is had a 2" backsplasshe of the countertop material. This cost more and probably made up for the cost of decent tile. Because the Corian has some resiliency, the fabricator said no caulk.

Here's are a couple of photos. I still need to tidy up my paint job ; )

@tdemonti you've given me something to think about. My biggest issue with my past kitchens has been the space where the countertop meets the back wall behind the sink. Water collects there and it leads to either countertop degradation or continually needing to recaulk. I like how the countertops come up the wall (eliminates the water problem) and hope I can manage something similar.

What countertop color is that?

@ljkallmeyer The color is Juniper. I have a window at my sink, too. In addition to the coved backsplash, there are three things I found helped at the area behind the sink. Keep in minded we did a full remodel and I researched for 2 years. Most painful for my husband. I Spent a great deal of time on the houzz website.

First, the distance of the faucet from the wall so I could get my hand back there to quickly wipe. I specified 3" from the face of the backsplash which meant a smaller faucet base and the cabinets were spaced away from the walla bit. This made the countertop 26-1/2" deep but I have only a 1/2" countertop overhang.

Next, pay attention to how far the faucet extends into the sink. Water running above tge drain splashes less than if hitting the floor of the sink.

Third is the sink depth. You want a deep sink. if you are mindful, take advantage of the depth and do your splashing down in the sink : )

My love for Corian began when I saw a curvy custom commercial countertop and staff knew who the fabricator was. It is so versatile. I found that most fabricators' crews have no experience with solid surface. Solid surface is used in many commercial applications so find a fabricator that does commercial work.

Stick with your vision.