Author Topic: The Kitchen Thread  (Read 10924 times)

wildbeast

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The Kitchen Thread
« on: March 06, 2018, 12:44:07 PM »
A new Kitchen Remodel thread!

We're doing a major upgrade to our kitchen (floors, upper cabinets, lighting, sink, addition of dishwasher, some lower cabs, paint, etc) and I'm looking for help in making all the different product and material selections. 

First up is the SINK.  Right now I have a big sink, 36" wide farmhouse with two deep bowls, that I'll be replacing with a single bowl and the addition of a dishwasher.  I can fit most, if not all, of my items that need to be washed, including my huge stock pot and 12" skillet, in one of the two bowls I have.  They are 15" wide by 18" long.  So I'd like to keep the new sink at 24" or less and the cabinet at 24" max.  For those of you who have a DW, what size sink do you have, and are you happy with it? 

I'm also looking for feedback on material.  I gravitate towards white/off-white sinks but they are a lot more expensive than stainless steel.  Right now I have fireclay and it has held up really well.  Am wondering how porcelain over stainless steel might hold up.  The 23" model I saw was $150 less than the fireclay.  Although for some reason, it required a much larger cabinet than the fireclay sink of the same size (30" cab vs 24").  What's that about?

I have to admit I was surprised at how expensive the fireclay and porcelain enamel undermount sinks are.  My big 36" farmhouse fireclay sink was about $230 10 years ago ($299 now), and the cheapest 23" porcelain enamel is $256 and fireclay is $401.  I guess undermounting is the big expense?

So now I'm considering an 18"x18" fireclay at $295 which requires a 24" cabinet.  I was looking for a 20" that would fit in a 24" cab but don't see any on my initial look through the HD online selection.

And it's possible I'm not giving stainless steel enough consideration.  I've never had a ss sink and when I look at them online they seem to require so much stuff - sound dampening pads, special cloths and scouring powder, trays to avoid scratches, etc.  It seems like too much hassle.  Would love to hear what those of you with ss sinks have to say about them.

I welcome any ideas and suggestions!
« Last Edit: March 06, 2018, 12:52:57 PM by jane x »

Khaetra

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #1 on: March 06, 2018, 01:56:28 PM »
PTF.  I am doing a whole kitchen reno myself, so maybe we can share joys/pains :).  As far as sinks go, I am replacing a very old porcelain one with a SS one.  I like porcelain but I find it chips easily then it looks crappy.

DrumAllDay

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #2 on: March 06, 2018, 02:05:37 PM »
I will be doing a small kitchen reno too pretty soon. (Cabinets, counters, floor, sink, paint)

Are you leaving your countertops the same?

Is granite worth the extra cost? We don't have a lot of counter space, can't think of how much off hand.
 

Cranky

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #3 on: March 06, 2018, 04:34:23 PM »
I went from a single sink to a double when we remodeled. I did not love the single sink and find the double a lot more functional - there was always stuff in the sink when I was cooking and it annoyed me a little bit every day.

I bough a copper sink. It was the first think I picked out, and I pretty much planned the rest of the kitchen around it. My kitchen is in the middle of my little house. We spend a ton of time there, and the sink is kind of a focal point.

wildbeast

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #4 on: March 06, 2018, 05:28:02 PM »
Hi guys! 

@Khaetra - I'd love to share the joys and pains!  How far along in the process are you?  (It sounds like we're talking about childbirth :)

@DrumAllDay - Yes, I'll be replacing the counter tops.  Right now I'm leaning towards quartz.  I think Ikea has it for a reasonable price so I'm going to check that out.  I stayed at a rental about 5 years ago that had granite counters and I chipped it twice in the process of cooking and cleaning up.  Since then I've known granite would not survive me.  :)

@Cranky - Costco has some gorgeous copper sinks.  I bet they make a great focal point.  How big is your sink?  I do like double bowls because I always have a clean bowl for veggies when cooking, but I've been assuming that once I install a dishwasher, I wouldn't have dirty dishes in the sink anymore.  Maybe that's not realistic? 

We need some kitchen porn in here!  I haven't decided if I want to go for classic or cheerful.

wildbeast

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #5 on: March 06, 2018, 05:49:35 PM »

Cranky

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #6 on: March 06, 2018, 06:49:56 PM »
$55,000 for that remodel! I swoon!! LOL

TheWifeHalf

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #7 on: March 06, 2018, 07:00:06 PM »
When I saw what is now called a 'farmhouse sink' I thought of my Grandma and Grandpa's house. 50 years ago, when I was a kid, Grandma was so happy the day she got her stainless steel sink.  And they had a real farm.

I think she was tired of trying to keep her REAL farmhouse sink clean. I am sure they are made of much better materials now, but I can't get that memory our of my head.

I grew up with a stainless steel sink, and have one now.
The one I have now is a drop in, doublesink, about 35 inches long, with an attached 18" drainboard. 35 years ago it was $700. We recently got quartz counters and I insisted on keeping my sink.
Maybe they do this with all customers, but they seemed very impressed with my sink. In fact, they had to take my dear sink with them to cut the holes in the quartz, and I'll  admit it, I was worried about my sink. I love my stainless steel sink. I tried, and can't find it anywhere online.

Mrs. PoP

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #8 on: March 06, 2018, 07:03:27 PM »
I love these threads!  We remodeled our kitchen a couple of years ago, but are just finishing punch list items (tiling the backsplash and some final trim work) this month. 

For sinks, I love double because a garbage disposal and having another basin I can plug and fill with water are both necessities.  And yes, even with a dishwasher it can fill up with dishes easily when I'm batch cooking (but maybe I'm inefficient with dishes that way).   That said, we have a big stainless steel double (split 60/40)- I think 36" or 37", undermount.  It barely fit in the cabinet for the space, but it's big enough so one side is still quite big for pans to sit flat in. 

My big advice with undermounts: think about how thick your counter is going to be when considering the depth.  I got a deep sink not thinking of that, and it feels even deeper because our counters are ~1.75" thick butcher block.  I'm short, so I don't see it as a big deal, but someone tall might feel like they were bending over a lot. 

wildbeast

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #9 on: March 06, 2018, 09:56:20 PM »
I was surprised at how pricey sinks can be so I started a spreadsheet so I can start keeping track of pricing and models and such and I'm starting to get blown away.  I'm not spending $55,000 on my kitchen!  I'm going to do a rough preliminary estimate to establish a budget guideline.

For those who are starting your remodel, have you set a budget? 

And for those who already did the remodel, did you come in close to your budget?

My working budget right now is $10,000, ideally coming in under that, and don't want to go over $15,000 even if I end up buying a new stove. 

Re: sinks - I really like the fireclay I have now.  I wash everything in it, including some very heavy Le Creuset dutch ovens and I've had it 10 years and still looks brand new.  It's heat resistant, and if it starts to look dingy I just wipe it down with a bit of bleach or Comet and it sparkles like new. 

Those of you who have SS - how do you maintain them?

Cranky

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #10 on: March 07, 2018, 05:18:16 AM »
I measured my sink, and it's about 30" across - each basin is 14" wide.  The double basin lets me have a colander of vegetables on one side, and still drain pasta on the other side. Plus, I wash up as I go along (as well as load stuff into the dishwasher) so I often have one side of the sink full of hot soapy water.

We got granite counters because my dh loved them so. I was a little worried that they would be delicate, but they aren't.

We spent $17,000 for cabinets, counters, lights, sink, a new range hood, and labor. It's a pretty big kitchen and had almost no counter space originally it was a weird 1960 layout. We kept the appliances. We also kept the terra cotta floors.

We used a contractor who is a friend of a friend, and had done some previous work for us, so I knew that we worked well together, and that he was used to budget conciousness. We talked a lot about what was at the top of my list and what wasn't.

MrsDinero

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #11 on: March 07, 2018, 07:52:58 AM »
We are in the process of updating our kitchen right now.  We don't have a set budget, but I am working on keeping it as low as possible.

What we decided to do was not change the layout.  My husband wants to move the stove from 1 wall to another (we have a large empty space that has more than enough room for a stove) but that should be able to be done without destroying everything.  Even so it probably won't get done until next year.

What we have done so far is replaced the old laminate with new quartz.  We chose quartz over granite because less maintenance required.

We also replaced the old cast iron/white enameled double sink with a 1 bowl stainless steel, under mount sink.  I have to be honest I HATED that old sink.  We have broken so many dishes in in because it was just unforgiving unless you laid the plate down gently like a baby.  It was also very scratched and worn when we bought the house and only got worse over time.  I hated it because it always looked dirty, even after I just cleaned it. 

I originally wanted to just replace it with a double a sink, since that is what we had, but my husband really wanted a single sink.  I am so glad we went with a single sink!  We can actually fit a full baking sheet in it without having to do weird angles.

We also got a very fancy-pants faucet.  It was $230 and I didn't realize they could cost that much.  My husband has worked in many kitchens and does the majority of the cooking so I tend to leave most equipment decisions to him.  This one he also really wanted because it is a pull down, not a pull up sprayer.   

Everything else we will just do the next 6-8 months.

The kitchen island still has the old countertop on it.  We are planning to replace it with a butcher block.  Right now we are going back and forth on if we are going to just replace the island top as-is or if we are going to extend it to give more workspace.  Either way it is something we will do ourselves.

I will do the tile backsplash, we already have it picked out.  We ended up with a more pricey tile ($7/sq.ft), I read the price wrong, it is $7.25 per 10 sqft. 

We are also still going back and forth on the kitchen island light.   We have a standard brass builder-type light.  He wants to replace it completely and I think it will be fine if we just repaint it.  So we are going to repaint it first, live with it for a while first.    I told him we can always replace it down the road, but we should try to update it first. 

Once the tile and island is done, I will paint the remaining walls.  This will probably be 1-2 cans of paint.

The cabinets I'm still figuring out what to do.  They are currently painted white, but they have been painted so many times by different owners they can't be painted over again without looking crappy.  I'm looking at different methods of updating them without replacing, including stripping and staining or refacing them.  Either way it will be a DIY job.

Our total cost right now is:

Quartz Countertops + Stainless steel sink:  $3200
Plumber:  $175
Sink Faucet:  $230
Total: $3605



« Last Edit: March 07, 2018, 11:30:59 AM by MrsDinero »

DrumAllDay

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #12 on: March 07, 2018, 08:59:18 AM »
Great insight so far! Here is another question:

Has anyone went with a lowes/home depot for buying cabinets and countertops? I want to install the cabinets myself. Am I better off going to a more kitchen focused place for those? I stopped in home depot once to talk to the kitchen people and I kind of had the feeling they had no clue what they were doing.


rosarugosa

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #13 on: March 07, 2018, 01:13:00 PM »
We are hoping to remodel our archaic kitchen this year, so hoping to learn from you all.   Our sink is probably about 60 years old and we don't have a counter, so things can only get better!  We are planning to go with a stainless undermount single bowl sink, probably Kraus, which looks affordable and gets really good reviews.

Cranky

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #14 on: March 07, 2018, 01:14:22 PM »
I thought the Lowe's and Home Depot "kitchen planning" departments were incredibly unhelpful. I think they must work on commission, and unless you are spending a bazillion dollars, it's not worth their while.

SweatingInAR

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #15 on: March 07, 2018, 01:40:15 PM »
I recently completed a kitchen remodel, which included all new cabinets and even changing the layout slightly.

To answer the OP:
I have zero complaints about my 33" stainless 50/50 sink. I run my washcloth around it after doing dishes and that typically takes care of everything. Stubborn buildup gets some Barkeeper's Friend. I haven't experienced anything yet that couldn't be taken care of.

I paid a contractor/handyman (referred by my cabinet company) to get my kitchen from old to usable, and then I did all of the finishing touches that didn't impact usability (range hood, tiled backsplash, find an island, appliances).

I took my own measurements, and then drew different kitchen designs using ikea's kitchen design website. Cabinets all come in standard widths, so I was able to take that kitchen design to a few different shops and websites for quotes. My ikea cabinet quote came in thousands of dollars higher than the company I ended up going with, due to the ikea cost for non-flat doors. I ended up with white shaker doors, because they were cheap and acceptable

  • Cabinets I got from a local  https://www.kitcabinets.com store/office. My total was ~$3000 after the store owner's cash discount. They included a 50/50 stainless sink for free. All wood construction!
  • I ended up paying $1500 in labor through the course of the project for demo, re-insulating and drywalling a wall, and cabinet installation.
  • $1000 for new vinyl floors (local company could do glue-down vinyl for $3/sf, so I chose that instead of a DIY floating install. They were done in 3 hours). After experiencing this floor, I had them do another portion of my house a few months later.
  • $350 for a quartz slab from the clearance yard at a big local distributor, and then $900 to have it cut and installed.
  • About $1000 for fridge and range on craigslist, plus a brand new dishwasher.
  • Another $1500 in miscellaneous expenses and materials such as trim, cabinet handles, range hood, faucet, backsplash materials. My (ikea) island was picked up for $40 on craigslist, and I had lots of fun sanding and refinishing the butcher block!


I'm sure I missed a few expenses in my tallying, but the whole thing came in less than $10k and completely transformed my kitchen.  First picture is before, second is after (incomplete backsplash + hood), and then a closeup of the backsplash and hood.
« Last Edit: March 07, 2018, 02:04:44 PM by SweatingInAZ »

Khaetra

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #16 on: March 07, 2018, 02:08:00 PM »
Great insight so far! Here is another question:

Has anyone went with a lowes/home depot for buying cabinets and countertops? I want to install the cabinets myself. Am I better off going to a more kitchen focused place for those? I stopped in home depot once to talk to the kitchen people and I kind of had the feeling they had no clue what they were doing.

I looked at what they had and was extremely unimpressed.  I ended up ordering DIY cabinets from the RTAStore and even though I haven't gotten that far, after inspecting them the material seems to be pretty sturdy and well-made, plus the cost was a little less.

I am not changing my layout and as I said in another thread if I did it would be like building a mansion in a trailer park, as far as my neighborhood goes.  It's a small galley kitchen (actually the whole house is small and poorly laid-out), so that's what I have to work with.

So far, I have finally gotten the floor torn up.  Someone thought it was an excellent idea to put stick-on flooring over stick-on flooring.  I can tell you it was not a great idea and it was a pain to get it all up and the glue removed.  I am also working to remove all of the bricks from the wall, but I will need to remove the cabinets to get it all, then finish patching before doing anything else.

@jane x I went searching for info on SS sinks, and it's mixed between those that love them and those who don't.  Upkeep/cleaning doesn't seem to be too bad, so maybe worth a look for you?

@DrumAllDay I'm putting in granite tile countertops.  I don't have a lot of counter space either, but my sink-side it a weird size and after doing some pricing tile seemed to be the way to go. 

My total so far:

Cabinets: $3147.24
Counter tile and moulding: $343.99
Floor tile: $25.00 (estimate.  It was $.57/sq ft and I bought enough to do the entire house, so I am erring on the high side since the kitchen is small).
TOTAL: 3516.23

BudgetSlasher

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #17 on: March 07, 2018, 06:07:16 PM »
I was surprised at how pricey sinks can be so I started a spreadsheet so I can start keeping track of pricing and models and such and I'm starting to get blown away.  I'm not spending $55,000 on my kitchen!  I'm going to do a rough preliminary estimate to establish a budget guideline.

For those who are starting your remodel, have you set a budget? 


Honestly we haven't set a budget and we have moved into our "refuge kitchen" and torn out the original kitchen.

I know that sounds fancy-pants, but hear me out. We are not the budgeting kind of folks instead we have a savings goal set of the year in dollars (accomplished by a series withholdings for 401s and automatic transfers to savings and investment accounts). Once that goal is met (broken down on a paycheck or monthly basis) is met the rest can be spent.

The kitchen is mostly DW's domain, she also has a job that she can pick up extra shifts and is willing to do so for specific items in the kitchen.

All that being said all of the work is being done by us. We designed to new kitchen cabinets, and I turned a pile of plywood into 10 lower cabinets and 29 drawers, we are doing all of new electrical and plumbing. I am not saying a complete kitchen remodel and new layout will be cheap, but it will be much less expensive than buying everything pre-made and hiring it out.

bacchi

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #18 on: March 07, 2018, 06:37:42 PM »
For those who are starting your remodel, have you set a budget? 

And for those who already did the remodel, did you come in close to your budget?

My working budget right now is $10,000, ideally coming in under that, and don't want to go over $15,000 even if I end up buying a new stove. 

We just finished a new kitchen. It's a small galley.

$2200 RTA cabinets
$350 sink from ikea
$300 butcher block counter tops
$250 metal back splash
$100? stained concrete floors
$700 dishwasher
$300 gas stove (used)
$600 fridge
$75 garbage disposal
$150 5 can lights
$400 exhaust hood

= $5425

Except for the room "shell" (plumbing, wiring, and drywall), we assembled and installed everything ourselves.

Being new construction, we obviously didn't move any walls or replace windows or doors.

MrSal

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #19 on: March 07, 2018, 09:39:29 PM »
We are in the process of finishing our new kitchen...

It's been a year though among so many projects.

Here's what we have done and cost wise:

- New cabinets faces and drawers shaker style to go from farm house to more modern. Solid wood -  including soft closing hinges european style 500$
- New top of line dishwasher Bosch stainless steel and opening section from bottom cabinet for DW + plumbing + electrical - 450$
- New stainless steel stove - - 380$ however sold the older one for 180$ so 200$ out of pocket
- Top of line Ben Moore paint for walls and cabinets and trim - 130$
- Hardware solid stainless steel for drawers and cabinets - 50$
- Removal of previous backsplash, installing new switches and undercabinet lighting hockey pucks LEDs - 75$
- new subway tile backsplash - 120$
- New oak hardwood flooring - 420$
- All grass French Door to backyard + All glass single door + stainless steel hardware 740$
- Tear down of stairwell leading to attic+basement to make open space area + installation of a 20 foot LVL beam 800$
- Hiring out the plastering for ceiling in order to match the rest of the house especially the area where it bordered with the living room - 800$
- Construction of new island - 200$
- Butcher block counter top for the island = 620$
- New switches and plates = 60$
- 3 x brushed nickel pendant lights for over the island = 18$
- 2 x spot lights LEDs from IKEA - 58$
- New fancy faucet butcher style - 55$
- New single bowl stainless steel sink Franke brand - 175$
- New stainless steel exhaust - 80$

Total 5553 USD

It went from this:







To this:













These pics dont yet have the hardwood floor... need to take new ones:







And a little video with some of the work done - it includes a little more than just the kitchen though...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUIL-ikDIWM&feature=youtu.be


Also, I should mention that out of pocket we didn't pay 5553$ but less.

We paid out of pocket about 4600$ total because for Lowes and other stores, I bought gift cards at discount. Lowes was my best discount where I bought 4000$ of gift cards for 3000$

We did everything by ourselves with exception of the texture on the ceiling with plaster.

We are still missing a fridge and bottom cabinets on the far left side near the french door. So right there i would expect an extra $1000 - the fridge we are looking is about 600$ and maybe another 400$ for bottom cabinets?
« Last Edit: March 07, 2018, 09:50:09 PM by MrSal »

MrsDinero

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #20 on: March 08, 2018, 05:21:59 AM »
- Butcher block counter top for the island = 620
Looks great!  I especially love the butcher block island.  Did you buy that or build it?  If you bought it where did you get it? 

MrSal

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #21 on: March 08, 2018, 06:39:02 AM »
- Butcher block counter top for the island = 620
Looks great!  I especially love the butcher block island.  Did you buy that or build it?  If you bought it where did you get it?

I built the island. The butcher block however I had it done by an Amish woodworker. It's cherry and walnut. Its huge! like 8 ft x 5 ft huge ...

DrumAllDay

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #22 on: March 08, 2018, 09:18:28 AM »
- Butcher block counter top for the island = 620
Looks great!  I especially love the butcher block island.  Did you buy that or build it?  If you bought it where did you get it?

I built the island. The butcher block however I had it done by an Amish woodworker. It's cherry and walnut. Its huge! like 8 ft x 5 ft huge ...

Wow I love that island! I might have to steal that idea for my island, although it's not nearly as big.

MrSal

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #23 on: March 08, 2018, 03:16:16 PM »
- Butcher block counter top for the island = 620
Looks great!  I especially love the butcher block island.  Did you buy that or build it?  If you bought it where did you get it?

I built the island. The butcher block however I had it done by an Amish woodworker. It's cherry and walnut. Its huge! like 8 ft x 5 ft huge ...

Wow I love that island! I might have to steal that idea for my island, although it's not nearly as big.

Steal ahead! although today i saw a great video:

https://www.facebook.com/ElegantResidences/videos/1882804245074538/

If I had seen this before, I think I would have tried... my island would have been more conventional while still having access to the stairs to the basement. Never though about having a slide out countertop to give headroom!

letired

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #24 on: March 08, 2018, 04:00:45 PM »
Chiming in re: sinks. My current sink is a Very Old porcelain sink (~70 years?!? assuming it is original to the house, which it is as far as I can tell), and it is certainly showing it's age. The finish is 100% destroyed, it is full of nicks and chipped spots, looks dirty 100% of the time, and takes coffee stains like a champ. (The house was a rental for a while, so certainly no one was being precious about it.) I think porcelain is too delicate of a material (for me!) for a kitchen sink. I want to be able to clean it easily, and not worry about what cleaners I'm using.

I'm 100% stainless if/when I get the money and time to renovate my kitchen. My favorite kitchen sink is still at my parents' house. It's single basin, a large square, and very deep (probably from my fingertip to my elbow at least?), so plenty of room to rinse a colander of something even if there are dirty dishes at the bottom. That said, I've never wanted to use my kitchen sink as a basin and fill it up, so YMMV.

BudgetSlasher

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #25 on: March 08, 2018, 07:37:24 PM »
Adding to the kitchen thread:

Today I converted the box in the middle of the room that was a fan+light into a relocated light for the kitchen table and 4 boxes for what the DW tells me are called "wall washers".

While I HATE old world electrical, I hate the rates to pay someone to do it more. 

TheWifeHalf

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #26 on: March 08, 2018, 07:40:31 PM »
We bought our house in 1981, back when mortgage rates were 12% and no one looked at our house for 6 mos, except us. It was so perfect, meaning was livable, but needed oh so much. The original owner lived in the 1915 house, moved to a 'home' and they needed to sell. It costs us $45,000, was on 1 acre, and TheHusbandHalf lived here for a year before we got married. I lived a half mile down the road.
We have been sloooowwwwlllly redoing the house, mostly ourselves. But this last year we decided to splurge and hire the guy across the corn field to make/install our cabinets.

I never thought I would have a 'Snow' kitchen. He actually makes the cabinets over there and when homes are sold a 'Snow Kitchen' is always mentioned.
His craftsmanship and work ethic were 10 x better than I expected.

I talked to him about wanting to stay true to the house's age, we discussed details often, and I still can't imagine it's ours. In fact, sometimes we just say "Nice kitchen you got there!"

Our family room and desk area, he made complementary cabinets, and in total we spent $45,000. Exactly what we paid for the house in 1981.

I try to add decorative accents that are original 1915 items. I hung a piece of authentic 1915 wall paper above the sink, and used the front of a 1915 magazine on a shelf made just for it! (This builder's goal was to keep the customer happy and though he might not have seen why in the world a person would want a shelf there, he did it.

Per my request, he made cabinet inserts on the upper doors, that match the balusters TheHusbandHalf had made for our stairway. Admittedly unique, but I think the builder thought this was a pretty cool idea.

Here are some pics taken soon after, TheHusbandHalf hadn't done all the baseboard, and other things, yet

DrumAllDay

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #27 on: March 09, 2018, 06:28:53 AM »
- Butcher block counter top for the island = 620
Looks great!  I especially love the butcher block island.  Did you buy that or build it?  If you bought it where did you get it?

I built the island. The butcher block however I had it done by an Amish woodworker. It's cherry and walnut. Its huge! like 8 ft x 5 ft huge ...

Wow I love that island! I might have to steal that idea for my island, although it's not nearly as big.

Steal ahead! although today i saw a great video:

https://www.facebook.com/ElegantResidences/videos/1882804245074538/

If I had seen this before, I think I would have tried... my island would have been more conventional while still having access to the stairs to the basement. Never though about having a slide out countertop to give headroom!

Ha that is crazy! You really can get creative when designing a kitchen.

meerkat

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #28 on: March 09, 2018, 10:50:29 AM »
PTF.

We have a kitchen reno coming up, but ours is much more extensive (and expensive) that what's in the thread so far. We're completely gutting it and the laundry room, we may keep the fridge temporarily but every other appliance is getting replaced. The sink and stove are each moving a few inches, the fridge is getting relocated, and while we're at it we're replacing the 900 square feet of flooring. We're working with a general contractor because we don't have the time to DIY the bulk of it even if we hired out the plumbing/electrical. We are going to do the floors and paint ourselves though, plus whatever demo we can manage. Edit: I realized after I posted that I was in the DIY sub, whoops. I'll just listen for the most part I guess.

How did you guys cook while your renos were going on? We're going to move our fridge to the living room during the renovation and use a spare microwave, I think I have an idea for a second temporary pantry. Is the stove generally usable throughout construction or should I try to start figuring out non-stove dinner options?

Cranky

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #29 on: March 09, 2018, 12:32:10 PM »
We put the fridge on a long extension cord and used it the whole time, but the stove was out of commission for a while. We grilled outside and used the crockpot. It was dishwashing that got old really fast - we had to haul everything to the basement.

SweatingInAR

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #30 on: March 09, 2018, 01:35:55 PM »
We also had the fridge on an extension cord, microwave in the spare bedroom, and grilled. I microwaved a lot of pasta that month, and actually used the side burner on my grill for eggs and whatnot. I got in the habit of licking my plate clean so that washing it in the bathroom sink was easy.

We kept the old fridge in the living room until I found a new(er) stainless fridge on craigslist.

We put the fridge on a long extension cord and used it the whole time, but the stove was out of commission for a while. We grilled outside and used the crockpot. It was dishwashing that got old really fast - we had to haul everything to the basement.

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #31 on: March 09, 2018, 04:59:50 PM »
PTF.

We have a kitchen reno coming up, but ours is much more extensive (and expensive) that what's in the thread so far. We're completely gutting it and the laundry room, we may keep the fridge temporarily but every other appliance is getting replaced. The sink and stove are each moving a few inches, the fridge is getting relocated, and while we're at it we're replacing the 900 square feet of flooring. We're working with a general contractor because we don't have the time to DIY the bulk of it even if we hired out the plumbing/electrical. We are going to do the floors and paint ourselves though, plus whatever demo we can manage. Edit: I realized after I posted that I was in the DIY sub, whoops. I'll just listen for the most part I guess.

How did you guys cook while your renos were going on? We're going to move our fridge to the living room during the renovation and use a spare microwave, I think I have an idea for a second temporary pantry. Is the stove generally usable throughout construction or should I try to start figuring out non-stove dinner options?

So... ours was actually really extensive, but it was an almost exclusively diy job.  We hired out 3 things: having the plumber relocate a drain line for the washer, having an engineer spec out the truss modifications needed to vault our ceiling, and then having a drywall finisher apply the texture to the new drywall so it matched the old. 

Other than that, we retiled the whole house, redid all the electric in the kitchen, added new windows, moved a wall, changed a 7' ceiling to a 10.5' vaulted ceiling, designed and built the kitchen cabinets from piles of plywood, built the butcher block counters out of strips of wood from a tree DH's dad had cut down 30 years earlier, and I'm sure there's more.  =)

It's great and we love it, but it took the better part of 2 years, the first of which was pretty stressful at times.  In terms of functioning among the insanity, sometimes the fridge was in the living room, sometimes where it used to go.   When the cabinets around the sink came out, DH built a very basic stand out of 2x4s to hold up the sink (luckily it was over mount), so with the exception of only a couple 1 night periods were able to keep the sink and dishwasher available for use through everything. They were just a little beat up by the end, and the sink we replaced - the dishwasher was able to be cleaned up pretty well though, so we kept that as the only appliance from pre-renovation days. 

You mention a spare pantry and I had almost forgot!  We had a large cardboard box that I stuffed ur pantry items in and we moved it around as necessary.  I called it the pantry box and would go on hands and knees to dive in and pull flour or something out of it. 

It was all somewhat ridiculous at the time, you just had to roll with the punches, but totally worth the insanity after the fact.  And given time, you forget how bad it was... =)

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #32 on: March 11, 2018, 12:35:01 AM »
I remodeled our kitchen in 2015... somehow never wrote here. The old one had dirty vinyl tiles, ancient avocado laminate counters, and the stove floated free on an entire blank wall. Pretty bad. My parents (who both have advanced geology degrees and smell rocks like dogs smell rotten fish) noticed a sign on a counter top place nearby that said "free granit". They were giving away all the scraps, ends, and broken parts left over from large expensive counter tops, so I loaded my vehicle to the limits of its suspension twice with different colors of squared off granite.

I used a standard circular saw with diamond blade and garden hose to make cuts. Then I used a standard router with diamond bit and garden hose to put a 45 degree chamfer on the top corner. I put them on high strength grout and filled gaps with sanded epoxy. Fortunately many pieces already came with 45 angles which made my life easier.


I extended the counter to add space for a dishwasher and decided on 45 degree ends. I made my own questionable 45 degree cabinets/shelves. Obviously my kitchen isn't big and fancy. My wife objected to cabinet doors on top. I got "creative" with cheap tile backsplash.


Floor is pergo mostly so the dishwasher could fit under the counter. The fridge enclosure could probably use some work. I replaced a cheap rubbish-looking fluorescent light over the sink with LED strips under the entire length of cabinets. The LEDs are amazing and I highly recommend them. Stove is a piece of garbage that has cracked glass on the oven and one burner doesn't work, but so far nobody wanted to spend money on a new one.


This shows everything I am most proud of after the granite. Wrap around shelving with hooks underneath makes everything hyperconvenient to access from the stove. These are a stair step and generic round pieces from Home Depot. Also notice how my power outlet and light switch plates are in three different colors to match the tiles :)


It's complicated but I accidentally removed the last load bearing doubled 2X4, which was still supporting the roof. The microwave hangs over what used to be dead space over the basement stairs. Notice how the microwave area gets progressively deeper as it goes up - even more so than you can see in the picture: there is no bottom shelf. After I removed the wall above the stairs I learned my house was built in two phases, and there was a second roof inside my attic that now supported the new roof and directed the load through this single spot to the basement floor. Things got intense as I reconfigured the load bearing parts up above. Fortunately I know a structural engineer who specializes in residential houses so the cost of advice was a six pack.


The counter space and usefulness of the kitchen about tripled with this remodel, and it also became a lot lighter and brighter and shinier.
« Last Edit: March 11, 2018, 01:07:41 AM by Radagast »

Khaetra

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #33 on: March 11, 2018, 06:07:07 AM »
^^^ Nice job and how lucky to find the free stuff.  I really like your hack of the saw/garden hose and I may have to give that a try before renting a saw to how well it'll work for me when cutting time comes.

wildbeast

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #34 on: March 11, 2018, 12:07:22 PM »
@Radagast - I love your creativity!  This is just the sort of thing my dh would do.  We removed some load-bearing walls in our kitchen and we too had some "intense" moments when our ceiling and roof started to move downwards!  We laugh about it now, but it was a panic moment.  :)

I've enjoyed seeing everyone's kitchens and reading about everyone's plans and experiences.  Thanks!  I've been spending most of my time doing research on appliances, flooring, countertops and tile for the back splash. We finally decided to go for a cheerful and colorful kitchen, rather than a classic neutral one.  I'll be doing a glass mosaic tile in a blue/green color as a backsplash.  I haven't picked out the actual tile yet.  I have to go check out a local tile clearance store and see what they have.  Home Depot has a nice one, but it's pricey because it's made to be able to be used in a shower.  I'm hoping to find something similar in color but cheaper.

Once I make the tile selection, I'll start on the countertops.  I'm having fun so far.  And I also did an Excel spreadsheet for all my stuff and I think I can get everything I want for $10k.   

Carrie

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #35 on: March 11, 2018, 01:30:47 PM »
I'm hoping for a light reno this late spring/early summer. The layout is set & keeping all cabinets & appliances so all we'd be doing is new countertops, new backsplash, new sink. I'm pricing quartz this month. I think it'll be around $3800. I think we can do the demo and probably backsplash. But I'm going to get a number on tile backsplash just to see. It may be one of those things that we could do, but outsourcing to someone who knows what they're doing and already has the wet saw may be prudent.  I am setting the budget at $5500.
I've decided on a sink - SS with two bowls but with a divider that sits few inches lower ($200), keep our existing faucet for now since it's fairly new and works fine. I'd love the squared off 10" deep bowls, but it looks like our existing plumbing would be a massive headache I'd we went deeper than 8 or possibly 9". We currently have a chipped to hell "white" cast iron porcelain and it looks horrible.

I plan to cook in the instant pot, fridge stays as is, but dishes will be a pain.

Radagast

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #36 on: March 11, 2018, 02:03:56 PM »
^^^ Nice job and how lucky to find the free stuff.  I really like your hack of the saw/garden hose and I may have to give that a try before renting a saw to how well it'll work for me when cutting time comes.
I also used a straight edge and clamps. Don't use a fancy saw. It is surprisingly easy, but the cuts can become difficult and then warped if the saw gets dull and you try forcing your way through. It works great for cuts that will be hidden at the back or grout lines, but the edges are difficult to finish. You can do it with an angle grinder and diamond pads or hard sand paper on a straight edge, bur I got bored and gave up to the edges of my counters are unfinished.

Radagast

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #37 on: March 11, 2018, 06:26:00 PM »
@Radagast - I love your creativity!  This is just the sort of thing my dh would do.  We removed some load-bearing walls in our kitchen and we too had some "intense" moments when our ceiling and roof started to move downwards!  We laugh about it now, but it was a panic moment.  :)
With both foresight and hindsight, had I known it was a load bearing 2x4 I wouldn't have touched it.

I got in the habit of licking my plate clean so that washing it in the bathroom sink was easy.
Now that's my style.

wildbeast

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #38 on: April 04, 2018, 11:02:31 AM »
I've been trying to plan out my kitchen layout and figuring out my upper cabinets.  I've had open shelving forever (with a tall 36" pantry cabinet), and at first I was packing in a many cabinets as I could fit in.  But now I'm wondering, what am I going to put in those cabinets?

I mean, the first two shelves are the only ones that are easy to reach.  Everything else is hard to get to.  And what would I even put up there.  My lower cabs are mostly deep drawers and are very functional and I have a lazy susan in a corner unit with lots of storage.  So now I'm thinking of building in some open space in the kitchen instead of filling everything up with cabinets.  I'm curious to see how you guys planned/are planning out your uppers. 

I did the Marie Kondo purging last year and I've been trying to clear clutter out.  I think having more cabs will make it much easier to keep lots and lots of stuff.  But I also like the streamlined look of a finished kitchen.  I've been noticing that American kitchens are typically filled to the brim with wall-to-wall cabinets.  Not sure if that will feel closed in in real life.  And maybe a little boring, since you can't do anything with a wall of cabs.  With open space, you can add art, plants, lots of color, etc.

Cranky

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #39 on: April 04, 2018, 03:21:24 PM »
I've only got upper cabinets on each side of the sink - they have glass doors and I use them for glasses and fancy bowls, stuff that I like to look at.

I'm pretty short, and I'm not interested in climbing up on a step stool any more often than absolutely necessary, to upper cabinets are mostly wasted space for me. I've got one wall still waiting for something decorative (I'll know it when I see it!) but I'm enjoying the somewhat blank look.

wildbeast

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #40 on: April 04, 2018, 07:51:33 PM »
@Cranky - I'm very short too at 5' (I used to be 5'2" and seem to have shrunk, though I still use that when I want to calculate weight loss goals.  :)  And dh is 5'6", so the tops of cabs are lots of wasted space for us too.  I don't like having those little step stools around as I'm always tripping over them.  Sometimes empty space can feel very peaceful.

pbkmaine

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The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #41 on: April 05, 2018, 08:13:36 AM »
A friend of mine had a very long kitchen remodel. She and her husband bought a house that needed a lot of work, including structural work at the back of the house where the kitchen was. She had the construction team move the refrigerator to the basement and set up a kitchen next to the laundry room, which had a large sink. She had the refrigerator, a big toaster oven, a microwave, a crock pot and a hot plate. The appliances went on an old bookcase. She bought an IKEA island with a butcher block top. She added a battered metal filing cabinet and a folding table and chairs and that was her kitchen for 18 months. It worked pretty well. They saved a ton on eating out, and when the hammering in the house got to be too much, she and her young son would retreat down there to try out recipes. (She did, however, kiss the Bosch dishwasher when it was installed in the new kitchen.) The old refrigerator still lives down there and holds drinks and extra frozen stuff, and the IKEA island is a potting bench in her garage.
« Last Edit: April 05, 2018, 08:18:43 AM by pbkmaine »

pbkmaine

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The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #42 on: April 05, 2018, 08:18:18 AM »
I remodeled our kitchen in 2015... somehow never wrote here. The old one had dirty vinyl tiles, ancient avocado laminate counters, and the stove floated free on an entire blank wall. Pretty bad. My parents (who both have advanced geology degrees and smell rocks like dogs smell rotten fish) noticed a sign on a counter top place nearby that said "free granit". They were giving away all the scraps, ends, and broken parts left over from large expensive counter tops, so I loaded my vehicle to the limits of its suspension twice with different colors of squared off granite.

I used a standard circular saw with diamond blade and garden hose to make cuts. Then I used a standard router with diamond bit and garden hose to put a 45 degree chamfer on the top corner. I put them on high strength grout and filled gaps with sanded epoxy. Fortunately many pieces already came with 45 angles which made my life easier.


I extended the counter to add space for a dishwasher and decided on 45 degree ends. I made my own questionable 45 degree cabinets/shelves. Obviously my kitchen isn't big and fancy. My wife objected to cabinet doors on top. I got "creative" with cheap tile.

This looks great. You do not have to anything to the refrigerator surround. Just measure the space above the fridge and get a nice basket that fits it at a place like Michael’s. It will look planned, and will hold a ton of unsightly supplies, like paper towels or seasonal items.

Actually, you could get another one for the space above it, too.
« Last Edit: April 05, 2018, 08:55:37 AM by pbkmaine »

gettingthatmarshmallow

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #43 on: June 03, 2018, 02:23:55 PM »
I hope this is a good place to put this question:  any good sources/tips for finding affordable ceramic tile? 

Spouse and I are DIYing our kitchen.  A hack I definitely recommend: marry a former cabinetmaker.  We're redoing the cabinets, countertops, adding a range hood and a new sink, backsplash, and flooring.  Eventually we'll replace the fridge, too, but we're waiting on a sale to pull the trigger on that.  So a big project, but so far so good. 

The only hang-up has been tile. We're thinking of tile (torn between slate and ceramic-look-alike for the floors, subway with a mosaic accent for the backsplash), and I'm definitely feeling overwhelmed by the countless sites and pictures and everything with tile.   

Any recommendations on where to source tile?  Are the box stores ideal, or is there some awesome website known to you thrifty DIY'rs? 

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #44 on: June 04, 2018, 02:36:22 PM »
OP, I have a SS sink. I pretty much just clean it with the scrubby side of a dish sponge, using the last of the dishwashing suds. Occasionally I'll use baking soda if there's a particularly tough spot. When I had a porcelain sink, I was constantly scrubbing it with Comet to keep it looking clean.

I have a granite counter and can't wait to get rid of it.  Its pattern is a small-scale mixture of brown, grey, black, and white, and it doesn't show the dirt. I hate that!  I want to know when there's something on my counter that needs to be wiped up!


Khaetra

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #45 on: June 05, 2018, 04:55:41 AM »
To GettingThat:  I hear you about the pictures!  When I decided to remodel I started looking and would say "I like that....and that...and that one...and..." :).  As far as tile, I lucked out at Home Depot when they had an overstock sale and got 16x16 sand colored ones for $.57/sq. foot.  I plan on doing my whole house with them so I saved a bundle (I have to replace what I put down before due to water damage), but keep an eye out on the big-box stores as they do have sales and if they have a style you like be ready to grab them when you see them.

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #46 on: June 22, 2018, 01:28:20 PM »
We are about 70% done with our renovation. Installed all cabinets ourselves, upgraded some plumbing, new vinyl plank floor, quartz countertops, ceiling fan. Our "coolest" upgrade is an island (3'x3') on casters so it is movable. The cabinet company put trim so you cant even see the casters.

Eating with no sink or oven has been rough! Ham sandwiches for dinner 5 days in a row lol. But its only two of us so we dont care-no kids or anything.

Carrie

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #47 on: June 23, 2018, 08:32:07 AM »
I'm getting my tile from a local wholesale shop. I had picked out something from the stone & tile shop that did my quartz counters, but found something I like just as well for half the price. Search for local tile/flooring /interior suppliers because you'll get better variety (maybe quality too?) than big box store.

All we've got left on our project is backsplash tile. We did the demo & replaced sheet rock ourselves. Paid for fabrication & installation of quartz countertops.  We did the plumbing and minor electrical ourselves. On the fence about diy backsplash. I think I'll pay someone since the quote is $840 and I've never done it before, and would hate to ruin such a visible area, don't have a wet saw, etc. We've kept existing cabinets & appliances which is a huge money saver.

Zaga

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #48 on: June 23, 2018, 10:07:16 AM »
We have 2 kitchens, one in the basement that was a complete disaster.  I can't break down costs for 2 reasons.  1 - we're not done yet and 2 - we redid the entire basement and I didn't try to separate out the costs.  The whole basement is still at less than $10K.

The basement kitchen has exactly 1 non-appliance thing that was salvageable, the upper cabinets.  The lowers were rotten in places, covered in mold underneath and generally falling apart.  There was a cement block peninsula that just cut the kitchen off from the rest of the basement and was awkward.  There was an enormous hood over the stove that cut more than one tall person's head open before padding was added to the corner (and didn't that just look classy...)  And the flooring was old vinyl tiles glued straight to the cement which was chipped, cracked, and coming up in places all over the basement.  Scraping up that floor was a long painful process.

So we went to a construction re-use place and bought kitchen cabinets.  We also kept the uppers we already had, moved around some, and bought a few individual cabinets to fill in gaps.  Since there are I think 6 different cabinets it looks deliberate, and it's a basement so who cares if the cabinets match perfectly?  We will be painting them all red, I'm very excited about that stage!  Right now just about everything in the basement is either tan or dark brown, the red will really give it some life!

For the counter top we did a few different things.  For the main part on the sink wall we used unfinished oak flooring, I think it took 3 bundles for a 15 foot section of counter.  We then stained this a dark brown and finished it with several layers of poly.  Maybe not the best choice for a main kitchen, but it's beautiful and just fine for a basement.  We dropped in a single basin stainless sink for cleaning bottles and large pots because we brew wine.  Another section of counter is a small rolling cart with granite.  Then there is a 5 foot section that was from another construction re-use place that is wood colored and was originally part of a modular desk system.  It's not by the food prep so it's less resistant to water than the other parts.  The last 2 small sections of counter were going to also be oak floor but we ran out of that so did pretty much the same thing but with plain pine boards stained the same color as the oak and sealed the same way.  One of these sections is on a small cabinet we added wheels to, but it pretty much sits in line with the rest of the cabinets.

We also rearranged, took out the terrible peninsula and added a few feet of wall next to the stairs for a place to add outlets, other outlets were added to the other side.  The whole kitchen down there now is an open U shape, very easy to come and go even with 30 people in the basement for a party.  Appliances were moved to more logical locations.  It's not done yet but with the exception of the oven wiring not being reconnected yet (the over was moved so it needed new wiring) it's a fully functional kitchen and so much nicer than what we had before!

Other things we bought for the basement kitchen were a hood vent from a re-use place and floating laminate flooring for the whole basement from Costco.  We ended up with enough leftover that we'll be able to put this floor in the small room we made on the other side of the stairs with just about 0 pieces left.

The rest of the basement has been re-floored mostly in laminate like the kitchen but with a section of tile next to the fireplace and another section behind the bar.  We built the bar from scratch, it's the most beautiful thing we've ever built!  We named it the Monkey's Fist Tavern.

seattlecyclone

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Re: The Kitchen Thread
« Reply #49 on: June 25, 2018, 11:57:47 AM »
Last year we moved into a big house with a small kitchen. It's fine on the storage front, but the work space is rather lacking. Last weekend I made a small improvement to the situation: spent about $40 at Home Depot to build a shelf for the microwave, opening up the counter that it used to sit on.

It might look like such a small improvement, but it adds up to about a 30% increase in usable counter space in the kitchen, plus making it so that there's two legit work areas in the room. Previously the person using the only real counter to prepare food would also block the sink and access to most of the cupboards, making it hard for two people to work in the kitchen together.