Our Kitchen Remodel On A Budget
Remodels can be very daunting and overwhelming, especially for those who haven’t done one before. I know I was scared! Not only are there a ton of decisions to make but you’re also spending a lot of money! Today, I’m focusing on our kitchen renovation and a few key things that we’ve learned throughout the process.
Budget
The cost of kitchen remodels can vary depending on size, materials, layout, etc. In our case, we tried to keep it pretty simple as this was our very first home purchase. When we initially saw our kitchen, we wanted to change out all of the cabinets, it was an orangey-brown color, which we weren’t fond of. However, as we started the remodel work on our condo, we realized that the cabinets were actually in pretty good shape. So, instead of wasting them and having to spend additional money, we decided to paint them a different color.
Color Scheme
It took us a while to decide what color but we ultimately decided to paint them white because of how small our kitchen was. We wanted to keep it light and bright to make it feel bigger than it really is. We went with Behr Marquee White Pepper from Home Depot. This color has a grey undertone so wasn’t such a stark white and was perfect for us to use on our cabinets.
Layout
We also kept the layout pretty much the same. Since this was our first home/condo, we realized that it wasn’t going to be worth the trouble of taking down walls and all. Essentially, we knew it wasn’t/isn’t going to be our forever home. Instead, we kept the layout the same but extended it just a little bit to create more countertops and, more importantly, an area for us to put a wine fridge/beverage center. That way, we had a space dedicated to our coffee, tea, wine, etc., which was important to us as we are avid coffee and tea drinkers.
Hardware
To give the cabinets a more contemporary look, we also changed the handles of all the cabinets. Initially, I wanted a combination of knobs and bar handles. However, after doing some research, it was going to be difficult to find handle bars that would match the width of ours exactly. Having said that, we opted to go with matte black knobs instead that we got off of Amazon. Doing that gave our cabinets a simple, clean and cohesive look.
In addition to the cabinets, we also changed out the countertops and brought the same slab up to the walls. With such a small galley style kitchen, we thought it’d make the kitchen feel bigger and cleaner.
If there was one thing I would say to splurge on, it is a good kitchen faucet. It’s probably something you’re going to use pretty often and makes a statement in your kitchen.
Finally, we added a few wood floating shelves which gave our kitchen another dimension and texture besides being all white. Drum roll please….
Before
After
The things I’ve learned after redoing our kitchen is…
Create a space that functions for your everyday needs.
You don’t have to buy all new to transform a space. A little sweat equity goes a long way.
Understand the purpose and ROI of your space. Like I said, we initially wanted to take down walls but that was waaaay above our budget.
I honestly can’t wait for our next remodel project. It’s an addiction, I swear! It’s a ton of work but once it’s all said and done, you’ll be happy you did it.