what the kitchen looked like the last time i photographed it in 2011
Remember my shore kitchen? I hated it so much! Then I painted the cabinets, painted the countertops, added a fabulous fixture and made some drapes. All of those little things made it a lot more more tolerable but no amount of sprucing was going to change its poor set up and hodgepodge materials. Eventually we were going to renovate but kept putting it off.
Well here we are. As I mentioned last week, we some damage during Hurricane Sandy that is making it uninhabitable right now. Overall, we were very fortunate to have escaped the worst of it but we still had to do some repairs. This prompted the thought that perhaps we should renovate the kitchen since we are already going to need to find a contractor and all the fun that goes with managing work to any home. (Which has already been a major pain and we haven't even started yet!)
Do I want to take on a kitchen renovation right now? Not really. Aside from the cost (boo for unexpected expeditures!), we have a bit less time now than we did pre-baby. Ultimately its the smart thing to do since we can get it done in one shot without ruining another summer but I'm not as gung ho about the process as I would usually be. (I love to help friends with their renovations!)
Naturally I know exactly what I want it to look like when its all done but I'm struggling with just how much I want to invest here. We don't plan on selling so resale isn't usually in my mind but I don't want to throw money into the trash either. At the same time, cheap materials tend to look just that - cheap. So this renovation will definitely be a balancing act!
Wish me luck nailing down a decent contractor. Right now that is our biggest struggle but layout, material selection and finishing will soon follow. Lots more to come in this space!
And while I'm at the drawing board, I'd love to hear your suggestions on what I should consider in terms of materials and design. Yes, I have a pretty solid picture of what I'd like here (which of course I'll be sharing just as soon as I can nail down a contractor!) but there is always room for improvement. Anything new in the kitchen design world I should be considering? Did you renovate a galley kitchen you want to brag about?
Instead of upper cabinets, open shelving can be a low cost alternative. Also, if you leave off the doors of your bottom cabinets & attach a curtain to the lower boxes to hide any mess, you can save some money & add a punch of cuteness at the same time.
ReplyDeleteAnd you can always add doors and/or upper cabinets later, budget permitting.
Yes we are thinking about open shelving - mostly because upper cabinets on both sides block too much of the light coming from the window and make it feel a bit dark at the other end of the room. Sadly, open shelving isn't really a cost saving measure if you use nice corbels and tile up the whole wall.
DeleteI can't wait to see what you have in mind!! I agree with Mary that open shelving would be great in the kitchen. Since it's a relatively small space, the shelving would open it up more. Perhaps some sparkly pendant lights or stainless hood over the stove would add some polish.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the additional explanation. When you mentioned something last week, I thought I had missed some posts when it happened, so it was a shock for me to read/hear. Good luck! We have started doing projects again around our house now that our LO is 9/10 months old. It is easier with more predictable nap schedules and him being able to sit up and self entertain for a bit so I can work on something!
ReplyDeleteAgatha is a great baby but never naps so I'm hoping that changes soon. I still can't imagine getting much done in that short amount of time but I'll take it :)
DeleteWhile it is a lot of work you are going to be so glad you did it when it is complete. I recently remodeled a small condo kitchen and used simple white subway tiles but my biggest joy was the one large sink I chose instead of a divided sink...love it!! good luck and enjoy the process!
ReplyDeleteSince you're renovating anyway, can you knock out a wall and make it NOT a galley kitchen?
ReplyDeleteI agree with the open shelving suggestion, and would also add that at our lake house, we don't have a huge kitchen. We mostly grill; I seldom even use my stove and we took the microwave out altogether. You may not need as much room as you think you do.
One last thing...check out sites that talk about kitchen and storage on boats.
We are definitely planning on taking out part of the left wall but its just a small condo so we can't open it up entirely (since the other side of the kitchen is the bathroom)
DeleteWhile we don't need a lot of storage ourselves, I wouldn't want to completely discount the possibility that we might sell one day (very far in the future) to someone who would want to use it differently so I don't think I can completely do away with the key elements but I hear what you are saying.
I guess I will be the negative nellie, and say no to open shelving. I understand they are the now thing, but in the long run, dishes get gross from cooking fumes, dishes and glassware get easily knocked off, and there is the stress of HAVING to keep everything extremely neat and dishes coordinated. Of course, the keeping everything neat can be a good thing =) I like a galley kitchen myself, and in a beach home I like the bead board cabinets and a few cabinets with the seed glass doors. Plain and Fancy cabinetry has a nice website with good looking kitchens.
ReplyDeleteI'm not so worried about keeping things neat since we tend to use only white dishware anyway but I definitely don't want to have to wash all of the dishes every time we are down there.
DeleteI actually like the functionality of a galley style (we have one at home too) but it does pose some limitations that other layouts dont.
We just had our whole house renovated due to Sandy, so I feel ya. As for the kitchen, I'm sure you'll consider cost, since this is a second home for you. That being said, we did white shaker style cabinetry, nickel hardware, and Carerra marble counter top. The backsplash is white subway tile with charcoal gray grout, which makes the tile pop a little. With the neutral palette I can change up the colors of my accessories whenever I want. Also, the sink is a nice, deep stainless steel. If I drop a wine glass in the sink I don't worry that it'll break - unlike having a cast iron sink. I'm too clumsy for that! Hope this helps!
ReplyDeleteYour kitchen sounds right up my alley :)
DeleteI posted some pics of our home on my blog so you can check out the kitchen if you like. I love white! it never bores me and never goes out of style.
DeleteOh yeah, I hate the cost of renovating a kitchen. It's ridiculous. Good luck to you guys, it will be beautiful!
ReplyDeletePS - since people were talking about open shelving on here, I will say that I absolutely LOVE our open shelves. I've never had a problem with grease and any dust is negligible because we put our only set of (white) dishes on them, so they are used constantly. Love love love my open shelves! Favorite thing in my kitchen, but that might be because I made them and they are not painted white like everyone else's.
ReplyDeleteAs a new FTM myself, I totally get that you are having a hard time finding your energy/inspiration for this remodel. If you are like me, you get home from work and just want to hang out with LO and not worry about anything else! I hope you find your designer mojo!! You CAN do this!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks. The design side I'm totally cool with because its mostly something I can do in my mind. Its the dealing with contractors and suppliers that I dread :)
DeletePerhaps cupboards and top all down one side with open shelving above.... and move the sink to under the window, making all the fitted units into an L shape, with nothing on the other side. More room, and you don't really have to eat breakfast right at the end of that galley, do you? Good luck whatever you decide.
ReplyDeleteThat seating area is the only one in the apartment so I definitely want to keep it. Plus I like having the window area for seating since we spend far more time at the table than at the sink anyway. Also since we are trying to keep costs down, we are trying to keep all the rough plumbing exactly where it is. I wouldn't mind moving the sink to another spot but I'm not sure I want the hassle of having to change the plumbing.
DeleteI'm gonna be honest with you that I know next to nothing about kitchen renovations, but I think since it is not your primary kitchen, open shelving could be a fun way to go. I would never do it in my primary (or only :)) house since I like to hide the disaster that is my organization skills but why the heck not if you aren't going to be there all the time? Take that with a grain of salt and good luck!
ReplyDelete