Hi there! I'm back and I am still talking kitchens here. Sorry if you are looking for a fancy travel story. I am doing some work travel and will try to sneak in a post or two here or there from the trips. In the meantime, if you are interested in renovation, well, this is the post for you.
Today I am going to talk cabinets. More specifically I am going to talk shopping for kitchen cabinets. I would talk countertops but, frankly, that has been the easiest part of the kitchen shopping process thus far.
Now, those that personally know me know that shopping is my jam. I love to shop - clothes, doorknobs, shoes, purses, most anything is fun to shop for! So, spending a day with the kitchen designer half of my contracting team was a vacation day made in heaven! It did not hurt that the weather was amazing here in the DMV on my designated day allowing me to drop the top on Franklin and enjoy the time! I took it as a sign from the contractor gods that this day was going to go well!
First stop: Cabinets!
The cabinet designer showed us around the showroom and we settled in to talk about my dream. I am all for talking about all the amazing things I would love to have in my kitchen when it comes to cabinetry but I broke the first cardinal rule of shopping:
Lesson 3: Set budget expectations with vendors right from the start!
What happened? We waxed poetically about pull out shelves for everyone, pull out spice racks next to stove, open shelving made by cabinet maker, and more drawer bells and whistles than you can count.
After a second walk through to do final measurements and map out where cabinets will really go, I got the first design and, more importantly, the first quote. The cabinet price was going to be 75% of my budget. Not good. I reached out to my contractor team with my disappointment at the price as they knew from the beginning what my budget was. They reassured me that there were several other lines for cabinetry that the same company could work with to design my dream townhouse kitchen.
And there were.
We made it to the third line of cabinetry before we hit a price that did not make me want to weep and that would not kill my budget. I am sacrificing those magical pull out shelves in the pantry right now...but not for long. You know my existing cabinets? Well the previous owner added in aftermarket tracks and pull out shelves! What does that mean? Well, I am pretty darn handy if I do say so myself (I mean I own a finish nailer, circular saw, wet-tile saw and many other items!).
Plan: Harvest the pull out shelf hardware and make new shelves that fit the new cabinets better! Success and on budget!
PLUS, the new cabinet doors are still wide enough to transfer some of my favorite Elfa organization pieces from the current pantry closet! Second Success!
So, what cabinets have I settled on? For all the cabinetry, including the coveted wall o' pantry, I am going with a classic and simple 5-piece Shaker style cabinet in bright white:
Simple and elegant! Terrible picture but I don't have one high-res yet. I will totally be imaging when I actually get the cabinets in so you can see them.
For the island - yes, I am adding an island! a 66" island of storage and seating - no bar height please! Just a full 66" x 40" of soapstone gloriousness! But I digress. To bring the wood tones from the floors in the rest of the townhouse and add warmth to the kitchen, I am going with the same shaker style with a slightly different drawer face in a Honey tone:
Why the different drawer styles? wealthy don't have the 5-piece in the stain color. Too bad. but I am overall okay with it for a few reasons. First, the drawers only face inside so you will not be able to see from rest of kitchen. Second, the door styles are exactly the same. Third, the countertops will all be the same so the island will not look like a weird afterthought. And Fourth, I will tie it all together with cabinet hardware. Honestly, I don't think it is going to be a big deal.
And let's just imagine both topped by this deliciousness. Excuse the terrible lighting and iPhone image but trust me when I say it is an amazing slab.
No I have not shared the overall theme yet with all of you...be patient. I will. So, cabinets and counters selected...the two biggest expenses down other than the expense for labor and general materials.
That is all for now! Next time we will talk of statement pieces and making good choices to make the budget work.
See ya!
Shel
Okay, so I have not posted in FOREVER but I am embarking on a new journey...just not one involving leaving my house. What is this journey, you say? Well, I am renovating my kitchen.
I have been planning - and Pinterest Boarding - my vision of my perfect Townhouse kitchen for a while now. I am hoping to keep up with a relatively steady blog series through the process and sharing with you my occasional readers with some, hopefully sage, advice as well as images, thoughts, and probably a few tears through the process - because renovations.
So, where am I in the process? Well, I spent some time investigating and interviewing contractors to select my partners in crime on this reno. I invited quite a few to come out, hear my vision, and walk the space before giving me bids as well as references. I could tell right away which ones were going to take me seriously and which ones I would probably never hear from...except for one.
The first appointment was my preferred contractor...on paper. Great images, great reviews and in person was very, well, personable. My initial budget number seemed to throw him off even after he spent an hour hearing my vision and walking and diagramming the space. He knew his stuff and I was even amenable to raising my budget somewhat should he come up with a plan that made sense. I fully expected to hear from him with a quote, even if the quote was far higher than I could afford. Or at least a thank you but no thank you.
What did I get? Ghost. Nada. Not one word even when I followed up with him.
Lesson 1: Keep your mind open and talk to twice as many contractors as you think you need to.
The contractor I ended up going with is a husband and wife team. They listened to my vision, worked with me on budget realities, and followed up with quotes, references, and frankly more information than I probably wanted but actually needed.
Once I had my partners in this journey, I needed to establish a couple of ground rules to this renovation. It was important for me to set and manage expectations with my team so they knew what was important to me and what was just a wish. Also, it was important for me to share all my visions. But the most important was to share my budget and hold them accountable.
Lesson 2: Set a budget and hold everyone - including yourself - accountable!
Nothing is more stressful than getting into a project and starting down the fun path of "visioning" your future amazing space only to find out everything you love is out of your price range. It is frankly demoralizing. I am not saying don't dream but you also have to keep reality in mind. This means have the big vision, all the bells and whistles, and proverbial bling in mind. BUT, you also have to know what is a deal breaker must have and what is just a nice to have.
For me, it was amazing countertops, full pantry cabinets, and a single basin, apron front sink. What I REALLY wanted were full pull out shelves in the pantry, the super fancy amazing custom cabinets, and the instant hot water thingy for the sink (you know, for those coffee days!)
What am I getting? Amazing soapstone countertops (from a slab I picked out myself!) with a soapstone inset behind the stove for a feature! Great quality cabinets that have some of the features I want (hello deep drawers for pots and pans! Baking pan/cutting board divider cabinet to the rescue! almost 8 Ft of wall to wall pantry cabinets - HELLO storage!) And ladies and gents, one AMAZING statement sink....gold.single.basin.apron-front.sink. Just let that sink in.
Not sharing images yet. I want to hold onto those for future posts and future lessons...because I know there will be more. After all, I am taking out a wall - I am praying to the construction deity that there are no surprises in the wall but there probably are. Plus, there are more decisions - TILE! - that I know I will have to balance my vision with my budget reality.
But, I am in this for the long haul and I know I will love what I end up with because I can only go up from my builder basic, golden oak (painted grey when I moved in) cabinets with faux green marble formica counters and a cheap sink.
So, some of you may decide to join me on this journey and I will do my best to post regular. probably not because, you know, life. I will absolutely promise to share the good, the bad, and the ugly through the process because I value that when I read up on someones renovation journey.
So, goodbye for now but keep a watch here and join me on this journey!
Shel
