Victorian remodel, kitchen of my dreams, sort of...

Home improvement specialties
by Home improvement specialties
I laugh when I watch the shows where they spend 60K remodeling the kitchens. Mine was a complete tear out, including taking down a bearing wall, and taking the floor to the joists, and my total spent was less than 20K. A lot of what I added to the kitchen came from Ebay, because I'm a junkie for a good deal, AND I was able to save substantial money and still have everything I wanted. Fixtures, faucets, sinks and cabinets, as well as my supplier for infloor radiant heating, and tile backsplash tiles...nothing retail :) Here's a few before and after shots...
cabinets going in...
Low voltage electric infloor heating under slate. The slate works better than tile because natural stone holds heat better and I love the look of it.
Since I home can veggies and fruits, I wanted a durable cooktop, so I chose an updated old style that I can set heavy pots on and not worry. The pot filler absolutely ROCKS! Love the tile - slate medallions below and glass tile above.
I chose to have just a few upper cabs because of the 'closed in' feel galley kitchens often have. There are two upper cabinets for storage, a plate rack and a wine rack. Heavy duty drawers hold what doesn't go in the plate rack.
almost finished!
I call this the 'baking area' - just countertop, nothing else!
I so love this copper sink and the bridge faucet was a screaming deal! Couldn't pass it by.
Putting Ready-to-assemble cabinets together is not for the faint of heart, but the money saved is so much, that it's worth all the agony and confusion! :) No particleboard in these cabs, all hardwood plywood and cheaper!
Before...it didn't look THAT bad to start with...SIGH!
got the range hood on clearance also and really love it, once we got it in its correct location, all was well!
This wall HAD to come down...Can you see the snafoo the former builders made? All I could say was YIKES! Where's my hardhat?? lol
Linoleum was never intended to be used as a backsplash...tsk tsk tsk...the former owners were over the top with stuff like this. It's a wonder the place didn't burn to the ground.
styro-tiles painted copper to match the copper accents throughout the kitchen.
I got the medallions for 10 bucks a piece 12x12. I was so excited and they are stunning!
assembly and install time :)
This is the old kitchen, off to the landfill. The former owner's pets absolutely destroyed everything with, you guessed it, urine and feces. It was a disgusting mess!
hardwood floors you say? they had to go, thanks to the pets who lived and pottied on them for twenty years.
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  • Jeanette S Jeanette S on Aug 08, 2012
    I appreciate it when I see a sensible redo! With home prices falling everywhere, I do not see how people can justify spending so much money on redos...most of which I see are not needed! I am just thankful that upon retirement, our house is paid for! It is certainly not the fanciest one in town, but it works for us. Just the upkeep runs us thousands every time something goes wrong! Gee!
  • OhSally OhSally on Jun 15, 2015
    I think some of those over the top redos must be paid for by the TV show cause there can't possibly be that many people willing or able to do $100_000 + remodels on just one room. I remember on one HGTV show a couple years ago this young family paid $35,000 for an inlaid design on their kitchen floor. That just makes me think they mudt be up to their eyeballs in debt trying to keep up with the Jones'. Guess I am cynical.
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