It’s no secret that we bought a house with some design challenges. We’ve been attacking each room with resourceful fervor in hopes of a grand finale dream kitchen. We’re talking new appliances, flooring, cabinets, countertops, backsplash, and lighting – the works!
Then I read this:
On average, a midrange (meaning not upscale) minor kitchen remodeling project costs $21,695, according to Remodeling Magazine. While expensive, it’s cheaper than the average major kitchen renovation, which runs $58,367 on average. ~smartmoney.com
Want to see my new $58,367 kitchen? I would too. But sadly, that will have to wait. How about my $21,695 kitchen? Ummm – not yet. BUT – I can show you my under $200 kitchen.
I hesitated doing anything in this room because often, if a room gets to “good enough” or “ok for now” then now becomes forever.
But I couldn’t take the yellow walls, taupe trim, sunflower/butterfly border, teal plastic chair rail, and (my biggest gripe of all) no knobs on the cabinets any longer.
So we set out to see what a little paint, cabinet hardware, some DIY and creative accessorizing can do for a kitchen, for under $200. First, the plan (be patient – oodles of before and after pics further down!)
Do you wish your man would spend more time in the kitchen with you (or instead of you)? Maybe it’s your kitchen design that’s keeping him on the sofa and out of the game.
In case you missed it, here are a few shots of the House Beautiful 2011 Kitchen of the Year, inspired and co-designed by chef Tyler Florence.
There are many unmistakable manly overtones, such as the darker colors, clean lines, large/chunky scale, and almost institutional feel. I could definitely picture my husband cooking (or at least helping out) in this kitchen!
Love the chalkboard wall, and check out those bar stools in the adjoining room.
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This year the 2011 House Beautiful Kitchen of the Year is venturing outside with a large outdoor cooking space.
Chef Tyler Florence worked in collaboration with Lori Yeomans of USA Interior Design to create House Beautiful’s Northern-Californian inspired kitchen, complete with manly undertones (can’t wait to see that illustrated!).
The big reveal takes place on Monday, July 18th atRockefeller Plaza,New York City. In the meantime, here’s some scoop to start you drooling: [click to continue…]
My mom always taught me that if you can’t cook well, at least present well. When initially touring our home I could not imagine this dining room accomplishing that need for me. I knew this room was going to take a lot of TLC!
But first, we had to annihilate the “builder’s grade” brass chandelier in our new dining room (along with less-than-attractive wall paper and cheesy plastic chair rail).
Before
Time to get busy. Here’s what we did:
Meet Laura. She has lived in her 1966 New England colonial EXACTLY 10 years and 2 days. She wanted to celebrate with a new kitchen in time for the holidays. But…she didn’t want to spend over $500 to do it.
So she turned the creative readers of YHOB to get some ideas on how to proceed. And quite frankly, you blew her away! Click here to see her before pics and your amazing ideas!
She was so energized by your innovative suggestions that she jumped right in! Plus, it helped that she felt accountable to all you for your thoughtful ideas! She just HAD to come through! 
Before
Here are her “before” pics (keep reading to get to the “after” pics):
The Plan
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