The kitchen remodel at the flip house probably has the most dramatic change compared to the rest of the house. Remember what it looked like before?
It had nothing going for it. Popcorn ceilings, dropped soffit, a HUGE hood smack in the middle of the room, and dated cabinetry. But not any more!
It’s now modern, functional and beautiful. I just love how it turned out. By taking out the window to the old patio, the kitchen gained more counter and cabinet space.
I’m going to dive right into the details, because that’s what everyone eventually wants to know. The countertops are Quartz, in Cashmere Carrera made by MSI It took two slabs to do the kitchen, and I purchased the quartz locally from European Tile Art in San Diego.
Oh how I love that sink! I love love love it. It’s a Kohler white iron tones 33″ double basin cast iron sink
You can wash big pots and pans and trays yet you still have a divide for washing dishes. The faucet is also by Kohler
I put an air switch for the garbage disposal. You can see it next to the dishwasher air gap on the counter, that flat round button. The backsplash is a 2″ x 8″ glass tile from European Tile art. It has kind of a grey green color to it
To give the cooktop area a little pizzaz we laid the tile in a herringbone pattern. It keeps the look clean yet adds some interest to the tall space
Did you notice that there aren’t any outlets in the backsplash? When I do a kitchen remodel, and there is an electrician coming in, I ALWAYS have them move the plugs under the upper cabinets. I hate breaking up beautiful tile with a bunch of ugly plugs
The only outlet I have in the tile is for the light over the sink. And since we are “plugged” in now-a-days, and those devices are always in need of charging, I added a USB outlet/plug combo next to the light switch.
The cabinets all came from Lowes. It was my first time using Lowes and I wouldn’t hesitate to use them again. Their cabinets are quality and well made. I used the Diamond Prelude series in the Neslon Maple Square style.
I try to use all drawers on the bottom cabinets when I design a kitchen. Pulling out a drawer is much easy to see the contents versus a cabinet door where you have to bend down to get to the stuff in the back. The two lower corner cabinets have a built in lazy susan to maximize what is usually dead space.
The small cabinet next to the oven has a spice rack pull out
I used darker cabinets with a different door style for the island. I wanted the island to look more like a piece of furniture. I stayed in the Diamond Prelude series, but I used the Lamar Cherry color in the Lamar Cherry square style to change it up.
The honed marble countertop was a remnant which saves money over buying a whole slab. I love the movement it has, and it is just enough of a contrast to the Quartz countertops but not out of place
The pendant lights are from Crate and Barrel, and I thought they might be too large for the island, but they work perfectly.
All the appliances are Bosch. The microwave drawer in the island is my favorite!
It has a push button to open and close the drawer, so fancy
A recycling pull out cabinet is next to the microwave
The floors are porcelain that look like wood planks. I used them throughout the house and I love the way they look like real wood, yet are way more durable than wood. I purchased them from European Tile Art in San Diego.
I like to go big with cabinet door hardware. But going big also means a bigger price tag for each one. It took me a while to find something I like within my budget, but I finally found these 9″ thin polished chrome pulls from Pottery Barn on sale.
I use the same size on uppers and lowers. I like the uniformity it gives the kitchen. Plus they make it way easier to open and close the cabinets
The light fixture over the kitchen nook area is from Ballard Designs. I needed something that was simple but stylish.
When you stand in certain areas of the house, you can see all three hanging light fixtures at one time. I wanted them to be different but not feel disconnected. The dining room chandelier is the anchor. It brings in the shine from the pendants, with all the crystals, and then the iron from the kitchen nook pendant.
This kitchen remodel transformation is exactly how I envisioned it when I first saw the house. Even though we ran into a little road bump with the glass tile backsplash, it was all worth it in the end. I couldn’t be any more happier with the way it turned out. I think I gave all the sources for the kitchen, but if I missed something, let me know in the comments, or email me.
Your kitchen is stunning! We are finishing up a renovation as well and I wish I thought of some of your ideas before I did mine! I did use mostly pulls on my doors and drawers though. Definitely a change from what I had before. I enjoyed your tour – Just gorgeous!
Shelley
wow! oh wow!
Thanks for explaining why you make the choices you make–like drawers for lowers instead of cabinets. so smart! I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again–you should have your OWN HGTV show!
I’m currently watching flip or flop-they have nothing on you my friend!
are you done? or are you looking for another house to flip?
gail
Oh you are so sweet Gail! I’m not camera material lol too old.
Stunning! I love how modern the kitchen looks like now – plus those cabinets look like they hold a lot. Great job!
Hi,
Just wondering lowes vs ikea cabinets? Value, durability etc… we are trying to decide between the two.
I would use Lowe’s cabinets hands down over Ikea if the budget allowed. It takes a lot of time, effort and elbow grease when you purchase Ikea cabinets. The quality is good for the price, and they are very durable once installed. They are a great value for the price. With Lowe’s cabinets you are going to pay a couple of thousand dollars more, but they come already assembled, you have more choices in your layout, and the quality is 100% nicer than Ikea. I have done 2 Ikea kitchens, and 3 Lowes kitchens, and hands down, Lowes is my first choice.
I also had this question, thank you for explaining. Do you know roughly how much a similar remodel would cost? & are these cabinets taller than standard ?
Jessica, they run about 40% more I’d say…but honestly, the hassle and time it takes to put Ikea cabinets together it is SO worth it. Plus you have more options for funky areas. The cabinets are I believe the 39″ tall…Ikea and other makers usually have short and tall cabinets depending on the height of your kitchen and the look you are going for.
Are these the stock Lowe’s cabinets, or what series? I used Ikea in my last flip. My contractor had used them many times before so his guys were familiar with assembly. They turned out great. However, this time I want to do a simple white shaker. Any style names/numbers would be helpful. Georgeous kitchen!!!
Thank you! They are the Diamond series.
It’s beautiful! Thanks so much for sharing. I am curious how costly and how difficult it was for you to move the gas range to the wall?
Thank you Kim, the cost to move the gas was included in the total plumbing job quote.
HI. The kitchen turned out beautiful! I am using it as my inspiration to do my own kitchen.
Could you please tell me what type (and the name ) of countertop that you used on the island.
Thanks.
Thank you, that is a huge compliment. The I used a quartzite for the island called Taj Mahal Quartzite and then had it honed.
How do you get away with no outlets in the backsplash? I’m starting a kitchen remodel and would love to have the continuity of tile like you do! Does the building code allow for this? What product do you use for the outlet strip?
I had the electrician put the plugs underneath the upper cabinets. He uses a plug strip, which is hard wired just like a regular plug. I recently did this in the last kitchen remodel, and I showed a picture of it in the post. What is nice about doing it this way, is that you actually get more outlets to use, and yet you don’t see them in the backsplash. According to my electrician, it does meet code in our area.
Hi Stephanie, I was looking at your Ikea kitchen and I loved it. I also love what you did here too although the sizing of the other kitchen is closer to what I have so it inspired me! What cabinetry did you prefer Lowe’s or Ikea’s. I like that Ikea has reasonable prices and all the organizers, but I hadn’t considered Lowe’s until I saw your post.
Hi Dianne, honestly it is hard to compare the two kitchen cabinets. Ikea is AWESOME for budget friendly remodels. BUT! Oh my gosh, it is time consuming and tedious. I would only do another Ikea kitchen if it was really, really necessary for the budget. Once they are installed, they are phenomenal. But getting to the finish line is a hair pulling adventure. Again, worth it in the end, if you haven’t pulled all your hair out lol. The Lowes cabinets, are about double the price, but with WAY less headache. They come already put together, which is HUGE. Putting the Ikea cabinets together is like doing a massive jigsaw puzzle. The Lowe’s cabinet quality is of course better, because you are paying more, but that doesn’t mean Ikea is bad quality. The Lowe’s cabinets just feel more beefy. So I guess my answer would be that if you can I would go with Lowes, but if your budget is tight, by all means go with Ikea, just have a patience and give yourself A LOT of time.
Stephanie, thank you so much for your detailed response! I didn’t realize that Lowes would be that much more expensive. Budget is definitely a factor. My husband and I have bartered, I will use lower cost cabinetry so that I can have stone countertops. Good for the heads up that Ikea’s cabinets are tedious to put together. I will make my 2 college aged kids earn their rent! I have neither store in the city where I live, so really it would be quite difficult for me to transport them already put together. Your work is beautiful, thanks for posting!
I love these cabinets and thinking about getting them but the Lowes worker said that Kraftmaid is better.
How have your cabinets held up? How is the quality? is it east to keep clean?
Thank you!!
Hi Ashlee, I recently did a renovation using Krafmaid cabinets, and honestly I didn’t see a huge difference. I knew the potential buyers would recognize the Kraftmaid name, so that is the reason I went with Kraftmaid. And I was right. The nice thing about Kraftmaid is that they offer more options, which comes in handy if you have odd areas, or want fancy inserts, but if it is a basic kitchen, I would go with the Diamond to save some money.