The kitchen cabinets for my brother's house have finally been ordered! The custom cabinets take 5 weeks until install, and there is a lot more to be done before they arrive. However, I am loving this progress, and the look of the new kitchen, desk, and eat-in bar area that we have designed.
First, we chose white cabinets in a Thermofoil finish. Thermofoil is a type of manufacturing where they wrap vinyl material over an MDF-type board. It lasts longer than regular laminate, and doesn't show seams like wood cabinets do over time, and the price point is also great. They have a long warranty, and are perfect for someone who needs low maintenance and easy cleaning options. You can read more pros and cons about Thermofoil cabinets here.
After pricing out Thermofoil cabinets at Home Depot, Lowes, and some local cabinet shops, we chose to go with a local cabinet shop who provided us the same kitchen at a lower price. What is nice about using them is that we will know the three guys who order, measure, and install the cabinets from start to finish, unlike the big chains, who have different departments for all aspects of the project. Also, if we have a problem in the future and under warranty, we can simply call them up and get them out to the house in the same day or week. It made the overwhelming experience just a little bit easier knowing that everything would be taken care of without the hassle.
In our designs, we chose a white cabinet, similar in pattern to the Martha Stewart line at Home Depot below:
This gives kind of a beachy feel, and will completely modernize the space. We have not yet chosen the counter tops yet, as those will be templated once the cabinets are installed, but are leaning towards a sandy granite top.
And without further ado, here is the new kitchen:
This is the kitchen if your back is to the fridge and stove. The window above the sink is existing, and we are keeping most of the cabinetry the same. A few minor changes:
-My brother really wanted a farmhouse sink, and I had the same thought! The white, clean lines would really make the space more interesting, since it is so small. We found a porcelain white sink at Ikea for $299! Usually, farmhouse or apron sinks are between $700-1200 at Home Depot and Lowes, so even the kitchen designers were impressed about a great looking sink at an even better price!
-We are adding a full sized dishwasher, which had to go in place of some cabinets to the right of the sink. The old one was a mini dishwasher, which sat to the left of the sink. We have replaced it with a drawer for the trash can, which also solves the issue of the dog getting into the garbage! Also, because we took out the half wall to the right of the sink, we had the ability to add a third upper cabinet for the storage lost with the larger dishwasher.
This is the same side if you turn 45 degrees to the right. We have taken the area to the right of the kitchen and made it into a more permanent desk and pantry area. Since my brother used to have a desk in front of this window anyway, I decided to carry the cabinets over to integrate it into the rest of the kitchen. The widow does sit lower, so we will simply drop the countertop down to desk height. I added a tall pantry and one set of upper cabinets in the corner, to maximize storage along this wall that was not being utilized before. Also, if you notice, the small bottom cabinets to the right of the desktop will be for files, and his computer can fit nicely into the corner nook or directly in front of the window.
If you turn around, the other side of the kitchen is the exact same as the before, since we had a fridge and large oven/stove to accommodate. The only difference is that I took out the wall to the left of the cabinets in order to extend the countertop to create a bar/eat-in kitchen. It also provides a view of some of the kitchen from the living room, which makes the entire space more inviting. We haven't figured the exact shape of the countertop extension yet, as I am not completely loving the roundedness of this mock-up. However, we don't have to worry about that until we template for the counters. It will accommodate 2-4 small bar stools, and will allow more people to be in the kitchen at the same time, which is ALWAYS where people congregate to during a party. It also provides additional counter space for food prep and small appliances.
And here is a view of the entire kitchen coming in from the garage:
It really is amazing what small changes can have a BIG impact in a tight space. Just a few more weeks and I can show you the real cabinets!
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