What Would You Do?
As you may have guessed, we have been dying to flip another house since the last one sold in November. Dying, I tell you!! We’ve been trying to be prudent, going over all of the costs associated with the last flip to see where we can increase our profit margin, scouting around for better financing options and, of course, trolling the city for ugly-with-potential houses. While we’ve been doing our due diligence a few incredibly tempting houses slipped away, which was a total bummer.
Anyhoo, we are now very close to having our ducks in a row and we’ve got our eyes on a few little gems. Here’s the kitchen from one of the front-runners:
Ick, right? That being said, this baby has a lot of potential – I mean, just look at the floor plan!
I think this kitchen has the potential to be a true entertainer’s kitchen – it’s right off the dining room, can be opened up to the den, has double ovens and a gas cooktop, a bar for seating and setting out food . . . all in all, great bones. And it makes my heart go pitter pat to think that we wouldn’t have to move any gas or plumbing lines!!
That being said, this is one ugly kitchen. There are a few options as to how to approach it:
1. Demo the whole thing and start from scratch with new cabinets, etc. Pros – cabinets would be much, much cuter, there would be more vertical storage, we could rework the existing storage, add a wine fridge. Cons – could be an unnecessary cost since the cabinets are in good shape and the layout is essentially staying the same.
2. Paint the existing cabinetry and just spruce everything up a bit with new countertops, appliances, etc. Maybe give the cabinets a similar treatment to what Kristin did? Pros – costs would definitely be lower. Cons – I know that we wouldn’t get the look that we want (like getting rid of the curved detailing on the doors), storage would not be maximized.
3. Mixture between 1 & 2 by refacing the doors. Pros – still not as expensive as new cabinets. Cons – still not as cheap as keeping the cabinet doors, and storage still isn’t maximized.
And once the choice is made between 1, 2 and 3, there’s the fun of deciding on the finishes!! I’ve been wanting to do a remodel with somewhat modern finishes, but I don’t think this is the house for that – the rest of the house (and if the kitchen cabinets stayed) is fairly traditional.
So here’s my question – what would you do with this kitchen? Which option would you pick, and how would you finish it out? Subway tile or glass tile, wood floors or tile, pendants or recessed lighting . . . there are so many things to think about!! I would love your input, I know you guys have great ideas – let the brainstorming begin!
I’ve seen a lot of flipped homes and I vote for #3. The possibility is still there to make is fabulous.
Interesting choices. #2 does sound like the most economical option, and Kristin’s result was fabulous!
I’ve got the bug to flip too, just lacking the funds. So I’m just going to live vicariously through you. I’d replace the flooring, reuse the cabinetry by sanding,priming,painting then adding modern hardware. You could DIY the cabinets, or hire someone. I’d go with oil based primer and paint for durability. I’d paint them a light cream or Nantucket Gray. Are you keeping the appliances? I’d invest most of the money in new countertops, granite, marble or even Corian or Quartz. Nice neutral backsplash and pow, modern kitchen ! How exciting ! I hope you get to flip this house !
Kate beat me to it! I was going to say preserve your profit margin by painting the cabinets white or gray, subway tile or beadboard splashback, new countertops in wood or granite (there are great economical and hardwearing composites around that are cheaper than solid) and replace the flooring. It would look fabulous. Good luck!
I think there’s plenty of storage in that kitchen, but I also really dislike the curved detail on the front of the cabinets. So I think I would reface them – but I’m also wondering, is there a way to fill the curved detail in the cabinets to a smooth surface? I know you can do this on a small scale to get rid of wood grain, but I’m wondering if it might also work with that inset detail.
I think I would paint the cabinets white. I am sure with a good paint job and new countertops you could get it looking amazing!
Tile to use on backsplash: http://img.diynetwork.com/DIY/2009/05/13/KB-2470183_BCKSPL_brown-subway_lg.jpg
I’d even go wtih the dark counter top and cream colored cabinets. There is a product out there that some other blogger used to fill in the detail of the cabinet doors (the curve) but you would have to ask someone probably at Lowes or Home Depot.
Oiled bronze handles and fixtures
Pendant lighting over island and recessed else where.
Island top I would maybe do in stainless if the appliances are stainless
Tile ( something that looks like stone in creams and shades of brown) or wood floor, depending on your preference
Oh, I knew you guys would have great ideas!! I’m glad everybody seems to be leaning towards keeping the cabinets and painting them – talk about a savings!! I like the idea of filling in the curved detail – I will definitely do some investigation. The appliances, flooring, hardware and countertops would all go – that’s enough “new”, don’t you think? Thanks for your help, keep these great ideas coming!!! :)
~ Liz
The designer in me says “gut it and start over!” The business gal/lawyer in me says to do whatever maximizes your return. After all, it won’t be YOU living there and ultimately whatever you choose to do will be a vast improvement over the existing kitchen!
I’d probably go with option 3 – getting new cabinet doors. Tile floor and back splash, and granite counter tops. Just because I think that’s what would appeal to most people. But if I were LIVING there, I’d totally want to gut it and start from scratch – and I’d do a turquoise blue glass backs plash, and maybe poured concrete counter tops, with white cabinets with frosted glass doors. And maybe wood floors. Because cost wouldn’t be an issue in my dream world! But whatever you decide to do, I’m sure will be FABULOUS!
I may be going out on a limb here, but I would probably at least try #2 – but I would try spackling that dated groove in the doors… who knows- could work! and save you a ton a dough.
Ditto Catherine and Kate, but I’d love to see a tumbled stone on the backsplash. If there’s a HOBO in your area, they always have great deals on marble and limestone. I think that once the cabinets are white / cream, the arch detail may actually provide some nice movement, particularly if combined with some oversized, traditional-leaning hardware, with the added benefit of less time and money. (Because as we know, when flipping, time IS money.) Good luck!
I sawa kitchen a couple of days ao where they got rid of the arch. I rtied looking for it but I can’t fnd it! They painted the cabinets white and it looked like they added a border around the edges of the doors (a raised piece that looked like part of the doors). It was really aazing how they got rid of the arch.
I have a very similar counter and kitchen situation. We gutted our kitchen when we moved in. We actually cut the bar off of the counter, and just put one big granite countertop all the way across. Because the kitchen (like the one in the photo) is in the middle of the house, it tended to be dark. The higher counter only added to that. Cutting the counter down brought a lot of light into the room. I can still serve food for a party in the same spot. Also, I have more workspace because the counter isn’t split. The other important thing it did was make it possible for my smll children to clear their plates after dinner, because they can reach. Also, I can see them playing in the living room because we cut the counter down.
Depending on the eturn on your investment (and we’ve flipped houses before too, so I know it’s not always worth more money), I would consider new cabinets (including drawers all the way across the bottom). We have drawers and I love them.
Also, that pantry (?) on the right seems really short and wasteful, space wise (otherwise there wouldn’t be food sitting on top is my guess). A taller pantry there would be nicer.
If you did new cabinets, you could do taller ones, maximixing the space to the ceiing.
Or, keep and paint the existing cabinets, but add a really nice edge to the top of the cabinets to make them taller and prettier.
I’d go with recessed lighting.
And, above our kitchen sink (which only had one recesssed light) we put in a ceiling fan (SO nice in the summer while washing dishes) with 4 lights, which also really brightened up the kitchen.
I would go with white cabinets. We have dark wood ones ourselves, with a light colored floor on the diagonal, and light colored granite. But, white would really brighten up the kitchen since it’s in the middle of the house. We did a solid granite backsplash to match our counters (easy to clean). You can email me if you want pictures to see what it’s like with a cut-down counter.