HGTV KitchenDesign Blog: The Kitchen Chronicles

What we learned

We learned a ton in the process of remodeling this kitchen. It was a complete tear-down, removing two walls and taking everything down to the studs. Here are some tips to share:

• For an extensive kitchen remodel that will take months, budget extra for eating out often.

• At a certain point, because we had no kitchen, dining room and eating area, there was less to do in the house. We had extra time on our hands. Enjoy it. Take advantage of it to do things you don’t normally do.

• Do go with paper plates, bowls and cups. We try to be green so we washed dishes in the bathroom sink for two months, then finally gave into convenience. Good grief, what took us so long!

]]> • Removing walls is not a small thing. It can be done, but it is expensive, and takes a lot of time.

• For couples, manage the remodel together. Don't delegate the whole thing to one.

• Plan for at least a 10 percent cost overrun. This will cover unexpected problems that inevitably crop up. For us the electrical work cost quite a bit more than expected.

• Fall is the perfect time to do a remodel. You can leave the windows open, and don't have to run the heat or AC as much. Running the heat or AC has a way of spreading dust to parts of the house that aren't being remodeled.

• In retrospect, our island is too big. We like it a lot, but if we could do it all over again, we would make it a bit smaller and leave more room around the stove, sink and fridge.

• For an extensive remodel, do work with a designer or architect to get your plan worked out. This will cost more but will be worth it in the long run.

• Living in your home during a big kitchen remodel is a bit like camping. If you don't like camping, it might be best to move out.

• It is critical to have good daily communication with your contractors and designer. If communication breaks down, you will have problems.

• It will take longer than you expect. Count on it.

• We love the floor to ceiling cabinets. We like the look and the extra storage. The top shelf is hard to reach-- but great for things you don’t use often.

• We would not do the pop-up vent for the stove again. It doesn't pull enough air. We're having it looked at to see if anything can be done to give it more suction. But in hindsight, I wish we had gone with a ceiling hood that had more power.

• We love the stainless steel countertop on the island. But it does scratch fairly easily. It will end up taking on a patina of its own, which is fine. But initially we thought it would be bullet proof.

The kitchen is finished! Final photos

Yes it is true. Our kitchen is finally finished! It was a long and challenging journey, but worth all the time, money, and disruption. We are very much enjoying the new open floorplan, and spending more time in the kitchen. The kids do homework on the island. I like to set up my laptop on the bar. When I need to work in the evening I can still be in the room where the action takes place. And we're cooking more. Thanks to all of you for your thoughts, support and the sense of camaraderie you have brought to this blog. It has been really fun connecting with people who are in the middle of, or planning, a kitchen remodel.

Here's one photo. For more pictures of our kitchen visit the new Rate My Space section of HGTV.com. When you get there be sure to look in the right column for additional photos.

Cabinets part 3: contrast is cool

We decided to use two colors with our cabinets. The cabinets against the walls are an off-white and the cabinets for the island are dark brown. We liked the contrast this brings to the kitchen. And we really like how the light oak floor looks against the dark island.

One thing we learned in the process of remodeling this kitchen is that contrast is good. If you pick light floors, light cabinets and light countertops, the kitchen will look fairly monotone with everything blending together. The same thing happens when you choose all dark colors. Of course much of this falls to personal taste. But we like the contrast we got with light wood floors, and the dark cabinets. Then against the walls we have the lighter cabinets contrasting with dark granite countertops, and a dark backsplash .

Innovative Drawers

Cabinet makers have gotten so much smarter when it comes to drawers. We chose two options from KraftMaid that we really like. One is the big, open, pull out drawers in the pantry. Great for storing cereal, crackers, cans, etc. It is convenient to be able to pull the drawer out, instead of reaching all the way to the back to find things. See the photo below. Second is the large drawers in the island that we use for storing pots and pans (bottom photo). Very handy.

One thing to be careful of. We overloaded the top drawer in the pantry with about 40 pounds of cans. The drawer actually broke loose and crashed down on the next drawer. Our carpenter came back and repaired it. He told us to keep the heavier stuff in the back. Anyone else have issues with this kind of drawer?

These are the drawers on the island.

Drawer Pulls and Cabinet Knobs

With most cabinets now, you get your choice of pulls (we call them drawer pulls or cabinet knobs). This can be an area where you get overwhelmed by choice. There are literally thousands of pulls to choose from now. Everything from colorful glass pulls to handles that look like twigs. We love all the artistic, cool pulls on the market. You can use them as an inexpensive way to dress up a tired kitchen. We did that in our first house.

That said, Gretchen did a smart thing when thinking about pulls for our new kitchen. She wanted to keep it simple, and avoid having the pulls stand out too much. So we went with simply, small, pewter pulls from Home Depot. Here's what they look like-- on the lighter cabinets, and on the darker island. At first I wondered about them being too small. But that hasn't been a problem at all. What kind of pulls do you like?

Open dishrack

We've admired open dishracks for some time. So for this kitchen remodel we chose to have our plates open to the world, rather than hidden behind closed doors. As I've mentioned we like the notion of using everyday objects as art. In this case the Polish Pottery that Gretchen has collected is quite beatiful, and we use it for everyday eating.

We put the dishrack directly above the dishwasher, and in between the sink and the microwave. It is very handy. The other nice thing about this design is it breaks up the monotony of solid faced cabinets throughout the kitchen. It adds some visual interest. This dishrack unit comes from KraftMaid, the same company that made the rest of our cabinets. I should note that Gretchen is very happy with this open dish arrangement because it is somewhat country. You'll recall that I've been steering things toward a more contemporary look. But I too like the open dishes.

Cabinets part 2: glass inserts

For some of our upper cabinets we decided to go with glass fronts. We didn't want glass in all the upper cabinets, but basically in every other set. We wanted to showcase some of our cooler looking dishware with glass doors, and put our less interesting stuff into the cabinets with solid doors.

We're fans of the concept that everyday items can be art. In other words, dishes and glasses and bowls are a form of art. They don't have to be super fancy, just something you like to look at. Gretchen has been collecting Polish Pottery for several years. These dishes and bowls have made their way into our everyday use. You'll see some in the photo below.

When choosing glass for the the cabinet doors, we discovered there are dozens of styles. Everything from simple clear glass, to glass with ridges, etchings, coloring and more. We choose a style from Kraftmaid called Antiquity. It has small bubbles in it that gives the glass a textured look.

We had "puck" lights (so called because they're the size of a hockey puck) installed in the top of these cabinets. This give the cabinets a nice warm glow, and showcases my wife's beloved Polish Pottery.

Glass cabinet inserts. Somehow the camera flash accentuates the bubbles in the glass
and makes them look much more prominent in this photo.

The lighting plan

We like a lot of light-- both in the form of natural light and a good lighting plan. With the new kitchen we installed a slew of can lights, and then three hanging pendant lights over the island bartop, and one pendant over the sink. The pendants came from the George Kovacs Lighting collection. We purchased them from Stokes Lighting in Knoxville.

We also installed small "puck" lights (they are about the shape of a hockey puck) underneath the cabinets, so the countertops will have a nice amount of light shining on them. These are halogen lights.

With all the lights turned on the place is lit up like Las Vegas. The nice thing is, we don't have to turn on all the lights at once. We can use different lights for different tasks. Or turn on just a few lights for a more romatic atmosphere.

Pendants over the island bartop. To the left you can see the can lights and the pendant over the sink.

Another view where you can see more of the can lights.

These are the undercounter "puck" lights.

Backsplash and countertop

We chose granite countertops for the area that surrounds the kitchen sink and refrigerator. It is called Mahogany Blue Eyes and we purchased it from Home Depot. It is a mottled cocoa brown, with flecks of iridescent blue.

All the countertops we have had in the past have been your basic laminate variety. So we're excited to work with granite. It is beautiful and, well, hard as a rock. You have to be a little careful when setting breakable items on it.

One of the pluses with granite is you can set hot pots and pans on it. Gretchen claims you can also cut on it. I'm not so sure about that one. I think you can, but in the process you can also harm the finish.

What is your experience with granite? Any tips on living with it, caring for it, etc.?

The backsplash tiles are square with a pewter look. The tiles are made from a resin rather than ceramic, which makes it lighter. In the right light, it has a little metallic glint to it which picks up on the stainless steel island countertop, the fridge and the sink. The backsplash also has bronze colored rods inserted at the bottom (where it meets the granite) and a few rows up. This is a decorative touch that creates a border between the backsplash and the granite, and adds visual interest in the form of a horizontal line.

Cabinet choices

Well it has been a few weeks since I posted an update. The holiday season and year-end projects at work have filled up my days and nights. And then there is this little kitchen remodel...

]]> Much has happened in the past month. The kitchen is essentially done now — in time for us to move back in and enjoy it for Christmas. We have one more detail to finish, which I'll get into later. But before I show you completed pictures of the kitchen, I'll take you through the details of the past few weeks. First up, the cabinets.

We choose the Kraftmaid brand and bought them from Home Depot. Cabinets are the most expensive part of kitchen remodel. You can go very high end and have custom cabinets made or you can order them from a wide variety of manufacturers. Kraftmaid is not the highest priced, nor is it the lowest. We liked the variety of styles they offered, and we heard good things about their quality.

For us, having high-end custom cabinetry was not a priority. We wanted something that looked nice but didn't break the bank. In fact all the cabinetry we've had in the past has been the most basic, generic stuff possible. And by the time we moved into our previous homes the cabinetry was already fairly old and beat up. So new cabinets are a huge step up for us.

There is an inexpensive way to make your existing cabinetry look better: Buy new doors. This gives the kitchen a fresh new look without spending a lot of money.

When buying new cabinets it is particularly important to get your measurements right. The Home Depot, Lowe's and any cabinetry store are a great help on this front. Our designer, Angelique, measured the space and spent several hours with Linda at The Home Depot. Then we sat down with Linda and carefully confirmed the cabinetry sizes and placement. She put everything into a computer program for the order, and gave us copies. Linda was quite awesome and made this process easy.

The style we chose was maple with a frost glaze. It is a square door with two recessed panels. The doors are solid maple, and the inset panels are maple veneer.

What are your preferences with cabinets? And do any of you have tips on smart ways to buy cabinets, or things to avoid?

Here are two shots of the new cabinets.

The kitchen sink (and faucet)

The kitchen sink and faucet were installed this week. We chose an Elkay undermount sink. I'm loving the clean look the undermount provides (instead of the sink lip resting on top of the counter), and how easy this makes cleaning — you simply wipe crumbs into the sink.

]]> Gretchen felt strongly that a big sink with no divide in the middle was the way to go. This would make cleaning large pots and pans much easier.

The faucet is from Hansgrohe. It swivels easily and the head pulls out (at least 18 inches) so you can reach anything in the sink. How did we live without this feature? We've been using the new sink and faucet this week and loving both. The openness of the sink makes it convenient to wash multiple pots and pans at the same time. And the single handle on the faucet makes it easy to multitask.

Here's the new sink and faucet below. What kind of sink and faucet do you like? Does anyone have experience with a big open sink like this?

Choosing a refrigerator

All the appliances were installed this week. Very exciting in that we can start using parts of the kitchen, although we really can't move back in until everything is finished.

We put a fair amount of thought into buying a new refrigerator. After several store visits, here's where we landed: We like the sleek, clean look of stainless steel. I'm reading at work that sales of stainless appliances are cooling off — bronze and other colors are the new trends. We're okay with that. We've always had white refrigerators, so stainless feels quite contemporary. And we like the new French door approach with the freezer on the bottom.

]]> Putting the freezer below means the cold air doesn't spill out every time you open the door. And the French door approach for the fridge means you have very wide shelves (as opposed to a side-by-side where the freezer takes up some of the width). Fitting in big casserole dishes or pizza boxes becomes easy.

Gretchen didn't love the models that have water and ice on the outside. They were hard to keep clean and we felt the added expense of this feature wasn't worthwhile given how little we would use it. Plus we started noticing that exterior water/ice dispensers eat up a fair amount of room on the inside of the fridge. Strike three. We chose an LG French Door. Gretchen particularly liked the wide deli tray in this model.

We also installed an under-counter wine fridge from U-Line. Since ours is surrounded on all sides, we needed a model that vented to the front. Below you'll see how both look installed.

What are your preferences in refrigerators? And what do you think about the French door approach with the bottom freezers?

My garage: getting comfortable with mess

The garage is a special place for me. I like most everything in it. Cars, bikes, tools, sports equipment, beach chairs and many other toys for adults and kids. We have a two-car garage. But it is the classic two-car garage of the 1970s. You can fit two cars into this garage, but there is not a lot of room for much else. Unless it is well organized.

]]> So I work to keep our garage neat and orderly. We have garden tools hanging on the wall. Cabinets in the back for storage. A pegboard for smaller tools. Fishing rods hang from the ceiling. When the garage gets dirty I sweep it clean. I get a little Zen thing going when I sweep. My wife has the audacity in the fall to leave the garage doors open, allowing leaves to blow in. This makes me mad. She actually thinks it is funny that I get angry over this.

I even like being in the garage, particularly on a weekend afternoon, with a football game on the radio. Perhaps this makes me sound old. But I felt this way in my 20s too.

This is why you need to see the photo below of my garage during the remodel. It is the staging area, the place for storing equipment and appliances, and the place where the guys do sawing and sanding when the weather is bad. It is quite a mess right now.

Not happy

On Friday the plan was to put down the last coat of polyurethane on the hardwood floors. You'll remember that I'm very particular about the floors and want them to look bright and shiny. So Aaron agreed to do a final coat after the heavy duty work was finished.

]]> So we moved out one last time (we thought) to avoid the polyurethane fumes. We decided to make a fun night of it, staying at a hotel with an indoor pool. We ordered food, watched TV, swam in the pool and ate breakfast out. We were all excited because, with the floors finished, we could begin moving furniture back into the living room and dining room. Life could begin returning to normal.

When we returned home around 11:00 a.m. today (Saturday), major disappointment. The floor team had not made it to our house at all. We were furious. The whole night out had been unnecessary.

Gretchen called Aaron and he too was upset. The last he had heard on Friday, the floor crew was running late, but still planned to arrive around 5:30 p.m. He had no idea why they didn't show, and started making calls. To make it up to us, he's going to cover the cost of our night out. I gotta tell you, he is a stand up guy on all fronts.

Throughout this remodel I've stayed cool whenever issues popped up. This time, not so much.

Choosing a smooth cooktop

Choosing the new cooktop was one decision that was easy for us. We've lived in homes with electric coils, gas burners, an electric smoothtop and most recently, solid "Euro-style" electric burners. Gas was great, but we were surprised with how much we liked the smoothtop.

]]> Officially, these are called ceramic glass cooktops. They heat up quickly, cool down quickly and are super easy to clean. Plus, from an aesthetic standpoint, the smoothtop makes for a really clean design.

We chose a GE Profile 36" Built In. One of the neat features on this cooktop is the "bridge element." It combines three heating elements into one large cooking area, great for oversized pans, griddles, etc. We also liked that this cooktop didn't have a frame around the edge. Sometimes a metal edge provides an easy place for crumbs and grease to hide.

What do you think about smooth cooktops? Or tell me what your favorite cooking surface is, and why.

The cooktop was installed this week. We hope to use it soon!