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[Mominohio]

I have the kitchen from he((!

The house was built in 1973, and everything in the kitchen (except the floor which is wood) is original. And not only original but the people who lived here before us were not kind to it. 

The cabinets are a darker wood, and the bottom cabinets are very marked up, worn and abused (by the previous owners). The upper cabinets are in better shape, and I'd be happy if the bottom looked as good as the top. 

All the drawers are plastic, the whole thing, including the fronts. Many of the guides have broken and some are wired up with coat hangers inside, or simply balanced on a nail instead of the inserts along the sides. They are one hot mess. because of those plastic drawers, painting has never been an option for the cabinets, as I know it would scratch off those drawer fronts in no time.

The counter tops are old white with gold swirl formica (I guess), with big seams in the corners. And the lighting is so dated and ugly as well.

Since we moved in, we did paper the kitchen (which is now dated after 21 years), put in a new window over the sink, and new faucets and new white appliances. 

The whole thing needs gutted including the floor. It isn't something that I want to finance (at least not all of it, maybe I'd feel ok financing half) and I have no money put back to commit to it. 

I could just get physically ill when I watch these HGTV shows and see them destroying kitchens that are a million times more up to date an prettier than mine. 

[Mominohio]

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@RespectLife wrote:

@KateE

I'm shocked that you said that refacing is almost the same as new cabinets.

We remodeled in 2011.

We had 2 estimates for totally new cabinets (rip out existing and install new wood cabinets), exact same layout, installed. Lowest was $45,000 that is for cabinets and installation only.

I refaced my Honey Oak cabinets with fantastic real wood, not MDF or laminate (meaning they gave me all new wood doors and refaced the existing cabinet frame to match) added 6 recessed lights, and had them change two sets of open door cabinets to drawers all for under $12,000

It took 2 days to complete everything including the lighting, and they came back only once to complete some finishing details I wanted done.

We used the same layout...just changed some cabinets to drawers but that required them reframing with additional labor costs.  I wanted to change to layout and get an island but the kitchen size couldn't support it.

We purchased our own new handles but they installed them for us at N/C.

I already had replaced laminate counters to granite, didn't need a new backsplash or floor.  I had already installed a new granite double sink when we replaced the laminate counters with granite prior. We also replaced two old oak lighting fixtures ourselves.  The costs of these are not included in the above cost since they were done prior.

IMHO....don't use laminate counters if possible.  It can diminish the value of your kitchen.  Solid surfaces and granite are what all buyers will want.  Even if you don't plan on moving...someday this home will be for sale.  It is a fabulous investment and worth every penny.

BEFORE:

AFTER

You would never know these were refaced!!  In this pic you can see the flouresent light is gone and the new recessed lighting that was added.

If you look to the left of the stove you can see where we turned the cabinet into drawers.  **They look more modern BUT IMHO those drawers don't hold near the amount of pots and pans as the cabinets did!  I had to ditch a lot.  Probably a good thing.

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@RespectLife

Your kitchen is laid out almost exactly as mine is right down to window, appliance and dining area placement.

While I know your oak was dated, both of your pictures are just beautiful. I think I'd break down and cry if I could wake up some morning to a kitchen like either one of your pictures.

When we first moved here 21 years ago, I looked into having the cabinets resurfaced in oak similar to your first picture, and the cost was maybe $6000. We just had too much to do with buying the house so we waited maybe 5 years, and called them again. The price had doubled, so we just dropped it and moved on to a new septic, new roof, new exterior doors, new windows......etc. as they seemed more pressing and we could do things a little at a time every year. 

Seeing your transformation and hearing the cost, I may look into resurfacing again. I just don't know what they can do with these plastic drawers and all the plastic that holds them up.

[violann]

My VERY current WDILs say that my honey oak cabinets, which are in "as new" shape, will pop if I replace the polished brass hardware with brushed aluminum. 

I plan to buy a practice set to see how it looks, but the current hardware sure doesn't fit MY style right now.

So happy to read what the rest of you are thinking!

[RespectLife]

@Mominohio

Thank you!  We are really happy with the way it came out and even happier to have saved an incredible amount compared to tearing it all out and putting in new.

I can imagine how the prices have changed just since we remodeled in 2011.

We were lucky enough to have a contractor who could do the extra work (reframing for pot drawers instead of the cabinets).  They also stained the microwave ledge and kitchen window moldings to match the new color of the cabinets. 

They could do it all including replacing the drawer frames and slides if we needed it.

Hopefully, you can find a good contractor that can do all you need.

We previously had gotten prices from 3 electricians to put in the ceiling lights.  This company was 1/2 on the lighting costs too.

If by any chance you live in western New York, I could highly recommend them!

By the way...we are moving!  LOL  Downsizing to a ranch.  We will be building new starting this Fall.  I will be getting that giant island of my dreams, double wall ovens etc.

We are hoping the kitchen transformation on this house will return a good dollar on the sale!

My sis was a realtor and always said an updated kitchen will be well worth it.

[homedecor1]

Here in FL the estimates were wide range of prices -- in fact, some of them were ridiculous and finding a licensed/bonded trustworthy contractor was a real challenge.  I purchased this home 4 years ago.

 I think it has never been updated and its track housing at its worse! In fact, just had all my windows replaced -- they had to break the glass just to get to the frames to get them out, installed so poorly! Anyway,

I had decided the original cabinets were "cheap particle board faced with laminate" track housing junk. My thought was this new kitchen needed to be my final one! I decided to purchase full wood, self closing, dove tail constructed cabinets by Kraft Maid.

I chose the thicker level granite with a beveled edge. I also chose to upgrade all the plumbing and electrical in the kitchen area.

I opted to forego updating appliances(I got them new 3 yrs ago) and updated flooring & lighting at that time. We are currently shopping for estimates as I want the hardwood looking porcelain tile and recessed lighting.

I was pretty shocked the price of our kitchen for the size, then again, I got what I wanted and am pleased.  Now excited to do the finishing touches - new table next!!!

 Before and

after

[vermint]

We re-did our kitchen in 2013...we got estimates for refacing, but new cabinets weren't all that much more expensive, so we went for it. I ended with way better cabinets than I had, so it was worth it! Cabinets, hardware, granite countertops with ogee edge, new double stainless sink, new faucet, small island, tile backsplash, all new lighting cost about $13,000. We removed the wall between the kitchen and dining room, but did nearly all of that work ourselves. We didn't buy new appliances at the time, and the flooring didn't need to be replaced (we have hardwood in kitchen, dining room and hall) so all that was a savings. I chose to do the backsplash in just one type of tile, no accent tiles, so that helped a bit, too...I have a LOT of backsplash!

It was all worth every penny and the stress--which wasn't really too bad. I love my kitchen and don't mind spending time in there anymore.

[151949]

My friend who lives inn SC bought a home with pink cabinets - she had them professionally painted for $600 - she has quite a few cabinets. However, her DH & son took the cabinets down and delivered them to the guy then put them back up after they were done, so them doing all the difficult work probably saved them a ton. Her new color is ivory, and she replaced her counters with a light tan granite, and she already had that color they used to call bisque for her appliances, and she has light tan bamboo floors.Her son also installed a glass tile blacksplash in brown tones that are darker than any other part of the room to create a contrast - all in all it is lovely.

[KateE]

Thank you for the input as it gives me much to think about. 

[queendiva]

After reading the replies and seeing all the gorgeous Before and Afters, I am so glad I did my kitchen when I did. I had downsized, so there was a budget for the kitchen and it was limited. Cannot believe the prices to have the work done today! I had pretty much exhausted the budget (meager by 2016 standards) and was going to pass on the back splash (previous back splash was mirrored!!) Lucked out at a garage sale where I found two boxes of the perfect tumbled marble tiles for a dollar or two and got even luckier by going to a large tile showroom and finding the third box which I needed to complete the new backsplash! Pays to be creative (and lucky) when you are pinching every penny on a kitchen reno.

[151949]

I think in the arena odf remodeling a kitchen it is very important to be careful , no matter how much you like the trendy items, to avoid using them too much. Those trends will fade away very quickly and I always think a kitchen remodel should last at least 20 years. For this reason , when we bought our new home in 2010 I was careful to stay with all classic styles and very neutral. I'm 67 years old and I hope to never need to remodel a kitchen ever again, except perhaps new countertops, as mine are formica and I know they will wear out eventually.