Kitchen Renovation Part 2

Last week I posted Part One of Our Kitchen Renovation in case you need some tips for the planning stage.

Step 5:  Demolition

If you have ever done any construction work in your house, you know it has to get worse before it gets better!  I reminded myself of this over and over again. Construction is always disorganized and dusty.  I prepared myself mentally for the inevitable.  I knew the end result would be great!

This is what our kitchen looked like on January 2. 
The whole kitchen area is actually an "L" shape, but we only renovated the long galley section.  The other smaller space has an island and several large antique cupboards that we use to store dishes and small appliances.

Through a facebook post I found a friend who was looking for used kitchen cabinets to build a laundry room/craft center in his basement.  I was thrilled to know that our cupboards would not be filling up a landfill somewhere.  I can't wait to see my old kitchen re-purposed in his house!  We donated our old refrigerator and stove to landlord friends. We didn't need a dumpster and had very little construction waste!                                                                   

In just a few hours our kitchen space looked like this!  

We found some cool grocery store receipts from the early 1920s behind the original old wall cupboards!  Apples, 7 cents!!

Meanwhile, my living room and dining room were turned into a construction zone (aka, disaster area).  To save money we bought Ikea cabinets.  They delivered them to our house for a small fee.  I put them all together using a cordless screwdriver and a small hammer.  We spent just over $4,000 for all the cabinets.  That's an amazing price. If you're considering a new kitchen or bathroom, check out Ikea cabinets!

This is what the interiors of the cabinets look like.  The hardware is ingenious.  I love the "soft close" feature on all the doors and drawers.

We "camped" in the basement for almost a month using a hotplate, microwave, and toaster oven.  Several dear friends cooked meals for us.  We tried a new restaurant in our town and we liked it so much, we went back 4 times!!

Be patient and remember...

It has to get worse before it gets better!