I know I’ve already moved on to my Dad’s kitchen makeover, but I wanted to make sure to wrap up our kitchen with a cost breakdown along with all of our sources.

Sources:

Cabinets: Ikea (Uppers – ADEL Off-White, Lowers – RAMSJÖ Black-Brown) | Counters: Home Depot (Corian – Rain Cloud) | Floor Tile: Lowes Epoxy Grout: Lowes| Backsplash Tile: Home Depot Fusion Grout: Home Depot |Appliances: Frigidaire Gallery from Lowes (Refrigerator, Range, Microwave) | Dishwasher: Ikea | Sink: Kraus from FaucetDirect | Faucet: Kraus from FaucetDirect | Cabinet Hardware: Lowes | Paint: Sherwin Williams 'Pediment' (Mixed at 50%) | Lights: LED –LED Lighting Wholesale, Pendants over counter – Etsy, Pendant over sink – Lowes | Bamboo Shades: Home Depot | Counter Stools: Target | Kitchen Rug: eBay

I haven’t included accessories, but most are from Target, Home Goods, and World Market. 

As for the breakdown of costs, we knew the costs of the large scale items like countertops and cabinets, but we were very surprised at the costs of building materials.  They were bought over a time period of months, from multiple sources.  It wasn’t until we sat down over the weekend to add up the dozens of receipts that we saw just how much!

Cost:
Cabinets	$3,934
Counters	$3,600
Floor Tile (including grout)	$290
Backsplash Tile (including grout)	$104
Appliances	$3,356*
Sink	$386
Faucet	$130
Cabinet Hardware	$127
Paint	$48
LED Recessed Lights	$222
Globe Pendant Lights	$213
Pendant Light Over Sink	$40
Bamboo Shades	$71
Counter Stools	$243
Kitchen Rug	$75
Building Materials	$4,880**
TOTAL	$17,719

*(Refrigerator: $1,943, Range: $629, Microwave: $224, Dishwasher: $560)
**(Includes things like drywall, framing, plumbing, electrical, etc.)

Before appliances, we actually thought we had spent closer to $12,000! 

The building materials did come out higher than we had thought we spent, but we have to remind ourselves that we technically remodeled two rooms, the kitchen and the dining room, and those together make up 50% of our entire first floor.  Our house is also 87 years old, so the money spent upgrading the plumbing, electrical, HVAC, and sometimes the framing, will help our house stay around even longer!

I also wouldn’t technically call out the accessories, like rugs or window shades, or appliances if someone on the street were asking how much we spent, but on the internet I think it’s more fair to show a picture and explain how much it cost to get there.

While we spent more than we imagined on items like building materials, we did save money along the way.  Some of the ways we saved during this remodel included using the rewards we gain from the credit card points to then pay off the credit cards, (so it’s like getting free money)!  Another way we used the large purchases to our advantage is purchasing gift cards and using store credit cards.  Mike has a Home Depot card and we received 5% off of the counters.  Our grocery store offers gas perks for gift card purchases, $0.10 off per gallon for every $50 spent.  We ended up filling Mike’s truck twice for free from this.  That’s about $80 each time! 

Not that credit card points or gas discounts seem like a lot of saving, but for something of this scale it saved us probably $500 or so.  We also waited until things were on sale to purchase.  Both the counters and appliances were purchased during sales at Home Depot and Lowes.  And, the cabinets and dishwasher, (as well as all the kitchen organizational items), we purchased during the 20% off kitchen sale Ikea runs twice a year.  We also hoarded coupons, and 10% off a $2,300 refrigerator makes a big difference! 

Just a couple ways we were able to save money along with making economical choices in the design.   

Finally, we went in knowing that this house will not be our “forever home”.  But, we do plan remodels on what we want it to function and look like.  We try to pick somewhat timeless features that will age well with the home, (it’s almost 90 years old, so using super trendy styles just won’t work).  We know we won’t be getting 100% return on our investment, but in our neighborhood, our kitchen will set us apart for other homes.  We also think more selfishly and design for us.  We want to live here for the next 5-7 years, and want our spaces to work for us.  All that to say, we’re extremely happy with the kitchen, would make the same decisions had we done it again, (although Mike would be hard pressed to promote building Ikea cabinets again), and as silly as it sounds, it’s made a huge difference in our house and how we use it. 

And, I’ll leave you with the before and after that I think best exemplifies where all our money was spent:

It’s been 9 months since we saw that wall up there, and I can’t even remember how we functioned in a kitchen that small!  How spoiled we’ve become with our new space!