The winter of 2015 was brutal here outside of Boston. 110 inches of snow did a lot of damage to hundreds of homes -- including mine.

Melting ice dams soaked the entire back of my house, damaging two bedrooms, two baths and the kitchen.

The kitchen was 45 years old and original to the house. It wasn’t hideous -- it’s a decent size (11 x 17), has a workable layout, and has had some cosmetic changes over the years. But the cabinets were definitely troublesome. Sticking drawers, blind spots galore and doors that wouldn’t shut.

Since the insurance would pay for a portion of the repair -- I bit the bullet and decided to re-do the whole kitchen. I was told that it would take 6 weeks to repair the damaged rooms. Hah! It took a year before the kitchen was finally done! And done it is and I’m very pleased with how it turned out.

I’m well-known in my family as a penny-pincher, so I tried my best to keep the costs down (and wasn’t always successful).

- I nervously purchased the cabinets online, but they turned out fine. Cream Shaker-style (yes, everybody has them, but I like them anyway). Sturdily made, handsome and priced well. (Cabinets.com)

- I kept the existing layout, but moved the peninsula a bit to make room for a dishwasher (which I never had!) and added a pantry cabinet next to the refrigerator.

- Chose granite (Kashmir Gold) but had investigated quartz -- and gave that up because it’s almost twice the price of granite and didn’t have the color or patterns that I wanted.

- Skipped a tile backsplash. Had tile for many years and was tired of cleaning it. But I did buy a steel sheet for the back of the stove.

- Kept the fridge since it’s in good shape and is “Bisque”, not white and blends in very well (which is a look I prefer).

Cabinets.com has designers who help out with your plan. I had sent detailed plans to them and they were very helpful in adding items that I had not thought of (end panels, spacers and toe kicks).

Here are some Before and Afters:

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