Beth I got my cabinets at IKEA, had the designer come out, paid $199 for the design, measure and consult (I had 95% of the design right in the first place) and got the fee back when buying the cabinets. And the designer did the plans on professional software, not the one on the IKEA website and I could make changes and them fix it until I was happy. A budget kitchen with a designer can be done, good luck OP with the project.

Katie, that cold work for the OP. it would be a good alternative. but we don't know how 'small' is a 'small budget'.

It looks like there's about 9 upper and 4 lower cabinets. My goodness, how much of a design is needed - as it looks like the kitchen is fine as far as the design goes. Any other design seems like she would lose cabinets.

Even if the budget is tiny it should work. My kitchen is about 3 or so times the size of those photos and even with new appliances (apart from the fridge that we kept), it was less than $15K before the countertop price. If the cabinets are 30 years old and new replacing then they can't be painted so big box it probably is and that's not too bad, we can't all afford $$$K kitchens and we can still make them nice :)

You are on a budget so I suggest you make an appointment with home depot and with lowe's and see what their kitchen designer can do for you as it can be simple one stop shopping to get some ideas and see some products that might work....I see your MC in on the DW, first look into the MW fan set up; it is economical and very functional in a small space.....see what is out there before you start into this project....take you time, enjoy the process and see what you come up with.

Here are a bunch of small condo kitchens that might inspire you

Remove wall between kitchen and dining room to open up area and add bar eating space

Remove wall and have eat in kitchen with bar area facing dining room

Basic layout but old kithen

Layout like yours I believe

Opening wall up a bit

Remove wall between dining room and kitchen

i would not go near HD or Lowes if you have a small budget. As shirlpp stated, I don't think OP is moving anything around. it's merely swapping out old cabinets for new cabinets,,,,yes?

Big box stores are good prices if in store inventory, which the cabinets in store is junk. If ordering thru big box stores it costs more $$. Takes about 4 weeks average to get. If a mistahe another 4 weeks to get more pieces.

Try a local RTA cabinet shop. My friend saved 30%+ less than big box stores & got them in 7 days.

They also did a free layout with estimate. They hired a conyractor to install.

In small kitchens with low lighting, light colors suggested.

In this space,

White or light grey cabinets

Light non-busy countertop

Stainless steel or white appliances

Keep fridge same place

Flooring fine as is

Put microwave above stove or up in a microwave cabinet

Simple light color backsplash light grout lines or high quality paint that can be washed if splatters happen

I remodeled three kitchens and just finished one about 5 months ago. I dont think anyone here should tell you what color cabinets you should get because that is a personal taste issue. HOWEVER, I do not mind telling you NOT to get black appliances. If you ever plan to sell this place in the future, then you want stainless.

I'd do white appliances before i'd do black. keep it cohesive w/the white cabinets. you can keep stainless clean w/ a can of the SS spray cleaner. once or twice a week is all you need.

Say what - Eric J, you sound contradictory. You think no one should tell her what color cabinets to buy because that is personal taste.....however....you are telling her to buy stainless appliances...Umph!

Shirlpp... my comment about the appliances was purely about re-sale. I also clearly stated "HOWEVER" which is an acknowledgement of the contradiction.

i'm pretty sure if she is spending all of her budget on this tiny kitchen, she's prob not selling soon. she said she dislikes SS. (and quite frankly, you can buy SS all day long on craigslist for a few hundred, each appliance. if she had to switch them out for a quick sale, it's not an issue). I just think doing black in that small space, chops up the look. doing all white would work better. or do black w/black lowers and white uppers.

Please find a new contractor asap. Even if it takes a while, do not use the one giving you so few options.

In the meantime, consider spending some time watching DIY You Tube vids on what kinds of stock cabinets (such as from Lowes, Home Depo, etc.) are available and how they're installed so you can get an idea what's available and what might best suit your space and budget.

Colors can date appliances and be a reason to get tired of them sooner, even before they wear out; and they can cost a lot more.

From a decorating point of view, stainless steel appliances or even white appliances will probably "stand the test of time" better than black appliances. (Most stainless steel ovens do have black glass doors.);however, I'd certainly prefer black appliances to the 1970's dated avocado green or harvest gold or ... (whatever those brown ones were called).

It is possible to cover your existing appliances to make give them the stainless steel look and there are black spray paints that are intended for high heat, often used to paint BBQ grills -- but that could be used to paint an oven/stove. (NOTE: IF you spray paint appliances, you need to be sure you have plenty of ventilation.)

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Rust-Oleum-Specialty-High-Heat-Ultra-Black-Spray-Paint-12-oz/17011115?wmlspartner=wlpa&selectedSellerId=0&adid=22222222227026741880&wl0=&wl1=g&wl2=c&wl3=52577222471&wl4=pla-84459155231&wl5=9011085&wl6=&wl7=&wl8=&wl9=pla&wl10=8175035&wl11=online&wl12=17011115&wl13=&veh=sem

following

Ok guys,

Wow, amazing the interesting replies!

Ok, budget is less than $10,000. If I can do most of work for $5,000 that would work—excluding appliances of course. Those I can eventually put on my credit card.

I know it’s tough when even I don’t know the exact measurements of the room . We can’t find a floor plan for our model. We have looked online and found for other models close to ours but not exact and due to budget restraints decided to forgo taking wall down between kitchen and dining area which I had thought of doing. Maybe in the future.

It was just easier electrical wise to keep the wall where the light switches are for kitchen and dining area for now.

These places are old and apparently built with spit and glue making renovations very difficult.

Anyway a friend of mine just got a new refrigerator in Black in her small kitchen and it looks really nice. Hadn’t considered that until we saw her fridge. The other option would be the new slate color but stainless steel-never again and no offense but can’t stand appliances in white. After 2 years my refrigerator is starting to annoy me looking at it. I do like the side of the fridge is black and so are the handles but even with the special cleaner I use there are rust spots already forming. Never worked right from day one and after 4 service calls we gave up and for now just deal with it but will never buy appliances from BrandsMart again.

Will just have to keep an open mind when time to by appliances.

I am taking all comments and suggestions into consideration and definitely not rushing into anything just yet. We will be taking our time and consider our options.

To Be Continued!!!



I do appreciate all the suggestions.

If the contractor was just a once in awhile contractor. Yeah I would check out someone else. However, we go back a number of years, he has done work for some of our neighbors and a lot of other residents in our community and also know mutual people. However I will tell him when the time comes we can go forward will discuss me getting my cabinets from a different source but still have him do all the work. I will tell him what I like for sure.

He does very good work, honest, licensed and insured and actually shows up. Very hard to find contractors like that here in Fl.

Adding a thought here. So my current refrigerator is stainless steel with black handles and black sides. Love it but not how it works or the size of freezer. The microwave is black with stainless steel trim, my ugly green stove (original-about 42-43 yr old)does have black on it, my little recycling center (from BedBathBeyond) is stainless steel with black tops. My dishwasher is white (don’t ask)-a dumb choice at the time plus a small black rug in front of sink and black drying pad on counter. Kitchen does not feel heavy or closed in at all. Hadn’t thought about all of this before. I will check out the new slate color though. That might work. I know it sounds silly but I would like all my appliances to be matching and the same manufacturer.

I am sure my recycling little center I have I can probably spray paint it if I need to. Not the top, the stainless part. Even that stainless steel is not that good now and something got stuck to the finish that won’t come off. I think the humidity here in Florida is a problem for stainless steel appliances.

To clarify some questions here, no we are not essentially changing the foot print of the kitchen. In the last 2 years we have already spent a little over $30,000 to update this place. It is a total fixer upper but when u purchase a home from family at an unbelievable great price, u just go with it.

So, in the kitchen we are planning on having the two cabinets above the refrigerator taken down. We never use those cabinets anyway. Then the new refrigerator can be a little taller and we do have room for one a little wider. I agree here, the massive big ones would totally swallow up the kitchen. I see it a lot in some of the other condos here. I will be choosing the appliances very carefully.

We will then give away our current microwave and have one installed above the stove and as much as I love my dishwasher will give that away also so that everything matches.

Opposite the refrigerator is a wall where we have a rolling cart/cabinet with our microwave on that in between the kitchen window and dining room window. We have a corner condo.

Anyway, the plan is to also add another cabinet on that wall to replace the lost ones over the refrigerator and more counter space with lower cabinets for more storage. I have a picture of the exact cabinet and counter that is in another condo-same model that we have and it doesn’t make the room look cramped. I know exactly how it looks and fits.

The little drawer we have next to microwave jutting into the dining area will then be removed to open up the area to make the dining area look less cramped.

I might again move the little corner shelving with my plant on it back out of the dining room except I am running out of places to put the shelf and plant. Might have to keep that there. It was a surprise gift from hubby so have to keep it and the plant seems to be doing much better since I moved it to that corner from out of my closed in porch. Plant seems very happy where it is right now.

Will keep you all updated!

Concerning buying all appliances from the same manufacturer: Not all mfgs make the best in every appliance. One might be great with a dishwasher but suck when it comes to making a stove.

For the 13 years in my new home - I've had the same appliances. I have a GE Monogram refrigerator(love it), a Jenn-Air cooktop and a Jenn-Air double oven.

I bought a Bosch dishwasher 3 years ago(prior was Jenn-Air).

Please go to consumer reports to help determine the best appliances that your money can buy.

I would stick with black, white or stainless appliances. In 7 years, if your slate dishwasher dies, you're likely not going to find that the color is still available and you'll be stuck again with unmatched appliances.

Excellent advice katinparadise. Hubby and I just got back from HD. We did bring home one other counter sample but he didn't like any of the cabinet samples we looked at and so many different shades of white. Appliances especially refrigerators were a real eye opener! Almost all of them were in stainless steel and humungous! Bigger than my whole condo! Hardly anything to pick from smaller size refrigerators and the ovens were mostly black, black, black with stainless steel trim. Very disappointing!

Anyway, I agree even though we could not find a GE appliance in the "slate" color which according to this article I found last night which said the "slate" color was described as warm and earthy. Not my basic cool color scheme although my furniture are actually a mixture but shades that blend well together. I thought it was a darker grey color.

Found this really interesting website on the internet: Wilsonart.com If anyone wants to check it out, they even have a design tool to use. Limited choices but kind of cool. Going to go back into that website and order two different counter samples that we could not find in HD.

Don't you have any dedicated appliance stores in your area? These usually are local or regional and not nationwide chains. I would go there rather than the big box stores for appliances. Better selection, better warranties.

Not that I know of Denita. I would have to research that. Everyone goes to Brandsmart, HD, Lowes or Best Buy. IKEA is somewhat of a trip from us. Brans Mart is where I got my current refrigerator and the appliance sucks! Hesitate to buy an entire package from them.

Sadly, everything Hubby and I looked at, looked like junk. They just don't make appliances like they used to.

Have you been to IKEA?
If you are on a budget this is the way to go. I highly recommend waiting until the Kitchen Event. Use the 10%/15%/20% IKEA gift card you receive to purchase the laminate countertop. They have a good selection.

I have built and installed two IKEA kitchens now and they are fabulous.

Hi Houzz Team,

Thought of IKEA but don’t have one near me.

Will keep suggestion in mind as I get closer to be able to actually start that phase of the kitchen project

Thanks

I agree that a local appliance store is the way to go. I bought mine from one and have been very happy with their service department. My brand new refrigerator needed service 3 times in just over a year and it's nice to be able to pick up the phone and call the appliance store repair department. Wilsonart and Formica both have many more options than you'll find in big box stores. IKEA is a great option for reasonably priced cabinets. Look online at Barker Cabinets and Cliq Studios as well. They're RTA (ready to assemble) but the quality is better than you'll get at any big box store.

Has anyone used Cabinets To Go? I see the ads on TV a lot.

Also there is a Habitat for Humanity restore not to far from me so maybe when I am ready to go forward I can see what cabinets and appliances they have.

lisa, what big city are you near?

cabs to go are the ready to assemble cabinets? pretty sure those are made overseas. what you want to look for is solid wood or plywood boxes and drawers. no mdf

Here are the specs on Barker's RTA cabinets.

They have lots of nice add ons and everything can be sized within 1/4". The undercabinet drawer slides give you more room side to side in the drawers as well.

Barkers has some nice selections too.

Beth H,

There is Pompano or Ft Lauderdale.

Or Boca the other way.

Not rushing into anything though. I will say the sample my contractor left me, I might not like the color but the wood looks and feels better quality than what I currently have. When I get closer to go forward with my project will ask him what the cabinet is made of. Going to ask lots of questions.

I have discussed with him the footprint of the kitchen and what I can do with my budget and happy with what we discussed. He seems to know what I like and what I don’t like and will make a suggestion just before I start to mention the exact same thing, LOL.

Just a matter of colors and I am confident with all the suggestions here and my research, it will all come together.

Lisa,,,the reason I asked, is Craigslist. since you live near big cities, you can find some great deals on cabs/countertops, and appliance.

for instance,,look at this one. they're remodeling and tearing out all of this. you get all the cabs, the granite and all the appliances $950. of course your gc would have to make things fit, but look at these cabs! even if you painted them they'd look brand new. (Boca) . this is from a private party, not a business

https://miami.craigslist.org/pbc/app/d/entire-kitchen-all-appiances/6570976917.html

another one (you can always bargain for less on these ads)

this one has his for sale for 2K, but it's a lot of cabinets

fridge,,floor model open box. $525

https://miami.craigslist.org/pbc/app/d/whirlpool-197-cu-ft-french/6568812877.html

and a guy named fred has all of these for 1500

https://miami.craigslist.org/brw/app/d/complete-kitchen-cabinets-and/6571117149.html

I'm showing you these because if you're on a budget, they can be a real plus. of course you have to wade through some iffy ones, but often you can find really good deals.

To avoid scratching any new appliances, you'll probably want to finish your kitchen remodel before buying new ones.

It would be a good idea to know which new appliances you do plan to buy so you can will have the right measurements as you plan any new cabinets, etc.

IF you have adequate ventilation, you might consider repainting your current appliances as a temporary measure until you can replace them with those you really want. After scrubbing the rusty spots as clean as possible ( steel wool or even a steel wool soap pad) and rinsing and drying them, you'd need to use painter's tape and/or plastic sheeting to cover any part and any surrounding area you don't want painted.

RustOleum Rust Reformer

https://www.rustoleum.com/product-catalog/consumer-brands/stops-rust/rust-reformer/

can also be found in black in the spray paint section of your local hardware and big box stores.

Applying that or a similar product to any scratched and/or rusty places would be a good idea before re-painting the entire appliance.

RustOleum has a 2X black spray paint that will even adhere to plastic. If you spray thin coats and let them dry in between, you'll be less likely to have drips.

*If you paint, use eye protection. If you use painter's plastic sheeting as a drop cloth to protect your flooring, remember that it can be slippery to step on, especially if there is more than one layer.

Good luck on your remodel. Let us know how it's going.

If you want new cabinets, definitely go with RTA! We bought our housefull, kitchen, laundry, master bath, 2 other full baths, and easily saved 40% over Waypoint, and other similar stock cabinets, and the construction of them was far superior, too. Used can work, but may be more of a hassle, and may not be well made either.

Hi everyone, did some research and not sure if true or not, it seems IKEA cabinets may be made of particleboard. Same as what I have now. Happy with new sample from my contractor-solid wood shaker in a very nice satin white.

Have been ordering countertop samples from Wilsonart and coming down to 2 of them. Sorry, don’t have pictures yet to show you but u can see them on the Wilsonart website. I’ll post pictures soon.

One is called Andorra Shadow: a grey marble with highlights in white, black, varying grey tones

Or

Dusk Cascade: a limestone in charcoal with deep and soft grey.


Probably will use white subway tiles for backsplash as in photo sent by P. Vamps.

Oops! P Banos, silly phone.

I just looked at your counter top picks and like them both. The dusk cascade is a bit less busy than the andorra shadow. I prefer the dusk cascade and think it would be sharp with the white cabinets and backsplash and work better with your floors. The simpler design mirrors the long grey streaks in the floor tile. Do post pictures when you make some progress. You can have some fun shopping for hardware.

I like the Dusk Cascade better. Since you need such a small amount, have you checked into the price of a granite or quartz remnant?

Hi Molly D,

Might think about that but I didn’t mention I plan on having more cabinets and countertop added on the wall opposite the refrigerator. Will keep an open mind. Thanks.

Cheap import plywood in cheepchinesecrapola RTA cabs is far worse than good quality furniture board cabinets. By far.

Plywood and particle board can vary greatly in quality, making it hard to say that one is always better than the other.

Plywood vs particle board for cabinet box construction

https://www.bostonbuildingresources.com/advice/kitchen-cabinets-plywood-or-particle-board

Great video of how wood held up to particle board after water damage.

https://youtu.be/kvmIjEMwywA

I prefer high quality plywood for box construction. Solid wood doors or high quality MDF doors. They can be repainted.

No Foil. When foil fails can not repaint. Photo of foil foiling a kitchen.

I have had a few clients use Cabinets to Go & bought due to prices. The DIY client who saved $ put them togeather themselves. Another client decided later after buying to let Cabinets To Go install. Their install price was way high & ended up paying too much for the total job.

I suggest getting 2-3 quotes with a local RTA cabinet company that at least assembles them locally & have them delivered to home. Get 2 separate install quotes from contractors who specialize in cabinets & trim work.

If you have extra time & equipment to assemble, maybe assemble on site. Time = $.

Thanks for the thoughts on cabinets Artistsharonva. I had requested and now have a new cabinet sample I am happy with and the price quoted for all new cabinets—upper and lower plus an extra 4 cabinets are totally within my budget and figuring out my countertops.

Just not sure exactly when we will go forward as we have other issues that need taken care of first.

That's great news about the cabinets fitting in the budget. Excited for you. New cabinets are going to make a huge difference.

Btw, Thank you for the thank you, Lisa:)

How fortunate that you were able to find something that works for you. It will be wonderful to be able to look forward to moving ahead with your remodel.

Penny wise and pound foolish to use cheepchinesecrapola, no matter how much they give free stuff to HGTV.

Boot any contractor that limits you to 3 choices for cabinets or at min. question why only 3. In any case don't feel like you have to settle. I just did a kitchen Reno and worked with a designer. I selected the cabinets I wanted and then had help with other selections. A kitchen designer may not be as expensive as you think and has contacts the average person may not have. Pay upfront or pay later to correct mistakes.
Also buy quality cabinets as you don’t want to redo this in a few years. If necessary save up a little longer. Also ask around for contractors and visit references selecting recent and customers from 5-10 years ago.

Ok, so my reply is this—ya just don’t boot someone u have known for over 5 years and know mutual people AND if my own account trusts him with continual projects over the years and a lot of high end people use him why would I do this for some shmuck who over charges, full of Bull and don’t show up! This is Florida!

Enough said and yes he will work with me in anything I want to pick and yes I can go and have stuff delivered from anywhere if I choose and have him install. The cabinets are not a problem anymore. That issue has been settled.

Look at PBanos kitchen idea ..that looks fantastic and gives you black countertops .. You can add a small counter in front seperating the kitchen from the rest and you can even sit there facing the kitchen . I like the advise you have been given to go to Home Depot ..or IKEA they are both great and will help you with your design , besides that you can buy a half size refrigerator also and build a cabinet on top .. You have options ..., also , black is great . Don't let naysayers detour you form black , if that is what you like ..but get some paintings or photographs on the walls ...black is " not sticking out or represents a black hole " ..black usually recedes ...and makes everyone elegant and timeless ...

You can buy a refrigerator the size of the dishwashing machine through Amazon ..even in black by keystone ...or Best Buy , or Home Depot or Lowe .. Look around so that you are informed about all before you invest any more money . And you can always get a very small refrigerator by your bed built into a cabinet ...if a small one is not enough to hold all the water or bottles you need .