The One Room Challenge is FINALLY HERE! I have been waiting for this for months, running around and prepping for my FULL kitchen renovation! Why did I have to wait until this challenge, you ask? Well, it was a good excuse to give the hubby for WHY on earth I need to renovate an entire room – “but babe, it’s a challenge, and it’s going to (maybe) help my little fledgling blog get a bit of exposure…” BAM – challenge accepted!
I have been prepping for some time now, and you can catch a little more about that in my pre One Room Challenge post HERE, but I am really hitting the ground running this week. This post will just be a quick overview of my To Dos, my general timeline (because weekly posts really only means 5 weeks of work – yikes!) and of course, the dreaded BEFORE photos!
Let’s get started shall we?
KITCHEN BEFORE:
This little pendant light and sign are basically the only thing staying the same in this entire kitchen!
So as you can see, UGLY. 90s. EYESORE. Also, our kitchen is quite small, so the brown just makes it look even smaller! I cant wait to transform this space and have everything look new and sleek!
Now, for our GIANT To Do list:
- Extend cabinets to ceiling by making cubbies (kind of confusing, but you’ll see what I mean as I go along)
- Remove all thermafilm and moldings/trim from existing cabinets
- Sand/Prime/Paint cabinets
- Add new trim to cabinets
- Shiplap wallpaper on peninsula
- Switch out corbels on peninsula
- Switch out all cabinet hardware
- Add moulding to doors (pantry and back) and paint
- Change switches and switch plates
- Switch out door knobs
- DIY concrete counters
- DIY subway tile backsplash
- Swap out under cabinet lighting
- Install new sink and plumbing fixtures
- Seal grout lines and sink
WOWza that is a LOT of work to do! I’m not entirely sure what I’ve gotten myself into, but I do know that after this is over, my kitchen is either going to be AH-MAZ-ING, OR, I’m going to have to pay someone to come fix my mess and make it amazing! HA! Please keep your fingers crossed for me that it’s the former!
I’m hoping I can swap out the barstools too, but I can’t until we sell these – we are already over budget! #oops (See more about my budget below!)
And with that crazy long to do list, I knew I needed a timeline to at least try to keep myself on track.
One Room Challenge Timeline:
Week 1: Before photos blog
Week 2: Remove all moulding and trim from cabinets; Build cabinets up to ceiling; Remove thermafilm from uppers; Sand, prime, and paint uppers
Week 3: Remove thermafilm from lowers; Sand, Prime, and Paint lowers; Install shiplap wallpaper on peninsula; score countertop and backsplash to prep for concrete and tile installation
Week 4: Install trim on doors and paint doors; Install new doorknobs; Install cabinet hardware; Install trim and moulding on cabinets; Start DIY concrete countertops if possible (requiring moving of appliances and sink)
Week 5: Remove old sink and move major appliances (if not already done above); Finish DIY concrete countertops; Start DIY subway tile backsplash; Begin working on rearranging plumbing below sink to fit new one basin sink
Week 6: Finish DIY subway tile backsplash; Install new sink and plumbing fixtures; Switch out switches/faceplates; Install under cabinet lighting; Install corbels; Style and photograph!
Hopefully I really can stick to this timeline!
Budget:
My budget has evolved since I originally decided to do this project. Initially, I planned for $750, however, that didn’t include the counters, sink/plumbing fixtures, extending the cabinets, switching out all of the plugs/faceplates, updating out under cabinet lighting, or purchasing several of the tools we need.
With all of that added in, my new budget increased to $1750. Ultimately, I think we’ll land right around $2k. BUT, if you subtract the couple of tools that will be invaluable to us in the future (i.e. miter saw and nail gun that we bought), we should end up pretty close to the $1750 mark, fingers crossed!
I have kept track of all of our purchases, so once all is said and done, I will report back with my final costs.
However, even if we go a bit over, for a FULL kitchen remodel, I’d say ~$2k is a steal, don’t ya think?!
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That’s all for now, friends! Be sure to go check out all the other FABULOUS bloggers that are participating on the ORC this go around HERE, and come back next week to check on my progress!
XO,
Ana
Hello, I’m new here! I have gone through 100 plus guest blog accounts, in excitement to follow along the ORC. I came across yours at number 144! (Talk about commitment!)
I have to say I’m extremely excited to see this transformation, and I truly appreciate the fact that you’re the only blogger (I’ve seen) to mention anything about a budget. I know it’s a touchy subject to talk about the financial aspect of renovating. But, I feel like some blogs can be a bit misleading if regular folk (i.e. Me) don’t know how much money to realistically put aside once we are brave enough to tackle such a project. Thank you for sharing! I can’t wait to see your big reveal.
Tanieka, thank you so much! I absolutely want to keep it 100% real for y’all – and that includes how much these things cost! I keep meaning to get better about including budget info on all my posts, but sometimes I totally don’t keep track. For this project though, given that its a major reno, we wanted an idea going in of how much we would spend, and we are also curious as to how much we are saving by doing it ourselves! I will definitely get a full budget up on the blog in either the final reveal post, or in a subsequent post after the fact – it’s not fully itemized, but I think it will totally be helpful!
Thanks so much for your feedback and encouragement – it’s comments like these that make me love doing these projects and sharing them!
XO,
Ana
Happily following along on your progress – Agree with what Tanieka said about mentioning the budget! Looking forward (as I’m sure you are) to the final “reveal”!
You are too kind Janet – thank you! I am definitely very excited to see it done – hopefully we can get back on track this week with our timeline!