We should all be inspired by Anders Lewendal, a homebuilder in Bozeman, Montana, who is building what he considers the first home documented to be made entirely of American-made materials. He was featured recently in the New York Times. Lewendal, who has an economics degree, told The Times: “I think we could solve this recession if everyone shifted…
This is one of the best budget kitchen remodels I’ve seen. While you can see a dramatic change from before (bottom) and after (top), notice that the cabinets are the same, the window is in the same place, all the appliances are in the same locations and the floor and ceiling are the same. So…
If you want to bring natural light into a kitchen, you’ve usually got to sacrifice some upper cabinets. Typically, kitchens have one window: above the sink. And if you’re really daring, you can put in a skylight. But if you’re addicted to natural light, as I am, you look for other ways. This kitchen, by…
I'll tell a word that really annoys me: Neutral. Could there be anything more boring? Yet you'll see people walking through a boring house and remarking: "Love the neutral colors." And I'm like: "What's to love?" I guess I'm a little more radical than some. I like COLORS! This green kitchen rocks my world. And…
UPDATE: Did you notice the curtains of Swarovski crystal sparkling at the Academy Awards on Sunday? Talk about glamour! The original post: There's really nothing all that spectacular about the remodel of Vicki Reitz's galley kitchen. Sure, she's got a lovely wood floor, and granite counters, and really nicely painted original cabinets. So, yes, the kitchen…
The kitchen after the remodel. The cabinets were not replaced, but given an excellent oil-based paint job. The same kitchen before the remodel. Notice how the refrigerator in the rear of the photo was moved to make room for more counter space. Shortly after Vicki Reitz and her husband bought a 2,500-square-foot postwar, split-level home, he…
Last year, we enjoyed reading about a $12,000 luxury kitchen remodel with granite counters, tile back splashes and nice appliances. Now that the economy is terrible, it's time to revisit the topic of what I like to call "tightwad remodeling." To the right, you see the kitchen being used for Christmastime cooking. And isn't that…
Joni's condo kitchen update is nearly done. (See the project up to now.) Joni's friend and fellow nurse Patti is helping out, and she files this report: I'm home from the mountains and went to see Joni's kitchen today. It's beautiful! I am thrilled and so is she. (Click photos to enlarge.) Joni opted to…
Patti here. Since our weekend tile project, which Joni and I wrote about in a previous post, we have gathered some valuable information. First and foremost is that thinset should be the consistency of peanut butter! Ours was more the consistency of sour cream, so it was too thin. (Notice the food references; it is…
Patti here. I'm helping my friend and fellow nurse Joni spruce up her kitchen. See the whole project. Well, we got some tile up over the weekend. Whew, it was a lot of work. With this, as with everything else, there was quite a learning curve. We were extremely careful to plan the placement, have…