The kitchen was both the hardest and easiest room to decorate. It was the easiest because furniture is not required and our color scheme was very easy to work with: white and gray. It was the hardest due to the limited selections provided by the builder. As I mentioned in the dining room post, we have chosen to do dark hardwood throughout the first floor (excluding the den). This was an expensive decision so we had to find ways to compensate. The first compromise we made was not to purchase an upgraded kitchen package which means living without built-in double ovens and floor to ceiling, upgraded cabinets. This project is all about sacrifice so you can imagine I was thrilled when the builder recently introduced white as a cabinet color option. Our kitchen might not be the most lux in town but I want it to feel light and open.
Our inspiration boards for the kitchen are deceiving because only half of what you see can actually be accomplished through our builder. To put things in perspective, I've listed the elements that we are going to come in and change ourselves after closing:
Counter Tops: The builder offered a very limited selection of granite and wanted to charge a premium for it, so we are opting to use a third party that has been recommended by a local contractor we know. The carerra marble will go on the island and the gray quartz will cover the remaining counter space. We will have standard laminate counters in the interim.
Range: Since we passed on the gourmet kitchen package we will get a very standard electric oven upon closing. The range you see above is from the GE cafe series and is one of the only gas ranges I've seen with double ovens. Again, utilizing our relationship with a local contractor we can purchase through a wholesale appliance distributor and will save about 20% off the retail price.
Sink: To add personality we wanted a more industrial, sophisticated faucet and were able to find one for $300 at Home Depot.
Hardware: Hardware wasn't even an option through our builder so a combination of myknobs.com, Pottery barn and Restoration Hardware will give our very basic cabinets a finished, more personal look.
Backsplash: I was shocked to find out that our builder didn't have access to basic subway tile. Luckily, I have a very handy father who is willing to fly all the way to Texas just to teach me how to instal one myself. Stay tuned...
Now you can begin to see why I said this project has been like putting together a very complex jigsaw puzzle. Balancing the elements that we are having the builder do versus a third party after closing has been hard. If I can give any advice here it's to create a spreadsheet to track each project. It can be easy to forget who is doing what and more importantly when it needs to get done. Everything has a specific order and if you miss just one detail it could throw off the entire timeline.
Getting most of what we want while staying within our budget has been a challenge. In the end though, It will be worth the extra effort to own a home that we love and that functions properly for us.
