Know what you want before starting a project

It happens all the time. We think we know exactly what we want and then we get into a project and we rethink it, sometimes to the detriment of the finished product.

And then sometimes, rethinking it is necessary because what we thought would work on paper just does not work in real life. Which brings me to my sister’s kitchen. She lives in a small but beautiful house on a lake. She just finished a renovation which completely changed the entire home but she left the tiny kitchen for me to help design.

First 2 pictures show the entire kitchen, the 3rd is the hallway just outside the kitchen proper and leading to a hall bath. It was decided that since the kitchen was so small they would install 2 pantry cabinets in that hallway. I was a bit worried, but these are 2 very strong-willed woman so I went with the flow.

I knew they would gain a ton of storage just by changing out the cabinets to better functioning cabinets in the kitchen. Cabinets that went to the ceiling on one side and drawer bases with easy access storage on the sink side would double their storage capabilities. But in the end they wanted pantry cabinets. I told them we could modify the cabinets, cut them down from 24′ deep to 20″ deep and that would help in the tight space. This is something a homeowner may not think to ask but it can be done by most cabinet companies for a fee.

Here is the “almost” finished kitchen, more on that in a minute.

As you can see they upgraded the appliances but kept the furniture piece in place. They also kept the wood countertop, or at least that was the plan. Apparently, during the time we made the plan and installation they decided that they wanted a stone countertop and will be installing that and an extra tall backsplash.

I could have easily helped with that by giving the stoneyard a drawing of the space with measurements but they thought they should wait. Again, this is something the homeowner didn’t know could be done. We could have made the entire project more seamless if we had worked that out in advance.

Remember: Ask questions, there really is no stupid question! You may be surprised at how much can be done. It may seem crazy to you but a designer/vendor/contractor knows that many requests can be accommodated as long as it is thought out in advance.

PS. You may notice that there is only 1 pantry cabinet in place. Yes, 2 cabinets was just 1 too many and the other one is relocated to the hallway.

Nancy Bradley photo

Nancy bradley

I consult, design, and remodel spaces that reflect the homeowner’s lifestyle and budget by getting the cost question out of the way and really listening to what my client wants and how much they have set aside for their project.