Remodeling on A Budget Part 2

By Jenn at Five Dollar Shake

When doing a major remodel (see Remodeling on A Budget Part 1) there is one thing you can be certain of.


Your project is going to take longer than you expected!

Especially if you’re doing the work yourself.  Once you really get going, there will be surprises that you couldn’t have planned for and there will always be ideas of how to make the project better.  You might as well fix “this” or do “that” since the place is already a mess, right?  Makes sense.

Living under construction can be a real stressful time for a family.  Yet, if you plan ahead there are a couple of things you can do to make it a whole lot easier.

So, plan ahead for the inconvenience!  Trust me, no wiser words have been spoken.

Here are a couple of tips based on my own experiences while my husband remodeled our living room, dining room and kitchen.  Basically our entire first floor over a two year span.

1. Decide on a “gathering” space or room while the construction is happening.  A space you can still sit together and spend time as a family.  For us, we’re lucky to have enough space in our basement for our living room furniture and television.  It worked out very well.

2. If you don’t have one – borrow or purchase a griddle, electric frying pan, slow cooker or something of that nature.  Trust me, this will save you a ton!  It’s all too easy to fall into the habit of buying out.  I mean what better excuse than not having a kitchen.  I had a griddle and a George Foreman Grill set up in our laundry room.  It wasn't ideal, but it sure helped us stay within our budget.

By simply making the best of what space we had that wasn't under construction, we saved our-self a lot of headaches, stress and over spending out of frustration.

Remodeling on A Budget Part 1

By Jenn at Five Dollar Shake
 
Six years ago, my husband and I decided to sell our little two bedroom house in search of a bigger and better home to raise our kids in. It didn't take us long to decide on a location, but the house was another story. There were very little homes in our price range to choose from. So, we went with the best constructed home that needed the least amount of work. What it did need was cosmetic attention, and lot's of it. Each and every room was covered in wallpaper and dark brown carpet, ah la 70's style.

Then the economy crashed, and our income was cut in half. Making even the cosmetic changes more difficult. Happy to be in a home in our choice of neighborhood with our choice of schools, we waited, and waited. We waited until one day I said, ya know what - let's just do it, let's dig in and if it takes us a year, so be it. Well, it took us way over a year, much closer to two, but we did it, and we did it all on a budget.

I’m very excited to have the opportunity to share the details here on The Lean Remodeler of our complete make over of three rooms (kitchen, dining, living room) all at once, and on a budget.

The biggest tip from our experience of remodeling on a budget is to plan to do everything you are capable of yourself! Thankfully, my husband is a real “do it yourself” kind of guy. Taking advantage of opportunities such as Wilsonart’s DIY countertops literally saved us hundreds!

Below is a photo of our living room, and an example of how we lived while doing our remodel one step at a time, as our budget permitted.




Was it worth it? You'll soon see for yourself...

(Up)Date Night Part II: Tammy Tours L.E. Smith

Tami has a kitchen makeover, including Wilsonart HD countertop in the Deepstar Bronze pattern (1814). She even gets a tour of L.E. Smith Company's fabrication shop to see her countertop being made. Click here for more information about Wilsonart HD Laminate.

Urban Pioneer: Tug of War with the Fridge

By Andrea, the Urban Pioneer

I've talked a little about the kitchen, hitting the low-lights, but let me dig a little deeper and tell you the oh-so-frustrating story of my refrigerator.

On a warm summer day (yes, we do have those in Minnesota), I moved in to my little piece of Urban heaven.  My furniture was in place, boxes were piled in the 2nd bedroom for safe hiding and I loaded up the fridge with food.  When I returned after a weekend at the lake, I found the fridge had slow cooked all of my groceries sitting at a balmy 87 degrees.  The food went into the trash and off to the appliance store I went.

My new fridge arrives, new food is purchased and I go on my way.

If only it were so easy...

But the 2nd fridge didn't work either!  Fortunately, this time I didn't load it up with food, so my loss was minimal.  A quick call to the appliance store and I believe a new fridge will be at my door sooner than later. Wrong again!  Due to an address mix up that "could not be fixed while an order was still in process," it took three weeks to get a working fridge delivered.  When the new one showed up, it fit through the 1911 doorway, but not into the space reserved for the fridge in the kitchen.

My refrigerator in the 'freezer using' position

After a month or so without a working refrigerator, I decided to keep what I had knowing plans of a remodel are in my near future.  In the meantime, I have to push and pull the fridge into place, depending on if I want to get in the freezer or get out my kitchen door.  I'm looking at it as extra security... but redoing the kitchen and finding the fridge a home sure would be nice.

Remodeling when time's not on your side

By Gale

Meet my dear friends, The Procrastinators (most of us know who they are and sometimes we are all just like them). They are filled with good intentions and great plans, but they never seem to find the time to actually move ahead with their objectives. As a consequence, things look a little worn out at their home. The cabinet doors do not shut; some of the hardware is non-functional, two burners of the cooktop stopped working some time ago. Let’s not even talk about the countertop, which looks like it has been through a war and then some.

Their biggest problem is simply finding time to get these projects done. They want to fix up the kitchen, for example, but are afraid that any disruption will mean they cannot continue to use the room. We had a heart-to-heart talk recently, and I point out that if they focus on the parts of the kitchen that need to be upgraded (or replaced altogether), then the actual process of remodeling will move along smoothly.

If you are simply replacing appliances or cabinets without moving them around, then the inconvenience time is reduced to just a few days (not weeks or months as they imagined), that is, assuming you have a contractor who can come when you plan. But surprisingly, even a countertop replacement takes only a day of inconvenience. The fabricator measures the space and then brings the new countertop two weeks later. In the meantime, you have use of the kitchen.

They were relieved and headed off to look at all their choices. I gave them a new mantra:

“To make it work easily and quickly, simply find products that will fit into the same size space in your existing room."

The second piece of advice is even less complicated: Always have a tape measure available, along with a little notebook with your measurements written down. When in doubt, measure and remeasure.

The Urban Pioneer

By Andrea, The Urban Pioneer

Hello, and welcome to my journey as the Urban Pioneer! Over the next few months you’ll get to know me, my Minneapolis condo and the journey of my urban life.

Let's start with who I am. I’m new (again) to the Twin Cities; I grew in Minnesota but took what I call a brief tour of the upper-Midwest before making it back 15 years later. It is great to be back in Minneapolis…even with the winters…and they are bad. I love to volunteer, play a little tennis and drink a great wine with friends on a fabulous roof-top deck.

I love to dream up projects around the house, and boy have I found the right place for that! (more on 'the project list' later) I am fortunate to have a very talented and supportive family who are all handy around the house; a dad who can replicate most any wooden furniture and a mom who can sew a curtain in no time flat. With their help, a lot of time, and some blogging along the way, I’m hoping I can whip my ‘new to me’ urban condo into a place I’m proud to call home.

Young mom asks for design help

by Gale Steves

Seldom do I meet the perfect demographic, but then I became acquainted with Barbara, a young, stay-at-home mother with two kids under the age of six. She apologizes that she is not working full-time, (Hers, in my book, is a full-time job of mothering). However, she volunteers for at least community charity and is an active member of her church.

Some might categorize her as "Gen Y," but I see her as a Frugal Mom. As the family budget shrank, so did her travel and entertainment outside of the house. In fact, her home has become even more important as a gathering place for family and friends. Barbara admits to being an online coupon clipper as well as often refers friends to internet sites and deals. Most of this happens when the kiddies are tucked in bed, after 8 PM.

Since the home has become her focus, she is making a good pennywise step in replacing her countertops in her kitchen as a baby step for making a larger color change in the kitchen. She calls it her "everything" room.

I met her because she wanted help making a selection. She has ruled out granite and stone as too costly, but I pointed her to the new laminate alternatives that mimic travertine and natural stone, an upscale look she fancied from design blogs she follows.  We settled on Golden Travertine premium laminate from Wilsonart because it was a mid-range color, which would not show as much dirt as a very light color or as a very dark one. That was the easy part. . . now she faces which edge treatment is the most kid-friendly.  Barbara will do her online research and read reviews before making up her mind.

I have full confidence that she has made a good decision, and the downtime in her kitchen is really a few hours of inconvenience and disruption when the new counter surface is installed for a dramatic transformation. The Frugal Mom wins again!

(UP)Date Night Part 2: "The Renovation" with the Gibson Family

Today's post is from Jeannett Gibson over at Life Rearranged, who is undergoing a kitchen transformation with her family and has been nice enough to share her experience here on Lean Remodeler. Here's the latest installment of our (Up)Date Night video series, where you'll see the dust is flying!

Having Enough Room for Your Stuff

By Gale

Even in the biggest kitchen, there never seems to be enough room for your stuff. There must be a gravitational force that attracts things to the kitchen, and then they stay, invited or uninvited. But do not fear there is more space in your kitchen than you think.

Start with your upper cabinets. Can you access all the contents without a step ladder? When you visit the very top shelves, are you surprised at what you find? There is a whole new generation of cabinet inserts designed to maximize your inner space. While they will not keep the disorder down, these cabinet aids will help give you greater storing capability. You are on your own when it comes to controlling your clutter.

Spice Island

Take advantage of the lost space where the stove meets the cabinets with shallow shelving of your favorite spices and most frequently used seasonings. The Marion Cabinets in maple from Omega Cabinetry has accessories such as these shallow shelves which are useful in many places. For more information, log onto www.omegacab.com.

Open and Shut Case

Forget about a broom closet. Try this slim line cabinet that easily glides out from a dead space. It even has room for a handy bucket on the bottom level to hold smaller sprays and cleaners, and it is designed to keep you and your cleaning supplies very organized. The paneled Cloister cabinets in maple from Plain and Fancy Custom Cabinetry are designed with these convenient inserts.

Going To Pots

A two-tiered pot rack that pulls out easily makes the cooking process easier. Having the lids where they should be reduces your need to kneel down on the floor and scramble for the appropriate size lids. The Two-Tierd Cookware Shelves are from Rev-A-Shelf Cabinet Accessories, and more of their innovative products can be found on www.rev-a-shelf.com.