Chapter 4: Kitchen Renovation

Photo from Cooking Light magazine

Back to the drawing board. Rethinking my vision wasn’t something I wanted to do, but I knew I had to be realistic about this whole process. Compromises would have to be made in order to get the Columbus Brother’s quote down a few thousand dollars.


Things I had to consider in terms of what was more important to me:

1. Having real wood cabinets? Or having white cabinets?
2. Having pedestal legs on the island? Or having enough space for bar stools?
3. Having a farm sink? Or having a regular stainless steel sink?

So I flipped through more magazines, researched a bunch of websites and did a little bit of soul searching. Don’t laugh – soul searching is something needed during the home remodeling process. :o)

Having wood cabinets was important to both Keith and I. Having white cabinets was only important to me. So I started thinking a dark wood stain wouldn’t be so bad. Of course this sounds like it may veer off my vision of keeping the house light and refreshing, but that doesn’t have to be true. I could still go with a light granite countertop and bring brightness to the room with a light paint color along with colorful rugs and artwork. Dark stained cabinets actually feel more elegant to me. And everyone claims they always look clean whereas white cabinets tend to show dirt and grime more easily.

Then who knew pedestal legs on an island were so gosh darn expensive? Good grief! And the added luxury can reduce the amount of room for bar stools. I know I’m going to love my kitchen once it’s complete. Being able to spend as much time in there with family and friends is important to me so we gotta have seating.

Again, a farm sink was something that was important me – not necessarily Keith. And the price tag on one of those cast iron suckers just didn’t make it seem worth it to me. A nice, one bowl stainless steel sink would be just as lovely. So after talking about all of this with Keith and we came to a decision. Keith called Paul with our changes and he came back with a more reasonable quote. Stay tuned!