Luxury Kitchen Remodeling On A Budget

by Nicole Weston (RSS feed)
Jun 16th 2006 at 6:06PM

The New York Times reports that the kitchen is the most expensive room in the house to renovate. The average cost is $25,000, with some experts saying that it is easily double that in New York City - a somewhat surprising discovery, given that space can be so tight there. Some New Yorkers are looking to do things on a budget of less that $15, 000, though, and by limiting their luxury purchases to one or two big-ticket items, they can have a kitchen that looks fantastic and saves them money.

The best ways to save include doing most of the labor yourself and salvaging some of the more expensive items, such as a refrigerator or range that can last for another five years. Getting some furniture from Ikea also proved to be a popular choice with the home redecorators in the article, as they could get a specific look without going with custom-made cabinets. The final thing to keep in mind is that it's important to compromise. As one woman said, after ending up with a green kitchen when she was originally thinking of blue, "green is kind of blue."

But what items did people splurge on when they didn't have $162,000 to spend?

Some, like Rebekah Sale (above), decided that countertops were the worth the greatest expense. Sale spent $4,000 on granite countertops and another New Yorker, Annie Ohayon (below), spent $2,500 on custom 3-inch thick stainless steel counters. Since the average New York apartment or condo is not known for its fantastic lighting, especially in the kitchen, Ohayon also spend $1,000 on a backlit, faux window to brighten up the space.

Holly Block invested in custom woodwork (below), adding elegant white cabinets and a poplar bar for a total cost of $3,615. The showpiece of her kitchen is one of its least expensive components, which shows that not all designer touches have to cost a fortune: a curving strip of stainless steel that sets the tiny space apart from the rest of the room. It only cost $300, including installation.