I'm not sure . . . I wish the angle was the same because I can't tell if I like it better or not. From the photos, I'm liking the before better.

i'm liking the before better too

I am envious of the before! The white with the yellow is so fresh.

budget conscious.... (grrrr!)

i looove the before.. chrome-on-white of the cabinets

I like both versions. But all white kitchens seem to be the go-to, so I love the fresh take with the dark lower cabinets. The counter that seems the wrap around the side of the cabinet is also a great feature. This version looks crisper. Well done!!

White appliances aren't outdated :-(
And I wouldn't say that this is on a budget either.

i prefer the before as well. seemed lighter & brighter.

I love the before, and I shall be stealing the design for my kitchen forthwith.

White appliances are only "outdated" if you fall into the hype of stainless steel and granite.

And while this may have been within *their* budget there is no way in &¥@* this can be considered a "budget reno".

I like the after (and I'm really glad they're happy with it), but I love everything about the before except the stove.

i also prefer the before. the new matte cabinets look too flat.

I'm with everyone else, I liked the old kitchen better :(

Forgive me, but "impactful" is just hardly word.

They're both quite nice...just different. I supposed the stainless modernizes the kitchen, but the white seems lighter and brighter.

the dishwasher looks the same to me? I'm not a fan of replacing appliances because they are 'outdated' or not in keeping with current trends.
I too prefer it all white, but I prefer the style of the new white cabinets.

I know they may have had a budget, but new fridge + new stove + new cabinet fronts = NOT budget!

I like both. But, really, 'on a budget' doesn't necessarily mean 'costing almost nothing'. It can mean that a certain amount of money was allocated regularly, and when the amounts accrued to the required level, they were then expended. The article does say 'Slowly but surely'.

I like the before.. but the other comment is correct.. the angle is different.
Although I am a fan of mixing up the cabinetry.. I don't like the solid black with the flooring... I prefer the white.

If you look at the kitchen in context, the after makes a lot of sense. The reno ties the kitchen to the rest of the apartment:
http://gallery.apartmenttherapy.com/photo/derek-jennifers-dashing-digs/item/129934
(Picture looks to be the before)

In 10 years, Stainless steel appliances will look soooo turn-of-the-century.
White will still look good.

(... Recall the avocado appliances of the 70's?)

In a small kitchen with white cabinets, I would argue that white appliances look much better because they don't break up the visual flow.

They blend in perfectly and give an overall seamless look which is great for small modern spaces.

I refuse to give into the marketing that tells us that stainless steel is high-end, and white is cheap. How in any way does stainless steel function better than white?
It's simply more expensive just so people can have a reason to throw out white appliances and feel good about needless consumption.

I am a full-time designer and I am familiar with the financial challenges of kitchen renovations.
Investing in functional cabinetry, a good sink and faucet, quality countertops that don't melt or chip-- these are all sensible places to put your renovation dollars. But when homeowners have to come up with 10 grand for new appliances just because white isn't "high-end"? It makes you wonder who sets the rules.

The before was light, fresh, and airy while the after is rather heavy. The white oven helped the eye flow through without making it obvious that counterspace is limited.

on closer inspection, i do prefer the countertops of the after. but that's about it.

I agree with ChibiRobo, in context with the rest of the place the after looks a bit more fitting, but that's why I said I'm glad they're happy with it. I just personally prefer the before, probably beacuse it's somewhat similar to my own kitchen.

I'm envious of the "before" kitchen too, ha! But I do love the after. But those floors? Lovely with both.

I had to do a double take on this one! I have to agree with everybody else.....I really like the before picture better. Those cabinets are an "upgrade"? Maybe the picture isn't doing it justice?

I like both about the same!

Before: white appliances looked better with the smaller kitchen, and I prefer the cabinets with hardware

After: Countertop is better, and I like the black lower cabinets

But the floors and backsplash are great in both! Both looks are great.

I prefer the before...

I must agree, the before is better.

I may be alone in this, but I just don't understand replacing a machine because you don't like the look of it; I see this all the time on AT and the wastefulness of it just makes me cringe. (I'm not necessarily referring to this house, since they don't actually say in the post how the appliances were functioning.)

When I saw the before photo, i was like "wow! refreshing!", then I saw the after photo, i was like "hmmmm... it's almost like everyone else's kitchen".

While I do appreciate their effort, I have to agree that before photo is better in this case.

I like it better as you had before, it looks brighter and more spacious.

It's important to differentiate one's personal taste from good design. The two do not always agree, and I think in this case the after is, as mentioned before, more in keeping with the rest of the apartment. Darker, lower cabinets help to ground the space - particularly helpful with a high open ceiling, and this space appears to have plenty of light.

This kitchen is nothing like mine, but mine fits with the style of my home, as this one does with the rest of their home. Which helps to make it good design.

Applause for using acrylic counters and keeping the existing stainless backsplash, rather than bowing to the "resale" trend of granite, which likely helped them to afford other splurges that meant more to them.

Just wanted to add - I think choice of finish in appliances should be made in relation to the other elements - cabinets, counters, flooring and natural light - in the space, not by trend - ie: stainless being a premium and therefore always desirable.

Stainless is high-maintenance, it shows splatters, finger prints and minor (and major!) dings. And it doesn't look at home in every style of kitchen. So the idea that stainless is an upgrade from everything else (except in price) is not a given.

In this case they were likely working with the existing dishwasher and backsplash by making this choice. I hope they donated the previous white appliances to Habitat for Humanity or elsewhere to extend their life.

They might have considered black frige and stove, or done an undercabinet frige to add counter space and keep the dark finishes in a horizontal plane.

I love the new stove in the after. I think my biggest issue is lack of hardware on the cabinets...with the uppers painted matte white, they would get so dirty from every day use and grime in a kitchen, especially without pulls. :-(

When was it decided that "stainless steel appliances" would be synonymous with "upgrade" and "renovation"?

My wife and i are the owners of this place. Maybe i should of given Kristen a little more detail about what was replaced and why.

We did everything (counter tops, hardware, appliances, sink, and faucet) for right around 4 grand, which i think is a budget friendly renovation. Everything was either on sale at cost because of a connection through a friend.

The stove was donated even without a working broiler and so was the fridge. The old cabinet doors where mdf covered with laminate that were pealing, stained, melting from the previous owner.

The new cabinet doors are solid maple covered with a vernier and painted white for the top. The bottom is stained a ebony allowing you to see the wood grain in the bottom cabinets which matches the darker part of our floors.

the ikea hardware is small stainless steel pulls at the bottom of each door.

you can maybe see some better pictures at my flickr site.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/dsm-ad/sets/72157626781462242/with/5748219950/

Too much stainless for me. Maybe covering the fridge and dishwasher with cabinet overlays would tone it down.

@vwsutton19
4 grand is NOT a small budget!
that said, after looking through your flickr pics, I do like the after better (you really should've put one of the other photo's as your after... the other ones on flickr are WAY better!)
And I just realized you're the owner of one of my fave apartments! The photo's of your living room are in my 'inspiration' file, and were instrumental in the color choice and design for my own living room! So thanks! \(^o^)/

@Bennemans
4k is actually quite a very small budget for the work @vwsutton19 did with the kitchen. All that for 4k is impressive. I love the drop gable. I am sure that anyone who preferred the before kitchen would change their mind if they saw both in person.

Bennemans - I would disagree for a kitchen, $4 grand is on the smaller side, especially for everything they did, including replacing appliances.

I initially couldn't understand why they even di the reno because the before looked fine to me but when I read the owner's explanation, the reno was motivated by function, not just asthetics. I still like the all white in the before, felt like the space looked bigger but the after is nice as well.

I'm loving the updates. I think the color change on the lower cabs really helps. The dark lower cabs seem to work well with the dark floors. Much better than the lower white cabs did.

White appliances don't bother me - but since the DW was already stainless it was a good move to make them all uniform. It also helped the stainless backsplash make more sense as well.

Job well done!

It's always hard to tell from a picture why we replace the things we do in our kitchen remodels. I happen to think 4k is a pretty decent budget in light of everything that was accomplished with this remodel. Kudos!!

I love the after, but budget-conscious?!? Replacing appliances rarely strikes me as such.

But the effect IS gorgeous, so awesome work on that, adjective-choice aside!

like the before better.

I liked the before better.

This before-and-after felt like one of those "find the fork in the picture" games from Highlights magazine. Plus, the before actually looks like an after already.

Took me reading the first few comments to realize the stove was replaced, which maybe speaks to the white stove did not really need replacing. The darkened cabinets shadow the stainless appliances.

Maybe a new kettle was really all this kitchen needed?

Since they were doing the countertops over, why didn't they opt for a double-holed sink? A single basin sink, especially as small as the one shown, hardly leaves you room for cleaning veggies and setting them to one side, much less washing, rinsing and draining dishes (and yes, you have to do that even when you have a dishwasher).

That IS a great place to put the Kitchenaid, that deep spot behind the sink, that doesn't really work well for much else.

Hello Fellow AT's, I want to apologize for the smarmy comment I left here yesterday - it was yanked by the editor at AT - and probably for good reason.

While I didn't think what I wrote was particularly harsh, after reading through the "comment policy" I can see where I may have gone overboard.

Anyway, I hope I didn't offend D&J because that was not my intention.

Edgaroso

the before pretty much describes my kitchen ..i wouldn't have done a thing..

Aha! If you you look at vwsutton19's flickr page it makes more sense - the after does look better :) Still not crazy about the black bottoms of the cabinets but the top and counters look great!

@vwsutton19 are you saying that your new oven doesn't have a broiler? That would drive me crazy!

@Bennemans 4 grand is a very small budget for a kitchen - all of those costs add up fast

@Therese Z - just a guess here but due to the placement of the sink (and the cabinet that holds it) increasing the size of the sink probably wasn't an option. A larger sink would have meant a larger sink base cabinet. IOW - replacing ALL the lower cabinets and not just the doors.

Where did the microwave go in the after?

The after looks good to me--the black base cabinets and the floors are a great combination.

Really?! Who cares what they spent. It's their money and maybe 4,000 dollars wasn't a big deal to them. And who cares if they replaced their appliances. They are the ones using this kitchen and if they like stainless steel, then good for them. People have PERSONAL preferences and these people wanted their kitchen to look the way it does now. I think it looks lovely either way and if they are happy, then I'm happy for them.

@ Turbo_Elba- we replaced the white stove because the broiler was broke. New stove has working broiler- almost a year without a broiler sucks

@ Ms. Vickie- you are 100 percent correct. A larger sink was not possible. Plus with the placement of the dishwasher a larger sink base cabinet was not possible

oh and the stainless steel backsplash had to stay because the builder ran it 2 foot up under that top cabinets and 2 foot under the lower cabinets

The before was way better. Why fix it if it ain't broken.

Well, I'll join the few contrarians here and say I much prefer the after. Though you have to go back to the original house tour & insert the new kitchen in your mind's eye to appreciate it, the new colors & finishes really do make the entire apartment cohere in a more polished & sophisticated way. The black lower cabs not only tie in with the flooring but with the windows & other large pieces in the apt to create a sleeker more refined whole. That all- white kitchen looked strangely temporary in that high-ceilinged space, as though it were just dropped in & would float away any minute. Now it looks grounded and permanent. And if the appliances & builder-grade doors were falling apart, we can hardly fault them for wanting to upgrade. It's amazing what they were able to do with 4k. Very well done!

I'd add to the above that I have nothing against all-white kitchens either - mine is all white and even though I also have a very high ceiling as they do, it doesn't look like the whole thing was rolled in the door & parked in the middle of the house like these HOs' old one did, possibly because everything except my island are recessed into the walls. In this case, their decision to go with darker lower cabs was a wise one because that one gesture toward solidity really helped integrate their entire kitchen into the structure and make it feel more home-like.

The after is not only not a significant improvement over the original state, it is not an improvement at all.

while i can't say i'm always a fan of "a lot" of stainless steel (especially in a small space), i would prefer ANYTHING to white. if i had a choice, we would never have a white stove, my goodness. stainless steel may show prints easier, but nothing looks grosser than the yellowing staining finish of white appliances after years of ware. i love that new sink too. the lip-less rim where sink meets counter is something i hope to have in my own kitchen one day.

... very late to the party, but why do ppl think they can infer the actual condition of things from a photo that's like 1/1000 of the actual scale. Can they not take ppl at their word when they say things were in poor condition? Why, when the blogger said the appliances were "outdated", did ppl immediately assume they were replaced for aesthetic reasons rather than functional ones?