Before and After: Paul's Condo
Portland

after (jump below for more pics)

Paul sent us some photos of a 963-square foot condo in Portland that he's renovated. He says, I did nearly all the work myself, except the wiring and plumbing. Self-assembled IKEA cabinets saved me a ton of money so I could afford the nicer Bosch cooktop, oven, dishwasher (hidden behind cabinet panel) and washer and dryer...

before

after

... After a year of living with IKEA cabinets I couldn't be happier. The build quality, of which I was a bit skeptical at first, has stood up to much more expensive cabinets and are still just like new...

before

after

I built the solid zebrawood vanity, but I must say I'll never try and install a glass tile mosaic shower again.

before

after

Thanks, Paul!

(Click here for more information about the condo -- which happens to be for sale.)

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Comments (21)

Wow - Very Nice!

Did he explain what was difficult about installing the ceramic tile in the shower?

wow, very nice job on that kitchen! and i agree 345345% about how well the ikea cabinets have held up over the years. i'm a fan.

Lovely renovation.

I have to agree about the Ikea kitchen cabinets being a good choice. My loft was renovated just before I moved in, with Ikea kitchen cabinets. I was initially very skeptical of the quality and figured I'd have to replace them in a few years, but after 5 years they're still great. Who knew?

Just looked at the floors in the linked photos - are they cork?

I've been trying to find Zebra wood at local lumber yards and not having much success, where did you find it?

Very nice, love the kitchen and your bathroom.

bepsf, I believe he used glass tiles. I've been hearing reports that glass tiles require special saws to install and crack quite easily. Some contractors won't handle them.

Nice remodel. I love the kitchen!

Beautifully designed and executed on all levels!! A truly remarkable job.

Terrific job on the renovation!

Hi and thanks for the comments. Yes, the floor is cork and the tiles are recycled glass. Very difficult to cut.

Oh, and it's for sale as I've just taken a job in Boston.

http://www.empte.com/condo

Are the washer and dryer in the kitchen... cleverly concealed? If so, will you share how you did it?

i love the renovation... especially that zebrawood vanity!

Simply stunning! Love the zebrawood vanity!

What make is the beautiful bathroom basin?

What a coinky-dink that you just happened to submit these yourself, AND your place is for sale, AND you post the link and mention the sale in the comments.

Will wonders never cease?

dont you have to kill the rainforest to get zebrawood?
just wondering.. i dont know where i heard that.

I was enjoying this post until I realized the dude is only trying to sell us his place. Shady and tacky!

And I don't think the floors and cabinets work together at all.

I'm not only trying to sell it, I have to sell as I was relocated to Boston a few days ago. Sorry if that sounds shady to you, but I read Apartment Therapy every day and love it. Cheers.

shouldn't that outlet by the sink in the bathroom be a GFI?

Yep, it's on a GFI circuit.