.JPG)
Name: Bai
Location: Gramercy Park, NYC
Favorite Kitchen Resources
1. Broadway Panhandler: the staff is very knowledgeable and they have everything
2. Chef's Catalog: They've got good prices and wonderful customer service.
Pitch:
Why my kitchen is fabulous: it makes the most of a small space.
When I bought the apartment a year ago, the kitchen had been the victim of what may be the worst renovation ever. It had floor-to-ceiling granite, lots of wasted space, no drawers at all, and not an outlet close enough to plug the stove into! (It was an investment property for the previous owner, who "fixed" it up in the hopes of a higher price).
To save money, I kept the granite and the existing new appliances, but redid the layout. My kitchen now boasts five drawers, a dishwasher, and plenty of counter and storage space. Dinners for 12 are a breeze.
.JPG)
3 Compelling kitchen cooking/design tips:
1. For fellow New Yorkers or anyone with a tiny kitchen: splurge on custom cabinets, it makes a world of difference, and you get a much more useable space.
2. Under-cabinet lights and a light above the stove are essential
3. Go smaller and narrower for appliances - especially for fridges and dishwashers.
.JPG)
I'd love to see before pictures.
I love the categories you come up with, Maxwell.
Who did your new cabinets?
Wow, they really did go to town with the granite!
I like what you did with the cabinets. The glass inserts makes it look a lot more spacious and the design is cleaner than the old cabinets. Like the flat front (flat front is always better - including trousers) base cabinets and the door pulls. Also like the cut in handles for the drawers.
I also like how you repositioned the stove to use that dead wasted space thereby creating precious extra counter space. Did you also add the extra base cabinets and couter space on the bottom left of your first picture?
BTW, Joan, pictures 3 and 4 are the before pictures.
One more thing - it looks like you found extra space for the stove from another room or closet behind that wall. Very resourceful. It's great when you can find extra space within walls or backs of closets that may have been closed up. As has been said before in another thread, every cubic inch counts!
The most amazing kitchen I've ever seen! You did an amazing job!
I love the new layout of the kitchen. It truly maximizes the usable space, making it a very cook-friendly work area. The glass upper cabinet doors help to eliminate the closed-in massive feeling that solid doors would have created. I noticed that the two top drawers were narrowed, I guess to accommodate the oven handle...good idea.
Oh, thanks. How unobservant of me.
Joan--
That wasn't at all clear to me either.
Lou Bob - Teamwork Contracting did my cabinets. They're out of Flushing, and have their own woodshop, plumbers, electricians, etc. I saw two other apartments that they did, and the cabinetry was great. Pretty reasonable, too.
jamie pup - thanks for your comments, and for noticing the "before" pics! It's a shame they're not more visible, as the kitchen seems a bit more impressive when viewed thru the lens of what was there before. I did add cabinets to that area in the bottom left of the photo - that area, approx. 19" wide by 26" deep, had been left totally empty - no outlet, no cabinet. Now the base cabinet has a drawer and glide-out shelves for cookware.
A really nice job of rescuing and customizing a job that really would have been daunting to many... BECAUSE it was so "finished" by the previous owner/seller. I think that is often a much harder starting point (ESPECIALLY when so granite-clad!), so kudos for making it your own, and so much more functional.
You're welcome Bai. I agree with patrick 1.0 that the work is all the more impressive given the nature of the before state.
Hey Joan, you're not unobservant, I'm just obsessive when it comes to stuff like this - witness my comments on the Mott St. Apt.