I decided on IKEA kitchen cabinets for the remodel. They are affordable, look spiffy, and work well for a second home that doesn't get daily use. I had priced out a comparable kitchen at Home Depot, but $4,000+ took a big bite out of the old budget. IKEA cabinets were just over $2,000 (thanks annual kitchen sale!) and didn't have to be ordered in advance.
Here is the kitchen in utero, along with A LOT of the requisite IKEA flat packaging:
For prep, I made several advance IKEA runs to plan, ask bunches of questions, and pick out what I wanted. The Ikea kitchen planning software is easy to use once you get the hang of it, and most staff were knowledgeable and helpful.
I decided not to pay anyone to assemble the cabinets, and reserve that special ring of hell all for myself. I did splurge on delivery (I think it was about $75 from Tampa to St. Pete), so I wouldn't find myself cramming a kitchen's worth of boxes into my mom's clown car Prius, then lugging it all up the stairs to the condo. (On a side note, how great is it that you get VIP parking at Ikea when driving a hybrid? I felt like a pregnant lady being given a welcome seat on the subway.)
I have to say, it really wasn't a big deal to assemble everything. Thankfully it's a pretty small kitchen. I've also had my fair share of Ikea pieces over the years, so I know a cam when I see one. The first cabinet took me about 25 minutes. By the end, I was down to 15 minutes per cabinet. Some of the special pieces (like the interior carousel in their corner base cabinet) took a bit longer, but all in all, pretty snappy.
The most difficult part was communicating the kitchen plan to the crew, without having a visual to give them. They had also never worked with Ikea before and were unfamiliar with its Swedish ways. There was some confusion and much moving of things in order to make the cabinets fit. The other mistake of the day (my bad) was forgetting to account for the sink plumbing which — wouldn't you know — came out of the wall at exactly the point where two cabinets met. Luckily this was a pretty easy fix as well; the handytractor just moved the pipe a couple of inches to the left.
I had grand plans to make a refrigerator cabinet of sorts, using leftover filler pieces. However, instead of a finished, sleek, professional looking piece, there were jagged seams that they planned to just caulk instead. So not pretty. So on to the Plan B.
But, they're almost done and countertops are next (it takes a couple of weeks to fabricate), but things are humming along nicely. Things are cooking indeed.
PREVIOUSLY ON THE WORLD'S UGLIEST CONDO:
• Introducing the World's Ugliest Condo
• The World's Ugliest Condo: Scope of Work & Budget
• The World's Ugliest Condo: Finding That Special Contractor
• The World's Ugliest Condo: A Glimpse of What's To Come
• The World's Ugliest Condo: My Ballad of Renovation Woes
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I enjoyed reading the update.
I am planning to redo my kitchen this year, too, and I also plan on assembling the cabinets myself so it is nice to hear it went uneventfully. I envy you the nice big fridge.
Please do tell - which cabinets did you decide on? Is it the high gloss white finish? I can't recall the name off the top of my head (Abstract?)
Do you refer to your contractors as "handytractors"? I must be very old-fashioned, but this term sounds demeaning when applied to a human being.
IKEA is never a good choice for kitchen cabinets. They look great for a short time but the low quality becomes apparent after just a few years. Solid wood cabinets are always worth it. They hold together for decades and when they look outdated you can resurface them or swap out the doors.
@Sasha2 - He said earlier that while looking around for contractors, the best fit and most capable professionals were not full contractors, but more than your average handyman. He's since been calling them "handytractors" - no reference to a vehicular work machine. :)
I really like your writing style. I look forward to these posts because they are so entertaining to read!
DEVUSHKA,
THANKS for the explanation!
A.
Ikea cabinets are *fine*. I promise. We have had Ikea cabinets (white!) in our kitchen for nine years and they still look great and function well. I'd recommend them to anybody, but they are especially appropriate for a rental or vacation property (like the one profiled here), or in a neighborhood where higher-end cabinets will not net a good return on investment (like mine). The newer models offer soft-close options, roll-out drawers, and other features that are comparable to more expensive cabinets. Ikea cabinets are a totally functional and economical option for people who don't need or want to spend a lot of money. And no, I don't work there - I just really, really like our cabinets.
End of rant. Thanks for sharing your decorating process with all of us - I've enjoyed each installment and look forward to seeing more. Have fun with the new kitchen!
I love your updates Ann! They are both entertaining and instructive. I've been reluctant to purchase Ikea cabinets but MCB-in-MD puts me at ease while PARTICLE has me worried. I also live in a middle-middle class neighborhood and don't want to go broke on new cabinets. However, I generally have a bad impression of Ikea quality in general. Wonder if PARTICLEMAN actually has Ikea kitchen cabinets? You may like particle board so perhaps you do? Thanks!
Thanks!
Be careful with the IKEA plumbing if you get a sink from them! It's all metric! The pipes were too short to meet the pipe coming out of the wall in both of our bathrooms, so I had to cobble something together using a combination of IKEA and Home Depot (US) parts.
@DEVUSHKA *she
Fine Homebuilding as well as several architects I know have all declared Ikea cabinets to be a fine choice (though Fine Homebuilding recommended taking the money you saved and spending it on great, high end hardware.)
You know, I was going to write a lengthy rebuttal to Particleman, but instead, I'll just say: you don't know what the h*ll you're talking about.
(oh, and by the way: between the two of us, my mother and I have had about 20 years of experience using not one, not two, but three IKEA kitchens.)
Ikea cabinets were installed in 3 of the 4 units in my building 8+ years ago. There have never been any issues with them and we all tend to cook a lot. One neighbor got tired of the look so she painted them and changed the doors. The remaining unit had cabinets installed from Home Depot. He has been kicking himself ever since even though he hardly uses his kitchen.
I also have IKEA cabinets and I prefer them over the builder's Home Depot cabinetry that came with the house. And they are study.
We assembled and installed IKEA cabinets in our kitchen 3 years ago and have no complaints whatsoever. They also came with a 25 yr guarantee (if that helps put your mind at ease).
Wait one hot minute! You're putting these cabinets into a second home and you were worried about packing them into your mom's clown car?! Shouldn't you have your own car by now?
@canadianmango. yes, i went with the white Abstrakt. you'll be able to see the finished product soon, I hope.
ha! that's funny @chartreuse. i flew down to florida to work on the condo, and my mom joined me there, with her clown car.
and thank you @calamitycj for pointing out my girl status.
i should also mention that this is my second ikea kitchen as well. the first was for a rental unit five years ago, and it's still going strong. that's why i felt confident that they would work in this context.
my advice for any self assembled cabinetry is to use plenty of wood glue, strap together tightly with come alongs or carpenters vice [depending on geometry]while drying. also if there are any exposed ends of particle board, fill with liquid polyurethane so no steam can infiltrate, expand the fill and pop the seams.
I'm sitting here loving what I'm reading cause right now I'm going through my own reno hell. I'm blogging at my computer with several hundred feet of laminate flooring in their boxes sitting behind me, I have the glory of looking forward to my next three days off of ripping up old flooring and painting baseboards and hall walls next week, then dealing with a floor crew for a couple of days. Then after all that, I still have two bedrooms that all the contents have to be removed and carpets ripped up so we can start the entire process all over again. My life is beginning to resemble Groundhog Day; while all the reno is going on, I'm also job hunting and finishing school which is the exact same thing I was doing last year while completing an overhaul of my great room/kitchen area. I am under firm orders to never repeat this fiasco again no matter how long we remain in this home under threat of having to do it by myself. Whew! I feel better now unloading on people who understand!!
I'm going to have to side with Particleman. My own Ikea cabinets experience is not a good one. They have not held up well and haven't been installed that long (6 years maybe). The previous owner had put them in to sell the house. I wish they had left the original cabinets and let the new owners decide on what they want. I doubt I would ever purchase Ikea cabinets. I'd rather wait awhile and save and then get something better quality. But I'm glad to hear not everyone has a bad experience.
I just wanted to add my own two cents about Ikea cabinets. The best part of Ikea cabinets are the interiors - the cabinet box and drawer frame. They are inexpensive but solidly built. Yes, they are HDF rather than solid wood, but so are a lot of the big box brands at a far higher price point. After A LOT of research, I chose Ikea for my kitchen renovation and they are great, especially the drawers which have soft close Blum hardware that you see on very high end brands.
What you choose to put on the outside makes all the difference - some of the the lowest end door styles look cheap and plasticky, but there are lots of other options. Ikea has a range of doors styles or there are a number of sources where you can get custom doors that fit on Ikea boxes. I went with custom doors and you'd never guess that it's an Ikea kitchen (glass front, painted maple designed exactly to my specifications at less than half the cost of a big box brand).
I disagree with you Particleman, my IKEA kitchen cabinets were installed nine years ago and are still perfect. Unfortunately, though, the freestanding dishwasher (not IKEA and which cost more than the cabinets!) had to be replaced a few months ago. This time I decided to go for an integrated model - it was great to be able to buy a matching door all these years later!
I appreciate the feedback on Ikea cabinets from everybody. Thanks, ladies and gents!
Congrats on the progress! Are you assembling and installing all these cabinets alone? I sure hope not! Last week I had a crew of 4-6 people on an given day to assemble and install my new IKEA kitchen cabinets. I can particularly relate to your line "I decided not to pay anyone to assemble the cabinets, and reserve that special ring of hell all for myself" as we also decided to save that enjoyment for our friends and family. We are hoping to get all the finishing touches on our kitchen done today! If you want you can check out our progress (though unfortunately not as detailed as yours) on my blog at oldplacenewface.ca if you're interested.
Good luck with the rest of the condo!
I just replaced crappy oak buildergrade cabinets with IKEA and I think even the melamine doors look really good. Maybe it's just because they're only a couple months old, but I'm loving them so far! I plan on doing a further renovation to "L" out on one side and then I plan on getting the painted wood doors, but until then I think the cheapest option for doors is still pretty darn good.
We're coming up on 12 years with our IKEA cabinets and I have to say that it's the best home improvement value to date. Aside from the sink cabinet showing some wear - we had a leak and it takes a regular beating - all the cabinets have held up remarkably well. So much so that when we're ready to update, we're going to keep the boxes and just change out the doors. I'll replace the sink box, but that's it. I am also dish obsessed which means the cabinets are packed and heavy. We've never had a problem with the boxes sagging or seams separating. I would highly recommend IKEA cabinets to anyone.