Before & After: Amy & Corey’s All White New Kitchen
comments
We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
(Image credit: Bethany Nauert)
Amy Pigliacampo and her husband Corey Szopinski purchased their Echo Park home two years ago. Their house is a very modern prefab design from Sunia Home, which came with a raw material lined kitchen and open floorpan.
(Image credit: Bethany Nauert)
“We always knew that we would need to redesign the kitchen. It looked cool, but lacked the functionality we needed for our growing family. Our kitchen is the most heavily used area in our home since we cook and eat at home most of the time. Our open layout makes the kitchen the focal point of our downstairs and we felt it wasn’t quite up to par with the rest of the house from a design standpoint.”
(Image credit: Bethany Nauert)
(Image credit: Bethany Nauert)
More from Amy about the remodel:
Our first step was to demo the entire kitchen. The only original elements we retained were the refrigerator, sink basin and basic layout. We spent about 2 months researching and planning the design. Prior to the remodel, we didn’t actually have any proper cabinets and we knew that was something we really wanted from a visual and organizational standpoint. For the base cabinets, we chose to go with all drawers instead of doors. We liked how Ikea drawers pull all the way out, which lets us access the full depth of the cabinets… plus we don’t have to get down on the floor to get something deep in the back.We also added an oven! Somehow we cooked tons of meals over the past 2 years, including a Thanksgiving dinner for 4 using a Breville toaster oven! Since we cook so much, adding tile behind the cooktop and proper countertops was also essential.
We interviewed a few contractors, and it was interesting to see the wide range of quotes come back. We had heard that most people think a kitchen remodel will cost about $10,000 but end up spending $20,000 or more by the time they’re done, so we were mindful to keep as economical as possible. One way we chose to do it was with our contracting.
We ended up using a hodge podge of contractors for various aspects of the job, and we played the role of general contractor. We think we saved at least $7,000 by doing the extra leg work ourselves. We had a team of guys come in and demolish the existing concrete counters, and jackhammer an electrical conduit into our concrete floor. Then we had a couple of cabinet makers come in and install all the cabinets. A third team came in to install the Silestone countertops, and finally one of our original concrete guys came back to do the tiling.
But was it worth it? Overall we love the kitchen, but there are a few loose ends that we didn’t account for until the very end. A more experienced general contractor would have caught the mistakes earlier. But then again, we learn best through doing, so it was worth it.
- Cabinets: IKEA
- Countertops: Silestone
- Stove: Samsung
- Exhaust Hood: Z-line
- Dishwasher: Bosch
- Tile: Lowes
Thank you Amy & Corey!