my kitchen story

anatomy of a budget kitchen

my version

We had a home built in 2002, it should have been an exciting experience. There really was not much of that. It was just a house, that's all. My husband and I were both kind of emotionally numb at the time. This was the saddest and most difficult year we ever had.

My oldest son was six years old when everything changed. Life as we new it would never be the same. My husband and I needed to make a fresh start for our family in a better place, especially for our son. The decision we came to was to build a simple, low budget, family friendly house in the best neighborhood we could find for our three kids. The east end of Long Island's North Fork is an incredible location. There are sandy beaches in all directions, great schools, numerous farms and vineyards and acres of untouched natural open space. This was the place we decided we wanted to raise our family. After spending a non productive day with the realtor we found our dream property while looking for a beach for the kids to play on.

We built a very small budget home in order to have the location.

this is our neighborhood beach

my husband said we could spend no more then 10k on the entire kitchen

he is a police sergeant for the county, his #1 goal was to have the home paid off by the time our kids were ready for college and not to get in over our head with a mortgage payment. He set a budget and we stuck with it. I married a very smart man. I would see a farmhouse sink or a fabulous faucet and sigh, but I was strong. We both wanted family vacations & activities, time together and financial security over granite counter tops and stainless steel appliances. I learned that year there are much more important things in life then having an expensive showcase kitchen.
What I did want was a generous sized kitchen ( it is 27' by 14') that would be the center of our family home where everyone could gather to hang out and relax. I did not want a formal dining room, so this was it. The room had to be warm and comfortable and most importantly functional plus kid and dog friendly.

The look I was going for was modern farmhouse with an industrial twist. The first thing I purchased - which set the tone for the whole design was the lighting.

I saw these lights from barnlight electric and had a light bulb moment (corny I know)

this was what I was looking for and only $25 each

I designed my whole kitchen based on these lights

hey, if I couldn't have stainless steel appliances I would have it in my lighting

as you know I love my neutral color pallet

the wall paint is a creamy neutral - Benjamin Moore Spring in Aspen

all the appliances are white, which saved alot of money

the floor is inexpensive #2 oak (this means it has more knots and imperfections)

I stained it a 50/50 combo of puritan pine and golden oak

the marble counter tops are actually formica $350

The kitchen table is another used piece of furniture

found at a house tag sale for $250

it is eight feet long which I love

I added more galvanized steel with a light fixture - a favorite find from Smith and Hawkins

( I am sad they're gone, I loved them)

I really wanted these galvanized steel kitchen chairs. My lucky day was when

I found these TOLEX chairs at the Pottery Barn outlet, a splurge for me @ $80 each

I did open shelving in place of upper cabinets to save money

the price tag for the cabinets for the whole kitchen was just about $6500

all of the bowls and pitchers are my yard sale finds that I put on display.

I don't think anything here was over $15

the cabinet are by Kraftmade. Thornton maple is the style - muslin is the color

they make the shelves and the wainscotting too.

here is my $200 tag sale cupboard

that got "built in"

it was a mess when I found it. The wood was stained and it had no back. The fabulous wavy glass was what sold me. I knew I could fix it up with some TLC and some Benjamin Moore China white paint.

most of these yelloware bowls were in the $10 to $30 range from tag sales

there are a few in there that I got for $1

I know...go ahead... hate me

this is an old plantation shutter from virginia was a gift from a friend

I have it mounted on the wall over my "faux" fireplace chalkboard

the ceiling is painted with benjamin moore quite moments

it is a soft gray blue green

this is as colorful as I get in my home

this was my favorite find - and old store counter display

I purchased this from a hardware store going out of business

$200

It almost did not stay - my husband did not like it at first. He wanted one with a built in wine rack

now he likes it. All of my kids art supplies are stored underneath.

I had Fred from Klatt sheet metal top it with galvanized steel $120

galvanized steel is so much cheaper then stainless or zinc

the art is actually from a book that I found on ebay that had pages and pages of egg plates

I purchased standard size frames from Michaels Craft Store - I had the mattes professionally cut at a frame shop. I put them together myself. The matting makes it looks professional and the store bought frames really save money

Clementine laying near my chilewhich rug. I have had this for years, it is like a big plastic placemat for the floor. I remember when there used to be a highchair on it.

Well, that is the end of the tour. The kitchen will always be evolving. As kids grow, needs or taste change. The decision to build this house was the best thing we ever did. We are all very happy, the kids love it here. And as far as my son, he is doing so well. I think he loves it here most of all. He has been healthy and is doing great in the school that he goes to.
Most of all it is a place that is the core of our family's life and a bonus is it will be mortage free in 5 years.