Kitchen Renovation Under $5,000 - we did it!

Jen Compton
Oct 30, 2021
2 min read

A kitchen on a dime, or 50,000 of them, is possible. Let us show you how.

When we bought the cabin we considered rehabbing the current kitchen for a hot second, but quickly decided that we would rip it out and figure it out later. The layout felt very cramped, mostly due to the washer/dryer upon entry as well as the refrigerator sticking out, and it was just drab.

Before:

Part of the reasoning to renovate now was to get the flooring consistent on the first floor while we were completing the living/dining room areas. We tore out the linoleum and had to install subflooring to even out the surfaces (and to patch where Pete fell through the floor and into the basement bathroom - for another day).

We got lucky that when we removed the dated tiling from the wall that the large-width pine paneling was intact. It also revealed exhaust fan ductwork that would allow us to install an open range in the center of the wall.

Lots of Pins later and I kept coming back to this cozy kitchen below as the design inspiration. Turns out to be the handiwork of The Grit and Polish and their Dexter House. Big fans of all of the work they do (now that we know who they are... a little late to that party) - check them out at www.thegritandpolish.com.

Here's how our budget broke down:

We searched all the alternatives for affordable cabinetry and decided to go with IKEA. Their online planning tool was very helpful to finetune the layout, despite being a bit clunky. Per my usual strike rate at IKEA, it took a couple trips to get my ducks in a row before placing the order in-store. We were considering a simple butcher block countertop but IKEAS's Barkaboda herringbone countertop caught my eye.

We're putting more mileage on this kitchen than we ever could have predicted with Covid and everything is holding up great, not always a guarantee with budget work. And, the relatively small footprint (12' long from the angle in the pic above) seems to handle its dual purpose as an entryway just fine.

Swipe for some fun before and after's: