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What is the matter with me? Maybe I'm too old to care, but the before version of that kitchen looks very cute and in pretty good shape. The one and only thing that screams at me are the yellow curtains. I'd take those down and hang a couple of plants and/or a fruit basket and/or some wind chimes. Maybe get a smaller scale fridge and change out the bottom cabinet doors under the sink for something nicer. I'm thinking Shaker style. Plain white looks nice in a little '40s-50s kitchen like that. You can add color accents (I'm thinking red) via pots, pans, dishes, small appliances, dish towels, etc. If there's room for a little utility cart next to the stove, all the better.
It had a washing machine in it where the dishwasher is now. The floor under the kitchen sink was completely failed from many decades of leaks. The whole house had 7' ceilings. I vaulted everything to 8 1/2'. It's a very narrow footprint for a U-shaped kitchen. I recessed a countertop-depth fridge, dishwasher, and lower box into the wall and used a 21" countertop. That 3" makes a big difference.
The bathroom was also a total gut job.
There isn't much left that's original. Nothing was worth salving. Most of the framing was replaced as rooms were gutted. Here's the master bedroom. Completely re-framed including rafters and the ridge board.
Same with the guest bedroom though I didn't vault that ceiling.
I couldn't even hope of owning a house like the ones on renovation TV. I'd like to see some shows on how to make an old low cost small home look pleasant with a $1000 budget for example. Like a jack of all trades making things from scratch. Reuse, recycle, re-purpose, that kind of thing.
It bothers me when home renovators gut out perfectly good kitchen cabinets that would use a coat of paint and new hinges or knobs instead . There are companies that specifically do cupboard door refacing for a fraction of the cost of new. Cupboard boxes all look alike. Why rip them out? A coat of paint and refaced doors look fine. This granite counter top rage is so expensive. There are great choices for lino top that look just like it, if you want granite-look. New toilets and plumbing fixtures can be cleaned and look brand new. A new seat will often help "update". Tubs can be resurfaced. Blinding white kitchens are so sterile and lack warmth.
Today's fads compared to future trends will seem like the olive green and orange and popcorn ceilings of the 70s and 80s. Wall paper is coming back when for many years it was a no-no. In future, all of today's upgrades will be ripped out too.
I couldn't agree more! Some of the renovations I see on HGTV are unnecessary, others are sad.
Many are so trendy, that you just know they will look dated in 10 years.
I'm a lover of original features. I like things that are slightly different, historic and interesting.
New homes do nothing for me. And - they are being built everyday. Leave the older homes for those of us who appreciate them.
You also make good points about upcycling and recycling. I think it's horribly wasteful to see perfectly good kitchen cabinets ripped out and destroyed because they are "dated".
I would also enjoy seeing more lower budget renovation shows, where people work with what they have.
It bothers me when home renovators gut out perfectly good kitchen cabinets that would use a coat of paint and new hinges or knobs instead . There are companies that specifically do cupboard door refacing for a fraction of the cost of new. Cupboard boxes all look alike. Why rip them out? A coat of paint and refaced doors look fine. This granite counter top rage is so expensive. There are great choices for lino top that look just like it, if you want granite-look. New toilets and plumbing fixtures can be cleaned and look brand new. A new seat will often help "update". Tubs can be resurfaced. Blinding white kitchens are so sterile and lack warmth.
Then you best not come to my house when the renovator comes out here to renovate my kitchen and bathroom in a couple of months! A coat of pain/new hinges/knobs won't update my 36 year old home.
Anyone wince when houses are ripped up for renovation?
I have seen some kitchens on TV that I would have salvaged as opposed to ripping out...but that wouldn't be good tv. It also wouldn't make people buy "new" kitchens. I have remodeled houses and sometimes a picture looks much better than the real life cabinets.
So you think any good materials are just thrown away? Sorry, you have no clue. We commonly tear out good cabinets, mouldings, appliances, lighting, etc and it all gets loaded on one of our trucks and it goes to Habitat For Humanities. They don't put it in any of the houses they build but do sell the items. Occasionally when I have someone that wants cabinets in a shed or in a garage, I buy used cabinets from HFH. Sometimes, they end up looking like new cabinets, just depends on what they have available at the time. I buy a few thousand dollars a year from them. Yeah, they have a lot of junk and yes you have to look thru some of it sometimes but there are some decent deals if it fits your needs. Home Depot and Lowes both will donate their clearance items to HFH. Last year they donated several truckloads of Premium Valspar paint. I bought a lot of the 5 gallon cans of their PVA primer. You can always use a good primer. Drywall screws at a buck a pound is a deal. But no, good materials are usually taken to HFH for recycling, reusing. We normally get a receipt of value for the person we're doing work for so they can get a small tax deduct come April 15. Any contractor worth using is doing the same as we are. We support our HFH locally.
I have seen this before....even in total teardowns they will even strip out the wire in the house and scrap it.
I saw a 2.5mm house get stripped then eventually torn down.
When we did our kitchen gut job, we kept/donated our kitchen cabinets, which were still in great shape - 42" maple.
We put up a few of them in our laundry room for storage, and then gave the rest to a friend of ours that was renovating their finished basement and wanted to put in a small kitchen as part of their own reno.
It had a washing machine in it where the dishwasher is now. The floor under the kitchen sink was completely failed from many decades of leaks. The whole house had 7' ceilings. I vaulted everything to 8 1/2'. It's a very narrow footprint for a U-shaped kitchen. I recessed a countertop-depth fridge, dishwasher, and lower box into the wall and used a 21" countertop. That 3" makes a big difference.
The bathroom was also a total gut job.
There isn't much left that's original. Nothing was worth salving. Most of the framing was replaced as rooms were gutted. Here's the master bedroom. Completely re-framed including rafters and the ridge board.
Same with the guest bedroom though I didn't vault that ceiling.
That came out pretty decent.
My only qualm is the cabinet surrounding the fridge. Something about it feels off. The ceilings look a lot better though.
One thing that makes me wince is painting over beautiful brick.
Guilty. I absolutely hate brick and have painted over it and sometimes covered a brick wall with drywall. Beautiful is subjective
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. It also wouldn't make people buy "new" kitchens. I have remodeled houses and sometimes a picture looks much better than the real life cabinets.
Painted brick
