Slowly does it
What would you do with this kitchen?
Friday April 10
Featured Listing
A special new listing from Haystack Realty Group.
2841 Landing Circle, Grimesland, NC - Listed for $795,000
This one-of-a-kind home in Moss Bend was constructed in 2021 and sits in the desirable Hope, Wintergreen, and DH Conley school district, on just under an acre of land outside city limits. Spread over almost 4,000 square feet, the house features a spacious open-plan layout optimized for entertaining and enjoying time with loved ones. If you work from home, you’ll love the privacy of the office, and if you prefer connecting with the outdoors without the discomfort of dirt and bugs, the large screened porch—complete with a fireplace, and accessible from the primary suite— is the perfect place to unwind on cool summer evenings.
You can see more images and read the full listing here.
What would you do with this kitchen?
I found this kitchen on Threads with the above caption. Let’s talk about it.
Before I get into what my answer would be, here’s a sample of the 699 responses under the post.
Peel the blue film off the range drawer.
Add more green since you’d probably want to keep the existing green tiles.
I would leave it. People tend to tear perfectly good things down and want bigger, newer, brighter. Enjoy this cute space and appreciate that it doesn’t look like every new build.
Complete work up. Dark brown walls, black cabinets with gold handles, white tile backsplash and a roman blind, with a fancy rug.
Just doing away with that backsplash with a new one, a stainless d/w when that one goes and a little color on the wall (Sherwin Williams Grassland) goes a long way to update w/o major overhaul.
Fix the leak coming from the floor above.
Raise the top cabinets up near the ceiling and add a taller crown moulding to make it touch the ceiling. Sand then and finish in a satin finish. Remove the curly trim above the sink. Put the microwave in a cabinet and build out a range hood.
Here are some of the images people generated as fixes:
Here’s how I’d approach this with a client (image again below for reference):
→ What is the architecture like in the rest of the home? This is exactly the kind of kitchen I’d expect to find in a 1960s brick ranch in Eastern North Carolina (partial overlay cabinets, exposed hinges, wood valance over the window). It’s been upgraded to a certain point, (the faucet, sink, microwave and oven (and even possibly the backsplash) are dead giveaways that some updating has occurred, but the architecture needs to be acknowledged, which is why the suggestions to go for clearly modern cabinetry feel out of place.
→ What’s the budget? The person who posted this is a realtor, like me, so my guess is that she is asking how to get it ready to sell, although it’s also possible she was asking on behalf of clients who are thinking of buying it. In my experience, clients preparing to sell would like to spend as little money while maximizing the impact and their return. The budget shouldn’t dictate priorities, but it will dictate what’s possible. This is why I’d give different advice to a client willing and able to spend $10,000 than I would to a client who has $1,000.
→ Leverage what works. Kitchens are costly, but by far the top dollar items are tile, countertops, and cabinets (appliances can be too). I would not tell any client to rip out tile, and if that countertop were quartz, granite, or quartzite, I’d advise them to keep that too. On a personal level, I love the backsplash, although I think a light grout was the wrong choice. If anything is in good shape and can work alongside other changes, I typically opt to keep it unless absolutely necessary.
Here’s what I would recommend for a client with $1,000 who is getting the house ready to sell:
Make sure whatever is causing the stain on the ceiling is taken care of, then repaint the ceiling
Take out the wooden valance
Replace the blind with a shade or a cafe curtain (cafe curtains are great for privacy, shades are great for managing light)
It feels “cottage-y”, so I’d lean into that. Cover the ugly dishwasher with a skirt, you can get custom ones off Etsy for less than $70
Negotiable: Remove upper cabinets and replace them with floating shelves
Negotiable: Replace all the handles with something less conspicuous
Negotiable: Change the sink for a single bowl, undermount sink for a cleaner look
Here’s what I would recommend for a client with $10,000 who is getting the house ready to sell (same as above with the following additions/exceptions):
Reface kitchen cabinets with a full overlay style cabinet, but still opt for something with depth (flat panels feel too modern for a cottage-style kitchen)
Change the sink for a single bowl, undermount stone sink for a cleaner look
Replace all the handles with something less conspicuous
Negotiable: Replace countertops with a stone product (if not already stone)
You’ll notice there isn’t all that much different between the two budgets. It’s because having a larger budget doesn’t always necessitate spending more. You can get the feel and good quality without spending a lot.
If there’s one meaningful tip I can give you as you consider making changes in your home, it’s this: Resist the urge to rip it all out.
There are obvious caveats here, like if it doesn’t support good functionality, if it’s rotten or structurally unsafe, or if it’s producing or contributing to other potential health issues—in those cases it has to go. But otherwise, keep as much as you can, and get creative: you can achieve better outcomes than you may think.
The Unexpected Renovation: A sneak peek
No more movement as yet. We’re on a spending freeze as a family, trying to plan for some big future things and leaning into maintenance mode, so I haven’t ordered anything new for the bathroom (no shower curtain, no new pulls, no new vanity light, no new bath mat— you get the idea). I did think though, with all the following along you’ve been doing, it would only be fair to give you a sneak peek. Let me know what you think!
Going forward (partially for sanity’s sake), we’ll be back to just one newsletter a week, so I’ll be merging the renovation newsletter and this one. I’m still working through what the new format will be, but I promise I’ll continue to make it worth your while.
Signing off for this week! If you’re looking for more, check out the blog, the podcast, or find us on Instagram and Pinterest.