Kitchen & Bath Business - February/March 2021 - 40

BALANCED BUDGET

SOURCES
DESIGNER: Kristine
Tyler, Owner, Tree Frog
Design; PHOTOGRAPHER:
Snowberry Lane
Photography
BACKSPLASH: Keraben,

Bati Orient & Olympia
Tile; CABINETS: Bellmont;
COUNTERTOP: Stonewood
Design; FLOORING:
Tarkett; SHELVES: Whidbey
Millhouse

A potential client's budget tells the designer whether they are realistic,
and she openly explains exactly where the money is going to go. For this
starter-home kitchen remodel,Tyler estimated 50% each for materials and
labor. New appliances could have broken the bank, but reusing all of them
other than the hood made the project possible.
A BETTER LAYOUT

The clients had bought the home recently and wanted to add function to their
kitchen. They also sought a clean, contemporary look.
" The kitchen was pretty bad beforehand, and the cabinets were falling
apart, " said Tyler, who explained that new cabinets and minor changes to
the layout yielded big results.
Moving the sliding door in the adjacent room farther away from the
kitchen gained them about 4 feet of space - enough for more cabinets and
a small peninsula for eating. Another important change to the layout was
moving the refrigerator.The designer knew that either it or the range would
need to be relocated, but because the range was already venting out of the
ceiling, the refrigerator provided a less costly change.
" Even if we moved the range to an exterior wall, there would have been
the possibility of more expense piling up, " she said. " I didn't want to risk that. "
Instead, she made a cubby in the wall so that the refrigerator could be recessed, which freed up even more space. A nook in the new cabinetry provided
room for the microwave, which had previously sat on the counter. Keeping
most of the appliance layout intact and not moving the sink kept costs low.
SAVING A LOT, SPLURGING LITTLE

In this kitchen, the designer saved funds in numerous ways that were acceptable for this project based on the value of the house, its function as a starter
home and the age of the owners. In a forever home, many of the decisions
would have had to be different.
By choosing budget-friendly, builder-grade cabinets in textured melamine,
Tyler gave her clients the contemporary style they wanted while staying
within their budget. Without the need for special drawers, pullout shelves

40
38-40_KBB_0221_BalancedBudget.indd 40

ABOVE Leaving the dishwasher

and sink in the same place
kept the project from encountering plumbing issues.
Space was gained by moving
a glass door, enabling more
cabinetry, a peninsula and a
place for the microwave.
The only real splurge for this
budget-friendly remodel was
adding a second window
above the extended sink wall.

RIGHT Above the existing
range, a stainless-steel
backsplash enhances the look
without driving up cost.

and spice racks, the cabinetry remained affordable.
The sink wall features floating shelves made from
reclaimed wood beams, which provided another
cost-conscious option that was high on style.
Using a neutral, large-format tile on the wall
gave the space a clean look and kept Tyler from
having to schedule drywall repair. More eyecatching tile was used as an accent - a mosaic
beneath and above floating shelves and a stainless-steel tile behind the range. Incorporating
these special surfaces was possible within budget
because the designer needed just a small amount
of material.
On this project, savings cropped up just about
everywhere. Because the budget was firm from the
start, Tyler made decisions based on it - but there
was one splurge.With the additional space provided
through moving the sliding-glass doors down,there
was room to add a second window above the sink,

bringing more light into the room.

/ FEB.-MAR. 2021 / KBBONLINE.COM / The official publication of NKBA (NKBA.org) and KBIS (KBIS.com)

1/26/21 1:44 PM

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Kitchen & Bath Business - February/March 2021

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