�If you could redo something in your kitchen, what would it be ?
Posted by NYMK (My Page) on Sun, Jan 13, 13 at 21:46
There is a post about your three favorite things in your kitchen. I find this thread very informative. Some peopled included in their posts, things that they did not like in their kitchen, which I also find invaluable. Any one else care to chime in? I'm still in the planning stage and would love to hear what not to do.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg012146126890.html

THanks Angela. I did not see that thread; only the one I referenced in my OP. Off to read it now!

p.s. It was really hard to figure out what to search in order find a similar thread! :)

This post was edited by ck_squared on Wed, Jan 23, 13 at 9:49

Here's another thread. If you google on "Gardenweb Kitchens Regrets" you can find some more old ones.

Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen Regrets

Not completely done, but already have regrets doing/not doing.

1. Not rounding corners of granite - I've bruised my hips/behind several times bumping into them already.
2. Not taking my time to look around at countertop surfaces more. I hate having to make choices and often just pick one to be done.
3. Not making sure the handles on the FOUR DIFFERENT brand appliances would "talk" to each other better.
4. Not writing down exactly what I wanted/expected for carpenter. We spoke about it and I assumed he'd remember. Bad wrong. LOL
5. Not writing down what contractors say while in your home and making them sign it (like tile/granite installers saying "oh, no problem, if something's wrong we'll come fix it"), then later when you have an issue, they say they never said that. Grrrr.....
6. Not being very particular and checking over tile installation before tile guys leave WITH MY CHECK.
7. Not thinking longer about surface type other than polished for granite. I didn't like the shininess of it even in the showroom, but leather didn't look good to me. Wish I had thought about it more. Dislike all the SHINE in my kitchen.

Sounds like I'm totally unhappy with my kitchen but I'm not. I'm very pleased overall.

Amanda - you have some great information there. Thank you!
1, 3, 4, and 5 are the ones that I will be taking into account with our remodel. Thanks so much!

ck_squared - you are welcome! I hope others can learn from my mistakes. Another regret - not doing the kind of research you are doing now. You won't have nearly the many of "wish we had done..." or "oh, we regret doing...."

I regret putting an ogee edge along one work surface - it cuts down on functional countertop and is hard to sweep stuff off of. Many, many don't seem to agree with me on this, but it is my regret and I rue it every single day. Hate the functionality part. It looks OK, but nowhere near good enough to overcome the functional irritation.

I regret all my faucet choices but I think this is a really hard aspect of it all. I don't know that I could have done better, or not without a huge component of luck at least! But personally, I'd invest a lot of thought and time in that decision - water is central to everything, but you don't want it to be everywhere, IYKWIM! ;)

Do spend some time just leafing back through the archives; lots of people talk about various things all the time -- I agree it's an invaluable part of all of this to read about. But remember that into any given choice goes a lot of life-style issues, so someone's regret may no more be yours than their gorgeous fluffy chartreuse lace window coverings will be the perfect finisher!

BTW, I am 98% besotted with my kitchen, too, still, over a year + later. Also, ... still exhausted. :) But I couldn't agree more that loading your effort in advance with planning is utterly, completely and thoroughly worth it. The real difficulty, though, is in figuring out how you feel about stuff you're not yet in the thicket of.

G'luck!

Thanks, Amanda..great thoughts. Can you elaborate on #3? That's a concern of mine as well. Which appliances did you go with? Thank you in advance!

Katrina161-
I'm attaching a picture of all the handles.

Samsung fridge
Whirlpool dishwasher
Maytag microwave
Frigidaire range

I picked soley on the features I wanted and best reviews. That landed me with four different brands. The color of the stainless steel is fine with all of them, it's the handles that bother me some. The main one that sticks out is the Whirlpool dw.

Before you ever call a contractor figure out exactly what you want...cabinets, counters,floors etc..taking your time to explore all your options. We were ready to do the kitchen, interviewed contractors, picked one..then it was "I have to decide on the counters, floors, etc." The only thing I was sure of going in was natural maple cabs...have as many choices nailed down in advance...go to as many stone yards as you can as much in advance as you can, when you're not rushed. My project was held up some while I made choices, but wish I had done a lot more beforehand. I love my kitchen and think it turned out well, but would have started a year in advance to plan it all out before calling contractors. A KD can also be very helpful, but choices can be overwhelming if you haven't researched what you like in advance. Another word to the wise...if you have leftover granite you want to use at a later date for a fireplace or bathroom, keep it at your house or mark it with permanent marker on the back with instructions to call you before selling or discarding. This happened to us...fortunately, I found another remnant by sheer chance at another place.

My kitchen isn't complete yet (still working on the sink cabinet area)but here is where I am so far.

I am sorry my cooktop is so high. I let my DH, who also cooks and is six feet tall, talk me into an island height of 37.5 inches and the grates on the stove raise the cooktop to 38.5 inches. I am only five feet tall and it is way too high for me.

And I am still holding out hope for a beadboard ceiling...

I'd do a number of things different next time, because there are a lot of choices I didn't know about and have learned much from this board.

The one regret I can point to is using tiles with a handmade look for my backsplash. I say handmade look because I think they are actually machine-made intentionally to look handmade. Anyway, some of the corners have a slight upturn. It's totally unnoticeable looking at the tile itself, or even the backsplash, right now, in broad daylight. But, when I turn on the undercab lights, I can see the lippage casting tiny little shadows. I had the tile boss back out, and he very kindly pointed out that it's in the tile itself. Bah! It bothers me more than not using my UCLs everyday, so I don't turn them on that much. As much as I regret this, I know that I could get another backsplash without totally breaking the bank. I think I will end up living with it. Otherwise, I love how my backsplash looks *without* UCL lights.

Linelle- try moving your UCL out away from wall, it will drastically reduce the shadowing.

Hey Amanda, thanks for the tip. Only problem is, they were installed *before* the cab boxes were painted and the painters masked them off and painted around them. So underneath is the original golden oak which would be revealed if the lights were moved. Right now, just this minute is the first time I've realized what that means. I don't remember saying, "oh leave those things where they are and paint around them," so it's just a dumb oversight. It might be something I could paint myself. Even if it doesn't match the pro job, you don't really see it unless you look.

I wish I had not chosen a splashy faucet/sink combo (Rohl arc faucet, Elkay SS sink).

I would have drilled down into the details about the space between the perimeter cabs and island - and learned that KDs measure from the box, not the front of the door, they don't take into account the granite overhang, nor the protrusion of the rangetop and knobs.

If I was tight on space - would have selected a cooker with knobs on top and not on front, so they would not protrude out into the work area.

I would not have had lower cabs that open into the dishwasher - since I have one cab that does not open all the way, i can't pull out the pull-out while the DW is open.

Would have gotten a quieter disposer.

Probably would not have invested in a SubZero fridge or Wolf range. The names do not add that much value as compared to the cost.

I would have insisted the GC break out his bid to include the components, rather than a general all-inclusive number.

phylhl, why would you want to know the components of the GC bid, just curious?

I wish I had chosen a separate 36" rangetop and 30" wall ovens, rather than the 30" range I have. I could have used the second oven, many times. Also, I am tired of bending for the range's oven. Also, I would have liked the extra surface real estate of the 36" rangetop, rather than the 30" I have now. BTW, notice that I said "rangetop", not "cooktop". I wouldn't want a cooktop that you have to install in a cutout in the counter. I'd want a rangetop (like the top part of the range, without the oven).

I got this pic of a Wolf 36" rangetop off of Google images - I don't know whose it is.

I am short. I would have lowered the microwave so I could clean inside it. I wish a corner cabinet had come out farther so I could reach it better.

I did a budge kitchen renovation, to save money, I kept the old pantry. I figure since there isn't any configuration change that I can do to the shallow 12" pantry, I could just use the old frame, get new doors, and paint it classic white to match my new Dura supreme cabinets on the rest of the walls.

In the end everything matched aesthetically. I expected the hand painted cabinets to be less smooth than the factory finished, but I expected to be at least as smooth as custom cabinets. I don't think they did a quality job on the painting and the cleaning on the pantry is more difficult than the perfectly smooth new cabinets. Its also not as durable. If I had known that hand painted cabinets would be much more inferior than factory finished cabinets, I would have shelled out an extra thousand to have all new pantry.

amanda - reason is, in case you become unhappy with any of the GCs work and want to bring someone else in to do any part of it - you would know how much to deduct.

I think one takeaway for me with GW was measuring measuring everything, once twice. Measuring yourself, the cabinets, the appliances etc. Like a tailored garment, fit really matters in the kitchen for a cook. If you are spending thousands of dollars on your dream kitchen, you should put in the effort to make sure it fits right.

My kitchen is not done and my regret is not digging deeper into my cabinet maker's finishing process and measurements. Cabinets spray painted on site is not fun and it is really important to check the 3 dimensional horizontal view of the cabinets to make sure they are in the line you expect.

I wish that I put in a wood burning oven or a fireplace in which I could cook. It was in the original plan, the builder had never done one and balked emphatically. I'm sorry I let him win that round.

Hi amandapadgett, I love the pictures of your kitchen floor, while you were showing all the different handles on your appliances, and would like to know what kind of flooring it is: make, color, what type of floor stone or tile etc,? If you don't mind. Thanks. I am doing over a kitchen that I lost along with the rest of the house from Hurricane Sandy and need to get flooring along with everything else. LOL. So I do not have a finished kitchen anymore.

I wish I'd known enough to build up the edge of my island. I love firsthouse_mp 's island. I also second guess myself on not selecting marble and using quartz instead.

Wish I'd taken the time to select a custom color for my backsplash tile (I'd prefer it grey).

I wish I'd moved the half wall to the right of my fridge over a couple more inches, to allow for a 36" fridge AND necessary trim.

Major 'would do differently' if I could again: lighting plan. Not the fixtures, but where and how I located the switches. We have so many switches! Walk here to adjust dimmer A (I have everything on dimmers and hate when the lights are too bright), walk over there to adjust dimmer B, flip 5 switches until I remember which ones control zone C, also, walk around rooms turning everything off after everyone else turns them on and up.

Colors - I wanted grey cabinets but ended up with an off white.

As others have said, love the kitchen and how it fuctions, so these are relatively minor. Still, when you have something which has turned out so well, you can't help aiming for perfection!

What's an S/O?

I'd actually put in a space saver microwave over the stove. With a fan. I made a great base cabinet, but I've discovered I hate bending down to get things in and out. And I'm only 5'2".

Other than that, I'm building myself, so if I don't like something or change my mind, I just change it.

S/O means spin off...

Thanks to everyone who has contributed. There is a lot of useful information in here. I really appreciate it!