This is a throwback to my very first flip which was my first personal residence. On this project I did all of the work myself (except for some minor electrical & plumbing work).
As you can tell from the photos, the kitchen needed a major renovation to get the kitchen out of the 70's and into the modern era. The kitchen was completely gutted and opened-up into the living room and received new kitchen cabinets, granite countertops, carrera marble backsplash and new stainless steel appliances.
I purchased the kitchen cabinets and the hardwood flooring at a building supply auction. I bought entire kitchen set (base cabinets, uppers, & pantry) for $2,000. The retail price on the cabinets was likely over $4,000. I also bought a pallet (~400 sf) of 3/4" Brazillian cherry hardwood flooring for $400 ($1/sf), which typically retails for $5/sf+ ($1,500+ in savings!).
The living room needed a serious makeover as well. The fireplace was pretty boring, so I bought a nail gun and miter saw and took on my first carpentry project. I add a substantial new fireplace mantel that really made the fireplace a focal point of the room. I ended up getting a little carried away with my new carpentry skills, and added 8" base and 6" crown molding around the perimeter of the room.
I didn't have enough hardwood flooring to install in the entire living room so I installed hardwood in the kitchen and partially in the living room with a hardwood perimeter border. I then installed new carpet in the middle, which gave it a 'rug' look.
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