These homeowners were on an odyssey to find just the right space for their forever home before making it completely their own. Everything in their new-to-them home was exactly what they were looking for – except for the dark cabinets and moody color scheme. Luckily, our design team was waiting in the wings.
The Just-Right House at the Just-Right Time
This fun and fantastic Des Moines couple owned a home in Johnston, but they knew it didn't meet their standards for their forever home. They also knew Compelling Homes was the right partner to create their new space. We went out for a visit, measured it up, and got ready to make a plan.
Though they loved it, they weren’t quite prepared to invest in this home for the long term. They said, "Hold, please."
In the meantime, we all traveled a bit South, to the client’s second home on a private lake and did the same thing. We looked at the main floor and basement, designed to relocate the stairs and create a gourmet kitchen, and designed and priced out the project. This process convinced the client that this wasn’t their forever cottage either. They said, "Hold, please."
Now you might automatically think that we weren't happy to hear that, but quite the opposite. The entire point of our very existence here at Compelling Homes is to turn your home into something you are going to love. Something you can see yourself in forever. We're here for you, not the other way around.
The diligent effort of our house-hunting homeowners delivered a new phase in their lives – they sold their house in Johnston and purchased a different house in West Des Moines that had more of the things on their must-have list. Like almost all existing homes, it still wasn’t quite perfect, and that's when the remodeling juju came together and we were back in action together – us versus the dark Maple cabinets and moody backsplash that was holding them back from saying, "this is it."
Here are some of the main elements of this beautiful facelift:.png?width=500&height=500&name=Untitled%20design%20(1).png)
- Preserve existing reclaimed/rustic hand-scraped Oak wide plank floors
- Paint cabinets in the kitchen, lower level, 3 bathrooms, and mudroom
- Paint 2 fireplace surrounds
- New quartz kitchen countertops
- New Blanco Silgranite under-mount kitchen sink
- New backsplash
- Change backsplash cabinet
- Paint and carpet stairs
- Raise the upper cabinet to create more working space around the microwave
Paint: It Makes Your Wallet Smile
Everybody has a budget - period, end of story. It can be a 4-digit or 7-digit budget, but it informs your options and process, and it's our job to ensure we stay within that budget. How do you find a solution that offers the most significant value and pleases the budget gods? For this home: painting, cabinets, backsplash.
Our estimated cost to remove and replace the cabinets in this home was about $35,000. However, the existing cabinets were sturdy and well-made. They were simply the wrong color.
Painting the existing cabinets cost only $12,000. This is partly because all the cabinet boxes stayed in place - eliminating the cost/need for a carpenter to install/re-install during painting. The labor to completely remove and re-install cabinets in a kitchen of that size would have been $4-5,000.
That’s a $20,000 swing in the difference between replacing vs. painting cabinets, which is astronomical savings to achieve the primary objective of adjusting the color. We did the same thing throughout the lower-level bar, painting the cabinets in 3 bathrooms, kitchen, and mudroom. We also created a seamless transition among spaces by painting and carpeting the stairs.
Our team was pleased to bestow serious cost savings onto these homeowners. Had we completely gutted and replaced every element of this project, these clients could easily have paid $300,000 to get the look they desired. Because we were strategic and selective with our upgrades and capitalized on the magic of paint, this project was a significant fraction of that cost.
The Power of Paint
We don’t produce results you can replicate by running to your local big box store and grabbing some cabinet paint. Our quality products and expert application make a huge difference in the look of your cabinets over their lifetime. You could throw boiling marinara sauce on the cabinets, and it won’t stick. That kind of longevity and peace of mind is rare and valuable.
This project is all about what you can create with paint. It proves that a quick pop of color can make all the difference in the ambiance. Where once there was darkness, now there is light. White kitchen cabinets, bathroom cabinets, and accents deliver a chic and sophisticated result without the investment of a complete overhaul. Compelling Homes was pleased to be part of the dream and proud of the resulting new living space throughout this West Des Moines family home.
After all, we never stop at just good enough– we make it Compelling.
