Southwood Kitchen Remodel

Southwood Neighborhood, Tallahassee

Lead Designer: Kristi Williams                       Project Manager: Mike Johnson

Project Overview: This was a pretty large Southwood kitchen that just needed a few layout tweaks to make it more efficient and make it feel less crowded. It also eeded a makeover, the dark cabinets the previous owners had installed were overbearing.

Southwood Kitchen Before After Pictures

Before: 

southwood kitchen before

The dark cabinets and counters were a bit overbearing and island was too deep and too close to the perimeter. 

After:

Southwood kitchen after

The new cabinets were light and bright. We also spaced the island better and removed the corner cabinets. 

Before: 

Southwood Kitchen 2 before

Having the oven cabinets and pantry in the middle of the kitchen felt crowded. 

After:

Southwood kitchen 2 after

Moving them to the corner created better counterspace and a more open feel. 

McManus Kitchen and Bath is a full service design build remodeling company with our own showroom right here in Tallahassee. We provide high quality remodeling services for discerning homeowners who want great design, high quality construction and a worry free remodeling experience. Contact us to schedule a consult. 

Southwood Kitchen

Project Highlights

Start Date: Jan 21, 2023

Completion Date: May 18th, 2023

Total Cost: $110,803

Key Updates:

  • Full Height Stone Backsplash
  • Semi Custom Frameless Cabinets
  • Dual Sinks
  • Custom Wood Hood

Quote from the client:

“We just hosted our first dinner party and it was awesome. Such a wonderful space to host and hang out in. Our friends commented a number of times how beautiful everything was and well it suits us. It all functions so well and so conveniently that it’s a joy to work in…” ” 

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Southwood Kitchen Video

Southwood Kitchen

Summary

This couple originally contacted us to look at their kitchen, master bath and converting a utility room into a guest bedroom. Trying to do all those project at once was a bit much so we decided to focus on the kitchen first and return to the other projects in the future.

Main Issues With Current Space

The main issue for them was the color and ligthing. The kitchen was very dark and overbearing and the lighting was poor. There were also some layout issues. The island was placed too close to the other countertops and the corner cabinets next to the fridge were just a place where clutter collected. They liked to entertain but felt the kitchen was not open enough for guest to enjoy.

Project Goals

Their main goals were to update the look of the kitchen a create a brighter space and a more open feel without losing storage or counterspace.

 

Southwood Kitchen

Before Floorplan Vs After Floorplan

Kitchen before floor plan

Before: This Southwood kitchen has too many cabinets crowding the space and the overhang for seating at the island was impractical. The corner cabinets next to the fridge just created a place for clutter. 

kitchen after floorplan

After: An island with more storage and spaced appropriately. Fewer cabinets open up the space but adding tall cabinets creates more storage. Seating at the peninsula makes more sense. 

Southwood kitchen before and after
Southwood kitchen before after 2

Challenges And Solutions

This Southwood kitchen project had a few issues that delayed its completion. Fortunately all were resolved and the clients were very understanding of the delays.

    • Issue 1: Countertops. We were not able to use our ‘go to’ installer on this project because of the material the client selected. We used another installer we had worked with in the past but only a few times. The countertops had a number of issues. The sink was cut out wrong in the island so that top had to be replaced. And there were some scratches from fabrication in the bar top that meant it had to be replaced as well. The countertop company took care of this but it did add time to the project.
    • Issue 2: Matching the Flooring. Part of the scope of work for the project was to patch the brazillian cherry flooring in the kitchen. This proved to be much more difficult than expected as the material was not longer available so we had to order planks and fabricate them to match.  Also, because brazillian cherry darkens over time the new material did not match. However we were able to “age” it by leaving it out in the sun for a few days. It took a lot more time than expected but the final resutl looks great and now you can’t tell where the patches were made.

Timeline

  • Proposed project start date: Jan 21, 2023

  •  Actual Project Start Date:  Jan 21, 2023

  • Proposed Completion Date: April 15th, 2023 

  • Actual Completion Date: May 18th, 2023

Southwood Kitchen Project Costs

Initial Estimate: At the end our initial design and budget consult the cost for this project was estimated at $92,432

Fixed price proposal: At the end of the design process the final fixed price proposal we presented was for $109,342, about 18% more than the original budget.

The significant increase came mostly from changes to their material selections in design.

Reasons for increase/Decrease:

    • They chose a much more expensive countertop material and decided to go with a matching stone backsplash instead of a tile backsplash
    • They upgraded to our “best” cabinet line when we had budgeted for the “better” cabinet line in design.
    • Labor costs increased because they decided to widen the opening between the kitchen and living room which required some structural work and floor patching.

Change Orders

There were two change orders on the project. One for adding additional lighitng and one for extra flooring, they decided to order some extra boxes since the material proved difficult to find. Change order total came to around $1500. 

    Southwood Kitchen Video 2

    Southwood Kitchen 

    Materials and Fixtures Used in This Project

    • Cabinets and Counters
      • Frameless Semi Custom Cabinets by Decor Cabinets.
      • Dekton X Gloss Natura Countertops by Cosentino, installed by A1 Countertops
      • Hartridge Cabinet Pulls in honey bronze buy Top Knobs
      • Julian Cabinet pulls from Top Knobs
    • Other Fixtures and Accessories
      • Workstaition sinks by Ruvati in peninsula and island
      • Rohl Patrizia Kithcen Faucet in Polished Nickel
      • Rohl Patrizia Bar Faucet in island
      • Rohl Italian Country Pot filler
      • Farmouse glass linear chandelier in brass from Pottery Barn
      • GE Cafe Appliances

    Before Photos

    Final Project Photos

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