Where to Save and Where to Spend When Renovating Your Kitchen

The kitchen remodel. Could any three words be more thrilling? Whether you’re the person flipping the pancakes, or the people devouring them, one thing’s for sure: this well-loved room deserves to live its best life. Here’s how to redo yours, whatever your budget.

HGTV Canada

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Save: Cabinets

Love the soft blue seen in this Save My Reno kitchen? Create the same coastal look in your kitchen with paint – provided your cabinets are in decent shape. A company can spray the doors professionally, or paint them yourself. Prep really well! Remove the doors, clean and sand them, filling in the holes for the new hardware. Use the correct primer for the doors or the paint won’t stick (trust us, this is first-hand experience talking). A smartypants hardware store person can help with paint and primer selection.

basic white kitchen with antique copper pots and vintage wood

Lauren Miller

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Save: Decor

Live in a rental on a lean budget? Bring richness to a basic white kitchen with antique copper pots and vintage wood, like designer Sarah Birnie did in her Toronto home. Remodelling a kitchen doesn’t necessarily require demolition. For this wallet-saving trick, you’ll need to hit up thrift stores (all online for now), antique markets and new shops that sell ersatz “old” items.

Contemporary kitchen with three green pendant lights

Getty Images

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Splurge: Lighting

Lighting is polarizing – some may argue a cheapie pendant is perfectly fine. However, if you’ve spent buckets of cash on a beautiful kitchen like this one by interior designer Jemima Withey, then lighting is everything. Here, the green pendants act as a focal point in the room, trying in the backsplash and the garden.

Lauren Miller

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Splurge: Countertops

In this stunning kitchen in Prince Edward County, the homeowners splurged on the countertops that also seamlessly cloak the wall behind the range. Since counters take a beating in the kitchen, it’s better to buy the best quality you can afford. Shown is White Attica by Caesarstone.

Black gooseneck kitchen faucet against subway tile backsplash

IKEA

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Splurge: Faucet

Faucets get lots of use in the kitchen. Spend a bit more: Ikea’s TOLLSJÖN gooseneck faucet cuts a shapely silhouette against white subway tile, and pops thanks to its inky black colour. The nozzle pulls out, so that washing veggies are a cinch.

Kitchens: Backsplash, Tile, Cabinetry: The 15 Top Kitchen Trends for 2021

Two-toned kitchen with marble-look porcelain backdrop

HGTV Canada

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Save: Cabinetry

How much does a new kitchen cost? According to Home Guide, a basic kitchen (excluding appliances) will set you back $16,000, while a luxury version can cost upwards of $50,000. Many designers opt for prefab cabinetry to save on kitchen costs. Case in point: the Save My Reno team. They did a bang-up job on this pretty kitchen.

Getty Images

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Save: Floors

High-quality engineered wood floors are widely available, so you can get the look of the real thing without breaking the bank. Doesn’t this faux blonde-wood floor look lovely against all that white and those colourful midcentury-modern chairs?

A rental apartment with pink stick-on tile

Lauren Kolyn

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Save: Tile

YouTuber Alexandra Gater’s rental apartment in Toronto is a clever study in frugality and style. In fact, these pink cuties aren’t even tile, they’re waterproof Smart Tiles, a peel-and-stick product. You, too, can be trendy on a dime!

HGTV

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Splurge: Island

HGTV’s Erin and Ben Napier of Home Town designed a farmhouse kitchen with a standout emerald-green island for one lucky family. With its dual purpose as both prep station and dining area, it’s a shame to install a flimsy island. Break the bank on this one!

HGTV Canada

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Splurge: Appliances

Appliances keep a kitchen running tickety-boo. Invest in the best fridge, stove and dishwasher you can and make sure they come with a good warranty. Stainless steel is a smart choice because it suits every kitchen style, from country to contemporary.