There are always people who buy the typical fixer home and hope to turn it into their dream property. These people usually save every penny to buy the house and pay for renovations, plan what they are going to do and know that some DIY elbow grease will be necessary. The problem is that in many of these cases something goes wrong.

There is always going to be something that doesn’t turn out as expected and these minor issues can become a major nightmare. However, if you want to avoid this you should learn from the mistakes these people make. One area of concern for most people is the kitchen and you need to take care with this.

When you remodel the kitchen you need to have a good plan. The plan should include a layout of the kitchen including where the appliances will be and how your cabinets will open. It is recommended that you plan down to where you will be putting your spices and they type of knobs you want. When creating your plan you should take note of what you regularly use in the kitchen and how you use it.

If you want to save money and time you should keep the kitchen’s current configuration. When you leave the plumbing and electrics in the same place you will not have to hire a plumber or electrician. You also will not have to worry about whether you need to move walls and if they are holding up your structure. 

If you have been able to save money in other parts of your remodelling you should consider consulting or hiring a kitchen designer or architect. While it will cost around 10% of the project cost for the designer they will help save you time and a lot of headaches. It is also possible that these professionals will suggest points that you never considered. If you are unable to hire a professional you should try visiting your local home improvement store to talk to the specialists they have.

Reusing your lighting is another way to save money, particularly if they can be easily replaced in the future and are pleasing to the eye. The upgrading of cabinets and appliances are generally the large expenses. This is why many people complete their kitchen renovations in stages to stagger the costs. If you have a place to store cabinets before you use them you should try buying when they are on sale and keeping them until they can be fitted.

Your appliances and cabinets could take up to 6 weeks to be delivered so if you do not have anywhere to store them ensure you order them so that they arrive when you are ready to install them. If you are looking to maximize your storage space you need to consider cabinet upgrades and retrofits. A lot of people are considering Miracle Shelves DIY pull out shelving and this is an opportunity to cut installation costs by ordering DIY kits.

If you do not have the current budget to buy new appliances you should measure and fit your kitchen around the appliance you plan to buy in the future. You also need to consider any flooring changes when you look at the height of your new cabinets. Tiles and hardwood flooring is thicker than linoleum and vinyl.  If you are planning on thicker flooring you should have cabinets that allow for the height difference.

The last mistake that people make is assuming that everything is as it seems in a store. You have to consider the lighting of the store as they might have high brightness lighting which makes colors look slightly different. You should not bulk order a product unless you know it will look good and suit your home. You should consider getting samples for your kitchen from the store and taking them home to see if they fit. You should also second guess decisions and measurements to ensure that you only ever have to cut once.