Kitchen Appliances - Refrigerator and Range

We only have 4 or 5 weeks until our kitchen renovation begins, so yesterday I went and bought a refrigerator and range. My hubby stayed home with our daughter, and I went down to Gringer & Sons on 1st Avenue and 1st street. Javier was very nice and helpful - it was a great experience overall.

Refrigerator:

It was no contest. The Liebherr 24" refrigerator and freezer won hands down. Not only does it have all of the bells and whistles one could want from a 24" compact refrigerator, but it even looks cool when it is closed



and when it is open.




Range:

Javier asked me if I wanted a slide-in or a freestanding range and I assumed a slide-in because I want it to slide in between the wall and the sink. But slide-ins cost more than freestanding ranges and the main difference is that the slide-ins have a little lip (that was pretty ugly, if you ask me) that goes over the countertop around it. So, after all of that, I decided on the Bosch freestanding range:



It was one of the least expensive options, and it also wasn't as massive-looking as some of the other (especially GE) ranges. To me, it was the most aesthetically-pleasing range available.

Kitchen Renovation Update

Now that 2008 is upon us, we have decided to get moving on our kitchen renovation. Today we chose floor and backsplash tiles, so I'm very excited. Here's what we have so far:

Cabinets from IKEA



Porcelain floor tiles from Ann Sacks




Glass tiles for backsplash, also from Ann Sacks

This is the design:



These are the colors:







These colors look a little gray here, but in person they are creamier and go nicely with both the cabinets and the floor tiles. Oh, and to add a little depth and texture to the backsplash, we're going to use a mix of glossy and matte finishes. It sounds weird, I know, but the sample at the showroom was gorgeous!


Cabinet pulls from Restoration Hardware (which are on sale now - hooray!)




Slim refrigerator from Compact Appliance




Possible faucet set from National Faucet Warehouse




We still need to chose a range and countertop material, but that's about it. I'm leaning towards doing a Corian countertop with an integreated sink so that there are no seems and it just all flows easily. I'm so excited I can't stand it. I love when it all comes together and you're just chomping at the bit to get started.

So, what do you think?

Slim Refrigerators

My hubby and I are going to update our kitchen. Originally we were planning on a total renovation, but after receiving a quote of $20,000 from NYKB we decided to scrap that plan. (Oh, and that price only included the cost for demo-ing our existing kitchen - it didn't include the cost of cabinets, countertops, flooring, backsplash, appliances, etc.) So now we're going to change the cabinets, countertops, flooring, lighting, and get a new stove and refrigerator. Our kitchen is tight, to say the least, and we have a washer and dryer shoved in next to the refrigerator.

I think the washer/dryer may be the most important element in our kitchen. It is an incredibly luxurious convenience, and I would definitely rather be without a stove if I had to give up one of the two. The problem, however, is that our washer/dryer needs some more space on either side of it so it doesn't rattle when it is on the spin cycle. So how do we do that? We've decided to get a refrigerator that is 24" wide rather than 28" wide as we currently have. I think it's referred to as an apartment-sized refrigerator.

We've done some research, and here are the best options:

1) The Liebherr CS1350, 78" H x 23 1/2" W



pros: aesthetically the best, tall (I am 5'11" and my husband is 6'2" so height is good!), supposedly a great refrigerator, freezer on the bottom

cons: cost ($2900)

2) The ConServ,



pros: like the Liebherr it also is good-looking, tall
cons: currently unavailable from the importer

3) The Summit CP171SS, 79 1/2" H x 23 5/8" W



pros: tall, looks pretty good, less expensive than the Liebherr and the ConServ ($1100)
cons: manual defrost (big bummer!)

4) The LG LRBP1031, 67.3" H x 23.4" W



pros: the least expensive of the choices ($600)
cons: not as tall as the others


Now, having shown you the options, I know that our first choice is the Liebherr, but it is too darn expensive. So, we'll probably end up going with the LG unless we hear something terrible about it. It looks good, has the freezer on the bottom, is not manual defrost, and will not set us back almost $3000.