Step 1 - Appraisal and Planning

This is what I started with. Linoleum floor with a nasty dip. Generic cabinets. Highlighter yellow paint abutting faux-tile--a plastic laminate printed to look like tile, and then glued directly to the plaster with construction adhesive. A decades old range, no dishwasher. A drop ceiling. And that horrible plastic ceiling fan, the only source of light for the kitchen.

My girlfriend Claire took measurements and devised three plans for the kitchen. Ultimately, we decided to keep the positioning of the cabinets the same, and add a large center island with breakfast bar.

One problem was that the cabinet wall was not flat. Though not immediately evident from the above photograph, the cabinet wall juts inward 9" at the range. We planned to frame out a new wall, such that it would be completely flush and preserve the aesthetic appeal of a flat wall of cabinets.

As for the floor, the plan was for ceramic tile or natural stone on the floor, which posed a dilemma because there was about a 1" dip in the floor just in front of the range, and tile requires a completely flat surface. We thought we'd simply "jack it up" and we'd be good to go, but as it turned out, it was far from being that simple.

Thus our plan was:
-Remove the drop ceiling
-Remove old cabinets, frame out and new wall and cover with drywall.
-Jack up floor, cover with tile.
-Remove fake tile paper and repaint walls.
-Purchase refrigerator and dishwasher, replace range.

If only it were that easy...