Our Kitchen Remodel | Appliances

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We bought $8,149.94 worth of appliances for our kitchen remodel.

With any client or homeowner we talk to, we always suggest putting $10K into the overall appliance allowance.

Trust us, we even thought we could get away with spending around $5K in our appliances, but in the end, we even wanted to upgrade after we got the selections we did. However, there are also some ways to save on appliances. It all just depends on your lifestyle.

When specifying appliances for our clients we always ask a few questions to get to know what they want and what we suggest for their remodel.

Do you cook?
Do you eat out 5x a week?
Do you love to cook, but are always in a rush because there is never enough time in the day?
Do you like to cook for hours on end?
Do you prefer gas or electric?
Do you buy in bulk? Do you need a lot of freezer space?

We start with these simple questions and go from there.

There are a number of appliance companies out there.

Warners Stellian are our people. They didn’t always used to be our people. But now with any client we use, these are our guys we spec all appliances through, including our own.

And you guys…the people behind this brand are AMAZING! We cannot say enough good things about them personally and professionally. After hanging out with the Warner family, we always feel re-energized. Most importantly, they’re family owned and operated right here in Minnesota. They began in 1954, and our go-to girl is Angela Warner out of the Edina, MN appliance store. Any questions we have she replies to quickly and always gives us the best advice on what to buy/use based on what our clients and we need. It’s never about the sales to her. It’s about the people and their lifestyle and how they’ll use the appliances in their everyday life. So if they don’t cook, she won’t be trying to spec the top-notch oven.

If you’re not local to Minnesota, and if you don’t have an appliance supplier like Warners Stellian near you, find an independent appliance dealer for someone who can help you figure out what you do and don’t need within your budget. Most will price match if you find a better deal.

We knew working through Warner Stellian we’d get the best deal for what we wanted.

We made a short list of what we knew we wanted, and Angela sourced and gave us her recommendations based on:

• stainless steel
• 5 foot fridge & freezer
• induction convection range

Fridge & Freezer

The biggest must-have for us was the commercial-sized fridge. The very first kitchen remodel we did as a company our clients put one in their kitchen. Jamie and I both said that when we buy our forever home, this is a must!! And here we are five years later and our minds didn’t change. We knew no matter what the cost, we were going to save for it.

I’ve worked in the restaurant business my entire life. So commercial-looking appliances have always been a favorite of mine even in home design. Large, commercial-looking appliances, sinks, faucets were all products I wanted in my forever home, to the point of wanting one of those pull-down dishwashers that wash your dishes in 20 seconds. I tried to get that in our home too, but Jamie was not on board with the price point. Ha!

And here we are five months later, and I’m still opening and closing them in awe! These babies can hold so much food that it’s actually changed the way we buy food. We now buy local farmer meat, and we can store the whole cow in the freezer.

We also love the size for entertaining because they can hold the alcohol, apps, dinner, and dessert all at once. It also alerts you if the door is left open or if the temperature rises, so you know if your food will be affected.

Frigidaire Professional Refrigerator: $1999.99

Frigidaire Professional Freezer: $1999.99

Since the fridge and freezer are two separate appliances, rather than all in one like typical fridge/freezer combos, we wanted something that would make it look like a whole piece. This trim kit fits both appliances and looks like one overall appliance, which makes the appliances look custom too. The trim kit is the grates on the top, bottom and along the sides. It makes it all like one unit.

Frigidaire Professional Trim Kit for Refrigerator/Freezer: $299.99

Range

Another appliance that we had to have and recently learned about was the induction convection range.

A lot of clients want gas because it makes cooking time so much quicker. If that’s not the reason, they just want it because it’s “cool.” Ha! But, gas is out, and induction is in. It is the new way of cooking you guys, because it is even faster than gas — and more efficient! Induction range cooktops use electromagnetic energy to only heat the cookware you are using, so virtually no heat is wasted. Unless you just want to look cool and aren’t much of a cook, then go with the gas.

And with the convection, these babies cook food faster in the oven because hot air is blowing onto food directly rather than surrounding it. It also allows the food to cook more evenly because the fan circulates the air to even out the temperature. And, it saves energy because the food is cooking faster at a lower temperature most of the time, so it saves you energy costs. Cookies, pastries, roasts, and meat are perfect times to use a convection oven.

Gas is out; induction is in.

GE Profile Slide-in Induction Convection Range: $2599.99

Microwave

Where do you put the microwave? That is the biggest question with all remodels. Does it go in the island? On the counter? Above the stove? The options are endless. Honestly, I don’t love microwaves so want to hide them as much as I can. Usually, for clients, we put them in their island. But our island was too small and didn’t work. And I would be fine if we didn’t even have a microwave, so we decided to put it in a cabinet.

These help save space on your counter and blend into the overall design as well. What we’ve been seeing is microwaves built into islands, below counters, and in full wall cabinetry. Ours is hidden away in a cabinet that’s easy to access, yet keeps the microwave off the countertop and out of sight when not being used.

GE Countertop Microwave: $349.99

Dishwasher

And lastly the dishwasher. We didn’t care too much about the dishwasher either. We just wanted one that went with our appliances, and that was good but yet, didn’t need to be high end.

This Bosch dishwasher from Warners’ Stellian has a subtle pocket handle, hidden or “integrated” controls and runs super quiet, so it was a good choice for us.

Bosch Fully Integrated Dishwasher: $899.99

 

Budget Breakdown

Stainless steel all refrigerator: $1,999.99
Stainless steel all freezer: $1,999.99
Refrigeration Trim Kit: $299.99
Induction Convection Range: $2,599.99
Microwave: $349.99
Dishwasher: $899.99

Total: $8,149.94