In buying this new house in Greenlawn, we are embarking on a project I have always wanted to tackle: buy a house that needs a new kitchen but isn’t a complete dump.

This is the kitchen as it stands:

So…yeah.

The plan is to gut the whole thing and remove walls (or as many of the walls as we can without the second floor falling down on us) to open up the kitchen to the living and dining rooms. The wall where the breakfast bar is will be an island for more counter space, seating, and storage.

To save money and aggravation, our initial plan was to put new applianaces exactly where the old ones are. Looking more closely though at the layout, I’m wondering if it’s worth the savings. While I’m not looking to put in a 36″ double farmhouse sink, I do want a larger sink than what’s there, but with it being so close to the corner, how would that work?

With the exception of a tall pantry cabinet next to the refrigerator and an upper cabinet above the refrigerator, we won’t be using wall cabinets. Instead, we’re opting for shelving to keep the room as open and bright as possible.

Pinterest and I have rekindled a passionate (and time consuming) affair and I’ve been pinning away to my kitchen and home boards to gather ideas. Here are two that I’m really drawn to:

I love the mix of cabinets and the openness here, although I think a few shelves would be helpful.

I’m taking a lot of specific ideas from Dana Miller of House Tweaking. This is her family’s kitchen, which uses IKEA cabinets. The space we are working with is much smaller but the layout is similar. Our refrigerator area will look a little different, but the plan is to use many of the same products and colors in our house.

We’re in the process of getting estimates from contractors, but the whole thing is messy since we don’t actually own the house yet. The homeowner has let us come in from time to time with people, but it’s still sort of awkward and unnatural. Plus, the whole house smells like pee. Did I mention we’ll be refinishing the floors?

Have you renovated a kitchen? Any tips to share?