Updating our 1960s Kitchen with NEDC | Design Phase PART 2

November 21, 2023

In our 7th year of homeownership, we decided it was time to remodel our 1960’s kitchen, and working with NEDC was a no-brainer for us. Pop over to The Story or Design Phase Part 1 if you haven’t read those posts yet!

The Design

“What if we took down the wall between the kitchen and dining room?”. Rob and I audibly gasped. Could we actually do that? Yep. And because the NEDC team had pre-determined that the wall was not load-bearing, it would incur no additional cost. SAY NO MORE. This was the design for us!

NEDC design — Opening the dining room wall to create an open concept space.

Preparing a detailed schematic design allowed for us to begin to envision what the space would look like with updates, and it was the first time Rob and I saw our needs, wants and visions begin to come to life.

Design Development + Shopping

Once we knew the design we wanted to move forward with, the NEDC team began sourcing product in line with our Houzz vision board. In June and July we met at stone yards, Designer Bath, Yale Appliance, and a tile store to weigh our options and found the NEDC design team to be incredibly helpful with our selections. What I was most impressed with, though, was their commitment to staying within our budget for selections. They did not pressure us to choose the highest-end selections, but rather guided us to options that would achieve the aesthetic we wanted while also remaining budget-friendly.

With each selection we saw our selections budget change, which allowed for us to move some budget around for things we decided were important, like real stone countertops and a fancy faucet that I decided I could not live without.

Design Development Plan Review

With all of our selections made and the costs more firmly in place, we met with the NEDC team to go over a final Design Development Review at their office in Boston. This allowed for us to see plans in person, hold samples of all of our selections, and get any final design questions answered. We also walked through the Design virtually and I found myself daydreaming about the meals I’d make in our updated and open space.

kitchen design — Design Development – View walking into the kitchen from the front hall

Continuing to Budget

The month after our Design Development was completed was a bit quiet as the NEDC team worked hard behind the scenes to firm up costs with subcontractors and seek permits.

One of the best things about working with NEDC is that they are a Design-Build firm, which means that they do everything in-house. The design, plans and construction are all sourced from the same firm, which ensures that the plans created are able to be executed without issue. We felt very safe with the NEDC Design Team because we knew that every choice we made about the design and architectural plans would come to fruition without worry or extra cost, as the NEDC would be the ones who were literally building out the design. Since our project was larger in scope than anything we’d attempt on our own, and because the cost was high, the peace of mind of working with a Design-Build firm is something that I leaned on frequently.

In late August we met with the Design Team for our final pre-construction budget review. At this time, our costs were as firm as they could be, and we were ready to move to the construction document phase!

In early October we met our Project Manager, Mike, and set out plans for demolition!