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"              THE BACKGROUND   My wife, Libby, and I, along with our two boys, moved into this 1,750-square-foot, one-story house in Studio City, California, in late 2002. It wasn&amp;#039;t exactly the home of our dreams, but the yard was large and we loved the neighborhood. We figured we&amp;#039;d renovate one room at a time, starting with the small, outdated kitchen. Since we enjoy cooking and entertaining, our goal was to turn the room into a spacious, streamlined, and fully functional living space with lots of views to the outdoors. Nothing to it, right?  THE PLANNING   We spend about six months getting a feel for the house while the property appreciates enough to help cover the cost of the remodel. During this time, we research appliances, cabinets, counter materials, and more, relying mainly on the Internet and on shelter magazines that speak to our modern aesthetic. I also brush up on some design software so that we can create our own plans and thus trim a few thousand dollars off the budget.  We&amp;#039;re then ready to go to the drawing board. At first, we intend to preserve the existing structure. But we quickly realize that the space is too tight to do what we want. Our only option is to gut the entire area (gulp!) and reconfigure the kitchen. The final layout involves knocking down the wall between the kitchen and den and eliminating a bathroom and a laundry room that cut the kitchen off from the backyard. This will create space for a 6-by-3-foot work island with a built-in microwave and beverage chiller. Besides storage and food prep, the island will be good for paying bills and doing a bit of work in the evenings. The plan also calls for new appliances, cabinetry, hardwood floors, and stainless steel counters. Satisfied with the direction, we refinance our mortgage, netting $50,000 in equity.  I&amp;#039;m a television commercial producer and Libby used to be a film production manager, so we know how much money is lost when a crew has to wait around for supplies. Therefore we decide to order our own appliances and a lot of the materials and not break ground until it&amp;#039;s all standing by in our garage. This means about six weeks of research and phone calls, but it may just be the smartest decision of the renovation. Also, though we bring in a general contractor to handle the demo work, framing, and appliance installation, we hire subcontractors for such things as floors and cabinetry, keeping tabs on scheduling, invoices, and so on.     THE PROCESS   Weeks One and Two: Demolition derby. The walls are ripped down to the studs. From here on, a temporary kitchen in the dining room will have to keep us going. Linoleum is removed and new maple planking installed, followed by the windows and sliding door. Two items we have not preordered are the countertop and backsplash. We love the idea of a sleek, ultracontemporary stainless steel counter with an integrated sink, so we meet with a local fabricator. We&amp;#039;d like a glass backsplash and, after a wide search, we finally find a company that knows how to form one from \u00BC-inch-thick laminated glass (two sheets of fused glass with a shatter-resistant resin binder between them). The backsplash will consist of five pieces separately glued to the wall and then sealed at the seams.   Weeks Three and Four: The exterior wall is insulated and new drywall goes up. Cabinet installation can then begin. We&amp;#039;d opted for custom-crafted frameless units with a clear-stained cherry veneer over a maple-finished plywood base. Once the bottom units are in, the steel-countertop fabricator takes his final measurements; the calculations have to be perfect, since the counter will be a continuous 21-foot piece with the sink welded right in. Installation of the top cabinets follows. Then everything is wrapped and covered so that the floors can be clear-coated. The steel counter is glued down and it&amp;#039;s all we hoped for, especially with the matching kick plates.   Week Five: Appliances are installed. Since we lost the old laundry room, we went for an undercounter washer and dryer. The white quartz island top arrives and it&amp;#039;s a beautiful complement to the stainless steel counter. The painters follow, covering the walls with a soft olive green. One little hiccup: The glass backsplash will be delayed a week, but otherwise, the kitchen is done. We load up the cupboards and cook our first hot meal in weeks-linguine and clam sauce. Nice! by the numbers Labor $20,700   Cabinets 12,350   Windows/Sliding Door 3,236   Stainless Countertop and Kick plate 3,475  Hardwood Floor 3,100   Glass Backsplash 2,400   Refrigerator 2,015   Vent Hood 1,664  Range 1,608   Wall Oven 1,477   Dishwasher 1,147   Permits and Fees1,000   Wine Chiller 870   Washer-Dryer 847   Quartz Countertop 625   Garbage Disposal 215   Microwave 212   Total $56,941 "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
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