Redo: The Kitchen

Sorry I've been away for a while.  You know when you haven't blogged in a while and then you feel guilty about it, so you still don't blog?  Well, that was me.  But, I'm getting back on the saddle.

The Hubs and I have kicked our remodel into gear.  We are planning on a mid-March start date for the actual demo and redo, so we've been busy buying the things we'll need so that it's all ready to go. 

For the first step in the process, we knew we needed new appliances, so we made a trip to Lowe's and picked out what we wanted.  I fell in love with a Kitchen Aid gas oven and a Kitchen Aid Dishwasher, and He fell in love with a Samsung fridge.  We knew we wanted a counter-depth fridge, and luckily for us, my sister-in-law and her husband had just purchased the Samsung one and were busy singin' its praises.  The Hubs took this as a sign.

So, we've got them picked out and we purchased them I went to work trying to get them at the best price possible.  This was a 6 month process.  You see, I had the SKU #, so pretty much every day, I would google the sku numbers and look to see if they were on sale.  Every. Single. Day.  We were in Italy over Thanksgiving, but lucky for me, when everything went on sale at Midnight after Thanksgiving, it was daytime there and I was on my IPAD, surfin' sites. 

I'm very please to report that I think we got the best deals possible. 

First, let me introduce you to Mr. Oven.  It's a slide in gas oven with heavy cast-iron grates, and I fell in love with it as soon as I laid my hands on it.  The knobs are heavy, the grates are really heavy, and it looks and feels like a chef's oven, but at a way lower cost! 

Originally priced at $1749.00 at Lowe's, I found it at Sears on sale for $1529.00.  BUT WAIT, it gets better.  Lowe's has a great program where they will price match & beat that price by 10%, so my sweet, negotiating husband quickly called Lowe's to get it ordered.  The lady at Lowe's told him that because it was a "Special Order", they could price match but they COULDN'T beat it by 10%.  Not one to take no for an answer, my husband said (quite forcefully and with a lot of irritation in his voice) "Fine, if you won't beat it, I'm going to Sears after work to purchase it."  The lady on the phone quickly changed her song and told him that they'd do it.....Just this one time.  So, we got this AWESOME oven for only $1,376.99 + tax.  Savin' dolla's makes me wanna HOLLA. 

Now, on to the dishwasher.  Originally priced at $849, we'd have been fools to buy it.  But, thanks to my diligence and unrest, I found it on sale at Best Buy for $679. I then called up my friends at Lowe's, got them to price match and beat it.  We ended up paying only $611.10. 

Last, we purchased the refrigerator.  Because my SIL and BIL loved their Samsung so much, we decided to get the same one.  Originally priced at $2,999.99, I said "Oh Hell to the No."  But, the hubs reminded me that I had skills....mad discount-finding skills.  So, I went to work.  This search required the most patience because it was the most expensive appliance we needed.  One day I pulled up the Best Buy website, and there the fridge was, in all its glory, for only $2,174.99.  (They didn't sell this model at Lowe's, so the price match option was out.) 

I went to put it in my basket, but OH NO, it wouldn't let me.  The website was telling me it wasn't available for me to pick up.  (Did I mention that Lowe's offers free delivery but Best Buy doesn't?)  That meant we'd have to pick it up to save on the delivery cost.  Well, not one easily defeated, I called Best Buy, explained the situation, and the dude told me that he'd noted our conversation and that I should call back when I see it available on the website again.  2 Weeks later, I checked online and it was back in stock, but for way more money.  I called Best Buy, and true to their word, they honored the price I'd tried to purchase it at.  Also, we decided to have it delivered because it was so heavy, and somehow we got delivery for free.  Sweet!

So, if you are doing the math, here's what the total came to....

$4,506.53 including tax, a whooping $1,553.29 savings!

That's right, CHA-CHING.  We originally budgeted $5k for the appliances, so I'm happy we are under-budget by $500.  Now, if only we could come in under-budget on everything else.  Sigh...