Get a Brand New Kitchen If You're Chosen by TV Makeover Show

We get a lot of announcements and offers, most of which never make it onto All Life Is Local, but we thought the one below was too intriguing to pass up. It's from IKEA, the sponsor of the reality TV Show "Fix This Kitchen" on A&E, Saturdays at 9:30am.  Here's the deal in a nutshell:

1. You need to have a sad-looking kitchen that's desperately in need of a makeover.

2. You need to be an enthusiastic cook, preferably with a bouncy, perky, TV-ready personality.

3. The nomination form must be filled out by someone other than you, who lives in the DC metropolitan area. 

Now here's the deal in the sponsor's own words. (Be sure to read the fine print at the end.)

Now Casting IKEA's "Fix This Kitchen" Bonus Episode!

Do you have a friend or loved one who has a real passion for cooking but is trapped in an outdated, nonfunctional, unorganized or just plain ugly kitchen? Now's your chance to nominate him/her to receive a kitchen worthy of a gourmet chef! 

A&E’s and IKEA’s hit series, Fix this Kitchen, has decided to make an extra, very special online episode, but we need a kitchen to renovate and we need one NOW!

We are looking for homeowners who love to cook but are in desperate need of a completely new kitchen. We are also looking for YOU*, our accomplice in this mission. If your nominee is selected, you will help our team surprise your loved one with a top-to-bottom kitchen makeover from IKEA…. and we’ll be there film the whole renovation.

Recommended: Kitchen Countertops

Our companion email list, the Cleveland Park Listserv, is a treasure trove of recommendations. We want to share on All Life Is Local, on a periodic basis, the best recommendations that have been posted on the Cleveland Park Listserv. You'll be able to search All Life Is Local for "contractor," "plumber," "computer tech," "auto body shop" -- whatever you need.



I can't recommend fabricators since I'm new to town. But having redone two kitchens back home in LA in the past few years, I wanted to pass along the tip that you should ensure the granite you wind up choosing is among the densest/hardest/most durable varieties. Granite's great for kitchens but not all stones/varieties are the same and ones that are more porous and softer will stain or get cloudy (a fuzzy ring or blotch) much like marble does in bathrooms. I believe that the granites with smaller flecks rather than those with larger ones are denser, but it's been a while. Reputable dealers will advise you or you can research the particular stone (have the stone's name and country of origin) online. Also, there's a school of thought that green granite shouldn't be used in kitchens because of toxicity in the particular minerals that produce the color and which naturally leach out. There are arguments for both sides of that debate but worth reading if you're leaning toward green.

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My wife and I just went through a really challenging kitchen remodeling experience. The one truly easy and pleasant part of that whole process was the countertop. We got our granite piece from Abka in Rockville, MD. We dealt with a guy named Vadood who was super helpful, understanding, and very patient when other aspects of our remodeling forced us to delay him several times. We bought a remnant piece of granite -- a part of a larger slab that was leftover from someone else's project. I don't know how large your kitchen is, but ours isn't too big so that worked out very well for us. We only needed 25 square feet. They charged us just $35 per square for the remnant, which was a great deal. That price also included measuring and installation. The piece is beautiful and unique and everyone who has seen it loves it. They have many different options. And if you need a full slab I think the price is around $75 or $80 per square foot, which is also very competitive.