“My husband and I remodeled a kitchen in a 921-square-foot home with two toddlers. It took forever to complete. I saved the cabinets by painting them, we made concrete countertops (twice, because they broke the first time), trenched electrical in a slab for an island, and managed to keep it within our $8k budget. Don’t get me wrong, I felt proud to have completed it, but two years of reno would have taken professionals maybe only five to six weeks.”.