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New wiring, flooring, oven, downlights, sink and tap, plaster and wallpaper completely transformed an old kitchen.
The project
This kitchen came from a house that should have been demolished. However, I could see the potential given her strong, hardwood bones. The ad when I purchased the house read: "Located on a corner allotment of approximately 628sqm lies a single storey residential dwelling which has no value whatsoever and its prime has long passed. Ideally it would be demolished and the block would be sub-divided (S.T.C.A.)".
But with funds tight, I had good creative vision and just held on to that, especially during times when I felt it was just such a huge undertaking and required so much effort and hard work. I persisted and got there in the end.
I live super-close to a Bunnings store, and with my PowerPass card and Bunnings' great flexible opening times, it made it much easier to source materials and equipment.
The old kitchen:
The old laundry, which is now where the new back wall of the kitchen stands:
The first step was removing the non-structural wall joining the laundry.
Then it was time to rip up the flooring. All the electrical fittings were removed by a qualified electrician, then the plaster was taken out, as was the old kitchen and all appliances.
You can clearly see the state of disrepair. Then with two full skip bins of rubbish removed, the slow, eight-month process of getting the kitchen reborn began.
First, we put in completely new wiring, and new plaster on the ceiling and walls. Then we secured a new support beam in the ceiling for added strength, to support where the laundry wall was removed.
New downlights were installed, upcycled tiles were used for the floor, and a new larger window was put into place.
I had the splashbacks custom-made from acrylic and fitted them myself. This was not for the faint-hearted. I managed to source a beautiful kitchen that was being removed from another house. With the help of a carpenter, we remade it to fit along with a beautiful 40mm marine-ply benchtop and kicker boards. A professional plumber helped install a new oven, rangehood, sink and tap.
After a new cornice and paint job, I was ready to add gorgeous Bunnings wallpaper, plants and accessories. This has been one of the most challenging transformations I have ever undertaken, working before and after work and most weekends for almost a year. Most of the gear was easily sourced from Bunnings. The kitchen, being the hub of the house, definitely took the most time, effort, energy and money. But I'm super pleased with the way it worked out, especially as the space was so limited.
Before and after
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Experienced Workshop member Adam has compiled a comprehensive guide How to plan a kitchen renovation.
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Hi @Dee-Zines
Great job on the kitchen love the before and after photos I appriciate the amount of work in between and all the little details, Great to see some green schemes coming back as my kitchen is green too. 
