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This clever kitchen renovation delivers a striking new look and greater functionality while retaining existing appliances to keep costs down.
The project
My old kitchen was dated. The doors were swollen chipboard and the laminate was peeling off. A peninsula stuck out opposite the fridge so when you opened the fridge door you bashed your arm on the cupboard. Time for a reno.
Using a kitchen planner first is the best way to work out what cabinets will fit where, what sizes are needed and what the final look could be.
It's important to get accurate measurements of your walls and where the plumbing, power points, windows and doors are so that your new cabinets will fit.
Think of the cabinets as empty boxes and then work out how many are needed to fit in a space. Flat-pack cabinets come in a range of standard sizes that can be combined to fill a space. You can then decide whether they have doors or drawers and what function they will serve.
My best decision was putting a carousel in the corner cabinet to keep the pots and pans beside the stove.
I worked on one wall at a time and one section at a time so the kitchen was still functional. The sink and the appliances were still in good order so I was able to reuse what I had to save money on the most expensive parts of a kitchen. I can get new appliances to replace the old ones later on.
New paint on the walls is the cheapest and most effective way to make a clean, new look for any space. I went from a dirty cream colour (could have been cigarette tar), to a light blue-grey. I went with a tiled backsplash for a bit more impact.
I’m very happy with the results. There's more room to move, the cupboards and drawers are more functional, and there's more useable counter space in what is a small kitchen.
The original idea was for Oak countertops and Oak doors on the top cupboards and but the countertops were on back-order coming from overseas at the time.
I liked these laminate benchtops with the black concrete design, so I changed the doors to black as well, which really changed the mood of the kitchen in a good way.
It was a bit out of my comfort zone but we all need to be a bit bold every now and then. I read recently that dark kitchens are trendy so maybe I'm half on trend before my time.
Help and inspiration for your kitchen renovation
Experienced Bunnings Workshop contributor Adam_W has put together this handy guide to planning a kitchen renovation. You can also check out our Top 10 most popular kitchen projects.
If you just need a quick kitchen refresh, check out our collection of 10 kitchens transformed with paint. You can begin transforming your own kitchen with our step-by-step video guides to painting kitchen cabinets and painting a tiled splashback.
Let us know if you need a hand with your kitchen project. We're here to help.
