Homeowners often think they can only dream of having an ultra-modern kitchen if they fork out tens of thousands of pounds.
But one couple who love DIY have shown how it can be done on a budget by building your own.
Beverley-Anne Hodge, 47, and her husband Graham, 53, decided to overhaul their family kitchen by buying flatpack materials from IKEA.
The pair, who have two grown-up children, were quoted up to £30,000 to update their 90s-style kitchen from brands including Howdens, Wickes and B&Q.
They instead chose to do it up themselves - saving £25,000 in the process.
Beverley-Anne, who owns her own skincare clinic, told money-saving community LatestDeals.co.uk : "We were considering changing our 90s kitchen for some time and as always, work seemed to get in the way.
"We began with some interim research, alternative designs and numerous quotations ranging from £12k to £30k.
“All the companies came out to measure up the kitchen. I explained what I wanted and where I wanted it.
"But we decided to purchase our flatpack kitchen from IKEA in the end, which offered a huge saving compared to others and with a quality that is just as good.”
Beverley-Anne placed the order and booked some time out from her work schedule to begin the project when it was due to be delivered eight weeks later.
"Suddenly we found ourselves in lockdown and this gave us the perfect opportunity to get on with it in a relaxed manner,” she continued.
"As advised, the kitchen arrived in all its glory and all flat packed, weighing over 1,000 kilos. Of course, we had to accommodate so many packages, I wonder now how we actually did it.
The mum-of-two said their old kitchen was very dated, and all appliances had to go.
Thankfully, Graham, who is an electro-mechanical engineer, loves DIY as a hobby so the couple were in luck.
But it wasn’t an easy task as there was a lot of preparation to do, including plumbing, plastering, and painting.
Beverley-Anne said: "The day finally came when just a blank canvas of a kitchen remained, so the build began.
"I must say that the IKEA cabinets and timbers are of an exceptionally robust quality and we were pleasantly surprised considering the price of just £4.9k, including all appliances and worktops.”
The married couple were very impressed with the stylish finish of their kitchen and felt a sense of pride that they had managed to do it all themselves during lockdown.
"For those who would long for a beautiful kitchen, the thought is often discarded because of installation costs,” Beverley-Anne added.
“Our advice is to do it yourself, or at least try - it really isn’t that difficult to assemble the cabinets.
"Most modern kitchens now use a rail system which mounts to the wall and each cabinet is simply hooked into place - yes, it is that simple.
"I can understand the need for electricians and plumbers, however, our existing kitchen was in poor condition and not everyone will have the same issues.
"That said, we saved at least £6k by taking on the challenge ourselves and due to lockdown we had it pretty much completed within three weeks.
"For people who simply want to refresh their kitchen, I would recommend changing the doors and the counter surface.
"It will give you a great sense of pride and satisfaction that you did it all yourself!"
