Kitchen refits can be expensive and will often run into thousands of pounds. But one mum was convinced she could find a way of getting the kitchen of her dreams without breaking the bank.
Stephanie McCormick is 33 and a mother of two who works as a complex needs assistant. Using cunningly purchased items from Amazon, Dunlem, The Range and IKEA (plus a bit of creative flare) she's transformed her drab kitchen into a thing of beauty for just £350 compared with the £8000 she was quoted for the same effect.
Stephanie posted on a Facebook group called DIY On A Budget UK: "We made the leap onto the property ladder in October 2021 when we purchased a three-bedroom detached bungalow in the rural village of Clovenfords in the Scottish Borders. While the house was in a good state of repair, it needed to be brought up to date and a bit of our own style splashed onto it! The kitchen in particular was your typical 15-year-old, light beech laminate look.
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She continued: "But it was in great condition and the tiny pot of savings we had left over after purchasing the house certainly wouldn't stretch to the thousands we had been quoted for a re-fit. had used Frenchic previously on wooden furniture that I'd bought on Marketplace and absolutely loved the finish, but I'll admit I was concerned about the longevity of the finish on laminate and in such a high-use area. We have two young kids, two large dogs and three kids so the units do take a battering."
The kitchen had definitely seen better days but Stephanie was determined not to let a small budget stop her from achieving the look she wanted. She posted: "We debated long and hard whether we should go for such a dark colour, but eventually decided that we would brighten it with light white walls, tiles and the blind. I love industrial chic so the dark grey shade Smudge from Frenchic teamed with copper T-bar handles from Amazon and accessories was a natural choice for me. I incorporated geometric shapes with the blind from English Blinds Online and the vinyl on the inside of the glass cupboard doors.
"The process started with removing all the cupboard doors. Be sure to number them so you can put them back in the right place! Everything was scrubbed with sugar soap and lightly sanded with 120 grit paper. I chose to paint the inside of the doors and the edges of the carcass for a more professional finish.
"The insides of the doors were given three coats, outsides of the doors and any more visible places were given four coats with two hours drying time between coats. I used a Frenchic oval brush. I didn't like the bobbly finish of a roller.
"As it's the Al Fresco range it doesn't need sealing and I love the matte finish. The tiles were scrubbed and lightly sanded and given three coats of Dazzle Me using a brush. The walls also had two coats of Dazzle Me. It makes for a beautiful contrast against Smudge and keeps the room lovely and bright.
"I purchased lots of trailing plants and trendy succulents from Dunelm, The Range and IKEA, and some geometric wall planters to accessorise. I also found some lovely bright copper utensils at Studio that look fab hung above the hob as a focal point. We decided not to change the floor tiles as the budget didn't allow for it. The grey grout ties in nicely though.
"We did change the sockets and downlighters for more modern black nickel ones which have given a lovely high end finish too from Screwfix. The kettle, toaster, mug tree and kitchen roll pole are from the Tower Cavalletto range. They are the perfect shade of grey with copper accents.
"The whole process took around two weeks, between working and parenting. The paint takes three weeks to cure so we tried to treat it gently in that time. Six months later and no chips or scratches! I can't believe it! It's perfectly scrubbable with warm soapy water too.
"We are absolutely delighted with the overall look and all on a budget of approximately £350. The slate grey kitchen that we originally liked was over £8,000 for the number of units we had, and that was the cheaper end of the scale. The money we've saved means we have enough to redecorate the rest of the house now!”
Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, comments: “Stephanie’s transformation is incredible - I can’t believe it cost her just £350! It just shows that you really don’t need to fork out thousands of pounds to change the look of your home: budget materials, clever ideas and perseverance will do the job for a fraction of the price!”
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