Extreme budget revamp!
Last year I moved into a rented flat that had the most impractical layout imaginable. Its a small galley kitchen except for some inexplicable reason the landlord decided to have a couple of units at each end instead of along the wall. Within the week I removed the two base units and repositioned them, cutting the worktop in half so that it would cover both cabinets. I bought some cheap embossed brick effect wallpaper off Amazon which I thought might look tacky but actually looks great and I bought some white sticky back vinyl to recover the units. Luckily my bathroom had the same lino so I ripped it up from the bathroom and used it to cover the patch left by moving the units. Not sure exactly what I spent but it couldn't have been more than £100 in total. To be honest I still don't really like the room. I'd like to swing the fridge 90 degrees to make access a little easier but if I do that I'm left with a wasted space in the corner where the fridge is now. As I'm planning to stay here for several years I would like to replace the units completely and make it all look really swish (although it would still be on an extreme budget. Ikea here I come) :-)
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Comments (6)
9 years agoRelated Discussions
Revamped bedroom
Comments (7)Hi. I would try rearranging the furniture slightly. Try the desk on the back wall next to the wardrobe. Swap the chest of drawers and bed around (assuming the door will open, hard to tell from pics!). There's quite a contrast between the blue and cream walls. It looks as if your son has london skyline pillows (or it looks like St Paul's from what I can see!). If so, why not try a slightly urban look? You can get enormous wall murals from around £30. Try the London skyline or maybe a banksy mural or something he's interested in. Unless you can afford made to measure just get the biggest one, centre on the wall and paint the remainder so it acts as a border (depending in the image you may be able to trim the top and bottom so height wise it fits perfectly). If a mural isn't up his street try brick wallpaper and add street signs (you can get cheap vinyl ones if on a budget) or prints of whatever he's interested in. If he likes the blue (is he a chelsea fan?!) , paint the window wall in a soft grey/blue. If he doesn't maybe try navy or charcoal grey. Adding a throw ( a manly one!) and 1/2 cushions on the bed will help. If he likes the street signs idea you can get these or tube stations etc pretty cheaply or just add dark grey ones with a bit of texture....See MoreKitchen revamp on low budget
Comments (4)You say you can't afford a new kitchen this year. Does that mean you might be able to next year or in two years' time? If so, save your dosh and don't waste it on a 'revamp' of anything but the walls and anything else you can realistically paint - not the tiles or the kitchen cabinet doors! If you have to spend some money now, change the lighting and maybe the floor but any money you spend on wall tiles, worktops and doors will almost certainly be a waste of money! Sorry to be brutally honest!...See MoreOld bathroom needs a revamp!
Comments (5)Hi Jessica, when you say you're on a budget, what budget do you have ? Also, what abilities do you possess with regards DIY? I think i'd have a look at taking down the mirrors, as 1) you don't like them, 2) I'm guessing they're on fairly flat wall. Taking them down should not be difficult as they're only screwed on. It should be easy to remove the tiles above the mirrors. You will obviously have to sand the walls in order to remove remnants of tile grout and you may need to fill them in places to get them back to smooth. However, this would leave you with plain walls all around except for the bath / shower area. You can then paint and place a mirrored cabinet up for your bits and bobs, on the new tile free walls. The bath shower area :- Tile paint will work, but just remember that unless you go for totally white, then you will also have to paint back the grout lines as the paint you use will cover those. In my own personal opinion it doesn't produce a great look. Tiles don't have to be expensive, but the better the budget the better the options. Also, as i mentioned earlier, it also doesn't matter if you have a small budget if you've got a modicum of DIY ability. Options:- Re-Tile? Use plain perspex sheeting available on line - fairly in expensive, quite easy to put up. ( you need to be able to use a Sealant gun for glueing the perspex to the tiled area and then for sealing around all the edges. Replace the bath panel with wood to match the floor? Replace the shower curtain rail with a glass door? Just all hinges on budget and ability!...See MoreKitchen revamp on a budget
Comments (10)I have nearly the exact same kitchen doors but in oak. Whilst they’re old fashioned they’re really good quality so in a similar situation where a full kitchen refurb is not within our budget yet I’ve decided to paint them myself. Going for a very similar scheme to Carolina’s inspo image but a really dark green base unit colour. No where near finished yet as had to put project on hold but will hopefully crack on again with it soon. There’s plenty of tips online for painting but I like using E.S.P. (Easy surface prep) from Owatrol for priming as you don’t need to sand and I’ve used it on pretty much everything...can be tricky to use tho. Thoroughly clean with sugar soap before you do any painting, priming, etc. Eggshell paint or satin paint is probably best finish for kitchen units but I’m doing mine slightly different with emulsion then clear varnish. No real reason but I personally think it’s a little more hard wearing. Also plan to extend the upper cabinets to include open shelves with lighting in, something like the inspo pic below....See More
9 years ago
PRO7 years agolast modified: 7 years agoWell done! You've prob thought about a small bar stool at the worktop end space as a coffee stop or workstation?
7 years ago
7 years ago
kevstermanOriginal Author