Please inspire me to refresh my small kitchen
Comments (9)
Clare Jones
5 years ago
Nichola Anderson
5 years agoThank you. None of the cabinets house a boiler but I have a toddler and limited space so every cupboard is stacked full and to be honest I could do with more storage.
It’s a kitchen diner with a bay window. I’ve been considering changing the table for a round extendable one to fit the space better. Please excuse some of the extra furniture in the room, I’m having an extension built at the back of the house at the minute so we are in a bit of chaos while they break through into the house.
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Kitchen help please! Help with colours etc for a small update.
Comments (31)I had a similar situation in a house I moved into years ago. I did a quick fix of painting all of the walls, woodword and the cupboards the same shade of cream. Sounds a bit OTT but it really knocked back the cupboards, which in all honesty are not something you want to make a feature out of, and created a calmness to the whole space. In your case, I would go for an off white so that the gang plug wires, radiator pipes and covers hiding the wires for the extractor fan etc., are disguised as much as possible -- that will tie in with the palest of the tiles in the splash back, and then you will have a pretty basic colour scheme of a very place colour and the dark worktop, fireplace and floor, which will stand out more. I think you need more storage with doors -- that bookshelf isn't doing anything for the kitchen. If you could get something in there that could hide lots of clutter -- even if just something cheap from IKEA, that would help greatly. Or work something around the filing cabinet that you have? A huge cheap mirror over the fireplace would bounce some light around too. If you don't want to go for undercupboard lighting, and if you have enough plug points, how about some lamps on the worktop, especially at the FF end with a floor standing lamp at the end with the chair. For the table, I would go for a table cloth and reupholster the chairs if they are not to your taste. A new blind in a much fresher colour would be great. Depending on the colour of your filing cabinet (if you use it), I think a petrol blue could add a nice vintage vibe to the chimney breast, and make more of a feature of it. I would try and go down a vintage/slightly industrial route rather than country. You may have some stuff lurking around that you could use, once you have got the base colours right -- currently it just feels a little cluttered and a bit of a mish mash. Best of luck. Looking forward to seeing some after shots :)...See MoreHelp me finish off my kitchen please!
Comments (10)Hi Monica. The kitchen looks great. I'd go for a light grey on the walls, you could look at farrow and ball strong white or a darker grey such as cornforth white , both should work with the floor which has grey tones. Can you take more pics of the seating end and give dimensions? I'm just wondering if a small sofa would be better next to the kitchen units (broken up by a really tall plant) with a chair in the corner between the doors with a lamp behind? The compact sofa, chair (also comes in grey and yellow) and floor lamp are all m&s. I like Monica's idea of enamel pendants, these are by pooky. Will you be dressing the windows at all? I'd accessorise with lots of different textures and plants to get that scandi feel. I'd look at a mirror splashback which will also make the room feel wider, I like an antiqued effect for texture but you may prefer a plain one. If you're keeping the walls very light then a few accessories such as picture frames will work...See MorePlease help me decide on my lounge / diner / kitchen layout
Comments (15)Thank-you very much for the comments. I hope it will be a great space, but playing around with it and changing the design at the last minute is getting a bit stressful! This is the design that the build company showed us initially - just their initial thought as it how it would look. I found feeling the area where they had positioned the fridge/freezer very tricky. We want a free-standing french larder style fridge and the doors and level of matching with the rest of the units didn't seem like a good fit. The support pillar for the steel that crosses the island in the attachment below has also been a real annoyance. It sticks out 23cm, so it can only really go through empty-ish cupboards. Clearly anything to the left of that steel is difficult to vent. On the design in my intitial post, I was intending to have a dropped ceiling element that stretched just beyond the steel. This would let me have a powerful extractor and exit the flew onto the flat room (hidden by the drop ceiling 'box'). I like the idea you describe of a full wall of units, then island, then table. I guess Jonathan's proposal is similar to that. While I love the efficiency of the "4 double door" hideaway I just don't like the aesthetic, so will need to think about something else. Bringing it back to what we need... Utility room: enough to stash the washing machine, store the vacuum cleaner and hang a few clothes. No need for a sink. Free Standing, 90cm wide fridge, nicely framed either by wall of kitchen units. Waist height oven with an additional "top oven / grill (broiler)" - so at least one full height column. Good size kitchen island with at least two seats. Approx 90cm induction hob, plus a gas domino hob. Powerful, externally venting extractor over hob. I'm relatively open to moving the kitchen/living area to wherever it works best. I'm also not desperate to have the hob on the island (but that would be nice). As far as I know, the builders haven't done anything that can't be easily adjusted at this stage - but I think that will change in a couple of days - and they are planning for the kitchen to be in the old part of the house. As for rooflights - I thought, perhaps wrongly, that it would be light enough with the big bifold doors. It is an east facing room, and the old room had some sliding paitio doors and it felt bright enough. So I have left roof lights out on the basis that - but I'm also concerned about noise. (Cheaper too!). The biggest window we can gave without incurring significantly more cost is 1800mm x 1000mm - I'm minded to be 2 or 3 of these in that middle section. Thanks!...See MoreNeed inspiration to complete my kitchen/diner please!
Comments (52)However, if your cabinet is actually two pieces that can be separated, you could alternatively create more symmetry by placing the fridge centrally in between them. I would place the cabinets flush against the walls, leaving an equal gap around each side of the fridge. Consider cutting the skirting board to make them truly flush for a built in look (or alternatively use a thin filler piece painted to match.) Then you would need two boards… one atop the cabinets wall to wall, and a shorter one along the top of the fridge that goes cabinet to cabinet....See More
Sonia
5 years agoMy house had a teeny tiny kitchen (smaller than yours!) when I moved in. After several years we knocked through to the dining room creating a bigger room. Best thing we ever did! In the meantime I think your idea of painting the units and changing the worktop will really improve the room. Painting cupboards is time consuming so if budget allows get a professional in. A soft white is a good idea, although I think soft greens, grey
and taupe will also look good. May I suggest you use Little Greene eggshell paint as it’s the choice of professionals kitchen makers. Make sure you use a primer too. I agree the wall cupboards look heavy and unbalanced, but of course storage is important in a small kitchen and removing cupboards and putting up shelving will look good but be counter-productive. Here’s a few inspirational pics.
mattweeksdj
5 years ago
Lisa D
5 years ago
PROOnePlan
5 years agoNichola Anderson
5 years ago- PRO
User
5 years agoI think if you can integrate as much as possible including the fridge freezer by using up space in the dining room with more kitchen units instead of the freestanding tall furniture, you will bring the level of everything down and make it look a lot more spacious.
I disagree that the kitchen needs painting, it matches all the other furniture and is made from beautiful wood. I would put kickboards in too.
The thing for me that dates the kitchen and the dining room is the flooring. It's sucks light out and doesn't match in tone, anything else.
I would change the flooring and put in concrete style worktops which will show off the lovely wood.
I would also paint the walls to match the work surface.
Sonia
5 years agoanndersonix, I used Little Greenes Slaked Lime (both mid and deep) on two bookcases and I’m really pleased with it. It comes in four shades - pale through to dark. The paler shades are a soft warm off white. The darker shade is more a biscuit colour.
Lorraine Jenkins