Kitchen Makeovers (On A Budget) – 8 Clever Detailed Ideas

To make your kitchen the heart of the home again it’s about knowing where to spend your money on kitchen makeovers to get an affordable result. Many kitchens function well, but their style is a thing of the past. Many times you will be able to repair, replace or improve parts of your kitchen and it will look fantastic.

Kitchen makeovers can come in many different forms. You can do a full kitchen renovation where you replace everything, or you can do a budget-friendly kitchen makeover and just replace critical pieces.

If you decide that you don’t need a complete kitchen makeover or there just isn’t money available, make sure your existing kitchen is reliable and sound. Make sure that everything you are going to keep, works. Please don’t throw money away on a kitchen that you really should be replacing.

With the kitchen being the heart of the home and one of the rooms that sell houses, here are my 8 clever ways to complete kitchen makeovers on a budget.

1. Paint –

Painting kitchen cabinets that are in excellent condition can transform a kitchen and save a lot of money. The cost of new solid oak cabinets could be anywhere from $15000 to $25000.

Old Oak kitchen cabinets have a makeover with new joinery detail added and then painted in white by Aston Design Studio

How To Paint Kitchen Cabinets

• Remove handles and knobs. Mask up and hinges and glass and cover floors.
• Wash cabinets with sugar soap to remove any grease.
• When dry sand with fine paper and repair any scratches or imperfections.
• Apply primer.
• Add the first coat of paint and sand when dry.
• Add a second coat and remove masking tape carefully.
• Replace handles and knobs, and you are finished.

Kitchen Paint Colours To Consider

Lighter colours will open up the kitchen giving a fresh new feel, while darker colours will minimise and ground the space. Both look fantastic.

Popular paint colours for kitchen cabinets are – the many shades of white, grey, black or different tones of blue.

Grey cabinets – Kitchen by Neptune

San Francisco remodel kitchen with blue lower cabinets via TheKitchn

Black Kitchen Cabinets – Catherine Kwong Design – Photo By Bess Friday

Cabinet Doors – Polyurethane Satin Finish Colour Dulux Whisper White By Woodward Kitchens

2. Benchtops –

Benchtops are a central feature of the kitchen, and if they are in good condition, you could consider resurfacing with paint or a thin engineered stone overlay.

• Spraying the benchtop – high pressured paint sprayed professionally that takes 2 to 4hrs to harden

Before and After by Resurfacing Sydney

• Resurfacing with an engineered surface overlay –  A thin 6.5mm piece of engineered stone resurfacing the entire benchtop.

Granite Transformations Before

Granite Transformations After

Resurfacing an exiting benchtop can save time and sometimes money.  You will need to obtain quotes from specialty suppliers and installers. A brand new benchtop may take longer to achieve, but all options should be taken into account as you use your benchtop daily.

RELATED READS – Part 1 – Kitchen Benchtops Options
RELATED READS – Part 2 – Kitchen Benchtops Costs

3. Floating Shelves –

Open shelving in kitchens is very on trend. It opens up a wall and offers a place to display your favourite pieces. This can be a good idea or a bad idea depending on how neat you are. When selecting your shelving consider –

• The thickness and strength of the material.
• What material your shelving is made of – make it compliment your other materials used.
• The height of each shelf for easy access. Will it be for daily use or to display items?
• Hidden brackets will create a streamlined look without the need for bulky hardware.

Reclaimed Barn Beams – New York Brownstone – Photos by Ty Cole – via Design Sponge

Robin Boyd Bridge House – Photo By Lisa Cohen – Via Vogue Living

Amber Interior Design – Photos by Tessa Neustadt

 Timber Open Shelving By Jersey Ice Cream Co

4. Taps

If your taps are lacking and you think a refit would work consider replacing them with new options. When selecting taps consider the following –

• Are your taps bench, sink or wall mounted?  Make sure when you select a tap that your existing plumbing works for what you already have and select a tap that is appropriate.
• The height of a window sill or a shelf behind the tap. When you select a tap be sure the handle will be fully functional, and it will not hit anything when you are using it.
• If you select on-trend materials, e.g., like brass or a black tap, will they fit in with the rest of your kitchen finishes? Try to be consistent and create a harmonious design.

 Black Mixer Astra Walker

Dorf Vixen Retractable Sink Mixer – Black – BathwareDirect.com.au

5. Splashback

You can go all out with your splashback it is a relatively small area and depending on what you select it could be a low cost, with significant impact.

• An easy replacement would be new tiles, and if you are handy, you could do the tiling yourself.
• A very cheap option would be to use tile paint and paint over your existing tiles.
• You could choose to replace the splashback with glass or mirror this may take a few weeks of ordering and installation, but the results will be fantastic.
• Your other options could be pressed metal, stainless steel, copper or stone.

Patterned Tiled Splashback – Leroy Merlin

Splashback – Subway Tiles

6. Appliances

There are many times old appliances are letting down a kitchen. By replacing appliances with new items, you can transform your kitchen.

• Most appliances are standard sizes, and it won’t be too hard to find others that will fit in their place.
• Make sure you select appliances that are appropriate for your kitchen standard.

Replace wall ovens – via Heidi Piron

Smeg Free Standing oven

RELATED READS – 34 Kitchen Design Mistakes To Avoid
RELATED DOWNLOADS – Kitchen Design Item Checklist + Specification Planner

7. Door Handles

By Merely replacing door handles you can transform your kitchen.

• They are low cost and are available at many budget levels.
• The easiest option would be to find new handles that are the same size.
• If you want handles that are entirely different plug up old holes then sand and paint the doors ready for new ones.

Black Door Handles – via Fixer Upper

Brass Hardware – Mother Of Pearl

8. Lighting

Your lighting will make a huge difference to a kitchen makeover, and many places that offer affordable on-trend lighting.

• Place two or three pendant lights over a kitchen island or servery bench to add excitement to your room. If you want to go the extra mile add dimmers to your pendant lights for extra atmosphere.
• The more light you add, the better. Make sure you have ample task lighting.
• All electrical work must be completed by a qualified electrician.

Muuto unfold pendant by Top 3 By Design – Kitchen via @kezpurch Instagram

Pendant Lighting from Bisque Traders – Kitchen of The Grover Byron Bay

My final point of consideration for kitchen makeovers would be, take on the above ideas if you feel your existing kitchen is in excellent condition. If you were prepared to save some money and wait to install an entirely new kitchen, you would need to budget for the following –

• Budget Kitchen approx. $15000 up to $25000
• Mid Range Kitchen approx. $25000 up to $45000
• Luxury Kitchen $45000 upwards to over $100000

 

Transforming your kitchen doesn’t have to break the bank. By ensuring your existing kitchen is in good condition and strategically allocating your budget, you can achieve impressive results without a complete overhaul.

 

Which of the above budget ideas would you consider for your kitchen makeovers?