The kitchen is often the main hub of the family home. It is the busiest area in the house and provides a focus for all of the family, who are drawn by the warmth, delicious cooking smells and generally cosy ambience of the room.
If your kitchen is looking a little dated, tired and well-worn, then a revamp may be in order, but in these hard economic times, finding the money for a full overhaul can prove to be beyond most families` household finances.
Replacing old kitchens with entirely new cabinets may not be necessary, however. The good news is that refurbishing a tired kitchen can be done on a limited budget, while still creating a stylish, practical and family-friendly space.
The first step to freshening up a dull kitchen is to repaint the walls. It is a good idea to use an emulsion paint that is specially made to withstand moisture and condensation and can easily be wiped to remove marks. Many paint ranges offer a choice of colours to suit every taste, from bold and bright to fresh pastel shades. Using a light colour will make the space look bigger if your kitchen is quite small, although a statement colour can look stylish on a feature wall. Picking out the same bold colour in wall tiles, small appliances and accessories can help to bring the whole look together.
If the cabinets and doors are generally in sound condition, they can be brought back to life with a lick of paint. Multipurpose kitchen cupboard paint is now widely available in most DIY and hardware stores and can be used on wooden, melamine, wood veneer and MDF surfaces. Preparation is the key to a perfect finish, so make sure surfaces are clean and grease free. Giving the cupboards a thorough rub down with some fine grade sandpaper will help the paint to adhere to the surface properly and it`s best to leave several hours between coats to achieve a professional finish. Apply paint with a brush or roller and try a test spot on the inside of the door first to establish which type of application will give the finish you desire.
If you lack the patience to apply cupboard paint with a brush or roller, which it is true to say can be time consuming, then some paint brands offer cupboard spray paints, which are fast and easy to apply, but should only be used in a well ventilated space and should be allowed to dry for the appropriate amount of time, to prevent smudges and fingerprints in the finish.
As well as a new paint finish, updating the handles, or adding decorative hinges can modernise dated kitchen cupboard doors and drawer fronts. Internet hardware suppliers, such as Ironmongery Direct, often have a much larger range of cabinet door furniture to choose from, at lower prices, than high street stores, so it pays to shop online for new fittings.
Hacking off old tiles can be a big job, but if the tiles in your kitchen are plain and smooth, then it is possible to update them with tile paint. Again, preparation is vital for the best finish and a coat of waterproof varnish over the top will help to protect the painted surface from scratches and moisture. Alternatively, tile transfers can offer a cheap and cheerful means of adding a contemporary design to plain tiles, or even concealing dated tile patterns and pictures.
An old tired kitchen floor will not only make the room look dated and dirty, it may also be a trip hazard. Replacing old vinyl flooring or linoleum with a more contemporary flooring will go a long way towards making your kitchen a stylish haven. New vinyl or vinyl tiles in your kitchen will be more expensive than a bit of paint but it is worth the investment and it will make a big difference. You can save a bit on professional labour charges by doing some of the preparation yourself, by ripping up the old flooring and taking it to the tip. If you are a proficient DIY’er you could do the work to level the floor, however vinyl flooring is very sensitive to lumps and bumps in the subfloor, so if in doubt leave this to your floor layer.
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