When you consider how much time you spend in your kitchen, it’s easy to understand why a few little design niggles will start to become huge problems. The trouble is, updating a kitchen always seems to require an enormous budget, so what can you do?
If you’re fed up of putting up with a boring or impractical kitchen, take a look at the following ideas that could help you makeover your space without breaking the piggy bank.
Brighten up some bar stools
Always attractive in their own right, wooden bar stools make a great addition to a kitchen and inject a little casual dining fun as well. When it comes to carrying out some easy makeover tasks, budget wooden bar stools should be your first port of call, as they are easy to upcycle.
Whether you go to town with some vibrant paint, add a metallic hue or just accessorise with some funky seat pads, upping the eye-catching quality of your stools can’t fail to liven up a dull kitchen.
Pattern match the cabinets
This tip is great for all your artsy types! Instead of painting your cabinet and drawer fronts a solid colour, try something a little more unusual. What about large polka dots? Or chevrons? Or even stars? You’ll need some masking tape, paint and a little patience, but the end result could be utterly incredible and this tip works well for traditional or modern front styles.
As an added bonus, when you apply a pattern, rather than a full layer of paint, you might actually need less, so this could save you even more money than the typical ‘paint the doors’ advice.
Make contemporary handles
Anyone can buy new handles for their kitchen cabinets, but what about making some? Leather strap pulls are eternally chic; if you cut them yourself, you can choose the perfect colour, shape and size for all of your drawers and doors.
When attaching leather strap handles, be sure to choose high-quality screws and colour-matched washers, to place between the screw and the leather itself. This will ensure longevity and a more polished end result.
Modernise the lighting
If you can afford to make just one change to your kitchen, get the maximum effect for your investment by replacing outdated light fixtures with something spectacularly modern. Anything in a copper or rose gold shade will work well to create a modern feel, with exposed bulbs bringing the look together too.
Make sure to fit energy-efficient bright white bulbs, to banish gloominess but still keep costs down. Anything in the warm white realm will just add a dour and gloomy feel, while blue-white lighting often feels far too cool and sterile.
Add hidden storage
A tidy kitchen is an aesthetically pleasing kitchen, so if you have been piling your countertops high with appliances, accessories and everything else, it’s time to stop. You can now buy a number of handy storage solutions that hang on the back of cabinet doors or fit into dead space, allowing you to drastically reduce how much debris you have out on show. Instantly, your space will feel fresher, cleaner and revitalised.
If you absolutely must have something on your worktop, why not buy some herb plants? That way you can enjoy fresh ingredients, gorgeous smells and some pretty greenery too.
A kitchen makeover can be as simple as changing just one or two things, with the impact being surprisingly huge. If you plan and prepare well, you could find that in one weekend, your space is transformed into something that feels entirely new and yet, hardly costs you a penny.
