Money-Saving Mum Turns Kitchen From Drab To Fab For Just £600 And Here’s How
- Kirsty Wilson, 35, was fed up with her tired kitchen but didn’t want to spend thousands transforming it
- She painted the kitchen herself and sourced budget materials such as Fablon and spray paint
- She shopped at The Range, B&M and ebay to keep costs under £600
If you’re despairing over the state of your kitchen but don’t have thousands to turn it into a chic modern space, take inspiration from this money-saving mum.
Kirsty Wilson, 35, a mum of one from Rochdale, was determined to turn her tired kitchen into a cool space, but wanted to stick to a tight budget.
Kirsty, who owns her own business making children's clothing and who also works supporting adults with learning disabilities, decided to paint the kitchen herself and sourced bargain materials such as Fablon, spray paint and art prints from The Range, B&M and ebay.
She managed to breathe new life into her kitchen - and all for under £600.
Kirsty told money-saving community LatestDeals.co.uk: “It all started when I joined the Facebook DIY pages and I saw that people could paint their kitchen cupboards with the paint and the results looked amazing.
"As we had just bought our first house this year we were on a very tight budget and we couldn't afford a new kitchen just yet, so I bought a tin of Lady Grey Frenchic paint.
"I started by stripping the old plastic coating off the cupboards, then cleaned them with sugar soap and gave them a little sand down.
"It took about five thin coats of the paint, leaving two hours between coats. Once done, I used Frenchic finishing coat to protect the paint. I then sprayed the handles with a black metal spray paint.
"For the worktops, I had a marble effect vinyl fitted, followed by a tile effect vinyl on the floor.
"For the walls, I had to scrape all the red paint off, and this then took about five coats of white paint. It was all finished with a new light and prints on the wall.
"Overall we spent less then £600 so as you can imagine I am so pleased with the finished look - I absolutely love it!
“The costs of the materials were £50 on Fablon from B&Q, and £200 for two workmen from a local company to fit it.
“The light fitting was £35 off ebay, the paint was £22 from Frenchic, the art prints on the wall were three for £25 off ebay, and the frames were £7 each from B&M.
“I also bought black spray paint for £8 from The Range, which was used to spray the cupboard handles and the lights on top of on the cupboards.
“The flooring was from a local flooring company and cost £180 including fitting.
“It all came out at under £600 - I would say to buy a new kitchen like this would cost over £5,000!
"As you can imagine with just buying a house and all my savings going into the house, funds were tight so being able to do it for less then £600 was an amazing feeling as who doesn't love doing makeovers on a budget?
"It also gave me a sense of achievement to see the outcome on such a tight budget!"
Kirsty was over the moon with her bargain renovation and felt very proud of the finished look.
"I really think this is a great idea during lockdown as it gets those jobs done that you wouldn't normally have time to do,” she adds.
“It also keeps you occupied which can contribute to a great and proud feeling to what you have achieved and what else you can do.
“I’d advise anyone who wants to do the same to take your time as the painting was the longest process as I had to leave two hours between coats on the cupboards.
"I made a little collage with screenshots of the colours and design I wanted to do, which gave me some idea of what the finished look would look like.
"I would advise others to definitely take the plunge and do it.
“It's hard work but definitely worth it for the finished look.
"I would also advise when painting the cupboards to do very thin coats on each layer.
"I am a very busy lady managing two jobs, a toddler and renovating a house but I wouldn't change anything as I love it!”
Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk, comments: “Tackling a kitchen project is an expensive and stressful task, but Kirsty has not only managed to keep costs down, but actually enjoy the process too!
“Budget materials such as Fablon and spray paint are winners when it comes to keeping costs down on a project, and getting stuck in and doing the painting yourself is not just great for your bank balance rather than paying a builder, but is really rewarding as well!"
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