5 Smart Hacks to Revamp Your Kitchen
When making interior design improvements in your home, the kitchen area often comes last in everyone's to do list, right? It is only after everything is finished that we realize just how important this space is, and how much of our time we actually spend here. But just like choosing a new bank, where careful consideration is key to your financial well-being, your kitchen deserves thoughtful planning too.
The kitchen is not only the place where we prepare our sumptuous meals and hone our cooking skills but the area that brings everyone together, as well. It is well worth the time, effort and investment to make this space work overtime for you and your family. So I have come up with these 5 smart hacks to fully revamp a kitchen.
Image credit: British Standards Cupboards, a kitchen at the home of chef Skye Gyngel
1/ Pay Attention to the Kitchen Cabinet
When it comes to reconditioning your kitchen amenities, you just can’t overlook your kitchen cabinets. It’s essential that you ensure that the style and colour of your drawers and doors not only look good but complement the whole area.
The important thing to note here is that you don’t have to invest a significant amount of money in buying new kitchen cabinets. Your old ones might look just as good, with adding a fresh coat of paint. If they are MDF remember to prime them and add a few coats on for a professional finish (or you can have them spray painted by a professional). If they are wooden, then a good sanding and priming is also equally important. That way the kitchen is going to look brand new and there’s also an element of joy when something old gets remade or redesigned.
If you want to buy new doors for your kitchen cabinets, then these sources will come handy:
Above and below, images by British Standards Cupboards
2/Make Sure Your Kitchen Appliances are In Tip-Top Shape
There’s no way you can master your favourite recipes, or learn new culinary tricks if your kitchen appliances are in poor condition. And speaking of making repairs, the thing we said about the kitchen cabinets applies here as well: you don’t have to break the bank and invest in new staff when you can always visit the appliance repair centre and get everything mended and overhauled.
Remember that by doing this, not only will you save time by not needing to learn how to properly use new appliances, but you’ll also be doing something great for the planet. Opting for repairing instead of buying brand new items will help eliminate the effects of carbon footprint.
Above and below, images by British Standards Cupboards
3/ Repaint the Walls
If you’re still determined to give your kitchen an entirely new look, why not try with repainting the walls? We’ve already mentioned that painting your kitchen cabinets can make them appear in a completely different light, and the same goes for the kitchen walls, as well.
The good thing about repainting the walls is that it’s something that you can do on your own. It just requires a little bit of your time and patience until you get a hang of how it’s done the right way.
My top tip here is to always use paint that is suitable for kitchens - and that means handling humidity! Soft sheen paints also work better as they are easier to maintain and you can softly clean over them. By all means avoid matt paint in the kitchen!
My favourite 'white' colour for a kitchen is 'Shirting' by Little Greene Paint Company. It is also the colour we used in our bathroom renovation.
Above and below, images by British Standards Cupboards
4/ Tweak the Kitchen Lighting
In order to be entirely satisfied with the results of revamping your kitchen area, I strongly recommend you to make improvements in regards to the kitchen lighting. People neglect the fact that even a small tweak in the light setting can produce a whole new feel of the place. Your kitchen is no different, so it’s advised to turn and twist the lighting fixtures and see how everything looks under a different shadow.
The most important thing here, of course, is to make your cooking time easier and more enjoyable by improving lighting. If your kitchen feels gloomy, it could be that your light bulbs are not strong enough or are the wrong colour.
But what you also might want to do is add some ambient lights. That way your kitchen will surely become everyone’s favourite place. In the photo below (from British Standards) you can see that the kitchen has no ambient lights. The ceiling down lights will certainly fill the space with light and you can probably dim them but can they really create pockets of light in the right places?
LED strips can be easily fitted under or over the upper cabinets and can work independently to your down lights. They are my favourite type of ambient lights in the kitchen.
Above and below, images by British Standards Cupboards
5/ Hang Pots and Pans All Around the Place
If you don’t have too much space in your kitchen to store all the things that you need on a daily basis, the solution might be to hang pots, pans, and other kitchen utensils all around your kitchen area.
Don’t limit yourself only to walls, but also consider the ceiling. That way you’ll eliminate the need for extra cabinet space. It goes without saying that your kitchen will look great – especially under those new lighting fixtures that you’ve hopefully tweaked.
Final Thoughts
I strongly advise you not to forget the kitchen area when making interior design improvements at your place. This is probably space where you’ll spend most of your time, so apply these 5 smart hacks for overhauling your kitchen and rip the fruits of your hard work without breaking the bank.
