Woman Quoted £1,700 For Kitchen Makeover Saves £500 With These Budget Hacks
- Lianne Davie, 33, was quoted £1,700 to spray paint her kitchen cupboards but shopping around helped her to cut the total cost of the revamp to £1,200, including a new floor and some stylish accessories
- Taking the DIY approach, where possible, was useful for keeping her budget in check
- Is thrilled with the cottage style makeover and encourages others to “shop about” for the best deals
A brand new kitchen can cost a small fortune, but you may be surprised by what you can achieve on a budget.
Lianne Davie’s kitchen makeover is a case in point. The DIY savvy woman from Barry, South Wales, who works for an out of hours GP service, shaved £500 off the price of her revamp by shopping around and completing some of the smaller jobs herself.
“I bought the house a year ago and although the kitchen was in brilliant condition, the white cabinets were boring and I could spot every bit of dirt on them. Plus, the little brown mosaic tiles just weren't my style,” she told money-saving community LatestDeals.co.uk.
Lianne, 33, got a quote to spray paint the kitchen cupboards, which came in at £1,700.
“I thought I could have a whole new kitchen for that price, surely,” she says.
After going back to the drawing board and looking for a more affordable alternative, with a bit of DIY thrown in, she managed to crunch the cost of her dream kitchen down to £1,200, including a new floor and all the accessories.
“Instead of spray-painting the cupboards, I found a local painter to do it by hand for £300,” she says. “I have always liked darker colours, such as navy. I’d seen the shade used in lots of different interiors projects like living rooms and hallways and thought it would look nice in the kitchen.
“I was worried that it may darken the room and make it appear smaller, as it's typically a shade that works well in big kitchens in large houses. However, my kitchen window is pretty large and lets in lots of natural daylight, so I thought it would work out ok.
“I had already removed the old handles, filled the holes and sanded them down ready for painting.”
She found the perfect shade, called Antibes, from the range of GoodHome Durable Matt Emulsion paints available at B&Q (£16 for 2.5L).
“Deciding what to do with the wall tiles was the hardest part of the process but, after some advice, I decided to keep them white,” she says. “I used the same type of multi-purpose paint for the tiles, but in a brilliant white gloss.
"I’d seen people using tile stickers for stairways so I decided to use them for a dedicated feature area behind the cooker. This saved me £50 compared to buying a piece of glass splashback.”
Lianne gave the walls a lick of paint and sourced all the accessories, including the brushed gold cup style cupboard handles and black kitchen appliances, on a budget too.
“The handles were £10 from Amazon,” she reveals. “They were classed as secondhand, but they were actually brand new. I think this is the case when people buy them and open the packets but don’t end up using them. It was great news for me, as I got them much cheaper than they would have cost new.”
Handles added, Lianne then chose a concrete tile effect vinyl floor, fitted by a local handyman, which cost her £54. In total, the project took about two weeks to complete from start to finish.
“I absolutely love the end result, it’s so warm and lovely,” she says. “I hadn't seen many completed kitchens combining all of my favourite colours and accessories before, but I knew it would be lovely.
“Everyone is all about grey and blush pinks at the moment and most people want to brighten their kitchen, but I prefer the homely cottage style. It’s exactly what I wanted to recreate.
“My advice to others doing their own kitchen revamp is to shop about,” says Lianne. “Get a load of quotes. Look at reviews. And remember, secondhand isn't a bad thing. Take your time and enjoy it.”
Tom Church, Co-Founder of LatestDeals.co.uk comments: “When upgrading your home, you should always get a variety of quotes to compare before deciding on the best route for you.
“Lianne made a fantastic £500 saving and packed even more updates into her budget, including a brand new floor, which is a great result.
“Secondhand buys from online marketplaces can come to the rescue when you are counting the pennies so make sure you do your research.”
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