Colourful 1930s Kitchen Renovation Before/After

It’s been a long time coming, and I am really excited to share our kitchen reveal!

In this article, I am going to focus on the kitchen transformation itself and the before and after shots. I will be sharing a post on the extension build and our outdoor patio landscaping soon!

Our 1930s House – Kitchen & Utility Renovation Before & After

Before

Our kitchen had quite frankly had it! We had duct-taped windows, and missing doors. It was well past its best. Around 1 year after moving in we painted the doors, tiles and changed the worktop for a mini-budget revamp whilst we saved for the full renovation.

I’m glad we did the spruce up, as we waited much longer than we anticipated for various reasons.

After

And here is our colourful, modern kitchen of dreams! We are so thrilled I can’t tell you. We were really nervous about our bold colour choices, but we love the final look.

So if you are thinking of doing a kitchen out of the norm, away from the whites, greys and blacks around. Go for it!

Planning Out Our 1930s Kitchen Design & Revamp

We settled for a kitchen in emerald green and coral pink. Then we went on a search for companies that could offer this colourway, within our budget. In the end, we decided to go with DIY Kitchens for our cabinetry and cupboard doors. We’ve used DIY Kitchens in the past in our old house and we found the quality and process to be great.

We were thrilled to find they offered their slab design, Carrera in painted bespoke colours. So we were set! We just needed to design our own layout using their tool, find our colour samples and make the order.

After hours of planning and getting help from the DIY Kitchens Facebook group and we were ready to make the order. The Facebook group is amazing and a font of advice, inspiration and information. I’d really recommend it, it’s a great community.

Then we started looking for worktops, accessories and appliances.

Why Our Kitchen Layout Stayed The Same

• The extension would be on the dining side of the room anyway.
• Cheaper to keep utilities where they were.
• The design worked well, so why change it?
• The overall room layout, extension included worked really well.

We made a few minor tweaks, such as where to put the oven/hob, removing wall cabinets, switching wall cabinets for an island and having a large pantry unit.

Our Must-Haves

• To stay within our budget
• A colourful, energising and fun colour palette
• Modern, sleek slab cupboard doors
• Functional appliances to make cooking a breeze
• Light bright space to cook
• Social spaces for gathering
• Lots of storage to hide kitchen paraphernalia
• Practical and robust for our kids
• Easy to maintain and clean

Kitchen Layout & Appliances

A kitchen island was perhaps our biggest layout shift and it took a while to decide on the size and placement. We wanted an overhang on the back for 4 stools so we can cook at chat with seated folk. We decided to put the hob in the island to make cooking more fun than staring at a wall. The pull-out bin unit is in the island so it’s easy to access rather than tucked away.

For a clean look, we choose base units with pan drawers that lined up perfectly. Pan drawers in my opinion are so much better than cupboards for storage and finding things! Then we had a large double pantry unit to place in the design. And we wanted it to house a couple of appliances as well as glasses, cups and food!

Next to the island, we placed our ovens. We decided to have these higher up for ease of use and we are loving this so far. It’s lovely to be able to look at what you are cooking/baking without bending down.

We decided not to have a second sink in the kitchen as the sink in the utility worked well for us since we’ve been in the house.

Utility Layout & Appliances

Our galley utility is open to the kitchen and is a funny little space with some awkward nooks. We kept the layout the same as we had with some minor adjustments. We moved a radiator so we could have full-height half-depth units across one wall. This holds cooking equipment and one cupboard is a cleaning/broom cupboard with a plug for charging appliances.

We chose a free-standing fridge freezer which is 10cm larger than a standard fridge size, it’s also taller than our previous one.

Under the window, we put a 1.5 brass effect sink with a boiling water tap. The towel radiator is on the top left-hand wall which is convenient and tucked away from sight. Then we decided on an integrated dishwasher so the cupboards have a sleek look.

Note, we don’t have a new washing machine or tumble drier. We considered bringing these into the utility, but choose to keep them in the garage which is just off of this room. This was to save money and space, plus we figured it’d be less noisy.

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Kitchen Colours

The cabinet colours are Minted Glory 2 and Summer Fizz by Dulux. We sent tester pots to DIY Kitchens who then painted the doors. We decided to have the base units in green as the darker shade, to ground the room. But also to ensure it wasn’t too dark.

Then the tall units were in coral to add an injection of colour and fun that hopefully brightens the space. I love how the colours change in the light during the day and evening.

For the doors, windows, and column radiator we chose to be black. The sink, tap, towel radiator, handles, shelf brackets and sockets are in brass tones. And the floor is a concrete effect LVT with the walls painted in Farrow and Ball Wevet.

Kitchen Worktops Tiles & Handles

Next up, we needed to consider the other main elements of the design. After much research, I found it really is evident that worktops, handles and splashbacks make a massive difference to an overall kitchen style. This is where it gets super fun!

Worktops

For the worktop, we really wanted a resilient and hard-wearing surface. So we chose a white quartz worktop from Rock and Co that I hope will last many, many years of family use. We wanted it in white so it reflected the light and was neutral against the bold colours of the units.

We went for a 30mm worktop in the end as for us it worked out cheaper than the 20mm. We are happy actually with the deeper slab, so it worked out well.

Handles

The handles are by Plank Hardware (gifted/ad) and we are so happy with them. They are such great quality and really weighty, plus we feel they really finish off the kitchen perfectly. We chose the HUMBOLDT Knurled Button Knob in Brass for the drawers and the KEPLER Closet Bar again in Brass for the pantry cupboard doors.

They have a really lovely solid grip and we’ve had so many lovely comments about them. They really add a touch of luxe to the doors and match our other brass-style touches really well.

What a difference great handles make!

Splashback Tiles

For the tiles, we really wanted a terrazzo finish and found these beautiful green/grey/salmon hue tiles that really tied together the whole scheme. I really wanted some softer touches and think these tiles just add a little bit of texture to an otherwise sleek space.

Kitchen Accessories

The little touches go a long way too. I think we will probably add more to the space, with perhaps some prints and a family wall calendar. Hopefully, it grows and evolves as a family space over the years.

Shelf & Stools

We ummed and ahhed about what to do over the tile splashback. We were torn between narrow wall cabinets or a shelf. We only decided once the kitchen was in as we just couldn’t visualise what would work. Plus we weren’t 100% sure if we needed any more storage.

Turns out we planned the storage well. I thought about all the things we owned and where they would go during the design process. This meant we didn’t actually need any wall cabinets. So we went for an oak shelf with brass brackets from Yester Home.

We are so pleased we went for the shelf, I think it’s really nice to have wood texture in the kitchen to soften and tie in our kitchen bar stools from Dunelm.

Sink

For the sink, I really wanted to tie in the brass and we bought the LSC Kensington 1.5 Bowl sink. It’s a gold/brass finish and looks great set undermount in our worktop. It’s really deep and has loads of room for washing up in too. It’s got to be pretty and practical to work well for us.

Lighting

We wanted functional, practical lighting and lights that also added some warm glow. We chose spotlights for when we need bright lighting, which are also dimmable to tone down as and when we need them.

Then we wanted some pendant lights and as soon as I saw the Well Lit Azure Globes I was in love! They are really cool giant light bulbs that are lit with an led strip at the bottom. They cast a warm glow and are so easy to clean too. These are also dimmable and really make the space cosy in the evening.

Kitchen & Utility Appliances

We needed to replace all our appliances, which we knew would take a hit on our budget. We wanted to swap our old range cooker with a gas hob as the gas prices are high, and cleaning it was just a nightmare.

I am happy to share we found a new home for it, as well as our dishwasher (I like to try and be as sustainable as we can be). The fridge freezer was over 15 years old, so I used the AO collect and recycle scheme for it which was great.

We then went about sourcing our appliances, which we wanted to be energy efficient, highly-rated on Which? (it’s well worth signing up for research) and within our budget.

We actually got a multibuy deal on most of our appliances and quite a few companies offer this. They gave us a discount and they would deliver the appliances together once we were ready.

Venting Induction Hob

For our hob, we decided to invest in an induction-vented hob. We didn’t have a working extractor van for a good 5 years, so we really wanted an extractor. We’ve also heard good things about induction hobs and loved the safety features. So we choose the Bosch PIE811B15E and extractor kit. Rather than buy two separate appliances.

So far the hob has been a huge success. Fitting the external extracting was tricky, but well worth it in the end. The draw from the extractor is amazing and we don’t have the fumes or steamed-up windows we used to have.

Plus I’d really recommend induction, it’s so quick at heating up I’ve been caught out a few times. Oops! It takes a little getting used to and you’ll need induction pans, but otherwise, it’s been a great choice for us.

Plus it’s soooo much easier to clean with a quick wipe. We love cooking at sitting and chatting at the island too.

Oven & Microwave Oven

Ovens as I’ve mentioned, we wanted to place high up in a tall housing unit. We wanted to get rid of an extra appliance taking up space, our microwave too.

So we choose the AEG KMK565060B Combi Microwave Oven and matching AEG BEB355020B Steambake Single Oven. We were keen for a black finish to look sleek and we didn’t want any contrasting chrome/silver touches that would clash with the brass.

So far the ovens are amazing, so quick to heat up, with loads of cool settings and features that we just aren’t used to! Having them higher up has been amazing too, but we do need to be careful to keep them clean as they are in full view.

Fridge Freezer

The fridge freezer is the Haier HB20FPAAA Fridge Freezer. It’s amazing just how much food now fits there and we definitely did not need a double American-style fridge freezer which we did look at.

Considering it’s only 10com wider than our old fridge it feels very spacious. Although it is a fair bit taller. We chose the tallest we could fit. However, word of warning, you may struggle to fit it in as we did!

Integrated Dishwasher

The integrated dishwasher is the Bosch SMV4HCX40G and we actually picked it up for cheaper as an ex-display model on eBay! It’s housed in the utility right next to the garage door. This keeps noise to a minimum and means its next to the sink for rinsing.

Boiling Water Tap

We dreamed of a boiling water tap, but were unsure if a, it would be within budget and b, would be energy efficient. After researching we found that boiling water taps are meant to be more economical than a kettle depending on usage. But be sure to do your own research to check this!

After searching for a brass boiling tap that didn’t cost a vast sum, I managed to find the Fohen Fahrenheit tap which was on special offer at the time. In all honesty, it wasn’t going to cost too much more than a standard tap and we decided to go for it as we wouldn’t be changing the tap in a hurry. The cost of installing it and the filters could work out to be pricer mind due.

However, we absolutely love it. We took a bit of a risk, as we were unsure if it was worth it. But, especially when cooking it saves so much time! Boiling water, making stock etc is almost instant. I was wary of the safety side of it, but we find it fine to use and we’ve taught our teenage son how to use it safely too. So the boiling water tap has been a real win so far.

P.S. The simplehuman sensor soap dispenser may just be one of my fave gadgets ever!

 

Further Reading

• Our Living Room Renovation
• Our Hallway Renovation
• Our Bathroom Renovation
• Our Garden Patio Renovation