Mum reveals how she transformed her dated kitchen – and shares her top tips for others

the kitchen before and after
Fairly the transformation (Image: Danielle Parisi)

When graphic designer Danielle Parisi moved into her Buckinghamshire dwelling six years in the past, she knew the kitchen – together with numerous different rooms – wanted a brand new lease of life.

However the mum-of-two, who has at all times had a watch for inside design, determined to go concerning the kitchen mission herself.

Danielle, who runs Três Paper Co, mentioned: ‘Once we moved in we liked the area – however not the color scheme and the type of the kitchen because it was. We had been met with darkish colors on the cabinets, flooring, tiles and wanted so as to add some gentle into it to make it really feel ours. 

‘We preferred the format although, and the items had been in good condition, so it might be a waste to eliminate them – and I at all times attempt to upcycle earlier than changing one thing, to avoid wasting assets and help sustainability.’

the kitchen before
The dated kitchen earlier than (Image: Danielle Parisi)

the kitchen before
It wanted an replace (Image: Danielle Parisi)

After wanting on Pinterest and Instagram for inspiration, she determined to start out by prepping after which portray the cabinets.

Danielle did this by eradicating all of the doorways and numbering them on the within, to make it simpler when she put them again on. Then, she eliminated all hardware from the surfaces to be painted and ordered new brass handles for the cabinet doorways.

After, she used sugar cleaning soap to wash each floor to be painted. 

‘In case your items and doorways have any imperfections, that is the time to repair them. Our doorways had knots so we used a wooden filler to make the surfaces flat and clean,’ she explains.

‘Sand the doorways and items down. You don’t must take away the entire prime layer of remedy, however be sure that it's tough sufficient to permit the paint to stick to the floor. Some individuals really skip this step however we determined to do it simply in case.

‘Ensuring that the doorways are on a flat floor to forestall the paint from operating down, then begin with the primer.’

the kitchen before
Danielle was decided to maintain the wooden (Image: Danielle Parisi)

the kitchen after the transformation
So she determined to upcycle it (Image: Danielle Parisi)

Danielle used Zinsser primer and three layers of Farrow & Ball Property Eggshell paint – in addition to Cornforth White on the highest items and Railings on the underside items. 

She additionally allowed sufficient time for the paint to set, and evenly sanded imperfections in-between coats for the proper end.

Subsequent on the record was to color the wall tiles – one thing the mum-of-two was initially not sure of doing, however is now glad she did.

She continues: ‘This was the most important gamble for us as I had by no means used tile paint earlier than and was not too positive of the outcomes, however my thought was that in the event that they didn’t look good after being painted then we might change them.

‘It was value a shot although, and it was the most effective choice I made.

‘I really like the tiles a lot that I'd’ve chosen the very same color in new ones if we had changed them, plus the color works rather well with the cabinets, and the paint remains to be intact even in probably the most arduous working areas corresponding to across the cooker and sink.’


Danielle's step-by-step course of for portray wall tiles:

1. ‘Clear all of the surfaces to be painted no less than twice, use sugar cleaning soap wipes to take away all of the grease. Repeat this as many instances as wanted particularly across the cooker, and don’t ignore the grout traces, additionally they must be degreased for an ideal end. 

2. ‘You'll be able to apply frog tape round cabinets and wall plugs should you desire at this stage. Use one coat of primer on all of the surfaces to be coated. 

3. ‘We used three coats of paint, primarily as a result of we had been portray darkish tiles in a light-weight shade, in any other case two could have been sufficient. It's best to make use of a small foam curler and hold the coats skinny to make sure the outcomes final. 

4. ‘Sand down any paint which will have run down in between coats. As soon as pleased with the paint, we used a white grout pen to go over all of the grout traces. This was time-consuming due to the type of the tiles however the result's superb.’

the kitchen after the transformation
She even painted the tiles (Image: Danielle Parisi)

the kitchen after the transformation
She primed and painted the doorways (Image: Danielle Parisi)

After the cabinets and wall tiles had been performed, the most important job left was changing the ground tiles.

Danielle says: ‘My husband ripped the previous tiles and ready the ground for the brand new tiles, and inside every week we had them put in. Altering from darkish to gentle flooring made the kitchen look a lot greater. ‘

In complete, the DIY kitchen renovation price £1,365 – with £505 for the tiles and £860 for different supplies and the labour of 1 further flooring tiler.

the kitchen after the transformation
Danielle is happy she opted for lighter flooring tiles (Image: Danielle Parisi)

the corner of the new kitchen
The completed look (Image: Danielle Parisi)

wide shot of the new kitchen
It took Danielle and her husband three months to finish (Image: Danielle Parisi)

The couple spent simply over three months finishing the mission – as Danielle was juggling two younger youngsters, in addition to her full-time job, together with the renovation. 

She provides: ‘It took us three months to finish the cabinets together with plinths, nevertheless that was primarily as a result of I used to be doing it in my spare time between a full-time job and a child and a toddler. 

‘The wall tiles had been loads faster taking me round 4 days, primarily resulting from permitting the time for the coats to completely dry earlier than making use of new ones. The ground tiling took a few week from eradicating and getting ready to including all of the finishings.’

wide shot of the new kitchen
A lightweight and brilliant area (Image: Danielle Parisi)

wide shot of the new kitchen
They spent simply over £1,300 in complete (Image: Danielle Parisi)

shelf details in the kitchen
Danielle says she’s glad to took her time – and advises others to do the identical (Image: Danielle Parisi)

However that is one thing Danielle would advise different individuals contemplating a DIY kitchen renovation to do, too.

The graphic designer provides: ‘Take your time, a rushed job gained’t final, it's value it taking the time to ensure you get a fantastic end.

‘And eventually, don’t put stress on your self: we had the mindset that if it didn’t work or it didn’t look good, we'd then take into account changing it.

‘It seems we completely liked it and it matches our household life for a fraction of the price of a brand new kitchen.’

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