WHILE we would all love to have a fabulous kitchen, it’s something that many of us unfortunately just can’t afford.
With the cost of living crisis putting a strain on many people and their purses, getting the builders in is an expensive process and one not on many people's agenda right now.
However, one savvy mum has managed to transform her space using B&Q bargains and a freebie from Facebook Marketplace.
Eleanor Bromley, a 28-year-old single mum from Farnham, told money-saving community LatestDeals.co.uk: “I follow lots of home Instagram accounts and I am inspired by women such as Mrs Hinch and Stacey Solomon.
“I am a member of various groups on Facebook related to home improvements so being surrounded by these influences led me to come up with the idea.
“My lounge has got lots of neutral, earthly tones and the kitchen is attached. I tried to keep the style flowing through to the kitchen.
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“Before, I had cabinets and drawers with a pine wood effect and grey countertops.
“I wanted to make it look a little different by giving the counters that wooden feel and turning the cabinets white to make the space look bigger.
“I had seen people using vinyl wrap in their kitchens and I realised I could save a lot of money by doing this myself.”
Eleanor explained that she bought a lot of her supplies from high-street chain B&Q and spent a total of £70.
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She said: “I bought most of the supplies from B&Q and the total price was around £70.
“My first purchase was D-C-Fix Whitewood Gloss White Wood Effect Self-Adhesive Film.
“This was £6.50 per roll and I bought 7 rolls after measuring out how much I needed for the cabinets and drawers.
“The wrap I chose for the counters was D-C-Fix Woodgrain Artisan Oak Self Adhesive Vinyl Wrap Film.
“This was slightly more expensive at £7 per roll but I only needed 3 rolls for this part of the project. I also picked up a D-C-Fix Self-Adhesive Film Decorator Knife Set for £3.50.”
The DIY whizz explained that in order to get her work to look professional, she spent time watching videos on YouTube to understand the process clearly.
She continued: “I knew that getting the wrapping job to look professional would take thorough cleaning, time and patience.
“To get started, I watched some helpful videos on YouTube to ensure I had a good overview of the process.
“Then the cleaning stage began. I made sure every surface was scrubbed clean and then I dried it thoroughly.
“Some people use sugar soap for this stage but I just used plain soap and water.
“After that, I lined up the paper on the surface I was covering and cut away any excess.
“Then I very slowly peeled away a couple of inches at a time and smoothed it down with a special tool using the Decorator Knife Set.
“My kitchen has very strange angles and it made it tricky to line up the D-C-Fix. Bubbles under the paper were another issue, and you must be extremely slow and patient.
“If you notice a bubble under the paper you have to peel it back and redo the section all over again!
“On many YouTube videos, I saw that they had removed the cupboard doors so that they could cover it while sitting on the floor. Quite a few of the screws were threaded, so I wasn’t able to remove them.
“I decided to just work directly onto the cupboard fronts while they were still attached. I didn’t find it too bad, other than straining my arms and neck a little more than I would have.”
The mum-of-one also revealed that she managed to pick up a freebie from Facebook Marketplace to complete her DIY kitchen.
She added: “I wanted to make the space look more decorative as well, so I collected a free extractor fan from somebody on Facebook Marketplace and I had help with putting it onto the wall securely.
“I also had some spare wood lying around so I sawed it down to make some shelves.
“I hated that the tiles finished directly below the cupboards as it really highlighted the gap between the cupboards. So I figured that adding the shelves would tie it together better.
“I then wrapped the wood with some leftover vinyl to match the worktops. I used some brackets to attach them to the wall.
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“After that, I already had some LED strip lights from Amazon and used them underneath the central shelves. I wish I’d bought one with a dimmer on it so I could choose how bright to have it.
“I am so pleased with the outcome. It was a lot of work – over 20 hours on my own, mostly after my two-year-old went to sleep – but it feels worth all my efforts after seeing the results.”
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