SOS: first time renovator needs assistance with a small kitchen layout
Hello houzz community!
My partner and I are looking to renovate our 1950s cottage and I was hoping to get some feedback on our proposed kitchen / lounge arrangement.
A bit of background:
- there is a non-load bearing interior wall separating the kitchen and the lounge area which we intend to knock down to open up the space (this will allow us to push the kitchen out a bit)
- there are jarrah floorboards which we've sanded and oiled so we don't intend on replacing the flooring
- the breakfast bar cabinets will cover the break in the floorboards that will be left after the wall is removed
- we're planning to mount the TV about the fireplace (sorry to those who oppose this!!)
If you have any suggestions or recommendations I'm all ears!
(please be kind, its our first attempt at renovating and designing a kitchen)
Thanks
Han
Comments (7)
Jo Louise
6 years agoRelated Discussions
Entranceway needs to be more wow
Comments (33)Thanks for posting new views of your room. You are right, nothing can go in front of the paneling, and we won't block the built-in cubby. In that case let's work with the rest of the space. I found a picture on Houzz for your gallery wall. I think this will allow you to bring in color and texture and interest to your wall without taking up space like furniture would. Try to play with portraits and a couple of paintings in there too - mix it up. Otherwise I would not put anything at the top of that landing (I'd remove that console table). That picture wall should be enough visual interest to your space and it'll draw the eye to the furthest wall as you walk in your house. I would try a small piece with closed storage between the bottom steps and that door by the entry. It looks like the space is no wider than 26", so it'll be a challenge to find something that fits and is tall enough. I would not use the wooden piece you showed above because you want wider proportions and fairly narrow depth so you don't bump into it as you walk by. (something like this ) I would hang a mirror on top of primping. By the cubby you could add a single seat stool. I'm not particularly suggesting these colors for the stool and bombe chest but something along these shapes. At this point if you do that big picture wall and add these two pieces of furniture and a mirror, you might not need to hang anything on the wall above the cubby. Also, I noticed your chandelier is quite substantial for the space and hanging pretty low. Would raising it a little or replacing it by something a little smaller be an option?...See More1940's NZ kitchen - small, awkward-ish layout.
Comments (121)I would suggest you take out the cabinet that is to the right of the stove and use it elsewhere in the house -- perhaps in the bathroom or dining room with a hutch above it. Then, I would suggest you have someone install a lazy susan cabinet in the corner between the sink counter and the stove, meaning you would move the stove down a bit and have a small cabinet/counter top to the right of the stove. I would suggest you have the cabinets refinished in white and then paint the walls a pastel you like. If you would prefer white walls, then add white-painted crown molding and paint the ceiling a light neutral blue, such as Sherwin Williams Niagara Falls Blue. Then, I would suggest you choose a favorite accent color and use this sparingly in accessories like towels, pot holders, small vases or floral arrangements, and a valence above the triple windows. For a genuine 1940s look, you might have white ceramic square tiles with a rectangular red border installed as a back splash behind and above the stove. If you are replacing counter tops, I would suggest a light color such as white with a beige or light grey vein or striation for some sort of pattern. You might be able to find the same color and design in floor tile OR opt for a wood floor as another poster suggested....See MorePlease Help!! How can I arrange/design this small living space?
Comments (13)Try this. Hang the television to the right of the wood stove on the wall opposite the french doors. Use the wall with the high windows for a looong sofa and add two chairs across / angled slightly - low back so you can look over one to television. use console / sofa table on entry /bed door wall just past where entry door opens so you have a lay down surface. Forget glass, it isn't for this era and won't make it feel bigger. Paint ALL french doors inside and out and small windows and entry door same color and trim same color too. Try a charcoal rather than a black - something in the blue-green-gray shades like new providence navy. do all the walls in kitchen and living in a warm white - this tone has the wood as an undertone - http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/woodash then, for the cabinets . . do a bungalow thing and go deeper on the cabinets to a classic drabware tone - with the wood walls and floors / try bm bracken biscuit http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/brackenbiscuit these will all go together like gangbusters, keep it light and bright but interesting and work with a new blue green gray back door in a tone like bm beach glass http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/paint-color/beachglass templeton gray as a counterpoint on some craigslist piece of furniture . . add warm undertone tan and oatmeal nubby tweed upholstery to start . . the teal navy gray will work with the black iron stove and accents without going black. start keeping the left door to the kitchen closed and get a door stop to hold the other one open permanently . . this will work because you need a little more wall to make the tv work well - in the kitchen, pull your table away from the wall just a tad - consider a padded bench on the wall to provide a kind of sitting space in there and put the chairs across - if you shift your television to the wall (high enough the heat is not an issue , you can still have big speakers work well - and remote the media equipment - run the wire and patch the holes. Hang it mid-height - eye level when you sit plus 15 degrees . . check out the amazing sconces you can put on the entry wall - shades of light petersik pendant with home-made trim wood brace to pump it out from the wall since the power is high? over the console? round wood table in middle - even a hd butcherblock round on a painted drum base in trim tone? With those tones - teal gray, biscuit, creamy off-white, muted blue-greens - paint your white chairs and a hand me down bench wythe blue and find a graphic sunbrella print with a little blue green, chocolate and orange for cushions and pad skirts with velcro at the table . . make a galvinized pipe leg / plank 1 x 12 / clear finish console for behind the door . . now you are cooking with gas . ....See MoreRenovating to sell
Comments (4)Low ceilings = flush lights. Before you purchase carpet get 5 or 6 agents round to value. Ask each for their opinion on what they think will appeal best. Ask them if you could get away with just laying underlay. For the wow factor make sure your budget is spent on items that you can take with you - think a huge 6fx3ft mirror, a bright modern art print, a mirrored console table etc. No need to splash out much just one item in a room or two to indicate wow. A patio table and chairs in the garden are also needed for the selling photos as they will help the buyer to see scale and the garden will appear more homely. A bowl of fruit in a chrome wire bowl in the kitchen will also add wow - stage with green apples and yellow lemons for example. So, to sum up the spend on 'wow' should be limited and only to what you take with you. As for the estate agents some of them do try very hard to give good sales advice so when you book them to value explain that the property is being flipped and you would welcome any ideas on how to present it. You may be surprised at what they suggest....See More
oklouise
6 years agoHannah Jane
6 years agoHi Jodie and okLouise! Thanks so much for your feedback.
I was considering an island bench just to try space out the kitchen area a bit - the only issue with this option is that we'll need to do a bit of rework on the jarrah floorboards due to the gap left once the internal wall is removed. This is definitely something we're considering, I'm just cautious that it could be a tricky exercise (acquire the fill in sections of floor board, have a tradesman secure them/nail them and arrange sanding / oiling of the small section). I'm also a little cautious that the fill in section of flooring will stand out like a sore thumb... but we'll weigh this up and make some phone calls to see how tricky this would be.
Sadly we don't have a floor plan. I'm going to sketch it up in AutoCAD once we've taken measurements of the entire house - this might take a bit of time though, so we thought we'd just start by measuring the kitchen / lounge first.
Without trying to confuse you, the rest of the house is:
- dining room through the internal opening (no door) right of the kitchen
- internal door opening to hallway and bedrooms/bathroom opposite the kitchen
- laundry on the wall on the RHS of the kitchen (from the views provided)
And you're quite right Jodie - I was hoping to have the range hood as a feature! I think it will suit the style of kitchen that I'm going for. See the inspiration photo below:
I am not entirely sure whether to go with dark cabinets because the space is so small, so I'll most likely stick to white (I know, safe and boring) but the overall style of the kitchens is what I'm going for.oklouise
6 years agoHU-118600370
5 years ago
Souzette Lovell
4 years ago
oklouise