Kitchen Essential

The idea of the kitchen as the heart of the home dates back to the dayswhen kitchens were power houses of service and industry and had a staff to run them! Fitted furniture and neat appliances mean they now have all sorts of other benefits to offer — and are much more fun to decorate.

Practicality should be uppermost in your kitchen planning. Even if you’re not a keen cook, or want a rustic, unfitted look,you will still need unobstructed access to cooker, fridge, sink, work tops and storage. And the kitchen is usually the room that has to accommodate all the general paraphernalia for which there’s no room elsewhere, from cleaning equipment to spare light bulbs and fuses. Colour and decoration will make it a pleasant place to work, but the most important thing is that it suits the way you live. This tells you how to plan a new kitchen — and how to update an old one at a fraction of the cost!

If you can’t afford completely new kitchen cabinets, a quick face lift of the old ones will provide a custom-designed finish and is fun to do. The easiest way to transform old kitchen units is to paint them.

DESIGNING A DIY PAINTEDKITCHEN

This technique will work for both melamine and wood units. First rub the surface down well with fine-gauge sandpaper to give it a good ‘key’ that will take the paint. Sponge down with warm water and a little detergent. When the surface is dry, apply an undercoat, then paint with oil-based paint — eggshell for a lower-sheen finish, or gloss. Either of these will provide a practical, washable finish for kitchen furniture. Decoration can be added by outlining the shape or adding an interesting paint finish, or by drilling a simple pattern.

On panelled wood units

The panelling provides natural lines that can be highlighted with a contrasting colour. Keep your brush fairly dry, working lightly over the moulding to build up the colour gradually. You can always add more as you get the hang of it.

On flush-fronted units

You can add fake panelling with lengths of beading or ready- made panels from timber merchants. Fix thesebefore you paint the units — use a pencil tomark the positions, stick them on with a good wood glue and then paint over the whole thing so that any pencil guidelines are covered up. Alternatively, you can paint your own trompe l’oeil panels. For this method you should paint the background colour first, and then mark on the outline of a panelled shape (measure up a panelled door of the same size to see how big the panels should be). For the most realistic effect, draw your fake panel as two outlines, each about 1 cm in) wide, one inside the other. Paint the outer border in a slightly darker shade than the inner: this will give the effect of traditional moulding. Work out your colours on a piece of scrap wood before you start — you could even paint the centre of the panel a completely different colour from the main door.

Finishing

If you want a less solid finish, you can give the units a colourwashed effect by painting a second, thinner colour over the first. Again, experiment on a piece of scrap wood first, thinning down the second colour with turps or white spirit and brushing lightly to leave a streaky, slightly translucent finish. Brush in the direction of the grain, andfollowing the shape of any panelling.

To protect your paintwork from splashes and wear, it’s a good idea to finish the whole thing with a few coats of polyurethane varnish.

Drilling a pattern

This gives a very effective finish. Stick to an easy design such as a square or a diamond and practise on a piece of spare wood to get the hang of it. Work out the pattern carefully so that you’ve got exact guide marks for the holes to drill.

Work Tops

Work tops are functional, but they present an expanse of surface to full view, so you also want something that looks good and matches your colour scheme. If you do a lot of food preparation, think about incorporating a built-in chopping block as part of the work top.

Vinyl: The most basic and inexpensive finish. Laminated on a solid wood backing, it comes in a variety of colours and effects and can be finished with a wood or tile trim to give a neat edge. Patterned surfaces such as a marbled or speckled effect are more practical than a plain colour, as stains and scratches will show up less. Woodblock More expensive but gives a wonderfully rich, mellow effect. (Don’t be tempted to treat it as an extended chopping board or you’ll quickly destroy the surface!)

Ceramic tiles: Can be used to cover a whole run of work surface, bordered by a wood or tile trim. The grouting needs to be thorough, though, and is liable to stain easily, so you’re better using larger tiles which need proportionately less grouting.

Marble: The most expensive surface, traditionally used for pastry making because it stays so cool. If you’re planning an unfitted kitchen, you may be able to incorporate a slab of marble supported on a cupboard or chest — or, even better, an old washstand with a ready-made marble top.

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