Ten ways to refresh your kitchen

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Create a new look for the heart of your home with these inspiring ideas.

1 Update your lighting

A new shade can work wonders to update kitchen lighting, while even replacing a whole fitting – perhaps a pendant over an island unit or dining table, or a ceiling-mounted spotlight or track – is not usually very costly, provided wiring already exists. Choose bulbs carefully to give the right colour temperature – cool, bright white over working areas, with a warmer glow for relaxed eating. And don’t forget: installing a dimmer is always a good idea.

2 Assess your seating

In a kitchen-diner or an island kitchen with bar stools, the style of seating plays a huge role in the overall scheme, and if yours are looking tired or frumpy, perhaps it’s time for an overhaul. Buy new, consider antique or vintage options or, if you still like your current pieces, consider repainting them or having them reupholstered.

3 Floor story

Replacing a cheap vinyl floor covering with beautiful stone or ceramic floor tiles will have one of the biggest transformative effects in a kitchen, though it is definitely an investment. It may also be possible to add underfloor heating at the same time. Alternatively, it’s easy to hide an unattractive floor with a large rug – braided rugs look pretty and suit a traditional property, or there are lots of outdoor rugs in modern designs that can withstand drips and spills.

4 Overhaul your window treatments

A new made-to-measure roller blind is an inexpensive kitchen update that will have a major impact. All kinds of colours and patterns are available, and they are straightforward to fit. A more expensive option would be New England-style shutters with adjustable louvres, which add thermal and acoustic insulation, too.

5 Taps matter

It’s simple to have a kitchen tap changed – though you must ensure that the new tap will fit the hole (or holes) in or by your sink – and an upgrade will give the room a new lease of life. As well as standard chrome and stainless steel, finishes include brass,

nickel, copper, gold or black, or how about a pull-out spray, water filter or a boiling-water tap?

6 Fresh paint

For a quick and easy new look, there’s nothing better than a coat of paint on the walls. Hardwearing, wipeable versions are always a good idea for kitchens. If your cabinets are looking the worse for wear, it may also be possible to repaint them, too. You’ll need to remove the doors and all the hardware, sand thoroughly and prime with an appropriate primer. A satin top coat is best to avoid highlighting fingerprints and any minor imperfections in the brushstrokes.

7 Glamorous hardware

Among the easiest things to replace in a kitchen are cupboard handles, knobs and pulls, and there is an enormous range of shapes, styles and materials with which to smarten the look of the room – provided you swap them like-for-like. Exchanging handles for knobs, or vice versa, means that the pre-drilled holes will be in the wrong place. Measure for handles carefully so that the new ones can be bolted through the same holes.

8 A new splashback

Retiling a splashback area behind the sink is likely to be reasonably straightforward, and can provide a gorgeous new focal point to the room. The messy bit is removing the old tiles and repairing the surface behind, but after that it’s simply a case of fitting

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your choice of new tiles. If saving money is key, plain, rectangular tiles can be made to look super-smart by laying them upright and aligned (rather than in the traditional offset brick pattern), and with coloured grout for a graphic, modern look.

9 Sort out your storage

A well-designed kitchen has a place for everything, from cutlery to coffee pods. Start with a clear-out and throw out or give away everything you no longer use. If you need extra shelves inside cupboards, now is the time to add them, and utilise internal organisers to keep everything under control. Where space is short and items have to be on display, keep them as tidy as possible with efficient racks, rails and wall grids, adding baskets, jars and boxes that coordinate with each other and the room as a whole.

10 Artwork and accessories

Take time to choose some beautiful paintings, prints or photographs to adorn your kitchen walls, hanging them in orderly lines or balanced groups. Add some accessories that coordinate with the style of your scheme, and perhaps some house plants and/or fresh flowers.

By Katherine Sorrell

1. A custom-made blind will fit your window perfectly without breaking the bank. Regalis silver-patterned roller blinds, £57.71 for a 120x120cm window, English Blinds. 2. These smart, neutral tiles have been grouted to match the cabinets beneath. Marylebone Gloss Ivory

Flat Metro Tiles, £19.95 per square metre, Walls and Floors. 3. As soft as wool, but made from recycled plastic bottles, this rug is hard-wearing, stain-resistant and machine washable. Juno Doormouse rug, £235, Weaver Green.

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