Anyone got a bright idea of what I can do about my ghastly kitchen for £500

[ShevelKnievel]

Kitchen is falling to bits. Bottoms falling out of the drawers, cupboard doors wonky, carcasses broken and vile. It's not save able.

I'm tempted to rip the whole lot out

But I can only scrape together £500
I'm handy - can tile and probs plumb in a sink

What can I keep my stuff in? I've been stalking eBay for an old sideboard or two

The kichen is approx 3 x 3m so small and my worry with cobbling together a few odds and ends that I'll have odd gaps, in the corners for example

Do you have an oven/ fridge etc or does that need to come from the budget?

Have you looked for whole kitchens on eBay?

I got mine for £175 including corian worktops. Its bespoke hardwood amd came from a much much bigger kitchen that ment
I could pick and choose where i put things.

The other option could be to recarcass and worktop, then save up for doors.

Search eBay for 2nd hand kitchens local to you. You could pick up a bargain as people get rid of good kitchens because they just want a change or bought a new house and kitchen not to their taste.

don't k ow where you are but things like rhis listing often go for less than £200

What about fitting a worktop then put a shelf below it and hang curtains to cover the area below the worktop? and shelves on the wall above or a cheappainted old bookcase on the worktop to look like a dresser?
I'm in a similar position as the unfitted kitchen in the house I am buying is all being removed except for the sink unit!

We sold our old kitchen on ebay for a couple of hundred quid (nothing wrong with it, I just hated it! ) so well worth trawling.

I got a full set of kitchen cupboards, 3 base units (2 single and 1 double) 4 wall units (1 double and 3 single)and a larder unit for £100 on pre loved. They were surprisingly easy to fit and are in great condition and just needed a good clean up. A new laminate work top and fitting it was another £200 I think. We got tiles on ebay for £40, although I've yet to brave tiling. It can be done on a budget.

I've been looking for a second hand one but nothing's come up

The oven is freestanding. As is the fridge freezer and dishwasher

I think we'd really need a new sink and wonder if that'd be the best way to spend the £ then yes, maybe a new work top with some gubbins underneath

But I guess a work top needs something to sit on?

I kept on getting outbid on ebay, but had more luck on Preloved - have you tried there or Facebook?

I've not looked at preloved, will give that a go too thanks for all your suggestions

You can fix a worktop on the wall with a metal pole/leg thing for support. Then use open shelves on the wall. You can get freestanding units from IKEA and have seen their Trofast storage used in kitchens with the plastic boxes as drawers.

I designed a kitchen for a Latvian lady who wanted all shelves ( ikea Lack) on the walls all the way around her kitchen - literally on all four walls - 7 shelves a foot apart in height - ( one wall had less shelves for her taller stuff ) then had a big island in the middle with sink , DW and range cooker - there was an island hood over the range and task lighting over the sink and prep area of the island ! her FF was in an alcove, where a fireplace used to be ! I was sceptical - but it work brilliantly for her and she loved it !!

was self fitted by her husband and cheap as chips !! (a bit like cooking in a pantry I thought !!! )

Freecycle? Free standing furniture, doesn't have to match like a big sideboard, chest of drawers, you could paint it any colour you choose. Agree with shelving and perhaps some sturdy hooks to hang cups etc. You could rig up a pole, steel or wooden to hang heavier items like pans. An old wooden ladder fixed to the wall would be ideal.
You'll need some kind of worktop though; and a base unit for the sink.
Be creative. I would love to rip out my rickety old units.

use paint to unite any odd furniture pieces. it they are all painted the same color it will look better. add a marble bit somewhere for pastry rolling.

How to Make a Dresser Into a Kitchen Island

By an eHow Contributor

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Here is an easy way to make a kitchen island out of an old dresser. This project is inexpensive to make and adds country charm to any kitchen. All you need is some paint and a few pieces of kitchen hardware to create your own custom kitchen island. Chalkboard paint transforms the back of the dresser into a fun message center or a place for kids to doodle. Have a question? Get an answer from a handyman now!

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Things You'll Need

Old bedroom dresser

Latex or oil paint

Chalkboard paint

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Instructions

1

Select an old bedroom dresser that is waist high. It should have at least two drawers for storing towels and other kitchen supplies.

2

Remove all hardware from the dresser and sand lightly. Err on the side of caution and sand in a well ventilated are (preferably outside) in case of lead paint.

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3

Prime and paint the top, front and sides of the dresser in a color that compliments your kitchen. Either latex or oil paint will work for this project.

4

Prime the back of the dresser and paint with two coats of chalkboard paint. If the back of the dresser is uneven then cover it with a piece of 1/4-inch paneling cut to size.

5

Attach a paper towel holder to one end of the dresser. On the other end, screw in a row of cup hooks to hang utensils. Reattach the knobs to the front of the drawers.

6

Place a large cutting board on top of the dresser for chopping fruits and vegetables.

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Read more: www.ehow.com/how_2272302_make-dresser-kitchen-island.html#ixzz33f8tJLNH

You could paint the furniture to match as previously suggested and invest in some nice nobs like these on ebay.
i.ebayimg.com/t/Blue-purple-ceramic-knobs-drawer-pulls-cupboard-door-knobs-porcelain-china-K-B-/00/s/MTYwMFgxNjAw/z/6ywAAOxyItRTcnNW/$_12.JPG

Free standing is your friend - look for Ikea Varde on eBay/Gumtree/Preloved, it can go very cheaply and if you take it apart, it fits in the car. Second hand kitchens good too, I bought a fair few chunks of mine second hand on eBay. Also old giant pine cupboards - I bought one for about 40 and it was amazing as a pantry, about the size of a large wardrobe but with big deep shelves. When our kitchen was demolished we used it in the living room to keep all our food and crockery in.

Look in charity shops and charity furniture shops (salvation army and British Heart Foundation have them) look on freecycle and skips etc for pieces of wooden furniture you can paint. for a sink, I would look for a second hand sink unit, again the Ikea Varde is nice. Alternatively, Ikea cheapest solid wood worktop is not loads, buy a cheap stainless steel sink on eBay and borrow a jigsaw and cut it out yourself. We did it, and it was a bitching bitch to do, but it saved us scads of cash.

Wall shelves will be a cheap storage solution for now, and if you need to do the floor, I can heartily recommend Gerflor vinyl tiles, which go down very nicely on a smooth floor. Otherwise, self-levelling compound and then vinyl tiles. Or if you're lucky and have floorboards, paint them as a cheap temporary solution and stick a cheap washable rug down by the sink (those Ikea cotton ones for 2 are useful, we have loads).

If you're going proper free standing, rather than built in units shoved in together, then a few gaps won't matter, just arrange it like you would any other room. It's only when you use fitted units but leave gaps that it looks a bit rubbish.