How would you 'refresh' this 90s style kitchen?

[Colourgreen]

I can't afford to properly renew or replace the kitchen, so I've been looking at cupboard and worktop paints (and wondering about tiles...).

Can anyone suggest some nice colourways to repaint in? And do you know where to get better, less dated door handles?

Thanks for any advice and thoughts!

Those tiles look great, well done!

Tiles good great. Love the handles too. I have the same cupboards and handles but my cupboards are dark green! Watching with interest.

Those tiles look great and i think with the cupboards painted the worktop will look fine. I’m a bit dubious about the stick on stuff.
I painted our kitchen with Johnston’s cupboard paint last September and it’s been amazing. I tried specialist paint from Brewer’s first which didn’t work well at all, but the Johnston’s paint was brilliant, didn’t need many coats and hasn’t chipped at all.
Good luck with your project!

I think the handles will be fine too. Forgot to say I used a foam roller to paint the cupboards, miles better than a brush.

Looks great!
I did my kitchen units in frenchic which was very easy.
Wrapped the worktops in dc fix and it's been really good. It's tricky around the sink but I did it over a year ago and it still looks perfect. I did get a couple of glass worktop savers for the most used bits.

I have a fantastic solution.
Make sure you have the best household insurance level so you have a matching policy.

Have a mains water leak that caves in your kitchen ceiling and floods the kitchen necessitating replacement of a significant amount of your units.

Beam with delight as the insurance assessor advises that your hideous, 1980s kitchen with foul orange wallpaper and artex ceiling will be replaced in full by the insurance company

😂

Tiling looks better already OP

Aah thanks all! I've only had my kids to cheer me on and admire, and they're relentlessly positive so I couldn't be sure!

Are you speaking from experience Daphne?! Sounds like a great timesaver!!

Thanks for the tip Goodmorning. I bought some mini foam rollers and something that looked like a velour one, which I think someone mentioned. I'm more nervous about painting than tiling!

@Colourgreen

Aah thanks all! I've only had my kids to cheer me on and admire, and they're relentlessly positive so I couldn't be sure!

Are you speaking from experience Daphne?! Sounds like a great timesaver!!

Yup, literally the best thing that's happened to me this year ! Or in many years. The kitchen was the last room to be renovated with no possibility of being replaced for the foreseeable future. Words can't describe how thrilled I am with the flood or the asbestos happily lurking in the vile floor tiles and artex

The tiles look so much better.

Sadly this doesn't capture the sponged effect orange wallpaper or the beauty of the grey/green worktop but you do get to admire the beautiful cheap Lino floor and horrible units. Plus my cats 🐈‍⬛

I can't wait to be rid of it, I may break a bottle of champagne over the skip when it leaves

Just found this thread, we have just painted our cupboards with rustoleum kitchen cupboard paint, white on top and very dark green on bottom. Painted the tiles white with the v33 tile paint. Looking at splashbacks for behind hob. Anyone know if you can paint or spray a quartzite sink from the 1980's/1990's?

Haha- your lino looks just like the tiles I removed! That sounds like a fantastic result. I'm sure our insurance wouldn't pay as they didn't even cover me when it was raining through our roof after a storm...

There is a company near where I live which resurfaces everything, including sinks I believe, StressyBetty. I would have thought there are such companies nationwide. Apparently it's really hard wearing. I'll look for a link

www.refinishingtouch.co.uk/ I have no idea about prices though

We’ve just price up to do our. New door around £200 from b and q but could get us 10 years etc. Painting would mean in 2/3 years we’d need to totally redo. New doors flooring, wall tiles and worktop plus paint and new handles and light etc is costing around £500 but should last so much longer. I too was going to frenchic but used it on another project and found it didn’t wear well. If you’re set in painting have a look at a company called the decorating centre online. They sell colour matched paint in various brands, I believe it’s the hard wearing acrylic eggshell you need for the kitchen but they have tips and tutorials and a fab Instagram and they respond to any messages.

Op that looks amazing! Have you done tiles before!?

Thank you for starting this thread. All the tips and links are really helpful.

I’d paint the units a lighter colour.

I’ve bought handles in Wickes before. They had quite a good selection.

The tiles are the problem, plus the hardware.

Can you retile?

Wow @Colourgreen, those tiles are great, a vast improvement. As is the handle, great work!
Looking forward to seeing the doors!!

Oh thanks so much all! That's reassuring. I had quite a bad head injury a month ago and needed a small repetitive challenge wuthin the home to get me going again, and I think learning how to tile was it! Actually I think deciding to do it only happened because of the concussion, which I found a bit like drunkenness

The handles (example of straight bar one on right hand side) I got from Amazon for £22 for 25 (lots of cupboards and drawers) after lots of shopping around. I wanted something a bit different but couldn't find anything inspiring in 128mm, but I think they're a bit less 90s.

I really need to start the painting. Have some of this cleaner for instead of sugar soap so will let you know if it's any good.

That sounds like incredible value for all of that work, Ivy. Changing doors would be ideal, but this will be an interim measure, and the v33 paint has good reviews. We'll see!

I learned to tile - it's actually very easy. You just have to be methodical. Plenty of how to videos on YouTube. If you chisel off the existing tiles and go one line higher in new tiles you are unlikely to need to plaster. The only tricky bit is tile cutting - see if you can borrow a decent tile cutter, don't buy a cheap one because it'll be crap. Speaking from experience.

Another 'before' and 'after' shot of the tiling!