5 of the Best Before and After Kitchen Transformations on Houzz
Planning a kitchen renovation? Let these impressive redesigns inspire your ideas
Kate Burt
10 January 2021
Houzz UK. I'm a journalist and editor, previously for the Independent, Guardian and various magazines. I'm now excited to part of the editorial team at Houzz UK & Ireland, bringing the best of British and Irish design, interiors and architecture to Houzz.com.
Houzz UK. I'm a journalist and editor, previously for the Independent, Guardian and... More
We all love a good ‘before and after’ story. What could be more satisfying than seeing someone’s kitchen before its renovation then immediately after a pleasing transformation? Well, perhaps seeing the same contrasting photos of your own space, of course. So if you’re upgrading, let these examples illustrate how different the same room can look, often on a small budget or with minimal tweaks, then start to imagine your own ‘after’ photos…
The same layout, new look transformation
The beautiful location of this Norfolk cottage was the inspiration for its new scheme by interior designer Katy Stevenson Bretton of Studio Mônty, who also owns the house. This is the kitchen before she got to work.
“I wanted it to be connected to its surroundings – often, inspiration starts by looking at nature and what’s around,” Katy says. “I went walking in the nearby Holkham Estate and found shells in blacks, greys and deep blues. These, and the muddy brown landscapes, provided the colour palette.”
The reworking of the kitchen was fairly simple, in that little was relocated – and yet the finished result gives it a lovely soft, traditional look perfectly in keeping with the property and its surroundings.
The beautiful location of this Norfolk cottage was the inspiration for its new scheme by interior designer Katy Stevenson Bretton of Studio Mônty, who also owns the house. This is the kitchen before she got to work.
“I wanted it to be connected to its surroundings – often, inspiration starts by looking at nature and what’s around,” Katy says. “I went walking in the nearby Holkham Estate and found shells in blacks, greys and deep blues. These, and the muddy brown landscapes, provided the colour palette.”
The reworking of the kitchen was fairly simple, in that little was relocated – and yet the finished result gives it a lovely soft, traditional look perfectly in keeping with the property and its surroundings.
Here’s how it looks now. Katy had a joiner make the Shaker-style kitchen cabinets, and fitted oak worktops and open shelving. She also added a pendant light over the new-to-her vintage table. “We looped up the cable so we didn’t have to move the electrics,” she says. “It provides a beautiful soft light.”
She added one big investment piece – an Everhot range cooker – and filled the space by the window with an integrated fridge-freezer. The tongue-and-groove wall panelling also cosies up the space and boosts that cottage kitchen feel.
See more of this house.
She added one big investment piece – an Everhot range cooker – and filled the space by the window with an integrated fridge-freezer. The tongue-and-groove wall panelling also cosies up the space and boosts that cottage kitchen feel.
See more of this house.
The no-side-return extension transformation
The owners of this Victorian terraced house in London decided against the usual side-return extension when it came to renovating their kitchen, as they wanted to maintain access to the garden from the living room.
So interior designer Chantel Elshout suggested some clever tricks to make the room, seen in its previous incarnation here, feel lighter and maximise the space.
The owners of this Victorian terraced house in London decided against the usual side-return extension when it came to renovating their kitchen, as they wanted to maintain access to the garden from the living room.
So interior designer Chantel Elshout suggested some clever tricks to make the room, seen in its previous incarnation here, feel lighter and maximise the space.
The result? The room is now a beautiful, bright kitchen-diner that feels wonderfully connected to nature.
Moss-green cabinets bring a sense of the garden into the room, while pale walls, woodwork and flooring all contribute to brightening up the kitchen.
Moss-green cabinets bring a sense of the garden into the room, while pale walls, woodwork and flooring all contribute to brightening up the kitchen.
Chantel replaced this large sash window with two smaller ones to allow for a reconfiguration of the layout.
There’s now space for base units and a built-in storage bench for the dining table along this wall.
Take the full tour.
Take the full tour.
The dark and cramped to spacious and airy transformation
In this ‘before’ photo, you can see how cramped and light-starved the kitchen in this 1970s house in Kent was. That was before interior designer Nicky Percival and kitchen fitters and joiners Traditional Bespoke Furniture got to work on it.
The homeowners wanted a better connection to their garden from the room, as well as somewhere to sit and eat together.
In this ‘before’ photo, you can see how cramped and light-starved the kitchen in this 1970s house in Kent was. That was before interior designer Nicky Percival and kitchen fitters and joiners Traditional Bespoke Furniture got to work on it.
The homeowners wanted a better connection to their garden from the room, as well as somewhere to sit and eat together.
It’s hard to believe this is the same kitchen, isn’t it? But it’s not only the brighter colours that have transformed it.
The key to unlocking extra space here was an underused room off the hallway. “It was supposed to be a study and coat cupboard, but it wasn’t really used,” Nicky says. She added a door, seen here to the right of the ovens, so it could be accessed from the kitchen, too, and turned it into a utility room.
A wall of tall cabinetry surrounding the appliances in the kitchen provides even more useful storage and ensures the space feels uncluttered.
The key to unlocking extra space here was an underused room off the hallway. “It was supposed to be a study and coat cupboard, but it wasn’t really used,” Nicky says. She added a door, seen here to the right of the ovens, so it could be accessed from the kitchen, too, and turned it into a utility room.
A wall of tall cabinetry surrounding the appliances in the kitchen provides even more useful storage and ensures the space feels uncluttered.
This is the view from the other side of the new island. The owners had already installed a terrace and bifold doors, but the internal space needed to be reorientated to make the most of the view.
“We located the storage cabinetry along the darkest wall and positioned the island to look out towards the garden,” Nicky says.
The designer also made the most of a recessed area next to the doors to tuck in a dining table.
Read more about this project.
Thinking of renovating your kitchen? Find a local kitchen designer on Houzz, view images of their work and read reviews from previous clients.
“We located the storage cabinetry along the darkest wall and positioned the island to look out towards the garden,” Nicky says.
The designer also made the most of a recessed area next to the doors to tuck in a dining table.
Read more about this project.
Thinking of renovating your kitchen? Find a local kitchen designer on Houzz, view images of their work and read reviews from previous clients.
The co-opted terrace transformation
This first-floor Edwardian conversion flat in London had long been rented by its owners. When they bought it, they finally got the chance to create their perfect kitchen.
Here’s how the room looked before interior designer Claudia Dorsch got her hands on it and commissioned bespoke cabinetry from The London Joinery Co.
Claudia cleverly made use of the flat’s terrace, beyond the doors seen here, giving it function as well as visually bringing it into the design of the kitchen, which helps the room to feel bigger.
This first-floor Edwardian conversion flat in London had long been rented by its owners. When they bought it, they finally got the chance to create their perfect kitchen.
Here’s how the room looked before interior designer Claudia Dorsch got her hands on it and commissioned bespoke cabinetry from The London Joinery Co.
Claudia cleverly made use of the flat’s terrace, beyond the doors seen here, giving it function as well as visually bringing it into the design of the kitchen, which helps the room to feel bigger.
Here’s the same view after the renovation: light, bright and packed with – yet not overwhelmed by – storage.
Part of the process of connecting the kitchen to the outside involved redesigning the doors to the terrace; Claudia reduced the number of leaves from four to three, so as to have less framing. “There’s now more light and the window looks less cluttered,” she says. She also had the wood painted white to give a light and bright effect.
Part of the process of connecting the kitchen to the outside involved redesigning the doors to the terrace; Claudia reduced the number of leaves from four to three, so as to have less framing. “There’s now more light and the window looks less cluttered,” she says. She also had the wood painted white to give a light and bright effect.
Outside, Claudia installed a modern awning and three discreet electric heaters that look like speakers and are operated remotely. “It means the owners can enjoy the terrace all year round,” she says.
She also dramatically upped the volume and functionality of the kitchen storage. The cabinet closest to the doors hides wiring for the heaters and awning, as well as the boiler. It also provides space for a vacuum cleaner and ironing board.
In the adjacent cupboard there’s a washing machine and tumble dryer. The cabinet doors are sliding to save space. Above the sliding section there’s more storage for occasionally used items.
Claudia explains that the next bank of units “pop out”, creating a deeper area of kitchen storage. Inside these are a fridge, freezer and larder unit.
Explore the whole of this flat’s makeover.
She also dramatically upped the volume and functionality of the kitchen storage. The cabinet closest to the doors hides wiring for the heaters and awning, as well as the boiler. It also provides space for a vacuum cleaner and ironing board.
In the adjacent cupboard there’s a washing machine and tumble dryer. The cabinet doors are sliding to save space. Above the sliding section there’s more storage for occasionally used items.
Claudia explains that the next bank of units “pop out”, creating a deeper area of kitchen storage. Inside these are a fridge, freezer and larder unit.
Explore the whole of this flat’s makeover.
The glamour on a budget transformation
This galley kitchen in an Edinburgh flat may be small, but that didn’t stop interior designer Amy Shirlaw, who also owns it, from giving it a dramatic renovation.
“It had a peeling laminate worktop, as there was no draining board, and the cupboards were in a terrible state,” Amy says. “Unfortunately, there was no salvaging to be done.”
The cleverest thing is that Amy did the whole project on a shoestring budget.
You might also like 5 of the Best Before and After Bathroom Transformations on Houzz.
This galley kitchen in an Edinburgh flat may be small, but that didn’t stop interior designer Amy Shirlaw, who also owns it, from giving it a dramatic renovation.
“It had a peeling laminate worktop, as there was no draining board, and the cupboards were in a terrible state,” Amy says. “Unfortunately, there was no salvaging to be done.”
The cleverest thing is that Amy did the whole project on a shoestring budget.
You might also like 5 of the Best Before and After Bathroom Transformations on Houzz.
The kitchen now has added glamour – chiefly thanks to the golden wallpaper and pink, terrazzo-effect flooring.
The L-shaped layout didn’t lend itself to too much change and Amy kept the sink, cooker, gas hob and washing machine in the same positions. She says people thought she was mad to remove the wall cabinets, but that the internal configuration of the new units is quite different. “They’re vastly changed to make them much more practical and to utilise every bit of space,” she says.
There’s a pull-out corner rack behind the left-hand door under the sink, which Amy uses as her pantry. The right-hand door conceals two pull-out shelves for pots and pans. There are two more slim pull-outs flanking the cooker for oils and spices. The tall unit in the foreground is the fridge-freezer.
Instead of the breakfast bar, Amy found a vintage mango wood, glass-fronted cabinet to sit in the same spot. “It adds warmth to the kitchen and houses all the crockery and glassware. It also has a large drawer for big utensils,” Amy says. She didn’t need the space to eat, as there’s a dining table in the bay window in the living room.
The L-shaped layout didn’t lend itself to too much change and Amy kept the sink, cooker, gas hob and washing machine in the same positions. She says people thought she was mad to remove the wall cabinets, but that the internal configuration of the new units is quite different. “They’re vastly changed to make them much more practical and to utilise every bit of space,” she says.
There’s a pull-out corner rack behind the left-hand door under the sink, which Amy uses as her pantry. The right-hand door conceals two pull-out shelves for pots and pans. There are two more slim pull-outs flanking the cooker for oils and spices. The tall unit in the foreground is the fridge-freezer.
Instead of the breakfast bar, Amy found a vintage mango wood, glass-fronted cabinet to sit in the same spot. “It adds warmth to the kitchen and houses all the crockery and glassware. It also has a large drawer for big utensils,” Amy says. She didn’t need the space to eat, as there’s a dining table in the bay window in the living room.
This is the kitchen as seen from the sitting room. Amy drew on experience from her former career as a theatre designer to create the aesthetic.
“It’s an open-plan kitchen on show to the living room,” she says, “so I wanted it to almost look like a little jewel box or a set design, with a connection to the living room, but not matching it. I like the idea of contrast. I was aiming more for ‘distant cousins’ than ‘twins’.”
Get more information about the details in this petite kitchen.
Tell us…
Have a favourite transformation? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
“It’s an open-plan kitchen on show to the living room,” she says, “so I wanted it to almost look like a little jewel box or a set design, with a connection to the living room, but not matching it. I like the idea of contrast. I was aiming more for ‘distant cousins’ than ‘twins’.”
Get more information about the details in this petite kitchen.
Tell us…
Have a favourite transformation? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
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The Edinburgh flat is marvelous!
Yes, the Edinburgh flat is just wonderful and so original! The others are lovely too, but the Edinburgh sets my design heart alight!
My kitchen needs a complete re-think including the flooring. There's a number of things I can't quite fathom, particularly the cost (there is no way we can do it ourselves!) but should I get the flooring done first or the units, sink and all the other gubbins? I would want to replace the kitchen island but the curren one appears to sit quite neatly on the existing flooring rather than it being cut around it. Would a good kitchen designer be able to put me straight on this?