Reasons for kitchen renovations are varied, but these three couples wanted to refresh tired décor and make better use of restricted space.

Each of the three couples took a slightly different approach to their kitchen renovation.

Craig and Clare from Napier used a joiner they knew.  They selected from the options and colour schemes provided by the joiner who then built and installed the new kitchen to their design.

Craig and Clare's kitchen before

Toni and Craig from Wellington looked at a number of brochures before settling on joinery bought from a major hardware outlet.  The system works on pop-out cabinet shapes on a grid that can be moved around until the right kitchen configuration is found. 

After getting a number of quotes, Toni and Craig decided to use the joiner recommended by the hardware retailer. Their joiner measured up the kitchen and, using the grid system, helped them work out the best joinery options based on the number of drawers and cupboards they wanted and the size and shape of the kitchen.

The final prompt for Brent and Sharon, also from Napier, to get started on their kitchen was buying a new fridge that did not fit in the old space.  They knocked a hole in the wall to extend the kitchen by about half a metre.  This gave room for the new fridge as well as a new breakfast bar.

Brent and Sharon were fortunate that Brent is a joiner by trade. He was able to do the building work, remove the old kitchen joinery, build the new joinery and install it. This resulted in considerable savings. 

Toni and Craig's kitchen before

In all three designs, the use of drawers rather than cupboards was a significant feature.  Deep drawers to store everything including pots and plates has proved highly effective. The only cupboards in Brent and Sharon's new kitchen are under the sink, the pantry itself, and a small tray cupboard.

Craig and Clare kept some cupboards but had slide out shelves fitted which can be pulled out to provide easy access to the back of the cupboard. They even put two slide-out shelves in the bottom of the pantry for easy access to vegetables.

Toni and Craig kept the original tongue and groove walls and pull down bins as a feature in their 1920s house.  They use the bins for non-food storage as they are not pest- or air-tight. But their kitchen now boasts bench space along two walls which was one of their main objectives.  Their laundry is also in the kitchen so they put in cupboards to close off the appliances. They had to replace their old appliances with a front loading washing machine and dryer to be able to close them off in this way.

All three kitchens were built with coated MDF board which provides a hard, impervious surface. The same material was used for the bench tops with various laminate finishes.  The three couples have all been happy with the hard-wearing finish.  Both Toni and Craig, and Brent and Sharon have had more than a year's use and have been impressed with the durability of this material.

Brent and Sharon's kitchen before

The only one of the kitchen renovations needing building consent was Craig and Clare's - for the relocation of the hot water cylinder from the kitchen to another part of the house. All three jobs needed the services of an electrician and plumber to put in new wiring or reconnect appliances and plumbing. Brent and Sharon needed a plumber to install the icemaker on their new fridge.

Each kitchen is in various stages of completion.  Craig and Clare are thinking of having the floors sanded after finding rimu flooring. Brent and Sharon put down ceramic tiles which Sharon is not so keen on after 18 months. "They are not very forgiving if something gets dropped and are quite cold in the winter," she says.

In all three cases the entire exercise has been quite quick and relatively painless. The only hold-ups for Toni and Craig were waiting for the plumber and electrician, and waiting for the laundry cupboard doors to be specially made as they were not a standard size.  Craig and Clare had their old kitchen out one day and the new one installed the following day.

All three couples have been very happy with all aspects of their new kitchens. They particularly recommend drawers rather than cupboards to help achieve a user-friendly kitchen.