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Home » My old kitchen and my fantasies for a new one

My old kitchen and my fantasies for a new one

November 3, 2010 by Sarah / Maison Cupcake

My husband and I set up home together in our mid twenties. We’re getting to the stage where one thing after another needs replacing having run its course of 10-15 years use.

Flicking through a catalogue at the weekend, I thought, “Some proper curtains would be nice,” having put up with draughty blinds for ages. We could do with swapping this tatty sofa maybe next year when Ted is totally toilet trained. Our cheap bed will be 8 years old next year, creeping up to the recommended 10 year mattress change.  We’ve delayed and delayed improving our bathroom too. But it’s the kitchen that will cost us.

A decent size kitchen was high on the wish list when we were looking for this house. We struck lucky with a fully renovated Victoria terrace where the back reception room, scullery, coal shed and outside toilet had been knocked into one 18 foot room. Thus far we’ve barely lifted a paintbrush throughout the house although metaphorical cracks the developers papered over are starting to show.

The big problem in the kitchen is that the tiles have cracked in a straight line where they were laid over concrete and wooden floors. The floor has sagged leaving a 2 inch gap between the skirting board and tiles (cunningly hidden under the window seat). It needs ripping up and probably joists replacing.

We were never under illusions that this was a fancy kitchen; the oven is the smallest cheapest built in model possible, the cupboards poorly planned and space wasted.  We never liked it much but couldn’t justify ripping out a brand new kitchen. Waiting a few years before changing it, we have put up with quirks such as the boiler cupboard door flopping open whenever it likes, the drawer panel at the sink falling off regularly and increased the storage space with metal shelves from Ikea.

We would like to knock doors through straight to the garden, reorganise the layout to give us space for a dishwasher, a bigger oven and better cupboards. I dream of big French doors where I can take photographs of food in good light and a double oven so I can grill and bake things at the same time! How wonderful it would be to walk straight into the garden to eat during summer instead of having to loop back on yourself to the door all the time.

Ideally I would also extend the kitchen sideways, put a glass roof on the extension and knock a door through into the dining room.  Ooh and a loft conversion… although that might be pushing the budget somewhat. Maybe it’s better to have enough left over for a holiday – or two!

See how this kitchen compares to when I’d just had the new kitchen done in 2012.

Historically this was a sponsored post for Ebuzzing promoting a Paypal competition that ran in December 2010. Relevant links have since expired and been removed. 

Filed Under: Journal

About Sarah / Maison Cupcake

Sarah has published recipes on Maison Cupcake since 2009 and lives in London.
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Comments

  1. nisha says

    November 4, 2010 at 10:08 am

    sarah id die for a kitchen like that now…so much space n i love how uve done it up..one look at it..and its perfect but i completely understand what u mean by the bad planning and waste of space bit.
    having an open kitchen sucks esp when u have guests over and the kitchen is a bloody mess

  2. Heavenly Housewife says

    November 4, 2010 at 12:26 pm

    To be honest, I am very lucky to have my kitchen of my dreams. It is exactly how i’d like it (and it should be, as i designed it when we moved into our house). I guess my only complaint would be that i’d want my kitchen to be bigger. So i guess i’d get a huge extension with lots of light and windows.
    *kisses* HH

    • Sarah, Maison Cupcake says

      November 9, 2010 at 8:16 am

      Yep, light, windows, all good for food pictures!

  3. Gourmet Chicks says

    November 4, 2010 at 11:01 pm

    Lovely to see you tonight Sarah. Trust me your kitchen is a palace compared to mine which is tiny. Ah if only we could have the Waitrose kitchen all the time!

    • Sarah, Maison Cupcake says

      November 4, 2010 at 11:15 pm

      Yes you too, sorry we didn’t get to chat much but I took great pic of you shakin that cocktail shaker!

      The kitchen big and tidy. Alas it’s a bit shoddy and lacking in groovy gadgets. I could quite happily move into either Waitrose or Miele I think.

  4. karen says

    November 5, 2010 at 11:42 am

    I feel your pain! I have put off and put off renovating the bathroom and now can’t avoid it any more, with a permanent leak from the shower. I’m spending £3000 – and that’s not for a total update. That’s a compromise!

    • Sarah, Maison Cupcake says

      November 9, 2010 at 8:15 am

      Yeah, £3000 sounds entirely modest for all the work you’ll be doing. I’m in the wrong job, should have been a builder.

  5. Janice says

    November 5, 2010 at 4:52 pm

    I don’t want to depress you or anything…but I finally got the kitchen I’ve always wanted after 29 years of marriage! But I love it to bits, oak work tops, beaten pewter handles on the off white cupboards. Hang in there and you will get your dream kitchen 🙂

  6. Jamie says

    November 8, 2010 at 10:34 am

    Ah you guys sound like us and we’ve been at it for 23 years! I want my dream kitchen and I hope on getting it when either I win Euromillions or when our son becomes an architect and builds our dream home for us. He’ll still probably leave his dishes in the sink for me to wash …

    • Sarah, Maison Cupcake says

      November 9, 2010 at 8:14 am

      23 years?! Don’t depress me!

  7. Heather Davis says

    November 9, 2010 at 9:50 am

    Sarah your kitchen may not be your dream but it is incredibly organised! If I won £40K I think I’d pay you some of it to come over to my house and make it look that tidy. Love all the hooks, tins, tupperware, labels etc. I have a big kitchen I admit but god lord it’s such a mess! Hope you get your dream one soon 🙂

  8. Hilary says

    November 9, 2010 at 4:09 pm

    That is a great space for your someday dream kitchen – and it’s not too shabby now! I think it had loads of charm, actually. It’s virtually the same size and layout as the one in the shared house where my partner used to live (Victorian mid terrace in Clapham). I used to dream about what I would do to that kitchen if it were mine…

  9. Su-yin says

    November 9, 2010 at 10:38 pm

    I spy Nigella’s Kitchen on your bookshelf! Really enjoyed this post, I always like having a glimpse into other peoples kitchens! 🙂

Trackbacks

  1. The Final Pudding… | Maison Cupcake | How to bake your way through life says:
    July 25, 2012 at 5:02 pm

    […] may recall me previously publishing some pictures of my former kitchen in this post where I bemoan its problems in more detail (I hasten to add I am NOT spending that much money on […]

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