Inside: Get been-there recommendation on methods to survive a significant kitchen renovation–and feed your loved ones throughout a kitchen rework.
Practically 20 years in the past, we fell in love with a small, 100-year-old home on a reasonably, tree-lined avenue.
Largely, we fell in love with the bones of the home.
The kitchen, not as a lot.
The counters had been blue, the range was black, the fridge was off-white. It was practical however outdated. Clear however cramped.
We purchased the home figuring we’d have the kitchen reworked. As a result of how onerous may that be?
Yeah, proper!
The corporate we employed took the kitchen right down to the studs, pushed the ceiling up, leveled the flooring, dismantled an outdated coal chimney, opened up a wall, and located sufficient costly surprises alongside the way in which to depart our unique finances within the mud.
Did I point out I used to be additionally pregnant, sick with nausea and vomiting, and had a toddler?
In fact it was properly value it. As we speak I look again on the “earlier than” pictures and really feel grateful for our greater, extra fashionable house.
However it wasn’t straightforward. And one of many hardest elements was holding everybody fed with no working kitchen.
So I made a decision to stroll down reminiscence lane with our personal kitchen makeover in case you’ve bought a rework in your future and need assistance surviving the method.
I additionally reached out to my Actual Mother Diet Fb group for his or her greatest recommendation and bought so many nice suggestions, I needed to share them right here too.
Plus, I’m sharing before-and-after pictures of our renovation and the little “kitchen glow-up” we lately did.
6 Suggestions for Surviving a Kitchen Transform
1. Make a Short-term Kitchen
Our contractor moved our outdated fridge into the lounge, the place we arrange a brief kitchen house with a small desk, microwave, and toaster oven.
A folding desk or card desk is useful for this. And earlier than you pack all the pieces away, put aside some gadgets that may enable you in your makeshift kitchen, resembling:
- Espresso maker
- Reducing board
- Pots/pans
- Strainer
- Can opener
- Spatula and different cooking utensils/instruments
- Spices & cooking spray
Right here’s some reader recommendation:
“Discovering a devoted spot to have zones for various issues helped us. Cooking space, prep space, place for making lunches and many others. fortunately we’ve an enclosed facet porch that labored completely.”
“We moved fridge & microwave to our stroll out basement, purchased a sizzling plate, toaster oven, and hubby constructed a kitchenette.”
“I had my makeshift kitchen arrange within the storage with the fridge, an induction sizzling plate, toaster/convection oven and a microwave. Additionally had the crockpot and rice cooker helpful.”
“We sealed off our eating room and made it a makeshift kitchen. We had our fridge in there, a desk, on the spot pot, air fryer, and many others all arrange so we may entry it. We used paper plates and cups, and many others. we additionally bought a couple of giant, heavy obligation plastic shelving items to make use of as momentary pantries. We packed all the pieces in plastic tubs that we thought we’d use (a reducing board, a couple of knives, and many others) it was rough-but we made it!”
2. Maintain your sink so long as attainable
Everybody, together with me, agrees that coping with soiled dishes is the worst a part of a kitchen rework. So for those who can, grasp on to your kitchen sink so long as attainable.
You may additionally have a sink you should utilize in a basement, toilet, storage, or laundry room. However “don’t do dishes within the bathtub,” one reader cautioned. “It’ll kill your again. I ended up in PT due to that.”
READER TIP: “I stocked my freezer with crock pot dinners earlier than the work began and used gradual cooker liners.”
3. Lean on small home equipment
Whereas your oven’s out of fee, smaller home equipment can save the day. Listed here are some to contemplate (ask a buddy or neighbor to borrow for those who don’t have one):
- Prompt Pot
- Air fryer
- George Foreman grill
- Microwave
- Toaster oven
- Scorching plate/induction burner
- Electrical skillet
- Electrical griddle
- Camp range to prepare dinner exterior
READER TIP: “Be further good to neighbors and mates within the months/weeks main as much as the renovation so you possibly can name in some favors & get invited to dinner.”
4. Time it proper
If attainable, schedule your renovation for hotter months when you should utilize your grill and eat exterior.
Bonus: Summer season can be when mates and neighbors will journey. One reader prompt a swap the place you water their vegetation and fetch the mail in change for utilizing their kitchen whereas they’re gone.
READER TIP: “Our Blackstone grill is savinnngg me proper now. It mainly does most of what you are able to do on a stovetop in a pan, it’s only a griddle: Stir fry model dishes, breakfast hash, and many others. in addition to burgers and whatnot.”
5. Meal plan & assume E-A-S-Y
Having some form of plan in place will help scale back stress (you’ll have sufficient of that already). Seize my free meal planning worksheet for those who’re a pen-and-paper individual.
Listed here are some reader solutions for lower-effort meals:
- Costco pre-made dinners
- Sandwiches
- Salad kits
- Dealer Joe’s frozen/microwavable meals
- Pre-prepped meal supply service
- Freezer meals you’ve made upfront that you could microwave
- Pizza supply as soon as per week
Contemplate filling a plastic bin with shelf-stable gadgets you should utilize for easy meals and snacks resembling:
- Peanut butter
- Shelf-stable microwavable rice and pasta pouches
- Canned meals resembling canned beans, soup, veggies, and fruit
- Power bars
- Complete grain crackers
- Prompt oatmeal
- Applesauce and fruit cups
- Cereal and granola
Seize extra concepts, plus 10 straightforward meals you can also make with no range, in my publish 45+ Wholesome Dorm Meals Concepts
READER TIP: “Don’t assume you need to prepare dinner – chilly meals are effective, too. Deal with it as an journey.”
6. Let go of guilt
Give your self grace whilst you’re going by means of a rework. As an alternative of beating your self up over disposable plates and frozen dinners, channel that vitality into choosing out new home equipment and selecting between 500 types of drawer pulls. Right here’s what else Actual Mother readers needed to say:
“Don’t attempt to save the atmosphere in 3 months (that means you should utilize paper plates for a couple of weeks to save lots of your sanity), and keep your humorousness.”
“Paper plates, cups and plastic cutlery. Shake off no matter guilt you assume you must really feel and name it ‘self-care.’ Make a listing of carry-out/dine-in choices you’ve got needed to try to work that expense into the finances for those who can.”
“There have been MANY occasions we simply had sandwiches and cereal for all 3 meals.”
“Maintain it easy as a result of life is difficult when your complete kitchen is torn up.”
READER TIP: “You’ll be able to all the time get compostable paper plates and bowls for those who use a composting service.”
Our kitchen rework
Listed here are some before-and-after photographs of our kitchen house, which was renovated 16 years in the past. What they did:
- Eliminated an higher block of kitchen cupboards and a peninsula separating the kitchen and consuming space to make one large room.
- Eliminated a part of an outdated coal chimney and turned it into one facet of an ornamental mantle over our range (the facet cupboards have cabinets for spices, and many others.).
- Opened up a kitchen wall into the eating room.
- Eliminated a drop ceiling.
- Eliminated laminate flooring and wove the unique ground from the eating room into matching hardwood within the kitchen.
- Put in new perimeter cupboards and black granite counters, plus a kitchen island with a soapstone countertop.
- Relocated the again door.
Our kitchen “glow-up”
Now that our kitchen is sufficiently old to drive, it felt like an excellent time for a bit of refresh.
So we changed the backsplash and the pendant lights to provide the room a bit of enhance with out spending a complete lot of cash.
