Inside: Get been-there recommendation on methods to survive a kitchen transform–and feed your loved ones throughout the course of.
Practically 20 years in the past, we fell in love with a small, 100-year-old home on a fairly, tree-lined road.
Principally, 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 It was practical however outdated.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 exhausting may that be?
Yeah, proper!
The corporate we employed took the kitchen all the way down to the studs, pushed the ceiling up, leveled the flooring, dismantled an outdated coal chimney, opened up a wall, and located sufficient costly surprises alongside the best way to depart our unique funds within the mud.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 price it. Right now I look again on the “earlier than” photographs and really feel grateful for our greater, extra trendy area.
But it surely wasn’t straightforward. And one of many hardest components was conserving everybody fed with out a working kitchen.
So I made a decision to stroll down reminiscence lane with our personal kitchen makeover in case you’ve bought a transform in your future and need assistance surviving the method.
I additionally reached out to my Actual Mother Vitamin Fb group for his or her greatest recommendation and bought so many nice ideas, I needed to share them right here too.
Plus, I’m sharing before-and-after photographs of our renovation and the little “kitchen glow-up” we just lately did.
6 Ideas for Surviving a Kitchen Rework
1. Make a Short-term Kitchen
Our contractor moved our outdated fridge into the lounge, the place we arrange a short lived kitchen area with a small desk, microwave, and toaster oven.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 objects that may aid you in your makeshift kitchen, reminiscent of:
- 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 so forth. fortunately now we have an enclosed aspect 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, immediate pot, air fryer, and so forth all arrange so we may entry it. We used paper plates and cups, and so forth. we additionally bought a number of massive, 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 slicing board, a number of knives, and so forth) it was rough-but we made it!”
2. Maintain your sink so long as potential
Everybody, together with me, agrees that coping with soiled dishes is the worst a part of a kitchen transform. So for those who can, cling on to your kitchen sink so long as potential.
You might also have a sink you should utilize in a basement, lavatory, storage, or laundry room. However “don’t do dishes within the bathtub,” one reader cautioned. “It can 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 sluggish 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 good friend or neighbor to borrow for those who don’t have one):
- Prompt Pot
- Air fryer
- George Foreman grill
- Microwave
- Toaster oven
- Sizzling plate/induction burner
- Electrical skillet
- Electrical griddle
- Camp range to cook dinner outdoors
READER TIP: “Be additional good to neighbors and mates within the months/weeks main as much as the renovation so you may name in some favors & get invited to dinner.”
4. Time it proper
If potential, schedule your renovation for hotter months when you should utilize your grill and eat outdoors.
Bonus: Summer season can also be when mates and neighbors will journey. One reader recommended a swap the place you water their vegetation and fetch the mail in trade for utilizing their kitchen whereas they’re gone.
READER TIP: “Our Blackstone grill is savinnngg me proper now. It principally does most of what you are able to do on a stovetop in a pan, it’s only a griddle: Stir fry type dishes, breakfast hash, and so forth. in addition to burgers and whatnot.”
5. Meal plan & assume E-A-S-Y
Having some form of plan in place may help cut back stress (you’ll have sufficient of that already). Seize my free meal planning worksheet for those who’re a pen-and-paper particular person.
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 you can microwave
- Pizza supply as soon as per week
Think about filling a plastic bin with shelf-stable objects you should utilize for easy meals and snacks reminiscent of:
- Peanut butter
- Shelf-stable microwavable rice and pasta pouches
- Canned meals reminiscent of canned beans, soup, veggies, and fruit
- Power bars
- Entire grain crackers
- Prompt oatmeal
- Applesauce and fruit cups
- Cereal and granola
Seize extra concepts, plus 10 straightforward meals you may make with out a range, in my publish 45+ Wholesome Dorm Meals Concepts
READER TIP: “Don’t assume it’s a must to cook dinner – chilly meals are tremendous, too. Deal with it as an journey.”
6. Let go of guilt
Give your self grace whilst you’re going by a transform. As a substitute of beating your self up over disposable plates and frozen dinners, channel that power into choosing out new home equipment and selecting between 500 kinds of drawer pulls. Right here’s what else Actual Mother readers needed to say:
“Don’t attempt to save the surroundings in 3 months (that means you should utilize paper plates for a number of weeks to save lots of your sanity), and preserve your humorousness.”
“Paper plates, cups and plastic cutlery. Shake off no matter guilt you assume it’s best to really feel and name it ‘self-care.’ Make a listing of carry-out/dine-in choices you’ve gotten needed to try to work that expense into the funds 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 sophisticated when your entire kitchen is torn up.”
READER TIP: “You’ll be able to at all times get compostable paper plates and bowls for those who use a composting service.”
Our kitchen transform
Listed here are some before-and-after pictures of our kitchen area, 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 huge room.
- Eliminated a part of an outdated coal chimney and turned it into one aspect of an ornamental mantle over our range (the aspect cupboards have cabinets for spices, and so forth.).
- Opened up a kitchen wall into the eating room.
- Eliminated a drop ceiling.
- Eliminated laminate flooring and wove the unique flooring 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 a great time for a bit refresh.
So we changed the backsplash and the pendant lights to present the room a bit enhance with out spending a complete lot of cash.
