STEP BY STEP: Kitchen refacing magic

Step by Step is the blog of Kate Kerin Interiors. In addition to following some of my clients’ projects, I examine some of the latest issues of interest in the world of interior design.

Downsizer Pam’s kitchen has finally been installed! Based on Sydney’s lower north shore, Pam has been embarking on a long journey to refresh her apartment in an over-55s resort in Greenwich. The kitchen has been a lengthy journey; she was originally planning to undertake the job in late 2023, but decided to pause the project. She just wasn’t sure she wanted the bother of replacing a kitchen when her existing one was perfectly functional and in quite good condition. Kitchen replacements can soak up a huge amount of the budget, and the disruption is significant when the old room needs to be ripped out and the process of replacing each element takes time. It’s usual to be without access to your kitchen for at least a couple of weeks and Pam has an active social life, regularly hosting bridge games in her home. She really didn’t want the disruption.

However, I was convinced that a new look would elevate the kitchen area of the open-plan living space to equal the other spaces, which we had recently refurnished, repainted and styled (you can read more about this process in earlier blog posts). The 15-year-old kitchen was pulling the entire space down; the cabinets were flat-profiled and dated, and the handles were bulky and institutional in style and layout. Pam’s over-55s resort had recently replaced two Miele ovens and the integrated refrigerator with slightly different sized units, resulting in joinery gaps and slightly incorrect colour matching on the new panels. This led to a section of the joinery drawing the eye, irritating Pam every time she glanced at it.

I began researching kitchen refacing, which is when the carcasses of existing joinery (and often other elements, such as splashbacks and benchtops) are left unchanged. The doors of cupboards and drawers are replaced, new handles can be added and sometimes the hinges or drawer mechanisms are also replaced. In Pam’s case, the cupboard door hinges were replaced but not the drawer slides. Pam has access issues with her right hand, and wanted particularly high clearance between the handle and the surface of each cabinet, so I carefully researched options and found a beautiful option that had the same clearance as her existing handles, but looked much more elegant. She chose a brushed nickel finish to match other door hardware, and we meticulously workshopped a range of colour options for the cabinets. Pam wanted a light colour, and we had recently repainted the entire apartment so we needed to find a hue that would complement Dulux Grand Piano Quarter walls. In the end we settled on full strength Grand Piano, which was our only real disagreement as I encouraged her to consider a slightly deeper colour. But at the end of the day it’s her home, and she was clear on her preference (and it does look lovely).

We considered simply re-spraying the existing joinery, which would have cost less than replacing it. However the existing cabinet-fronts were completely flat, with no profile at all. This dated them, and we would also have been limited in the replacement handles we could have chosen. Although filling the original drill holes and creating new ones is possible, I was concerned that over time this would look makeshift and a bit cheap, and Pam’s apartment is high-end. Pam agreed, and was willing to invest a little more to get the kitchen of her dreams. We chose a very gently bevelled door which is subtle and in keeping with Pam’s timeless, elegant style but has more depth and interest than the flat originals. The finish is satin, combining practicality with a sophisticated, subtle aesthetic.

I invited two companies to quote on the job, and we selected Joinery Rescue, a family-owned and run business based in Sydney. I can’t recommend them highly enough – Jenny in the office, husband Lance and their son Fletcher on the tools made for a winning team. They were pleasant to deal with, offered a competitive quote and took real care with the installation and clean-up. And the quality of the doors was excellent.

True to their word, the installation only took two days, after about a 6-week wait for the cupboard fronts to be locally manufactured. Nevertheless, it was a bit disruptive – I assisted Pam to declutter her kitchen about a month prior to the install (she had combined two households when she downsized to the resort, and had multiples of almost everything). We moved things around so Pam can now easily reach the items she uses regularly, and I took photographs of the items in every drawer and cupboard so we’d remember where it all needed to be returned. The day before installation we removed every single item from the kitchen, pantry and laundry and stashed it around the living room. Lance and Fletcher spent the next two days installing the cabinet fronts, which created a lot of dust and dirt. They did a thorough clean, but once they’d left I cleaned again (and Pam’s cleaner has since undertaken a third and hopefully final mop-up of the dust). Finally, we replaced everything where it had been, and Pam sat back with a cup of tea to enjoy the results.

There are still a couple of small touch-up jobs to be completed and we’re looking forward to Fletcher returning in about a fortnight to complete these. After that, I’ll take some good photos and share them via my Instagram account. Pam has reported that she loves her new kitchen “much more than I thought I would”, and she’s glad she made the investment of emotion, money and time.

Kate Kerin Interiors specialises in working with residential clients in Sydney, particularly people who are considering downsizing or other major milestone moves. Contact Kate for an initial consultation to talk about your project.

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