Inside: Get been-there recommendation on learn how to survive a serious kitchen renovation–and feed your loved ones throughout a kitchen transform.
Almost 20 years in the past, we fell in love with a small, 100-year-old home on a reasonably, tree-lined road.
Principally, we fell in love with the bones of the home.
The kitchen, not as a lot.
The counters have been blue, the range was black, the fridge was off-white. It was purposeful however outdated. Clear however cramped.
We purchased the home figuring we’d have the kitchen reworked. As a result of how onerous might 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we employed took the kitchen all the way down to the studs, pushed the ceiling up, leveled the flooring, dismantled an outdated coal chimney, opened up a wall, and located sufficient costly surprises alongside the way in which to depart our authentic price range within the mud.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 nicely price it. At the moment I look again on the “earlier than” pictures and really feel grateful for our greater, extra trendy area.
However it wasn’t simple. And one of many hardest elements was preserving everybody fed and not using a working kitchen.
So I made a decision to stroll down reminiscence lane with our personal kitchen makeover in case you’ve received a transform in your future and need assistance surviving the method.
I additionally reached out to my Actual Mother Diet Fb group for his or her finest recommendation and received so many nice ideas, 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 just lately did.
6 Suggestions for Surviving a Kitchen Transform
1. Make a Momentary Kitchen
Our contractor moved our outdated fridge into the lounge, the place we arrange a brief kitchen area with a small desk, microwave, and toaster oven.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 the whole lot away, put aside some objects that may enable you in your makeshift kitchen, similar to:
- Espresso maker
- Chopping 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 got 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, instantaneous pot, air fryer, and many others all arrange so we might entry it. We used paper plates and cups, and many others. we additionally bought just a few giant, heavy obligation plastic shelving models to make use of as non permanent pantries. We packed the whole lot in plastic tubs that we thought we would use (a slicing board, just a few knives, and many others) it was rough-but we made it!”
2. Preserve your sink so long as attainable
Everybody, together with me, agrees that coping with soiled dishes is the worst a part of a kitchen transform. So in case you can, dangle on to your kitchen sink so long as attainable.
You may additionally have a sink you should use in a basement, lavatory, storage, or laundry room. However “don’t do dishes within the bathtub,” one reader cautioned. “It would 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 think about (ask a pal or neighbor to borrow in case you don’t have one):
- Immediate Pot
- Air fryer
- George Foreman grill
- Microwave
- Toaster oven
- Sizzling plate/induction burner
- Electrical skillet
- Electrical griddle
- Camp range to prepare dinner exterior
READER TIP: “Be additional good to neighbors and buddies within the months/weeks main as much as the renovation so you’ll be able to name in some favors & get invited to dinner.”
4. Time it proper
If attainable, schedule your renovation for hotter months when you should use your grill and eat exterior.
Bonus: Summer season can be when buddies and neighbors will journey. One reader prompt a swap the place you water their crops 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 principally 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 might help scale back stress (you’ll have sufficient of that already). Seize my free meal planning worksheet in case you’re a pen-and-paper particular person.
Listed here are some reader ideas 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 prematurely that you would be able to microwave
- Pizza supply as soon as every week
Contemplate filling a plastic bin with shelf-stable objects you should use for easy meals and snacks similar to:
- Peanut butter
- Shelf-stable microwavable rice and pasta pouches
- Canned meals similar to canned beans, soup, veggies, and fruit
- Vitality bars
- Complete grain crackers
- Immediate oatmeal
- Applesauce and fruit cups
- Cereal and granola
Seize extra concepts, plus 10 simple meals you can also make and not using a range, in my put up 45+ Wholesome Dorm Meals Concepts
READER TIP: “Don’t assume it’s important to prepare dinner – chilly meals are high quality, too. Deal with it as an journey.”
6. Let go of guilt
Give your self grace when you’re going by means of a transform. As an alternative of beating your self up over disposable plates and frozen dinners, channel that power into selecting 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 (which means you should use paper plates for just a few 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 an inventory of carry-out/dine-in choices you’ve got wished to try to work that expense into the price range in case you can.”
“There have been MANY instances we simply had sandwiches and cereal for all 3 meals.”
“Preserve it easy as a result of life is difficult when your complete kitchen is torn up.”
READER TIP: “You may all the time get compostable paper plates and bowls in case you use a composting service.”
Our kitchen transform
Listed here are some before-and-after photographs 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 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 a great time for a bit of refresh.
So we changed the backsplash and the pendant lights to offer the room a bit of increase with out spending a complete lot of cash.
