Inside: Get been-there recommendation on the right way to survive a kitchen transform–and feed your loved ones in the course of the course of.
Almost 20 years in the past, we fell in love with a small, 100-year-old home on a fairly, tree-lined road.
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 It was useful however outdated.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we employed took the kitchen all the way down to the studs, pushed the ceiling up, leveled the flooring, dismantled an outdated coal chimney, opened up a wall, and located sufficient costly surprises alongside the best way to go away our unique funds within the mud.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 effectively price it. At this time I look again on the “earlier than” photographs and really feel grateful for our greater, extra trendy house.
But it surely wasn’t simple. And one of many hardest elements was maintaining 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 bought a transform in your future and need assistance surviving the method.
I additionally reached out to my Real Mom Nutrition Facebook community for his or her finest 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 not too long ago did.
6 Ideas for Surviving a Kitchen Transform
1. Make a Non permanent Kitchen
Our contractor moved our outdated fridge into the lounge, the place we arrange a short lived kitchen house with a small desk, microwave, and toaster oven.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 things away, put aside some gadgets that may enable 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 many others. fortunately we have now 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 useful.”
“We sealed off our eating room and made it a makeshift kitchen. We had our fridge in there, a desk, prompt 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 a couple of massive, heavy obligation plastic shelving items to make use of as short-term pantries. We packed all the things in plastic tubs that we thought we would use (a slicing board, a couple of knives, and many others) it was rough-but we made it!”
2. Preserve 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, grasp on to your kitchen sink so long as potential.
You may additionally have a sink you should use 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 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 buddy or neighbor to borrow for those who don’t have one):
- Instantaneous Pot
- Air fryer
- George Foreman grill
- Microwave
- Toaster oven
- Sizzling plate/induction burner
- Electrical skillet
- Electrical griddle
- Camp range to cook dinner exterior
READER TIP: “Be additional good to neighbors and associates 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 potential, schedule your renovation for hotter months when you should use your grill and eat exterior.
Bonus: Summer season can also be when associates and neighbors will journey. One reader urged 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 & suppose E-A-S-Y
Having some type of plan in place may help cut back stress (you’ll have sufficient of that already). Grab my free meal planning worksheet for those who’re a pen-and-paper individual.
Listed here are some reader options 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 which you can microwave
- Pizza supply as soon as per week
Take into account filling a plastic bin with shelf-stable gadgets you should use 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
- Vitality bars
- Entire grain crackers
- Instantaneous oatmeal
- Applesauce and fruit cups
- Cereal and granola
Seize extra concepts, plus 10 simple meals you may make and not using a range, in my submit 45+ Healthy Dorm Food Ideas
READER TIP: “Don’t suppose you need to cook dinner – chilly meals are superb, too. Deal with it as an journey.”
6. Let go of guilt
Give your self grace when you’re going via a transform. 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 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 a couple of weeks to avoid wasting your sanity), and keep your humorousness.”
“Paper plates, cups and plastic cutlery. Shake off no matter guilt you suppose you need to really feel and name it ‘self-care.’ Make a listing of carry-out/dine-in choices you’ve needed to try to work that expense into the funds for those who 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 sophisticated when your complete kitchen is torn up.”
READER TIP: “You possibly can all the time get compostable paper plates and bowls for those who use a composting service.”
Our kitchen transform
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 massive 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 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.
