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The upcycle cost just £32.
Kitchen islands are among the most desired features in a home, but they don't come cheap. That is, unless you create your own, as one savvy DIYer did.
Nikki Dixon, a mum of three and carer from Cardiff, had been on the hunt for the perfect island unit for her recently-revamped kitchen but struggled to find anything that fit the bill with her only options either being too bulky for her compact kitchen or costing significantly more than her budget allowed. 'I wanted more worktop space so I priced up kitchen islands from a few local shops and online and they were hundreds of pounds,’ she tells money-saving Facebook group DIY On A Budget UK. 'I decided to give it a go and make my own to a size I knew would be a good fit.'
As luck would have it, Nikki stumbled upon a baby changing unit for sale on Facebook Marketplace in her local area. Perhaps not a piece of furniture you'd think could moonlight as a quality kitchen island, but Nikki, confident in her creativity, saw its potential. She snapped it up for just £20, and collected it herself to save on delivery costs.
'I wanted to be able to move the island, so I went to The Range and picked up a pack of four swivel wheels for £6.99,' Nikki recalls. 'I removed the original legs and drilled these to the base. I had recently used Ribbeck Oak Fablon to cover my kitchen worktops so I bought another roll from B&M for £6 and re-covered the top so it was an exact match. Then, I painted the rest of the unit in brilliant white furniture paint that I had leftover from another project and changed the handles to match my kitchen cupboards.'
The total cost of the kitchen island upcycle was £32.99 and, impressively, took Nikki just two hours to complete. 'I love the finished look and I've saved myself hundreds of pounds,' she said. 'Many people have since said they are going to give it a go too, and I'm happy they have been inspired to do so.'
Motivated to create your own DIY kitchen island? Take a look at Nikki's before and after transformation…
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