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Tidy kitchen and laundry renovation

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White, tidy and functional, with a splash of fun, was the formula for this kitchen and laundry renovation.

Home owner and mum Jane desperately needed to overhaul her kitchen and laundry, but with growing kids still living at home, she knew her needs would change over the years. With the transitory nature of the home in mind, she approached versatile designer Sue-Virginia Mackay of Interior and Exterior with her concerns.

The years had not been kind to this kitchen and Jane was finding it hard to work with many elements of the room. The hotplates had died, benchtops were scruffy and the exhaust fan was on the blink. She sat down with Sue-Virginia (also a personal friend) and the two of them agreed on what needed to be ripped out and replaced.

Sue-Virginia says cost was a guiding factor in the selection of materials and surfaces. White laminate was chosen as an affordable and functional finish for the cupboards and serves to lighten the atmosphere of the kitchen.

But far from being just another white kitchen, this one has a few extra elements that create interest and a sense of fun. The existing cork floor revives the old checkerboard style with subtle contrasts of light and darker brown. The island benchtop looks like a big slab of old-style confectionery, with multi-coloured crystals peppering the white.

While the old 70s tiles in the splashback may well have been fun in their day, it was a look well past its use-by date. A large glass panel in their place creates a very contemporary look and matches the clean lines of the cabinetry.

The lightness of the kitchen extends into the adjacent open-plan meals area. Generous and unusually angled windows welcome in a stream of sunlight that helps lift the warm tones of the room.

Compact and efficient, the kitchen comprises a simple, no-fuss layout that's easy to manoeuvre in while cooking. The sink is tidily under-mounted in the island, sitting directly opposite the cooktop. A well-lit rangehood and some overhead cupboards highlight the new gas cooktop, with the oven and extensive cupboards to the left and large refrigerator and dining area to the right.

Renovations to the laundry came about after Sue confronted a need for more storage space. After deciding to add this beside a very basic laundry, it seemed like a good time to update that room as well.

"Jane loves her new laundry, and how it operates," says Sue-Virginia. "We installed new joinery, provided a hanging rail over the sink to hang wet shirts to dry, and fitted a new laundry sink and tap."