Hi Amy, its Aleisha here from Shop U in Bondi Beach. I am an interior designer/decorator and I have studied in renovating for profit and I can tell you now not to put in this complete effort if you are going to move soon, save your ideas for your new house. As the kitchen and bathroom are the biggest sellers in a house, I agree that you could 'spruce' it up. First, start looking at the other houses that are currently for sale in your area. After a number of viewings, you will start to see a trend in your local estate market. (You might not make back the money that you spend). If you want a quick update, paint the walls and go to your local warehouse for DIY cabinet and bench paint.You can actually replicate the look of a stone bench top by yourself for $80.00. You can re-tile over your existing tiles and add some new handles. I hope this helps xx

Hi Belinda, it does look like you have a few issues to deal with - the shallow recess doesn't line up with anything it is cut into the splash back the narrow gap to the window it is out of alignment with the display shelves on the left So my first thoughts are - Tea/coffee cup display shelves with maybe a glass backing Wall mounted television screen Artistic decor piece made to fit Collection of antique copper kitchen items etc Chalk board Green wall with herbs Magnetic knife box display unit Board it up & patch the wall leaving a narrow gap above the splash back which could be creatively turned into a hanger with hooks or magnetic knife holder ??? Good luck ;)

I agree with the three statements above. My initial thoughts were that your kitchen and the example you provided as an alternative idea - is that they are no way alike and I do not think you could ever turn your old kitchen into the new. I also couldn't believe there was a mirror above the oven in the newer kitchen. Unless they are using this for reflective light - what are they thinking? Back to your kitchen - my first thought was ..... the pictures of the chef all around the top of the cupboards have to go. I would also try to remove the cupboards above the stove to add height to that space, as it currently looks like you would have to duck down every time you wish to cook and height automatically adds the felling of spaciousness. You could then add a feature wall of tiles / glass if you wished to (without a mirror). Normally I would never recommend someone paint lovely wood but in this case maybe a lovely fresh white finish may help because your kitchen appears (based on the photo) to be dark (natural light wise) and white is amazing for adding light and freshness. As we can not see the rest of the space and storage maybe at a premium I can not recommend anything else except to perhaps consider replacing the under cupboard lighting with bright mini LED lights (if the lighting is required). Remember the term ..... less is more. Good Luck.

Make the most of the era and the exposed bricks. Put in a large skylight and fit wall garden system to "green up" those bricks and larger pots on the base. The brick base is perfect to hide the drainage system you'll need. Get a steel fabricator to weld up a drip tray to fit inside. Mesh over the top covered in your choice of pebbles or a sheet of CoreTen rusty steel laser cut to a design of your choice. Some Balinese statues maybe. Year round herbs.