Truck driver quoted £900 to replace his ‘dark and outdated’ kitchen reveals how he transformed the room without professional help by painting the cupboards and handles – and it cost just £90

• Calum Butler, 23, from Aberaeron, Wales, was quoted £900 to transform kitchen
• He decided to try and renovate it himself, and ended up spending just over £90 
• Savvy homeowner ordered everything online making it a good lockdown project 

A savvy homeowner who was quoted £900 to renovate his kitchen has revealed how he did himself – for just £91.  

Calum Butler, 23, from Aberaeron, Wales, who lives with his partner Alanah Lloyd, 22, decided to take matters into his own hands – and managed to complete the whole project solo after purchasing essentials from the likes of Amazon and eBay.

‘I came up with the idea because we didn’t like our kitchen when we moved into our new home as it was too dark and outdated,’ said Calum, speaking to money-saving community LatestDeals.co.uk. 

Calum Butler, 23, from Aberaeron, Wales, didn’t like his tired-looking kitchen, but was quoted a staggering £900 by a local hand painter to transform it. Pictured, the kitchen before the modern makeover

The savvy homeowner set to work ordering the products he needed online, and managed to save himself £810 by doing it all himself. Pictured, the kitchen after the transformation

‘I got quoted £900 from a local hand painter, but I decided against going with him because I did some research on the products that I would need and found that I could save myself £810 by doing it myself.’ 

Calum (pictured) says he got great satisfaction knowing he completed the renovation himself

The truck driver says the couple looked into replacing the kitchen cupboards but decided to try and paint them to save on cost. 

‘To start, I removed all of the handles from the cupboards,’ he explained. ‘I then cleaned the cupboards using sugar soap and then buffed the cupboards using a sanding block to remove any grease left behind. 

‘I then used Zinsser 123 Bulls Eye Primer-Sealer as a base coat and left it to dry for one hour. 

‘I then used the Farrow and Ball Estate Eggshell in the colour Shadow White and painted the first coat onto all the cupboards and plinths and left it to dry overnight. 

While these were drying, Calum took the time to spray paint the cupboard handles with Colour It spray paint in Satin Black. 

‘The next day I painted the second coat onto the cupboards and plinths and left it to dry for the rest of the day,’ he said. 

Calum came up with the idea after he and partner Alanah decided the kitchen was ‘too dark and outdated’ when they moved into their new home. Pictured, before the transformation

The savvy homeowner used paint from Farrow & Ball’s website, primer from Amazon and spray paint, a paint brush, foam roller and sanding blocks from eBay. Pictured, before the transformation

‘Once the cupboards were touch dry, which took about five hours, I reattached the handles. 

What Calum spent 

2 x 750ml Farrow and Ball paint: £54

1 x Zinsser 123 Bulls Eye Primer-Sealer: £15.99

1 x foam roller: £5.99 

1 x brush: £2.50

Sanding block (pack of 10): £2.99

4 x cans Colour It spray paint in Satin Black: £9.99 

Total cost: £91.46 

He continued: ‘I used two pots of 750ml Farrow and Ball paint for £54, the Zinsser 123 Bulls Eye Primer-Sealer for £15.99, a foam roller for £5.99, a brush for £2.50, a sanding block pack of 10 for £2.99, and four cans of Colour It spray paint in satin black for £9.99. The total cost was £91.46.’ 

Calum is delighted with how his kitchen has turned out, especially considering that he was quoted ten times the price and managed to do it all himself.

‘I feel over the moon with the results,’ he explained. ‘I couldn’t imagine it turning out any better.

‘It’s totally transformed the kitchen. It feels like a new kitchen. I also got great satisfaction knowing I completed it by myself. 

After researching the products he needed, Calum realised he could save himself £810 by taking the project on himself. Pictured, the kitchen after the transformation

For anyone keen to follow in his footsteps, Calum says make sure to leave the first coat of paint to dry overnight, as if it is still wet, it can create an uneven finish. Pictured, the kitchen following the modern makeover

‘This project is helpful because it keeps you busy and gives you something to concentrate on other than the news and the global pandemic which is currently happening. 

Tom Church, co-founder of LatestDeals.co.uk commented: 

‘We’ve all been quoted sky-high prices from contractors, but many of us end up paying it rather than braving the DIY ourselves. 

‘Good on Calum for taking this project on himself – it looks fantastic and he’s saved himself a huge amount of money. 

‘Plus, there’s no better time than lockdown to take on a project like this – everything can be ordered online and it’s a more productive way to spend the day than watching Netflix!’

‘We ordered all of our supplies online for delivery to our home address so we didn’t have to go out to any shops to purchase the supplies needed. 

‘We ordered our paint from the Farrow and Ball website, primer from Amazon and the spray paint, the paint brush, foam roller and sanding blocks from eBay. Everything arrived quickly within three days. 

‘My top tips would be to make sure to leave the first coat of paint to dry overnight – at least – to make sure it’s completely dry as if it isn’t it could create an uneven finish. 

‘Do thin coats of the paint with a foam roller and use a two inch brush to get into detailed parts on your door.

‘Make sure you clean the cupboards thoroughly before applying any product to the cupboard for the best finish. 

He added: ‘For the handles, make sure you leave them to dry long enough to make sure you don’t damage the paint work when moving them.’  

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