Coastal orchard kitchen Renovation in Katikati, New Zealand

Once an old Tauranga schoolhouse, this revived property now stands with a beautiful character kitchen.

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The homeowner of this property came to Refresh Renovations with a unique property. Their home was an old schoolhouse situated on a kiwifruit orchard; where it had been sitting for the last 20 years. They had made renovations across the decades, but the kitchen remained in desperate need of some TLC.
Wanting to put the house on the market, they decided to hold off until they had the kitchen fully renovated. It was a decision they made to increase both the home’s value and marketability.

Initial Briefing

Paired with Peter Jenkins, their local Renovation Specialist, the homeowners discussed the kitchen’s current condition. It was very well-used and still had the original design which the owners found poorly planned.
During this briefing, the homeowners also noted their strict budget. While they wanted to have the kitchen modernised, they also hoped to keep the cost close to their desired spend. Peter worked carefully on this aspect to develop a design that balanced between affordability and doing the space justice.

Maintaining Character

Peter worked with his designers to establish a kitchen design that would maintain the country character of the house but still be modern and fresh. Because the original floor plan had an inconvenient design, it was also crucial that the new plan offered smooth, functional use of the small area.
To create the timeless country house feel, the designers focused on the fixtures and their finer details. Specifically, they wanted to draw attention to the cabinetry handles, free-standing oven/hob, vintage tapware and lavish benchtop.
Once Peter and his renovation team had the working drawings detailed and confirmed for feasibility, the homeowner arranged for construction to begin right away.

Construction

The renovation team worked to a 21-day timeline to have the kitchen renovated quickly in time for listing the property on the market. Led by Peter’s expertise and management, the talented team delivered the renovation to a standard of excellence.
Construction began with a complete demolition of the original kitchen. In this process, the builders removed the old flooring to make way for the installment of beautiful rimu floors that perfectly matched the rest of the house.
The team then installed brand new cabinets and appliances beneath the kitchen’s French-style windows which looked out a tranquil estuary. For these fixtures, the homeowners chose a minimalist look that would draw attention to the beautiful outdoor scenery.
Final touches to modernise the kitchen included moving the placement of powerpoints for ultimate convenience and installing new lighting to enhance the area better.

A Beautiful Outcome

“The final result was fantastic,” says Peter. “We managed to keep it in-line with the rest of the house and its combined coastal, orchard and rural environment.”
After the renovation, this unique property was indeed ready to hit the market. Now highly-functional, modernised and full of refined character, this kitchen has undoubtedly become the standout room of this spectacular home.