A savvy mum has revealed how she gave her kitchen a full makeover for under £1,500 – after builders told her it would cost a jaw-dropping £12,000. Nancy Fierro was left heartbroken when her family home was badly damaged in a blaze late last year.
Water from the fire brigade destroyed her kitchen ceilings and floors, leaving the stay-at-home mum staring at a huge repair bill. When she asked for a professional quote, she was told the makeover would cost £12,000 – a figure completely out of reach.
Instead of giving up, the 29-year-old rolled up her sleeves and took on the job herself. Armed with little more than grit, discount finds, and sheer determination, she managed to create a brand-new kitchen.
“I had an energy drink one morning and it gave me the courage to do it myself,” Nancy told What’s The Jam. “My husband Josue was not interested in the idea of remodelling the kitchen, especially at that price.
“It was completely out of our budget to the point that it was out of reach for us. I decided to just apologise later if this didn’t work out as I planned. I removed all the doors from the cabinets, and there was no going back.”
The £12,000 estimate had included everything from sheetrock and skimming walls to granite countertops, new floors and deodorising the smoke damage. Nancy pulled it off for a fraction of the price – painting cabinets and ceilings, stripping away wall textures, fitting a chandelier, laying vinyl planks, and even installing a peel-and-stick backsplash.
Husband Josue, 29, and their three-year-old toddler Kai mucked in when they could, turning it into a real family project. Nancy said: “The most difficult part was seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. At times, I felt overwhelmed, like I took on too much of a project alone.
“My husband has a full-time job, so he could only join us after work or on weekends. Some days, my toddler would have days where he wanted my complete attention and would make it difficult to work. Mentally was the hardest to stay motivated.”
Nancy, who comes from Missouri, spent four months planning, bargain-hunting and carrying out the work – starting in February this year. And she didn’t just roll up her sleeves – she got creative with little tricks people might not know about that saved her a fortune.
The mum swapped her real estate skills to get free flooring, hunted for discounted scraps at Habitat for Humanity, a charity selling cheap DIY materials and reused old hardware and screws wherever she could. By combining smart bargains, cashback cards and a bit of clever bartering, she cut her costs to just £1,480 – nowhere near the sum the builders originally wanted.
There were a few hiccups – like wasted tiles during her first attempts at cutting. However, Nancy says the end result has transformed both her home and her confidence.
She’s now encouraging other mums to give renovation projects a go to save cash. She said: “I love my new kitchen, the way it feels so much brighter and bigger. I feel like it’s an entirely new home.
“My son loves taking pride in telling everyone he did it. The only thing stopping me before was fear, but I wish I would have done it sooner! To other mums, you got this!”