He Removed the Wall Between the Kitchen and Living Room but Kept the Studs
A wall separated this kitchen from the adjoining living space, while aging cabinets, sheet flooring, a small freestanding stove, and limited counter space left much of the room underused. Reddit user u/Sadeindustries planned to rebuild the kitchen in six weeks between jobs, but the full DIY renovation took almost 12 months.
He designed the project in SketchUp and completed the work himself apart from plumbing and electrical. Removing the living room wall was part of the plan, but load-bearing requirements meant some framing had to stay. Instead of covering the remaining studs, he turned them into open timber shelves that now divide the spaces without closing them off.
Old Kitchen Was Cut Off From the Rest of the House
The original kitchen occupied a long room with cabinets placed along opposite walls. A freestanding stove sat between short counters, while a tall cabinet divided the cooking area into separate sections.
Sheet flooring covered the floor, fluorescent lighting ran across the ceiling, and dark trim outlined the room. Despite the available floor area, the arrangement provided little uninterrupted counter space and kept the kitchen separate from the rooms beyond it.
Sink Wall Had Windows but Little Usable Storage
Two windows brought daylight across the sink side, but the cabinetry below them stopped and started around the openings. A long counter extended beneath the larger window without drawers or enclosed cabinets across much of its length.
The laundry doorway also occupied part of this wall, limiting where full-depth storage could go. The renovation kept the laundry access and windows while rebuilding the work area around them.
Cabinets Left Most of the Wall Underused
Across from the sink, a tall cabinet stood beside the stove, followed by open upper shelving and low base cabinets. The wall held plenty of cabinet volume, but the cooking zone was compressed into a small section around the old range.
That stove had become another reason for the renovation. According to the homeowner, the 30-year-old unit had a broken grill, two working burners, and an oven with little usable temperature control.
Dining Room Sat on the Other Side of the Wall
The dining area was close to the kitchen but reached through a standard doorway. A solid wall beside the table blocked the direct connection between the two rooms.
Removing this partition offered more than a wider passage. It allowed the kitchen, dining area, and living room to share sightlines while keeping each zone in its existing part of the house.
Demolition Exposed the Original Timber Floor and Wall Framing
Once the cabinets, wall finishes, and floor covering came out, timber boards appeared underneath. These are the home’s original Baltic pine floors, a material the homeowner says is common in post-war Australian houses. The boards measure 125 mm wide, a less common size than the 100 mm and 150 mm widths he sees more often.
Demolition also exposed the wall framing beside the kitchen. Not all of it could disappear as first planned because of structural requirements, changing the design of the opening before the room was rebuilt.
New Kitchen Uses Wood Where the Old Room Used Pattern and Paint
The finished kitchen replaces the old cabinet arrangement with white IKEA cabinetry, new appliances, wood counters, and exposed Baltic pine flooring. The center butcher block provides another work surface without installing a fixed island.
Recycled Messmate hardwood forms the benchtops. The homeowner cut, sanded, and finished the panels himself, using Fiddes Hard Wax Oil on the timber.
Sink Counter Wraps Around the Window
The rebuilt sink area uses an L-shaped counter that turns beneath the window and continues along the adjoining wall. Flat cabinet fronts replace the mix of doors, shelves, and empty counter supports found here before.
Vertical wall paneling runs behind the sink, while a timber sill connects the window with the hardwood counter below. The layout retains the existing window and laundry doorway but gives the sink zone enclosed storage and a continuous work surface.
Open Timber Framing Connects the Kitchen With the Living Space
Removing the wall changed the view from inside the kitchen. The living area can now be seen past the cooking counter, with exposed timber framing marking part of the former partition.
Rather than creating a wide opening with no trace of the old wall, the project uses the remaining structure as part of the room. Open sections preserve views between spaces while giving the transition a defined edge.
Structural Studs Became Display Shelves
The retained framing was turned into a floor-to-ceiling shelving structure. Horizontal pieces fit between the vertical studs, creating small openings for ceramics, bottles, and other objects.
This feature was not part of the original plan. The homeowner added it to deal with load-bearing requirements and later called the repurposed stud shelves his favorite part of the finished space.
Narrow Cabinet Ends Hold Bottles, Books, and Cutting Boards
Storage continues into spaces too narrow for standard cabinets. A slim timber unit beside the sink cabinet divides its height into bottle cubbies, with a taller opening at floor level for books.
The wood frame also caps the end of the countertop, connecting a small storage detail with the larger timber elements used across the kitchen.
Salvaged Kitchen Hardwood Returned as Spice Storage
Another narrow storage unit sits near the refrigerator, with shallow shelves sized for spice jars. A timber panel covers part of the front, while the exposed side includes bottle slots and a vertical compartment.
The homeowner built the spice and wine rack from hardwood salvaged from the original kitchen. Material removed during demolition returned as storage rather than leaving the house with the old cabinetry.
Small Breakfast Counter Uses the Former Empty Wall
A narrow timber counter beneath the window creates seating for two without taking over the center of the kitchen. Its shallow footprint leaves the main walkway open between the counters, refrigerator, and butcher block.
Wall paneling continues around the eating area, tying it to the sink wall. The counter adds a second place to sit beyond the dining room now visible through the opened wall.
Timber Posts Mark the Old Wall Without Closing the Rooms
From outside the kitchen, the retained timber shows how the new opening works with the existing house. Vertical posts frame the route into the kitchen, while the shelving section remains visible beside the dining area.
The structural elements establish where walls once divided the rooms, but the openings between them allow light and views to pass across the floor plan.
Dining Room and Kitchen Now Share the Same Sightline
The finished dining area no longer ends at the solid wall seen before demolition. From the living space, the dining table, open stud shelving, and kitchen form a connected sequence.
Exposed posts repeat the wood found on the kitchen counters, shelving, window details, and restored floor. The former partition remains legible without returning the visual barrier that separated the rooms.
Same Kitchen Footprint, Different Connection to the House
The comparison shows how much of the transformation came from changing surfaces, storage, and the boundary between rooms. White cabinetry replaces the old built-ins, Messmate hardwood provides long work surfaces, and the Baltic pine floor replaces the patterned covering.
The wall removal made the largest change beyond the kitchen itself. Structural framing prevented the completely open transition first envisioned, but keeping those studs created shelving, preserved a division between rooms, and gave the renovation a feature that would not have existed if the wall had vanished without a trace.
Image credits: Reddit user u/Sadeindustries.