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This family may have only two children of their own, but there are at least three neighbourhood kids who can easily be counted as part of their brood. And their small 1980s kitchen in North Toronto was feeling the squeeze. A cramped formal dining room often stood empty while hordes of extended family crammed into the poky kitchen. The appliances were dated, cupboard doors were falling off, and the kitchen table often pulled double duty as a homework-and-crafts centre. They were in desperate need of an upgrade, which is why Jasmine entered Chatelaine's Ikea kitchen-makeover contest. "I was sure I was going to win," says Jasmine. "We're from a very lucky family!" First on the to-do list: Take down the wall separating the dining room and kitchen. Then we outfitted the space with stylish and clever cabinetry that turned it into a breathtaking open-concept room. Jasmine says, "It feels perfect. We put in a TV and now we're in here all day. Comparing the new kitchen to the old one is like apples and oranges. The cabinets, the lighting, the space.... Everything is incredible."
After combing through hundreds of entries, we chose this dated kitchen to take from drab to fab
