Looking at upgrading to NEW Kitchen.... any tips etc..

Masala

Hi

Have been in this house 25 year with same same kitchen. Am looking at getting an upgrade on the 'old' kitchen and just wondering if anyone has gone thru same recently and could pass on some tips/suggestions etc that we should consider when discussing design etc!!!


Current thoughts are...

1. Keep all the White Goods and Cookers+Ovens etc as only 1-2 yes old
2. Would like under-kitchen lighting to leave on as a feature when kitchen is vacant
3 Would like to have a TV on the workspace... like to cook and watch the News etc etc.
4. Would love a LARGE pull-out shelf to hold Spices, Cans. Sauces etc.... what is the modern of this??
5. Will be getting the floor done as well... was Tiles for years. What is the latest trend..??

I would expect I be spending €7k-++ on same... so want to get teh best advice I can. So all help appreciated from Boardsies experiences etc..

Many thanks

...Ghost...

It would be helpful if you provide some dimensions and current layout. Photos are good too. 7k could be way too high or way too low depending on kitchen size. The average size kitchen can easily exceed 10k depending on spec.

There are all manners of pull out storage and fancy contraptions for your spices, cleaning agents and separator bins. Are you keeping everything in same place, or are you moving the oven, sink, or even the fridge? Will you want an island, ore you adding/removing an L shape? Lots to consider.

A floor plan would allow boardsies to comment better.

awec

7k is not going to get you very far with a new kitchen unfortunately.

Masala

Hi All..... sorry for lack of info.

Its quite a small kitchen - 17 ft long one side x 12 Ft across looking out a window x 12 long on other side.

So... nothing like the magazines with Islands in mid floor etc.

Have a fitter calling next week to show us a Brochure and measure up. Did any Boardsies get upgraded recently?? What 'worked' and what 'didn't work' for ye?? Did ye get lights built in??? In counter tops or floor level?? Colours chosen ?? Materials used etc... What would ye do differently??

When fitter does a drawing - I will load up for comment !!

Ubbquittious

How come the "" DIY "" forum is riddled with people asking about paying someone thousands to do stuff for them? There needs to be an "Anti-DIY" forum fot this kind of thread

Masala

Ubbquittious wrote: »

How come the "" DIY "" forum is riddled with people asking about paying someone thousands to do stuff for them? There needs to be an "Anti-DIY" forum fot this kind of thread

Hey.. Mods I have no problem in this thread being moved. Don’t want people to get upset about it though

...Ghost...

Ubbquittious wrote: »

How come the "" DIY "" forum is riddled with people asking about paying someone thousands to do stuff for them? There needs to be an "Anti-DIY" forum fot this kind of thread

I hadn't actually thought about that. These probably belong in home decorations section.

I'd love to see a "show us your DIY" thread similar to the one on the motors forum.

ted1

1.Keep all the White Goods and Cookers+Ovens etc as only 1-2 yes old. ——sorted


2. Would like under-kitchen lighting to leave on as a feature when kitchen is vacant - IKEA do good strip lighting that can connect to Google home or Philips hue


3 Would like to have a TV on the workspace... like to cook and watch the News etc etc. Look up a Google hub or Amazon echo show


4. Would love a LARGE pull-out shelf to hold Spices, Cans. Sauces etc.... what is the modern of this??
There’s racks you can get that are built into the door. Or when you open the door , you can have drawers


5. Will be getting the floor done as well... was Tiles for years. What is the latest trend..?? Still tiles or look up a good Laminate that can handle spills and mops.

Muahahaha

I got a new kitchen a couple of years back. Due to budget I went with Ikea, it cost 3,100 just for all the flatpack, I already had whitegoods. The old one was similar in size to your one now and was also L shaped. It was way too small for my needs as I love to cook and have a lot of equipment. So I kept the general L shape but also added a peninsula so now the kitchen cabinets are a U shape. I calculated this gave me almost 40% more storage space than the previous L layout and Im really glad I did it that way.

Other things I did were have the countertops 8cm higher than 'standard' as Im tall and with normal heights I get a bad back when standing there for ages doing chopping and prep. Glad I did that as its a perfect height for me.

Spices- Ikeas pull out drawers are great for this, Ive around 50 maybe 60 different spices on the go, with the old kitchen it was an absolute pain finding the right ones when they were stored in deep presses. Now I can see everyone of them at a glance by pulling out a slide drawer.

Another good decision was a pull out pantry. Again no more rooting around deep presses for ingradients, the entire pantry pulls out on rollers and all the stuff I use the most is exactly at my eye level when it comes out. This is the one I got, was pricey at just under 260 quid but now I have it I wouldnt do without it
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Hafele-Pull-Out-Larder-300mm/dp/B00P2FYRA2/ref=asc_df_B00P2FYRA2/?tag=googshopuk-21&linkCode=df0&hvadid=344375247800&hvpos=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=598696181948702531&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=1007850&hvtargid=pla-699496939393&psc=1

Along the back wall up higher than the sink I went with 2 long open shelves to store all plates, glasses, etc. I prefer to have open shelves than having cabinets up high but it does involve a bit more dusting than if there were cabinets there. The advantage though is you can grab and put away stuff very quickly. Ive LED strip lights underneath those shelves and they light up a brick wall at night time which looks great.

Finally one thing Im not sure Id do again is having all the bins in a pull out drawer. I used to have a freestanding Brabantia bin before and found that more convenient than bins inside drawers. But its much of a muchness, Ive gotten used to the bins in drawers now even though it involves putting everything on the counter first then sliding it out, removing the lid and replacing it again before closing it up again.

Sleepy

With a 7k budget, it's IKEA all the way imo. Absolutely nothing wrong with that though: their units are well made and the hardware (hinges etc.) is arguably better than you get from many "premium" kitchen providers.

They have an excellent (if somewhat fiddly to learn but you'll get there in an hour or two) kitchen planner on their website: https://kitchenplanner.ikea.com/ie/UI/Pages/VPUI.htm which lets you put in the measurements of your kitchen, mock up your design and can even provide pricing at the end.

If you're not confident of your ability to put it together ask around, it's well within the skills of any decent handyman and you might even find you've a friend or family member who'd do it for you for the price of a few pints.

Masala

Sleepy wrote: »

With a 7k budget, it's IKEA all the way imo. Absolutely nothing wrong with that though: their units are well made and the hardware (hinges etc.) is arguably better than you get from many "premium" kitchen providers.

They have an excellent (if somewhat fiddly to learn but you'll get there in an hour or two) kitchen planner on their website: https://kitchenplanner.ikea.com/ie/UI/Pages/VPUI.htm which lets you put in the measurements of your kitchen, mock up your design and can even provide pricing at the end.

If you're not confident of your ability to put it together ask around, it's well within the skills of any decent handyman and you might even find you've a friend or family member who'd do it for you for the price of a few pints.

Many thanks for the reply..... very interesting

...Ghost...

+1 on the Ikea idea. I've used it to design a few kitchens in the past and the planner gives you a shopping list at the end with the prices. Take your time and have fun.

Muahahaha

yeah and also when Ikea reopen you can make an appointment with a kitchen planner to sit down for an hour and plan out the whole thing. The staff there have good knowledge and will pick up on things some people wouldnt have thought about themselves. Its a good first port of call even if you end up buying your kitchen from elsewhere. Appointments with the kitchen planners in Ikea are free but there is a lot of demand for them, might take a month to get one but it is worth it.

Sleepy

Once you've saved a design on the design tool, the in-store designers can load it up to go through it with you too

Goldengirl

Relatives got a lovely IKEA kitchen , INSTALLED by IKEA, all bells and whistles including hob on peninsula unit and larders etc , a few years ago.
Don't know price but they were happy with everything and it is lovely .