More floorplan Q's - kitchen

[BERGS2]

HI All - Saturday night in kitchen design mode! How times have changed....

Please could you learned HG&DIYers have a look at the below kitchen plan & let me know if there is anything missing/to add?

Windows & doors are south facing, Cooker is on external wall (so hood will extract through)

Just a quick sketch i've put together - but should be fairly indicative of what we plan to get to...


And obvious next question - how do you guys rate experiences with various kitchen suppliers?

We want a quality 'feel' & longevity..... TBH everywhere i've look so far (howdens/Ikea/B&Q) have been pretty impressed with how things look - even the worktopws look a good deal better than when we did the last kitchen about ten years ago..

Builder is way against DIYkitchens.com but they seem well though of on here? he mentioned they'd been on rouge traders or something?

Any thoughts/advice/stories and things to consider most welcome!

Cheers,

BERGS

[BERGS2]

Latest re-think below:

I'm slightly concerned wih the levels of storage - but wifey want to keep the brekkie room 'unit free'



Linky

[BERGS2]

or this -

we have flex as to the orientation of window / patio door

plus side of this is the kitchen will possible feel more like one room, wheras the journey to make a cup of tea will be a couple of seconds longer each time....

any thoughts?

[BERGS2]

Harry Flashman said:

On storage, go ceiling high. I did this in my flat and occasional use stuff happily lives up in the top row of cabinets.

Also, who are you getting the kitchen from? If you are after a painted one, I really recommend solidwodokitchencabinets.co.uk. Extraordinarily nice cabinets in oak throughout, and arrive assembled. Fitters loved them as wood is easy to work with compared with chipboard..

Thanks Harry - agree on the points on access - however, revisions to the floorplan (entrance returning to where it originally was on the front) mean that we need a degree of separation between the patio doors and the front door)

The front patio will be only opened for summer BBQ's etc. so through traffic shouldn't be too much of a problem in the day to day...

On the kitchen supply - not sure yet - using howdens to get a base cost for layout and cabinets

Here's where we are on the floorplan, kitchen sketch & elevations:

Oh, and we've just decided to build a garage on the side (where the porch initially was)....

Just was to get cracking on it now - so if you (or anyone else South London/Surrey way) have any builder recommendations - would be great

floorplan:




Kitchen sketch (excuse the very crude cut'n'paste of two designs:



Frontage: (again - chopped an pasted by me on paint/powerpoint (the actual window designs will be different)

[BERGS2]

Yeah - thats a good point.

we'll maybe look at putting the sink on the kitchen side of the penninsular

We did consider the 'distance to sink' issue - it's possibly less of an issue for us as a family as we have a strict demarcation of kitchen duties (Prep & Cooking = Me, Clear up & Washing = her)

but thinking about it, pans to sink, straining veg, even filling drinks - a sink thats a distance from the rest does not make too much sense...


Sent you a PM yesterday - will try again

[BERGS2]

Something a little like this possibly...

(s'cuse the super crap powerpoint skillz)

[BERGS2]

Cheers Harry -

we're still really undecided TBH - take the point on the 'cleanness' of the patio doors on the left (with the full 'U' shape kitchen to the right - just think it would look odd with the front door being in such close proximity.. maybe not such an issue - can remember the last time someone actually just rang the bell

any more thoughts & recommendations most welcome!

BERGS

[BERGS2]

Mrs is currently set on regular french doors.... I think will need to try to persuade her...

[BERGS2]

OK - so (as per the above) we have knocked around a few layouts, and it looks like we are (floating breakfast bar notwithstanding) honing in on the below:

would be interested in any views on this final layout?

have bit the bullet and gone for wider sliding doors (as opposed to cheaper french doors)

and are looking at granite for the work-surfaces

(& living on bread & water for the next six months)

[BERGS2]

Have had these through, be interested in viewpoints on the layout

feels a little 'tight' to me - but we are constrained by the depth of the room: