Kitchen ideas - what are your "must haves"?

[Deelove]

We are at the early stages of planning a new kitchen. What are your "must have" items that we should consider? Hoping to learn from your experiences! I'm quite short so looking for ideas to ease my pain!

[flownthecoopkiwi]

I like a bit of seating, not necessarily a table but somewhere for people to perch and chat

[montezumasrevenge]

Somewhere to hang a tea towel, we forgot and it always annoys me.
Also, pull out pantry cupboard for food, so handy, and deep drawers for pots and pans rather than cupboards.

[wowfudge]

Plenty of plug sockets - more than you think. Consider sockets with USB ports too. If you are overhauling a kitchen, really think about how you will use it and what will go where.

[Pradaqueen]

I love my quooker. Also second pan drawers not cupboards. I also love my inset deep fat fryer and toaster in the cupboard. Basically I have nothing on the work tops. Tis bliss (and very easy to clean) would also say go for the largest sink you can for cleaning oven trays with ease rather than two small bowls or a 1.5.

[SunnySomer]

Think about what it will actually be like to cook in. E.g. We have moved into a house where the cooker is a good 2 metres away from the sink - complete nuisance if you need to drain something. Would be even more irritating if there was a baby crawling around.
Agree with pan drawers. We just stayed in a holiday house that had no low cupboards at all- just drawers. Really easy to find stuff.

[Marmitelover55]

I love my range cooker, American fridge freezer and wine fridge! Also my pan rack (we don't have any wall units)! Wish I had gone for a quooker though.

[LadyMonicaBaddingham]

None of the stupid corner cupboards that you will lose things in. If I could do my kitchen again I would rather lose a bit of space than be stuck with those monstrosities again. YY to deep drawers Be warned: USB sockets are ace, but be prepared for the worktop to become a charging station like mine

[GoofyIsACow]

I agree to no low cupboards at all, as much worktop space as you can manage and pull out larder cupboards for tins and packets, but not the really narrow ones, they are useless...

[Mysterycat23]

Ooh kitchens!! Mega long post because we just got our kitchen 6 months ago! It was a very stressful process but now I love it and I hope you will love yours too OP!

Yy pan drawers are amazing!

Look in your kitchen to see what stuff and food you actually have and make sure your plan includes how much space you need for it all and where you want to store it. Sounds obvious but it's easy to get sidetracked with all the amazing options in the showroom...

Also pull out spice/oil/sauce rack cupboard thing, clears all condiments off worktops, bliss. Ours is right next to cooker and so handy.

Pull out basket things for food storage makes life so much easier, cans laid down flat with labels facing upwards so you can see exactly what's what. Also potatoes and onions etc can breathe.

We decided no wall cupboards to keep the space open, though may have to add a couple of shelves eventually for additional storage.

I love the integrated dishwasher and washing machine, a fancy way of saying they have matching panels on the front, just looks so neat.

Don't get floor tiles, they are freezing!!! (Unless you can afford underfloor heating which is heaven for feet) changed my mind at last minute and have lino for now, not ideal but I couldn't bear the cold tiles under foot and they were so cold they were actually causing a draught in the dining room.

Yy to getting a nice big sink if you do a lot of cooking from scratch to tackle pots and pans. A swan neck type tap is best as reaches up and over to give max space in the bowl.

If you go for a composite sink always run the cold tap when draining pasta etc. We found out the hard way they can crack under boiling water if we had known then wouldn't have done it!!! It's covered under warranty but still waiting for it to be replaced. I do love the sink though it is a pleasure to use.

Plan which tasks you want to do where and get sockets put in accordingly. We chose to put them in quite high above the worktop rather than low, so much easier to reach up and switch things on or off or plug them in etc. No fannying about behind the appliances. The electrician asked me about 3 times if I was sure, I think it must be unusual but honestly makes life so much easier if you use a variety of small appliances regularly that you plug and un plug when not in use. Probably they are about 30 to 40cm above the worktop.

[BreakfastAtSquiffanys]

Don't forget to plan where bin goes.

If I was planning a new kitchen I would have a wee desk in corner for my laptop instead of it getting in the way on the table

[nell15]

A kind of office area with space for all those bits and pieces like your calendars, recipes, cookery books, phones chargers pens, letters, somewhere to write and pin notes, music speakers etc

[Graceymac]

Pull out bin in cupboard, pull up power point on island/sockets on side of it. Walk in larder. Lighting under/inside cupboards - make sure this is factored in to electrical plan before kitchen fitted.

[Blacksox]

Really big, wide drawers that all the pots and pans, ovenware, mixing bowls, etc go into. We would be lost without them.

Massive fridge - we have a side by side one.

Concealed dishwasher.

If you can fit one in - a 'butler's pantry where all the ugly stuff - microwave, kettle, toaster can be hidden behind a door. I hate 'stuff' out on worktops. Our bin is in a cupboard too. Basically we have nothing 'out' other than poncey stuff like a massive glass bowl of lemons and limes which get replaced once a week .

Our sockets have usb ports - so useful for all the device charging.

If you have an island, an extra sink is really useful.

[Astro55]

I planned ours around food

So low cupboard for cups and plates the kids could reach

Spice cupboard next to the cooker

Lots of work surface near the cooker for playing up food

Cutlery draw closer to the braskfast bar - utensil draw nearer cooker

One main sink as we have a dish washer

[DoloresVanCartier]

This is only a small thing but when we did the kitchen last year I got a double plug socket with USB ports for charging mobiles etc. It's the most used thing in the kitchen!!!

[ExplodedCloud]

We have plug sockets in a cupboard for charging. All the wires and crap in the cupboard. Shut door. Tidy kitchen.

[ClaudiaNaughton]

Pyrolytic oven. Never have to clean it.

[DoloresVanCartier]

I also put in under unit lighting, just a strip one from eBay. It changes colin, flashes etc. But I keep it on pink, you might notice I like pink!!!

[DoloresVanCartier]

It changes colour!! I've no idea who colin is and if the lights change him!!!

[DoloresVanCartier]

I've also got a glass splashback which I fitted into the window too, I find it really easy to clean. Quoted 2 grand from a company but went straight to manufacturer ( via a glazier DP knows) and got the whole thing for 700. Also DP is a joiner so he fitted everything and knocked down wall between kitchen and dining room so labour was free and when it came to the glass it's not in sections, each wall is one whole piece, except the window sides obviously.

[Kr1stina]

Two dishwashers

Enough space for all the recycling bins ( we have four )

A few large cupboards rather than lots of small ones

Kitchen laid out according to how you will use it rather than what looks nice on the designers plan

[Blacksox]

When we designed our kitchen, I had a cupboard built with sockets in designed to be used as a charging station - but as it's behind the table, no bugger can be arsed to use it.

[whensitmyturn]

Agree to lots of plug sockets and deep drawers u meet counters.

Stuff I love about mine is having a 5 ring hob, a double oven and most of all my 'insinkerator' no food waste ever has to sit rotting in beds all of it (except bones) gets ground up and washed away. It's excellent!

[Bluntness100]

A range cooker with at least six burners and a double oven, somewhere to sit, lots of sockets, as much work space as you can with the very best work tops you can afford, plenty of plug points and the prerequisite pot cupboards. 😃

[whensitmyturn]

Rotting in bins not beds!