Kitchen must haves and mistakes

[ladywithnomanors]

I’m in the process of buying a house and will be having new kitchen. I’m worried about making any expensive mistakes and don’t want to regret layout, appliances etc.
For example I put oak counter tops in my last house and while I loved the look of them , I won’t be getting them this time as they mark too easily and have to be maintained. Also I found the position of my oven partially blocked a door when in my previous kitchen.
What do people regret having? And anything they didn’t have they wished they did ?
TIA

Don't get a black fridge freezer, the fingerprints so hard to keep it looking clean

My quooker boiling water tap is the best thing in my kitchen!

Make sure dishwasher is positioned near where all your delp and cutlery is stored. no matter what colour you go for fingerprints will show. I went for plain solid doors as no dust will settle in creases. have one pantry style cupboard which stores everything make sure shelfs high enough to store cereal boxes and bottles. built in fridge freezer so no sticking out ameriacan style. one thing I did even though only 5ft 5 inches. my island and counter is higher than standard. this I love as no more bending down to sink and when prepping food

Must have:

• Pull-out bin drawer: it keeps the bin hidden while still being easy to access.

• A pantry (if space allows) or a large cupboard to store appliances. People often focus on big islands and countertops, but they lose their appeal if appliances are constantly left out on top.

• An induction hob: I’m obsessed. I’ve had both electric and gas before, and I’d never go back. It’s easy to clean, heats up super fast, and I don’t have to worry about kids accidentally turning on the gas.

Yes, I love mine too but you have to be careful not to scald yourself at first.
There is a stopper thing you can keep on the boiling tap if or when you’ve got guests.
(Guest of ours scalded his hand as he used it before we realised what he was doing.)

Must haves:
a sink with double drainers
plain cupboard doors so dirt doesn’t get into cracks
floor space for the cat’s bowls
large pull out drawers for pans

Would not have:
wooden worktops
small tiles as splash backs - lots of grout that gets dirty
breakfast stations or gadget garages - end up not the right size or full of junk
wall cupboards that go right down to the worktop
open shelves or hanging racks particularly near the hob

Think about:
corner cabinets and how to use the space efficiently
Wall units that go all the way up to the ceiling
how many plug sockets you need and where you put them

There are some good YouTube videos about kitchen designs and what things that are trendy but turn out to be a waste of time.

I would agree with this. We moved last summer and are having a new kitchen soon and it is one of our must haves. Had one in our last house.

Absolutely DO NOT have black granite worktops in a hard water area!!!

Loads of plug sockets.
Full height run of cupboards.
I also love my utensil drawer under the cooker and we have a recess where all of the machines live.
Our house is very old and the walls are about 50cm thick so we have very big window cills. We continued the pale worktop (compact laminate) onto the cills so the kitchen appears wider.

But don't be fooled in to thinking another brand will do the job. It won't! Quooker, Grohe or intu.

We made that mistake!

A really angular sink is another mistake, so hard to clean the corners!

Don't skimp on plug sockets. You can never have too many

I'd definitely have a pull out bin.

One I don't think has been mentioned, probably because it seems obvious - work out which way you want cupboard doors to open. We got one then wrong way round and it drives me bonkers!

Drawers not cupboards, even under the sink.

Black sinks - nightmare, don’t do it!

My must haves and why

• boiling water tap (no waiting for tea, no kettle on counter)

• bin drawer (no bin cluttering floor space)

• slide and hide oven (safer IMO when taking heavy trays from oven)

• 5/6 ring induction hob (so quick to heat and cool, easy to clean, better than gas).

• pull out spice, utensil and pan drawers under hob (handy as where needed!)

• integrated microwave (no clutter, easy to keep counters clear)

• pull out larder (much easier to find food, nothing buried at back)

• large drawer for roasting trays (mine is under the oven, handy)

• dedicated airfryer cupboard is my bonus recommendation, out of sight but easy reach for daily use)

I have 2 visible/usable sockets, never needed more at the one time as everything is integrated and plugged in hidden away. But these were thought out and planned based on how I use my kitchen I would definitely recommend putting a lot of thought into how you would use them so you don't end up with 6 visible sockets spoiling the look of your lovely splash back but never being used 😉

have the sink and dishwasher next to each other or you'll drip stuff all over the floor between them

This. I have drawers on one side of the kitchen but cupboards along the other wall. I wish I had gone for drawers all round. So much easier to see and reach things.

I hated the pull out bin in our old kitchen! Yes it was out of sight but it was always full of crumbs and bits and just another thing to clean.
I regret having a matt finish kitchen, it’s so unforgiving.
I also really disliked the induction hob. I prefer the controls on gas and we have quite a few power cuts so gas is handy for that.
The built in fridge freezer is too small.

I love the quartz worktops, the boiling water tap, hide and slide oven and loads of drawers.

Eye level double oven. Nothing worse than scrabbling around on the floor to get your dinner out of the oven.

Pyrolytic oven, dead easy to clean

Induction hob

Lots of sockets

We have some cupboards under the wall units, perfect size for toaster, food processor etc, just pull out when needed.. Looks more tidy than gadgets in full view all the time

We have grey granite worktops which are great as they don't stain nearly as much as the white quartz. A double pull out bin with space for recycling. I then have a caddy for food waste because I found the 3 section bins too small and needed emptying every 5 mins. I also like large drawers for pans and plates etc.

My dishwasher is on the other side of the sink and it’s so annoying, I have a range oven which I hate - it’s so hard to clean and I’m always burning myself getting things out of the oven. If I could redesign my kitchen I would give up the range oven for an oven on the wall, that would give me more space to then have the dishwasher under the sink. I’d also not have cupboards that go up to the ceiling, as I cannot reach the top shelf and I’d also not go for unit doors with grooves - annoying to clean.

I agree with a lot said here as we did our kitchen last year. Love my Quooker tap and that would be my number one recommendation. Also, some sort of unit in the corner that is easily accessible. We have a turntable one as that was the only one that would fit, but still fab. Also agree about pull out larder and spice rack. And I have a slide and hide cooker - it was only Neff who did these, so may still be the case. You can tell I watch Bake Off!

We have quartz worktops which I like, but it is still possible to chip them, as I hit the side of the sink with a heavy cup and managed to do so - not a happy bunny!!

I have just had a brand new kitchen built from scratch. Things I specified:

no built in appliances (really limits what you can buy and built in fridges don’t last as long and god I hate built in appliances)
no built in oven - I have a free standing ninja oven/air fryer. It’s brilliant and portable!
the island unit went - they just take up space.
hot water tank under the sink which is a fraction of the price of a quooker and works just as well.
i have beautiful wooden doors which slide back into the side of the tall units where the ninja, coffee machine and larder lives.
no washing machine - it’s in the utility room where it belongs. Washing machines should not be in kitchens.
no double sink - had it in the last kitchen and it just took up space.
cheap tap as expensive ones break such as often as cheap ones.

I'm just place marking here! Thanks, Op for asking this - we're planning a new kitchen this year, which I've never had in my life (I'm 60) and I'm wanting to get it right too.