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Housekeeping

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Original poster

High maintenance kitchens - let me learn from your mistakes

148 replies

KristinaM · 09/05/2007 22:08

I'm a terrible housewife, I live in the country and I have three small, messy children. What do I NOT want in my new kitchen??? (apart from the kids of course )

I've already worked out that the beautiful cream glossy floor tiles are probably not for me.....

OP posts:
milge · 09/05/2007 23:15

Not much to add, but I would get a tap with a big arc on it, so you can fit big pots underneath, plus lever taps, rather than traditional screw round taps, so you can operate them with greasy hands. I hate stainless steel, and have white porcelain double belfast sink, with drainer/colander thing in the middle, with a waste disposal - great for tea bags, which are a pet hate of mine. White does stain, but a spray round with diluted bleach keeps it sparkly. There is potential for breakages, I guess, although I don't do much washing up!
Agree re cupboards to the ceiling
Agree re no glass doors/shelves
Agree re no wood - a complete pita
Agree re matt not shiny doors, and flat, not grooved
Disagree re granite - love it, completely indestructible. If not granite, then get Corian.
Floor - either real wood or limestone, both with underfloor heating.

Nikki76 · 09/05/2007 23:17

I've got a stone tile floor in my kitchen and its awful - dread it everytime DS comes in, in case he falls and clunks his head - have now put gate over kitchen door to stop him getting in. Also, if you drop a saucepan on the floor, it can chip - I know from experience!

Love Belfast sinks though.....mmmmm....

Pannacotta · 09/05/2007 23:17

I have had beech worktops in both my kitchens and if you give them lots of oil before you first use them they are ok in terms of staining etc.
Oak might be worth looking at too as it is a v strong wood. You can sand back minor stains and treat again with oil so I personally think that is a better option then eg granite. You coudl look at Corian but I dont know what it is like in terms of maintancence/cleaning etc

PrincessPeaHead · 09/05/2007 23:21

wot milge says

also I have a fantastic cupboard which is like a wall cupboard extended down to the worktop, which is deep enough to keep big appliances in (like kitchenaid mixer) and is lined with plugs in the back. So you open the doors, pull out your already plugged in toaster/coffeemaker/steriliser/mixer/juicer/etc onto the worktop, use it, and push it back in and close the doors.

It is FANTASTIC.

Original poster
KristinaM · 09/05/2007 23:23

dont think we can afford corian. we are having to knock down a wall and turn a window into french doors which will eat into the budget for frivolities like..ahem...units and worktops.

I'm hoping we can sand the floorboards but I realise that's probably a bit unrealistic after teh dreaded builders have been in. thnaks for the tip about gaps in the boards BTW

OP posts:
wheelybug · 09/05/2007 23:27

Reading this thread with interest as about to embark on kitchen.

What I have learnt from fitting my last kitchen

  • real wood worktops are dreadful
  • belfast sinks look lovely, pretty practical except for drainage (although we didn't have grooves put in our worktop) and breakage
  • fired earth grout disintergrates terribly
  • seal porous stone floors or they crack
  • DON'T USE MFI

For this I am thinking granite (will look into corian), stainless steel sink with drainer and draining board bit.

I love the sound of your cupboard PPH - quick qu - I assume it has shelves, do you have plug points at shelf level ?

Original poster
KristinaM · 09/05/2007 23:29

princessPH - is that one of these cupboards that are sort of half depth? I'm sure they have a proper name. oh I like the idea of having the toaster in one of these...I can hide all the crumbs in the cupboard

what kind of door do you have on it? one that rolls up or a larder door?

OP posts:
PrincessPeaHead · 09/05/2007 23:30

yup that's it
don't now what they are called
I have sort of accordian doors. two doors that each fold in half.

it is a wonder

PrincessPeaHead · 09/05/2007 23:30

know

Nikki76 · 09/05/2007 23:32

Kristina - I get Good Food mag and each month they do a section on a s'leb chef kitchens...now, while these are seriously high end kitchens, there are some great tips you can pick up from there? I just like drooling over all the gadgets they have!!

brimfull · 09/05/2007 23:34

my granite hasn't stained at all ,lemons and red wine left lying with gay abandon!
It is black though,so pretty indestructible.

dolally · 09/05/2007 23:34

try www.silestone.com for counter tops, its a kind of reconstituted stone (I think) can't remember how expensive it was but I've had it for 8 years and its still as shiny as day one.

Also if you have a big kitchen, don't make the mistake we did and use all the space for your units, you just end up walking twice as far. Use one end for units/ the sink/fridge/cooker triangle and the other end for a breakfast bar/eating area... if you see what I mean.

PrincessPeaHead · 09/05/2007 23:35

plug points are at the bottom so appliances effectively sit on the worktop and can just be slid forward beyond the doorline when needed

then a couple of shelves above for cookery books

brimfull · 09/05/2007 23:35

I think they call those cupboards kitchen garages in canada.what a naff name!

DarrellRivers · 09/05/2007 23:39

I inherited a kitchen with sink at one end, fridge at the other and hob in the middle in a straght line , i spend all day moving backwards and forwards.
Design kitchen with the triangle formation of fridge, cooker and fridge
Don't get high gloss doors, they are a bugger to keep shiny

wheelybug · 09/05/2007 23:41

I like the sound of that PPH.

Springadora · 09/05/2007 23:43

It took us 2 years to design our perfect kitchen and then we moved house - and the one in the new house now drives me bonkers because (and these are tips of what to avoid!):

  1. lots of pissy little cupboards rather than a few really decen sized ones (standard 600 mil is hopeless if you want to get two stacks of plates or saucepans side by side)

  2. really irritating island that I use as a dumping ground when I'd prefer the floor space for a big kitchen table

  3. hopeless lighting in the wrong places

  4. sink faces a blank wall

  5. irritating alternating coloured tiles - plain white would be much cheaper, clean looking and easy to clean

  6. too many fridges!

  7. not enough natural light

Have fun!

Springadora · 09/05/2007 23:44

Oh I forgot - I really miss having big deep drawers for saucepans etc.

milge · 09/05/2007 23:46

at pph's uber cupboard! Only in PPH towers!
It has reminded me of a nifty thing my friend has in her new kitchen -on the island in the middle of the kitchen, she has a circle, you can put your hand into,the cover revolves like a bin lid, and bring up a collapsible "wall" of plug points, so you can plug in magimix, juicer, whatever, on the island. It just collapses back into the island and you pull the cover over the circle, so it looks like a flat work surface - she has wood on the main worksurfaces, but has granite and marble inserts in the island.

RoundTheBend · 09/05/2007 23:50

Have not read all the thread so hope I am not repeating stuff. Do not go for dark coloured worktops as they show EVERY crumb, speck of dust etc. Black hobs are a no-no as they show every speck of dust too.

Original poster
KristinaM · 09/05/2007 23:58

pop up plug thingy

OP posts:
Original poster
KristinaM · 09/05/2007 23:59

ok milge - share with me your tap advice please?

OP posts:
dinosaur · 10/05/2007 00:02

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at the poster's request.

milge · 10/05/2007 00:04

Yes, that is the pop up plug thingy she has. Very nifty
Tap advice is on my first post on this thread, before pph reminded me about plug points. - lever taps not round twisty ones, to summarise!
Off to bed now - happy kitchen kitting

KTeePee · 10/05/2007 06:47

I've just had my kitchen done and it's soooo nice - and easier to clean - than my old one. I've got matt cupboard doors - but they are shaker style so not completely flat - but are easy to wipe down. I do have wood worktops in some areas and tbh I can already see they will need some tlc - but the main food prep area has stainless steel which I love (my kitchen table is also steel, have had it for years and it is totally child-proof).

One of the biggest changes is the flooring - we've now got ceramic tiles in a sort of mottled cream/beige (nicer than it sounds, honest!) - they look clean even when they are not! (But may not suit you if you get lots of muddy footprints?)