High maintenance kitchens - let me learn from your mistakes

[KristinaM]

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.....

Annie: I agree about the colour - cream or white is all we could get away with in our dingy kitchen - it is the grooves in the doors that are a nightmare with our shaker doors (or maybe I'm just a slattern for not cleaning them more often )

just don't have anything shiny, tis a nightmare.

we are living in a house at the moment which has shiny black floor tiles, shiny black worktops, shiny stainless steel bloody everywhere, and two very sticky small children. I hate it with a passion (the kitchen not the sticky children obviously, am rather fond of them).

Oh Annie: Those are the doors we have I must be really slatternly when it comes to cleaning my kitchen.....I'm going to blame the cats (it works for everything else)

Black high gloss worktops are a NIGHTMARE!

Never buy anything by Smeg. EVER.

Quick hijack but Porpoise, what's wrong with Smeg!? I have (slightly hopefully I admit) put a Smeg fridge on my wedding list - shoudl I hastily change?

Adel is in the shaker styley do you not think?

smag fridges are crap,friend had to bin one that was only a few yrs old.

MIss Golightly-can't believe you put one on your wedding list

Oo interesting.

Ggirl, do you think I'm being a bit cheeky because they cost so much? I sort of realise I am but I figure no-one HAS to buy it! . PLus DP has some rather well-off family members and I am sort of hoping that one of them will think this is a totally normal wedding present. Ha ha, I wish (hasten to add I have also put on lots of wooden spoons and the like for our impecunious friends and relatives.)

Do not get a ROC sink. They are expensive and have a textured surface which traps the dirt. The only way to get it white again is to bleach it and it says not to bleach because it will damage the surface! We will be getting either ceramic (if dh gets his way) or stainless steel (if I get my way) next time...

well yes I do think tis cheeky,even if you do have cheap stuff on it aswell.

Don't have riven slate on the floor unless you want your floor to look dirty as well as be dirty

Thought I could add a question onto this discssion as it sort of fits!
Does anyone have a central island unit for cooking on as well as the kids to sit up at and eat at? If so, is it a nightmare waiting to happen or can you get the units wide enough for kids not to reach and burn little digits?

If you're going for a modern look, I heartily recommend a glass splashback as they are really easy to clean and avoid the stained grouting nightmare of tiles.

Miss Golightly.
Sorry didn't see your post till now.
Smeg stuff is beautiful to look at but bits tend to break down/stop working all the time.
And the parts are only kept in Italy.
And the factory in Italy is shut half the year.
And the 'customer services' (note the quote marks!) people here in the UK can never get in touch with Italy - if they ever even try

We have the Smeg fridge by the way and it is fab. But we once went EIGHT months without it because a part broke.
We also had a Smeg dishwasher that had to be replaced FOUR times. And has now died.
And a Smeg cooker that has a dodgy oven and one ring not working. Ongoing SEVEN year saga.
Aaaaah!
It's nice to vent!

Am glad its not just us who have been plagued by SMEG!
We bought a v expensive double oven s steel cooker plus hood plus dishwasher 3 years ago.
We have spent hundreds of pounds on dishwasher repairs, including two new motors. All the symbols on the front have worn away through being cleaned (they are just transfers).
The oven fan broke after a year (just after guarantee ran out) and the timer clock has gone. Spent £100 on the fan and was told the clock was cost even more to repair so didn't bother. Bought a cheap timer. The symbols on this have also faded away through cleaning.
We have also been ripped off by a dodgy Smeg approved repair man.
All I can say is DO NOT BUY SMEG!!!!!
Rant over...

Nothing to add, but just wanted to say am loving this thread and am about to create one about bathrooms as I am getting one of those before a kitchen...

Nothing shiny anywhere it is a fashion thing and looks dated already and is a bugger to clean.
Lots of sockets
Agree with pph if you can hide smaller appliances it does give a better look
We have a dark grey ceramic floor and it is brilliant never looks dirty.

oh I am overwhelmed with all this useful info . Even Dh has to admit that he hadn't thought of half of it

As far as I can see, the jury's out on worktops. Both granite and wood seem to have their fans here. I've found a local showroom that sells on of those composites that some of you recommended and will go and check it out. Am a bit at the price though.... as soemone said, the costs keep spiraling.

thanks to you all I have scrapped plans for glass doors wall units and will try to add in a larder unit and a princess peahead wonder cupboard