An Ideal Kitchen .. If you were starting from scratch what would youhave in yours?

[Twiglett]

What would you have in your ideal kitchen ?

I'm trying to get a list of things together for kitchen designer's visit and was wondering if there was anything (apart from the obvious pan / plate storage) that you wish you had in your kitchen

So far I have
.. a place to keep bits and bobs that aren't necessarily kitcheny (kids health books / medicines etc)
.. storage for long-term things like juices (we buy in bulk)
... utility cupboard for mops / brushes / ironing board

brain dead ...

Solid deep shelf for cookbooks in case no one already mentioned it. Like all these ideas, will bear them in mind for my pie-in-the-sky plans for your new house. I am salivating at your kitchen mancmum. Right now I would settle for a fridge bigger than a shoebox and a freezer that keeps things frozen.

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They did an article in the Homes & property section of the evening standard last night about funky kitchens - did you see it?

(I am trying to get my name in all the most recent conversations today)

When I planned my kitchen last year the thing that had been driving me mad was having any kind of clutter on the worksurfaces or things next to the tiles and grout as after time it tends to turn it black. So I got shelves with plugs on the wall above them to put the toaster/steriliser. I also have a metal tray thing on the wall above the sink that holds the handsoap, dishcloth and washing up liquid. The other thing that I'm pleased that we did was tile behind the bin as the wall used to get horribly grubby, but now I can just wipe it down each week. We also got lots of small cupboards to store all dd's art and craft stuff which she loves.

Not sure this will be of help but we have:

Built in fridge freezer
Shelves for cookbooks
Double in column oven
Extractor which is vented to exterior
Dishwasher - but not built in
Some really deep cupboards above and below the oven which are good for dinner service and pans etc.

Ours was put in by builders but we opted for stainless steel sink and oven/hob. I love the way it looks but it is hard to keep clean if you do a lot of cooking. Other than that I really quite like it. we have a butcher's block also which can double up as an island if I'm cooking lots. The only other thing that I wish I had thought about at the time was the door fronts, which are solid wood and have picked up a few knocks from the kids now.

oh yes, I forgot, we also have really deep drawers to keep all our plates/bowls etc in and it is so much easier to get them in and out than when in a cupboard.

Waste disposal unit in 1/2 sink. I miss mine so much.
Cupboard at child level for inevitable art and craft activities, and another for storage of kids cups/cutlery (dd likes helping to set the table)

in laundry area - 3 different bins for dirty clothes - whites/darks/mediums. Lets you see when you need to do a wash. And a shelving unit to stack clean clothes directly from dryer/line

I love my pan drawers, large pull out larder with storage for herbs and spices on the back of the door, 300ml pull-outs for bottles of oil etc, broom cupboard, place for cookbooks (we already had a wall-press we used for this) and range cooker, although if I had the choice/money it would have been an Aga.

Josh from the West Wing wearing nothing but a frilly apron.

Tiled floor - underfloor heating.
Pull out larder cupboard.
Corner cupboards with carousel
Deep drawers for pots etc.
Double drainer with 1.5 sinks
Solid, non scratch work surfaces
Under cupboard and sunken spot ceiling lighting
Tall cupboard for hoover/ironing board or utility area with washing machine, dryer, sink and those.
Cupboard with racks for fruit and veg not near oven, hob, dishwasher or any other heatgenerating device.
Boxed away pipes and boiler
Hidden teatowel rail and bins under sink with lids that pop up as you open the door.
No radiator (see underfloor heating)

I want an old-fashioned pantry with tiled walls, marble or slate shelves and passive external ventilation. My parents had a huge walk-in pantry before they demolished it and turned it into part of the new living-room, and I have a tiny one in my flat, and it's marvellous - food keeps so much better in it than in an ordinary larder cupboard in a warm kitchen.

A waste-disposal thingy. A good drainer rack with room for at least one meal's-worth of dishes (even though this dream-kitchen would also have a dishwasher).

A built-in gas hob with room for pans on all burners (ie wider than 60cm, and though I'm not bothered how many burners five would be nice) and the controls going up the side not across the front where toddlres can reach them.

An extractor fan that a) actually works, b) doesn't roar, c) doesn't bash your head when you bend over the stove to taste somethign.

Eye-level oven plus eye-level microwave-grill combination.

Masses of power points set half-way between the worktop and the wall units so that they are easy to get to, but slightly inset into the walls with little flip-up doors so that they stay clean and are unobtrusive when not in use.

loads of sockets we have just done our kitchen from scratch and should have had more.
Large butchers block and big table have been very useful and a couple of deep drawers for saucepans

I love my Island, so so pleased DH persuaded me to have one.

Twig, I redid my kitchen two years ago and I love it. Now....if I could just post the pictures...I need alot of remedial help there. I got a key hole sink which is 10 inches deep and about 30 inches across and I love it. Everything fits in it (including children if they need bathing). It is terra cotta color to match my granite. I also have a dishwasher and garbage disposal and American fridge (as I am in America!). I have an island that looks out onto the living room and a double sided fireplace that faces into the kitchen and living room. Also, bookcase for cookbooks and writing and file area. I have my washer and dryer in the pantry area (L-shaped room)I had floor to ceiling cabinets built that are 10 inches deep so that no more than 2 or three sets of canned goods can be stacked and you can see everything you have. I also had a built-in craft, baking, candy-making area with another sink in that area so that when we have a project we can spread out but still have another sink. The kichen is at the heart of the house and we do alot in there... Anyway-if I could ever figure out how to post anything, I will put them up. By the way, we will be paying off the kitchen for the next 20 years--didn't want you to think I was spoiled and rich!

Waitrose stock eco cloths

George Clooney and some Hagen Das

Ha. A complete one would be good so tiles, plumbed in dishwasher, doors on cupboards etc etc...

Have just had a new one, not really into built in stuff but the things I love in mine are the proper walk in larder and the rinse, a little thing next to the tap which pulls out on a hose and squirts at high pressure, great for cleaning veggies, sink etc

Gary Rhodes.

No no, Jamie Oliver! But I'd need a soundproof cupboard to keep him - love his food but his chatter does get on my nerves.

Gordon Ramsay to cook and swear plus the tall fair haired guy from Green Wing for scenery.

A very high-up cupboard for G&T supplies and emergency chocolate.

Everything going right down to the floor so I could stop spending half my life on my stomach trying to flick out grapes, balls, cars, Cheerios and fluff from under the lovely free-standing but hopeless units with DS's squashy baseball bat.

Under floor heating
huge sink with 2½ thingies
agree about the hospital handles unless you have another sink in laundry room in which case have a tap with spout thingy

Telephone that you can have on speakerphone

flip down TV

Servants. Old-fashioned ones that call you ma'am.

a toddler proof force-field around all breakable items