Your Kitchen! What works what doesn't?

[Nuttybear]

I'm planning a new kitchen. It will be the only kitchen I will plan as I'm hoping it will last me a life time. What works in your kitchen? What makes morden life simpler?[hgrin] What really was a fab idea in the show room but a big mistake now?[hsad]
I will start the ball rolling My Liebherr Stainless steel very tall fridge/freezer is great. Not so great the Ikea round bowl sink can't get baking trays into it to wash. Which means I splash water all over the counter. Taps out side the sink area menas that water drips onto the wooden work surface which is rotten now. Wooden worktop. Who has the time to oil it? That's rotten by the sink area now. it does work very well by the cooker and I suspect marks can be sanded out if not rotten.
Please help me plan?

i decided to stick with upstand & kitchen and bathroom paint behind the sink.

wrong decision.

i dont want to put in e.g a gloss splasback because in time that would get mouldy too (as they are chipboard with laminate coating of somekind, the chip gets wet and warps overtime)

i will get tiles as they are best in wet areas. eventually. still waiting for DH to do the bathroom cupboard.

i agree that wood doors do (generally) provide ledges for dust to land on, but e.g. under the sink where they will get wet often, a laminated gloss oor will separate at the joins over time (as water seeps in)

not having any full height units may reduce cupboard space, but increases worktop space.

hae as many sockets at worktop level as you can. think - toaster, kettle, radio, laptop - all those kitchen essentials need a socket!

leaving empty floor areas can be handy with small kids because you can change the use more easily - the end of our kitchen used to have a playpen and kitchen table, currently has 2 toddler tables 1 small adult table, and will change as they grow.

I love wooden worktops personally. Yes they do need to be oiled ONCE A YEAR. It takes about 30 MINUTES to and a few hours to settle on a warm summers day.

It's tough i know but then im hardcore enough to dedicate 30 minutes a year to the job so i deserve it really.

Hello
I am always linking to these threads as I remember 'em q clearly High Maintenance Kitchens
HTH and happy kitchen planning

A mate has a v cool wall cupboard which sits "on the work top"
Has power sockets at the back and slides out with her food processor, juicer and toaster (IIRC) all in it out of the way so worktops are clear apart from kettle.

awubble That's what DH thought he would always do but never did. & I won't bore you with the other things in life needs to be done in 30 mins instead of oiling. But hey! It does look great.

EdgarOr gloss doors from Ikea have been going very well and really there isn't anything wrong with them. Everything else but not them.
Olivia Will read High Maintenance Kitchens later thank you. I need all he tips as I plan to be 80 and still in this kitchen.

OUR gloss doors from Ikea!

Not enough work surface space. Should have got built in microwave as DH suggested as it takes up LOADS of space. LOVE my fridge freezer as first time I've had a fridge at eye level - fantastic for getting stuff out while holding baby/toddler! (and great for keeping toddler out - freezer is too stiff for her so far!)

Cheap sink a mistake as marks easily even though supposedly stainless

Single oven difficult to cook meal where things need to go in at different temp eg roast veg/yorkshire pud with slow cook meat. Would consider 2x ovens next time.

Check your dishes will fit in the dishwasher ours is sh*te for bowls with steep sides and doesn't hold lots of big plates.

Love my pull out larder unit - would get 2 in next kitchen and also love my pull out bottle rack for oils etc next to cooker.

Don't get built in washer if you're having it in the kitchen - door bangs and inside of drum goes yucky as you can't leave the door ajar to ventilate.

Sockets everywhere. Our electrician commented on how many we had specified but it means you never have to trail cables anywhere or compromise on where appliances go.

An enormous fridge. Ours was a mistake (I didn't realise how wide it was when I ordered it and it only just went through the door) but we love it.

Range cooker if you have space. We bought ours with the house and I love it.

Laminate worktops. Wood is lovely and we nearly opted for it but we put wet and dirty stuff down on all the time and would have ruined wood within a couple of months.

A table. I love being able to sit at a table in the kitchen. It makes the room more sociable.

The only thing we have that I wouldn't bother with again is a shelf that lights up. It's supposed to work as task lighting but we only ever use that area for making tea and stacking dirty dishes so it's a bit redundant.

notasausage &nocake Thank you will need to print this thread. Will not make major changes in my life now without you lot LOL.

5 gas ring hob with a wok burner. Needs more cleaning, but essential for serious cooking.
One and a half bowl sink, and make the big one really big - so annoying when you can't fit big pans / trays in sink. I could never go back to a single sink.
Drawers, drawers and more drawers.
Microwave in a cupboard, much neater.
Lots of sockets as everyone else has said.
Proper shelf for cook books.
Full height cupboard for brooms, mops and ironing board.
Cupboards that go all the way up to the ceiling, otherwise it looks messy and gets greasy on top.
Pull out bin in cupboard for recycling bag.
Somewhere to put art stuff for DCs, somewhere to put CDs to listen to, somewhere to put bin bags, tea towels, trays. Literally look at every single item in your kitchen, not just the food and pans, and decide where you will be putting it. And that goes for pets as well.
I have light grey quartz worktop and Marmoleum floor - both work well for me.

been thinking about this thread.

we have a new kitchen, alot of the stuff has been mentioned. however would like to add that we have
1 cupboard for picnic/plastic plates bowls jugs etc
1 cupboard for playdoh, paint, brushes etc
1 cupboard for cereals and childrens plates and cups

they are all three at children height and have been a fantastic decision, they can easily get their own breakfast on a saturday!

Oh, yes, if your DCs are young then giving them their own space is great. But also think safety - put the oven at adult waist height or higher, and put a lock on the cleaning products cupboard door.

GreySkull Hi,How are you? Yes Picnic stuff and transporting cooked food big in my foodie family. Need a cupboard for Granny's staff too! She transports DS's food, pie and puddings to us in a trolley so her stuff needs to be stored too!
MrsVincentPrice yes, to the draws.
5 ring hob only if we win the lottery, house too small.
Totally agree on the sink, pudding bowl that we have now drives me nuts. Full Height cupboard for broom & ironing board yes yes.

Only have 1 DC and my sister (who has to grown boys now!) Told me never to put locks on things. When Mummy says no she means NO! So far so good and he's now 6 years and cooks with me. I have taught him how to use a knife too!
greasy top of cupboards Yukky! To the ceiling or not at all. We are hoping to have a walking larder. Now not sure if draws are the best!

def walk in larder
child height cupboards for plates, cups so they can lay the table, put things away for you
laminate or similar worktops
think noise factor - not too many shiny hard surfaces
ceramic sink lovely and big but always stained, and a bit clattery - I would go for really large stainless steel sink.
Sink under window, we changed ours back there in the end, you need to look out of window when you are doing washing up
dw next to sink (obviously) but not so close that you trip over it...
more worktop than you think you will ever need
get washing machine/dryer out of kitchen if you can...

Cheers swan maybe you can come over when it's done. If! We get it done planners still haven't replied!

brilliant thread...thank you!