If you were having a brand new kitchen - what you you include, and what not to include?

[Hulababy]

Our building works start next week. We are having an extension downstairs and moving our kitchen to the new space: see attached plan. It shows a rough kitchen area as put on my the architect. This is completely moveable apart from the boiler which needs to stay where it is. So, it is basically an empty rectangle to play with...will require a kitchen and dining area. Also, the door is moveable - we currently have a door into the study (right side of the room and where the door is currently shown; there is also currently a door into the study (the left side of the room)

A new utility room will house the washing machine and tumble dryer. It will have room for a free standing freezer, and some work space, and maybe a cupboard. Although the plans show one there will not be a sink in the utility room as we have decided against it already - not had one in current utility for past 9.5 years and thats with the kitchen on a floor above, so def don't need one. It will be right next door to the kitchen.

I know I want a high gloss kitchen with the curved edges, and probably a solid surface worktop such as Corian. Probably white, with maybe a charcoal/grey/black added. Maybe. Unlikely to go for wood units. And I think we will have a free standing retro style Smeg fridge.

So, if you were designing your new kitchen, what would you go for?

And anything you would reject/definitely not have in hindsight?

Built In appliances - only because personally I think it looks less cluttered!

Two ovens. One an oven microwave, saves space. Flat ceiling extractor fan. Integrated appliances, they just look better. Pull out larder cupboard. More plug sockets than you think you'll need. Warming drawer.

I currently have built in appliances but hope not to in new kitchen, other than the dishwasher - which is the only thing we re recycling (as it is quite new.)

I can't decide re oven - I hanker after a free standing range style one. I know I want a decent number of gas hob rings. Current hob has 3 normal sized and one small which isn't enough. I want at least 4 decent ones - and then maybe an extra one, or a heating plate perhaps. I'm not tall - 5 foot - so find our current eye level over - well the top small oven/grill - too high. I wonder if a low one might work better.

A double sink (or at least a 1 and a half sink or whatever it's called)

I'll have to have a think about the sink. I'm looking at solid surface worktop which then leads into the sink as one piece. We don't wash dishes in the sink - well rarely; but its main use is for food prep.

Eye level oven, two ovens in fact, electric. Separate gas hob. Pull out larder. Some open shelves for jars - we have all this.
In hindsight lots of decent shelves for cookbooks and BBC Good Food magazines.
Not a white sink.
A built in microwave might be good but we've replaced ours in the 10 years we've had the kitchen, so not of difficult to replace.

A cupboard with a sliding board and plug sockets at the rear so you can keep your mixer and food processor set up and just pull them out to use. I've not seen one but im sure a kitchen designer somewhere must have thought about it. And a tall, wide larder cupboard that is quite shallow (no deeper than a large cereal packet) so you can see the contents without pulling out loads to see what's at the back. Not keep on pull out ones as they're hard to clean below and behind if something spills.

Underfloor heating
Wide pull out drawers (instead of cupboards)
Integrated dishwasher and ovens (second micro/convection combo)
American style fridge freezer
Double sink

I like a pot filler over the stove (i.e. tap with arm you can move out of the way)

Love an island in the kitchen so people can sit on stools, great for kids getting snacks without cluttering the table.

Like a big french press refrigerator too.

Also a walk-in pantry/larder but I don't know if that is something you can add to your plan at this stage. Great for all those awkwardly shaped items of cookware that you don't use constantly and for putting recyling and large bags of rice and other big staples.

What works well in our kitchen: solid heavy duty drawers for tins rather than cupboards, changing a wine rack into shelves for cookery books, putting the freezer in the utility room (by taking out an unused utility sink), no wall cupboards (I couldn't use the top shelves in any case), integrated bins (small for rubbish, large for recycling means I recyle much more)

What doesn't work: not enough plug sockets (lots of workspace to put things on, but no plug sockets nearby), small drawers either side of the Aga (looks over function, they are too small to be any use), a pale marble floor (constant cleaning), cream cupboards (constant cleaning)

We did ours not too long ago.

• one big sink instead of 2 small ones, so you can fit all big pots and pans in, if necessary. I rarely ever needed 2 sinks, as dishes go in the dishwasher.
• granite work top, or at least any other material that is heat-, water and scratch-resistant.
• we have a large kitchen island that comfortably fits 4 people around one end. Unless we have guests, we eat all meals there.
• drawers instead of cupboards.
• cupboards instead of shelves, looks a lot less cluttered (we do like a very minimalist style, so that's maybe not for everybody).
• more plug sockets than you think you need.
• induction cooking plate, one of those with adjustable heating area, not just fixed size rings.

What I wish we got but didn't - one of those clever solutions that allows you to keep kitchen appliances out, but easily hide them. Pull down covers or even something like those examples:
www.hgtvdecor.net/daily-interior-design-inspirations/5-kitchen-design-tips-on-how-to-hide-the-electrical-kitchen-appliances.html

Can't add a walk in now but I intend to use the spare units in the utility room for the oddly shaped bowls and serving dishes I have - ones I like to use but aren't in daily/all the time use.

Wickes do an amazing corner semi walk in cupboard - the design front wouldn't fit with what we want but I'll definitely be looking for a similar one when we do ours next year.

Our build is going on at the moment, and I'm just making final decisions re kitchen ;

90cm range cooker
one large larder cupboard with shelves
one large larder cupboard with pull out racks
intergrated appliances
only two wall cupboards - one above where coffee machine will go, for mugs and one above cupboard at end of run, for glasses
huge island with drawers one side and cupboards on the other - one for breakfast cereals/cereal bowls (kids eat lots of cereal!), and one for table mats etc.
500mm cupboard at other end of ruin with usb power points - so a sort of charging station

Island with breakfast bar.
We've got a five area induction hob with flexible heating.
Our kitchen designers worked out how high we needed the ovens so I could reach, OP. As I'm short too. Then fitted the cupboards around them.

That's good to know re the ovens. I'm only 5 foot so our grill/top oven I can't see in!

DD desperately wants is to have a form of breakfast bar with tall stools.

Thanks all. We are off to look at kitchens this weekend so I am making notes and ideas from all this :)

Things I love about our new kitchen:

Wine fridge
900mm range cooker (I'm short too)
Pull out larder
Island with breakfast bar and stools
No wall cupboards
Pan rack
Built in microwave and dishwasher (washing machine and dryer in utility room)
Beautiful glass splashback
Bifold doors onto deck

Things I am not do keen on:

Noisey extractor fan
No underfloor heating...

Ooh yes to glass splashbacks/upstands instead of tiles.
Underfloor heating.

We went with a local company and found it more personal than say, Homebase, if that makes sense. They really thought about the design.

Lots of drawers
Lots of sockets
A big sink that fits grillpans etc for soaking and a little rinsing/cup emptying sink next to it (so 1 1/2 bowls but the big one needs to be big).
Bookshelf
Telly on the wall
Lots and lots of lighting
If you don't have a futility room then know where your mop/bucket/ironing board are going to go.
Cupboards that go all the way up to the ceiling and don't have a nasty dust and grease trap at the top.
5 ring gas hob

I think everybody has already mentioned my main things, apart from, da-da, a pull out double bin. It takes up the space of a cupboard, but fits in two black sack size bins - one for rubbish, one for recycling.

The kitchen designer said we needed one, and he was right.

He did a great job on our kitchen, and we have been very happy with it for the past 10 years. It would still look pretty much like new if toddler DS hadn't made free with our sharp cornered wok accessory and taken a few chips out of the high gloss finish on one of the cupboards.

Love our granite worktop - we went for a patterned one with a blue fleck in, to go with our very pale blue cupboards, and I still think it looks beautiful.

Deep heavy duty drawers are great for shoving cake tins/baking trays in, and easier to rummage through than in a cupboard. I would probably have had more of those for pans etc, if our kitchen wasn't such an awkward shape.

PS we have a radiator (one of those ridiculously expensive chrome tube ones) on the end of a cupboard, which works really well for us, but we don't have an eat-in kitchen.

No one has mentioned work top height. As this can be totally flexible in a modern kitchen you need to decide on a height that will suite you, the user. Tall people need much higher work tops then smaller people. This also effects the positioning of any built in eye level ovens, micro waves and steamers. As well as the top cupboards.
You are having a taylor made kitchen, taylor it to you.

Trouble is it won't really be tailor made in that it will come from a store, so most units will be a set size I imagine. I also need to bear in mind that although I am 5 foot, DH is over 6 foot - and although I do the bulk of the cooking he will be using it too. My current work tops are standard height and that works fine tbh.

Others have said my points, but floor to ceiling cupboards down one wall, just base cupboards with upstand (no splashback or wall cupboards) on other wall. Island unit with stools. Drawers instead of cupboards, double pull out bin. I'd have integrated appliances every time, but I also like a minimalist look so agree its not to everyones taste. I have also gone for llooks over practicality and have an electric hob which is so much nicer than a gas one.