Help with kitchen cabinets. Looking to immitate deVOL.

[HomeExtender]

I'm looking to imitate a deVOL kitchen but can't afford one
I've looked at DIY kitchens Norton range but the lay-on frame is 10cm, a lot chunkier than deVOL. Has anyone seen any kitchens with a slimmer onlay frame above no V groove (so the frame is flush with no gaps)? I dint want in-frame. Thanks so much!

Thanks Crumbelina. Got the quote and it is higher than expected. Also DH isnt willing to take any loan to fund the extension so i have to really cut down the plan. Was very upset about loosing a big house by ta hose guzumpers and now my dream project is cut down to half. I am trying to get over. Will take a few days to get my enthu back.

Oh, what a disappointment. Building costs (in fact, any product or service involving renovation) was so much more than we originally anticipated. We were so naive when we bought this house and seemed to think we'd get an extension built for around £40-50k when the true price (had we not done so much ourselves) would have been around £200k!

When I looked online quite a few sources quoted around £2k per square metre for London but when I hear about friends' projects or quotes they seem to come in at around £3-4k! Was your quote similar per square metre?

Crumbelina,

Our builder quote as such isnt that high. It is 1500+VAT for shell.

The things which is putting it out of budget are after the shell. I am listing down as predicted number.

Plumber+boiler : 15K
Electricial+lights etc : 15K
Kit+Appl: 10K
Bathroom stuff : 5K
various tiles etc: 4K
Doors, paint etc: 4K
Flooring: 4K
some misc : 3K
External stuff like driveway, patio etc. : 5K

so around 70K. I had a wishful thinking that may be it wont cost that much if we choose/buy everything carefully whereas DH thinks it will cost way more than 70K.

Hello Crumbelina,

How's it all going? Any updates and pics of course too please!

Thank you

Hello!

I feel bad saying this but progress has been minimal! I blame the hot weather but the weekends are a choice between DH working on the house (and me doing all the childcare) or us all going out as a family and enjoying the sunshine. So far the latter option is winning most weekends. DH has been doing some work but it's all the hidden drainage and electrical work. I'm still without a dishwasher and oven and I can't tell you how bored I am of stir fries and curries. We can't really afford to pay people now and we've had a real shock re London nursery fees for two children. When I go back to work we're looking around £2k a month.

We are still moving forward though and I'll definitely post pics when we have something nice to show! I have to say I'm absolutely loving my wine fridge. It's very well stocked with white wine, Prosecco and Rosé and is probably my favourite thing in the room at the moment. I do realise how ridiculously middle class I sound.

One thing that has held progress back a bit is the polished concrete floor. We started to notice oil/grease stains from the odd bit of dropped pastry/cheese. Turns out it wasn't quite sealed correctly so we've had the company back to reseal it a couple of times and fingers crossed all will be ok ... It has made me realise though that they're not as low maintenance as I thought and you do have to be quite vigilant. That said, it does look beautiful and I'll reserve judgement on whether I regret having it.

Mum 2015, so sorry I didn't reply - how are things with you? Did you mean £15k for the shell (which sounds like a great deal!). Why so much for the electrical and plumbing work?

And how is everyone else getting on??

Crumbelina,
I was thinking about you and how are things progressing. Meanwhile we offered on 2-3 houses but someone else offered more than us. Hubby says we choose perfect houses and that's why those particular houses go close to or over asking. There are so many houses listed on Rightmove for months but there is nothing which I could picture as my family home.
Anyway on extension side, we decided to knock down two internal walls and create a kitchen diner in existing space and extend upwards to create first floor. Have new planning permission submitted and hopefully work will start in Oct. To save costs we will live in house through the work!

Even without groundfloor extension, we got plumbing quote of 9.5k. Waiting for electrics quote. I guess that is what it costs in London we have been given right quotes for shell, but the we underestimated cost of things after shell.
This time quote for shell of 60sq meter on first floor is around 90k. It doesn't include windows/doors. I am hoping overall 150k should cover everything.

Fingers croseed, Mum2015! London costs are just eye watering - we were so naive when we bought this house and thought we could get a shell built for around £40k.

Let us know if you need any advice on living through building work - I have years! One tip is to go to Wilko and buy all of their storage boxes - they've been a lifesaver (especially if your DH refuses to pay for storage ) as the dust gets everywhere. Portable induction hobs are also fabulous.

It's interesting to hear how the housing market is moving - I assumed that nothing was shifting.

Yes, i will need lots of tips on living through building work with a baby!
We dont need storage as we dont have much furniture/other stuff but i cant stand clutter and get massive panic if things dont happen on time as per plan...

@crumbelina I have been so inspired by what you have done and have basically designed my kitchen based on it . We are thinking little Greene Basalt (similar to blue black) such a brave choice for me!

I'm the same re. clutter! Sadly my DH is a complete hoarder who works in a completely haphazard, untidy manner. It drives me absolutely mad. I'm currently in the process of organising and sorting the house, giving lots to charity and eBaying anything that isn't nailed down!

That's great to hear @Ianbealesonwheels! It felt pretty risky to buy a kitchen based on one person's Mumsnet post, but I think it's one of best decisions we've made for the house (despite the sloooow progress of the kitchen fitting). I love Basalt - it's a beautiful colour! What handles/knobs etc do you think you'll go for?

I don't know about the handles. I love brass so that's a possibility. I'm going to decide on the flooring and worktops (this is where I'm really struggling) then hoping the handles will bring it all together!!

I also need to persuade DH that I can splash out on fancy doors in the utility room as well. I'd really love a bit of a contrast, maybe mizzle or a pale blue. Something much more traditional

@Ianbealesonwheels if you have the budget and want brass then the Armac Martin Cotswold collection in 'Burnished Brass' is beautiful. Bit pricey. So worth it though - it's completely elevated our kitchen (in the copper finish).

Diapol are visiting next week to fit the white quartz worktop and marble splashback - hurrah! We were originally going to opt for marble tiles from Mandarin Stone but then the price from Diapol for large pieces of marble (up to a 2.4 metre run) made us change our mind! As usual, I've been very impressed with the customer service. I emailed for a quote on a Sunday, had the price on Monday, templaters around to measure on the Thurs, measurements sent to Estonia a fouple of days later after refinements and just over one week later the pieces have been dispatched. So from first enquiry to fitting in less than 3 weeks!

Must post some pics when it's done. We still have all the fiddly bit to do (plinths, cornicing, pelmets) but we're getting there ...

Thanks. I look forward to the pics!

Some update pics! Still not completely there. Dishwasher door still to go on, cornicing and all the trimmings, the kitchen door is very much 'before' . Getting there though ...

More ...

And one for luck!

@user1499523365 @ianbealesonwheels @mum2015 and @cava83

Hope that works!

Oh, and the run of 4 tall units on the opposite wall. Still to put on the plinths and DeVOL style cornicing.

Wow! Wow!
It is beautiful!!! Doors, handles, all the symmetry, sink and splackback. Everything is perfect.

That is beautiful!

Thanks so much both, I really appreciate the kind comments! It's only been four years of planning and living on a building site ... and my kids will no doubt destroy it over the next decade.

Have also attached some close ups of the hardware (can't remember if I did before) as they're so damn expensive. Overall I think we came in around £20-21k for everything but almost 6k of that is for all the appliances (Siemens/Neff etc.) and £4k something is for the white quartz worktop and marble splashback.

My favourite thing by far is the wine fridge.

Crumb,

Thank you for sharing and updating. My 💓 leapt with glee when I saw an update. Absolutely exquisite. I bet you're over the moon and you've gone for the 'Devol handwash' - hooray!
Please can you tell me where that tap is from? I know the sink - going for 1.5 bowl.
What is the devol cornicing and I'm really interested to know how you found the whole process using Shaker Doors?
Congratulations. I have serious kitchen envy and would love a utility shot too. Xx

Crumbelina! That looks amazing! So glad it's eventually finished for you :) Seriously impressive!! :) :) what flooring did you go for in the end?

We've started out build in the last month with our kitchen and all parts on order and hopefully with everything going to plan well be complete for Xmas!

Ah, thanks so much both! In answer to your questions ...

The DeVOL style cornicing is on top of the cupboards/wall unit in these pictures (can you see how I've shamelessly copied the run of 4 tall units).

The tap is this one (I LOVE Crosswater products and have bought many): www.fountaindirect.co.uk/crosswater-cucina-belgravia-dual-lever-kitchen-sink-mixer-tap-chrome.html?gclid=Cj0KCQjw6fvdBRCbARIsABGZ-vSvdEml01T0HaVF99Ck5_bDHiXYhPJWX5vcelmAitMDwbrexabRaPkaAtTHEALw_wcB If you do a price comparison then Builder Depot will come out cheapest but I wouldn't recommend them (really bad customer service!).

On the other hand, Foxtow Shaker Doors were fabulous. Customer service was great and the product quality is excellent. Am so impressed and relieved as we didn't visit the company so it was a bit of a gamble! All the doors have pre-drilled holes for the IKEA hinges so they fit quickly and easily. It's only the dishwasher door that needs a bit of work and obviously the cutting of the plinths, corner pieces etc. If you've got a bit of experience of kitchen fitting you should be fine and a professional fitter should find it a doddle.

We went for a polished concrete floor and I absolutely love it! We used the Concrete Flooring Contractors who are a great company. They weren't the cheapest but they aren't as expensive as Lazenby and Steyson. We had a slight hiccup with the sealant (as they didn't put enough down initially) but it's perfect now as they were happy and swift to rectify.

Good luck with your build, Georgia. Let us know how it goes! I'll keep my fingers crossed that you can be in by Christmas!

Sadly our kitchen isn't quite finished as we still have the underfloor heating to sort, pendants (will update with pics), the built in extractor hood, and the electrics for the ovens (still living on stir fries and curries). Oh and DH wired up the spotlights for half the kitchen tonight and the LED bulbs are awful - like living in sepia. One of 1,000 pitfalls of doing it yourself.