DIY Kitchens- advice on planing and measuring

[Lskz]

Hi everyone,
I’ve read here, at MN a lots of good reviews about DIY Kitchens. I am very much leaning towards them rather Wren where we’ve got our quote which seem very expensive and had read lots of negative reviews here.Thinking to order from DIY kitchens, but scared of doing the measurements. Never done this before , is anyone ordered from them could you please share how did you measure and plan? Did you use a professional to measure for you? What happens if size of ordered item is wrong? Are you happy with your kitchen? Thank you!!

Me and dh measured about 3 times just to make sure that we had the correct measurements. We also had a plan done by wickes but in the end after many different ideas and help from mumsnetters we decided on what we have now which works great. I made sure that there was enough wiggle room in case walls were uneven(which they are) and we followed the planning advice on the website for corners etc. We didn't order any pieces wrong however we did have to change the type of corner cupboard on the last day to change the order when we ripped out the old kitchen and saw the pipework to the boiler.
We're really happy with the kitchen. Love my pan drawers.

We measured ourselves and literally added together the measurements of our items to make sure they’d fit. Don’t go for an exact fit, leave some cms free and just fill with leftover end pieces etc. And after I’d ordered DIY actually called me at the time of manufacture to double check a few things. They were great

Thanks for your answers and advice. YourkshireTea86, I am glad you are happy with your kitchen. That’s encouriging
Could tell me more how return/exchange worked? I understand you had to send while unit, how did you send and how much you paid to do so?
WidowTwonky, thanks for advice to leave some cms. What do you mean by fill with leftovers endings? Sorry I am thick when it comes to diy.

I used them
I downloaded and printed their graph and the little pictures of all the different cupboards etc and had fun 'cutting and sticking' sessions.
It was much easier than I thought it would be.
The kitchen is gorgeous.

I didn't send anything back. You have until the week before the order is due to make changes to the order so we just amended the order. There was damage to one cupboard and they sent a new one out about 4 days later, it was a made to measure cabinet so I think it took a bit longer.

For instance, I allowed a few cms at the end of my run. Then the joiner filled the gap with some leftover end panel. See the pic below

End panel is something you’ll need for ends of cupboards/drawers/rubs etc which are ‘on show’. So not carcass material but nice stuff

DIY website is really good for explaining what you need where. Especially useful for plinths and end panels and such!

Also, unless your kitchen is going in a like for like place, I would suggest waiting until they have built the walls, knocked the walls about, whatever they are doing.
Our old galley kitchen has been knocked through to the lounge and we have extended further out. I thought I had everything measured pretty accurately ( adding the right amount for plaster board/boxing in steels, etc ) plus I thought my island on paper looked fabulous.
If I'd have ordered my kitchen then I would have made big booboos! The island has had to change as it didin't work once I laid it out in tape on the floor, the alcove sizes had to be altered so I've had to come down by 100mm either side, so different size units, plus even today - the door frame has altered slightly which means the cupboards will be too tight to the architrave so we're having to make another last minute change before going to the kitchen shop tomorrow to do the ordering!

I just measured lots of times, used their online planner and ultimately taped it all out on the floor. It was still a relief when it came and all actually fitted though!

Widow that's lovely. Is that the matt Luna finish?

Came back to say it really helped me narrow down options of where to put things and meant I could go to Howdens/Magnet, etc with that so they could do a visual. That then helped me re jig some things again. I'm hoping I am sorted as driving to units online tomorrow to order!

Thank you everyone for your advice!
Found their online planner and it looks very helpful and something similar-ish what Wren used to plan.
I should play around and see how much it gonna cost us more/less similar kitchen we wanted from Wren.
WidowTwonky, thank you for the visual :)) now I see what you mean. It looks lovely, is this a quartz worktop?
Thank you bobkate for warning, it is going to be like for like( as much as we want an extension, it won’t happen any time soon :(

As mentioned above, when planning your kitchen, leave at least 2 cms wiggle room. it's amazing how much the walls can be out and don't forget that end panels take up space (like I did), about 2cm. The 2cm i left in my kitchen run ended up being 1mm as the end panel at the end of the run just fitted in and lined up with the wall just! If you have anything bigger than 2 cm then just cut down a door or end panel and use that to fill any gaps.