2 Bathrooms and a large kitchen refurb and don’t know where to start!

[Chillibeansoup]

As the title says really! We don’t have an unlimited budget but don’t want a cheap job that will only last a few years. So, for best value for money do I hire a ‘proper’ company who will help design, project manage and source all the materials and trades or am I better off trying to design and source all my own materials (not sure I can do this for the kitchen as it’s really big and I’d like help with the design) and finding good tradesmen who can do the jobs independently.

Any ideas whether I can realistically have bathrooms done for 5k each and the kitchen 10k? The kitchen would be around 20 cabinets (including tall larder types for hiding the boiler and to include cooker, hob, freezer, fridge, dishwasher all integrated.

Any tips on how best to get value for money with these big jobs please?

Doing it yourself is always going to be cheaper. There Is lots of design help and inspiration on the net.
We got a handmade wooden kitchen and it was only £500 more than a really cheap basic white plastic Ikea one.

Also think reclamation and facebook market place, people get rid great quality bathroom suits for pennies.

That’s a lot of kitchen so you’ll need to shop around yourself. To manage on budget, you could try Ikea or DIY Kitchens.

@Chillibeansoup Sorry to hijack your thread but I'm in the same boat and with a similar budget. No idea where to start. Know what I want in the en suite and bathroom but how do I know what plumber to use? Do I need an electrician too? Can I save money by taking off existing tiles and dismantling existing shower myself?

Ohyesiam good point about the made to measure kitchen -out of interest do your units go up to the ceiling? My pet hate is the top of kitchen cupboards which I can't be bothered to clean but which get really greasy and horrible over time as does anything chucked up there! How much more sensible would it be to get the units fitting right up to the ceiling!

@JoJoSM2 do you get what you pay for with kitchens? Or are they all much of a muchness and you pay for the finishing touches ie better quality doors, hinges etc?

Ikea kitchens are good value for money, ie budget but decent quality with plenty of options, soft close doors, good lighting, bespoke worktops if you want etc.

My kitchen is from DIY kitchens but it’s the top of their range (so mid-range overall). It’s painted in Farrow and Ball and has a bespoke size chimney breast around the range cooker. Similar size to the OP’s kitchen and it was about 10k for the units alone (no worktops, appliances or labour).
10k on a large kitchen with labour + appliances, flooring etc is basically a case of working to a tight budget.

Bathrooms tend to be done by ‘bathroom fitters’ who will do basic plumbing and electrics but might need plumbers/electricians if moving/adding cables, lights, pipes etc.

Well I’ve got a local, well regarded carpenter who fits kitchens and bathrooms coming on Tuesday for a quote. He can arrange for a kitchen designer to visit and then he can pass on his trade discount to me or I can source the items myself. I’ll have a good chat to him and update you with what he says

I’m adding a few pics so you get the idea of the space. Rather than the separate fridge, freezer etc I’d like all of these integrated to hopefully include the boiler which is currently in the cupboard just past the fridge and freezer. I’d like floor to ceiling huge cupboards to store everything on the left hand run where the washing machine and dryer is although we also need a short run of work surface here.
Problem area is down by the patio doors - I hate the sideboard and blanket box that’s currently there but I need space to store wellies and dog walking stuff as well as the surface for feeding the cat on up away from the dog. I’d ideally like some more kitchen cabinets there but they may look silly down by the door on their own.
We’ll need everything ripping out, new ceiling skimmed and spotlights, all cabinets replaced with integrated appliances to create a whole bank of flat handle less cupboards.
Just hope it doesn’t look too soulless.

The kitchen is an upside down L shape - first pics are the top of the L, then you go around the corner where it opens up into the main area

And some more of the main area. We’ll need new flooring too obviously