Dream kitchen advice/experience please!

[Scottishgirl75]

I’ve recently received a significant inheritance ( for me) and I really want to put it to good use in replacing my badly dated kitchen. My relative adored her home/interiors etc.and would love to think of me using it for this I think. I’ve been looking on Pinterest but I’m a bit clueless as to what is best to go for and would really love some advice for anyone who knows about kitchen or has recently got a new one.

I live in a traditional country style house with a big kitchen/diner space with range cooker. I like the look of painted units with a darker coloured island and big porcelain tiles. But should I go for greys, whites etc. I want something that will not date. I have seen a few lovely light grey ones but is grey on the way out? What are the must haves and what should I avoid. Thank you in advance, any advice at all is greatly appreciated.

Also I hadn’t thought of 2 sinks, would everyone recommend that or are there any disadvantages?

Disadvantage is space. Takes up worktop and below space. So if space is not at a premium I would definitely go for it.

1.5 sink is also an option, so you have somewhere to run water/rinse things/drain things. Could also probably use it for washing veg although I don’t. We’ve done for this in our new kitchen because we couldn’t afford to lose all the worktop and cupboard space of two full sinks.

How much do you have to spend OP? And how big is your space? Those are the key questions. If you have £15k and a 6m x 6m space then you're looking at a big box flat pack type kitchen if you want nice finishes.

Just be careful investing too much. Everything dates. Some styles can be painted and updated using different handles etc but however much you spend you will want to change it after a period of time.

My top tips to think about to make even a cheaper kitchen look amazing:

-decent worktops - my wooden worktops are sealed with osmo oil and its been in 8 years and only one small area has got to the point where it could do with a reseal.

• decent sink and taps. I'd get a boiling water tap
• pot filler tap - makes life so much easier to have a tap above the hob.
• decent extractor fan
• use the space all the way to the ceiling - no "I'm an off the shelf unit" pointless gap at the top
• lighting lighting lighting - This is the same for everywhere in the house but layered lighting makes your room look its best. Don't just use spotlights, pendants over an island/table/peninsular look really nice. Also nice light switches. I like dolly switches in the kitchen, you can flick them with your elbow when your hands are wet/dirty etc.
• don't use the handles that come with the units, get something more bespoke
• drawers rather than cupboards are a far more effective use of space
• amazing tile on your splashback. My kitchen is all about the honed carrara marble tile. If its sealed properly when it is installed it isn't high maintenance. Its more high maintenance on the worktops. I'd probably recommend quartz rather than marble on surfaces if you want that look.
• some glass units to display nice things.
• clear surfaces - put sockets (lots of them all around your kitchen) inside tall units for your appliances but don't have things on the worktops (apart from maybe a beautiful plant).
• space - don't try to cram too much in. You need flow and space in a kitchen to make it look top end.
• floor - if you're paying a lot then take it wall to wall, it will outlast your kitchen.