Kitchen Sinks - pros and cons of different types

[CountessDracula]

OK so I'm boring! BUT am about to have a new kitchen and want to know what you all think so don't make huge mistake

Two options we are considering

this one or something like this

Have heard that the ceramic belfasty type sinks are a mare to keep clean and everything breaks on them - is this true? Also are these undermounted things ok, do they just get very caked with scale at the joins etc? Any other ideas welcome - bear in mind that the sink will be on it's own in a unit with the dishwasher/drainer to the left and nothing (well entrance to larder actually) on the right.

Oh, Grommit, what a good idea! That would look fantastic! Did she have to sand the varnish right off or just rough it up a bit? What kind of paint did she use?

Yes I did this in my last house. The cupboards were dark and took 6 layers!

Jan you need to sand a little, then a primer like ESP or something, then as many layers as you like!

If you want it to last do varnish it. We did ours from dark wood to cream, took a coat of primer (ESP) and then 2 coats of eggshell. It lasted 4 yrs before we could afford the kitchen of our dreams. Which strangely enough - cream painted cabinets!! We figured we hadn't got bored in the 4 yrs and liked the cream and blue combo.

I can't decide what colour to do ours. Feel white is good but boring. Love blue, greyish blue like the Farrow and Ball Lulworth here But not sure. With black worktops and wood floors.

Or maybe cream, though am vehemently anti cream usually!

i used to have undermounted smeg stainless steel sinks - they were fine, good quality steel, nicely rounded corners so you could wipe them well, never god grungy underneath (they shouldn't if you undermount them properly). now have double deep ceramic sinks, and have never smashed anything with them (and I don't use a bowl or anything to wash up). either is nice 0 go with whatever looks best with the kitchen.

CD That blue would be lovely on the walls with cream units and black granite worktops. Stainless Steel appliances would look great. What colour wood floors? Are they pale or beechy? It would be really sophisticated and classy - V trendy at the mo! Also if you get bored in a few years re-painting the walls is easy. Or you could do the opposite and do the blue on the units and cream on the walls. That would also work really well.

Just add a few SS accessories or even cream or duck egg blue (like Nigellas stuff) and it would be fab

stainless steel have bit of an issue with due to the grubby finger marks. Having said that am having smeggy ss cooker thing as most of the front is glass. And do want that sink but know is impractical.

Do feel that the blue is a bit last year IYKWIM

...but then by next year it will all be last year!

I know you are a bit anti SS. I have a rangemaster cooker that is 'silver' and an Ariston fridge which is 'silver' Neither of these take mcuh cleaning. All I do on a weekly basis is wipe them with whatever cleaner I am using and dry with a teatowel. What you want to avoid is the brushed stainless steel which show up marks much more. A lot of appliances now has a kind of laquered paint which looks like SS, but is fake. I think a hulking black fridge would put me off as it is so big

The problem with the colour is that the units you are going for (shaker styleish) are better suited to certain colours. The soft blue-grey is a traditional shaker colour as is cream, soft sage green etc. But the colours for this year are zingy oranges and white glosses on plain fronted cupboards with rounded egdes, long double width drawer fronts and dark woods are in too. So isn't it better you go with what you like and know you will still like in a few years, than what is fashionable.

Ah, but not doing entirely for self - may flog house after work if have made enough dosh. Having said that live in area where the shaker/granite/steel look is very much the norm so should be fine.

Janh - she sanded and just appied satinwood. I think there is a paint especially designed for kitchen cupboards by Dulux or Crown - not sure if this is harder wearing or not. She did paint quite a few layers to make harder wearing. She also changed the door handles to a very modern steel and the hob to stainless steel.

Then go with boring! It sounds beautiful and will attract more potential buyers. Once done you might not want to sell, you might love it too much

i don't find fingermarks such a problem on sinks - maybe because in an undermounted sink you don't really put your fingers on it. it isn't like a fridge or oven with a handle and door that you are touching all the time. they are easy to keep pretty sparkling I think

ah but not thinking of undermounted.

bratface will put fingers all over

hmmm. in london, the not undermounted ones get really marked with limescale as well, especially in drainer grooves. ceramic would be better, because the white camouflages it a bit

good thinking

this is it c

so no drainer grooves pph

oh I see! very groovy. sort of half undermounted. it is the front panel that will get a bit fingermarked - but then it is so pretty you won't mind polishing it lovingly all the time!

Exactly, tis the front panel I'm concerned about.

And that it may look like something to wash a bedpan in

ummm. is it big enough as well? and personally I always like to have a double or one and a half sink so that if you have something going on in the main sink you can at least pour stuff down the drain of the other. nothing more annoying than doing a wash-up of glasses and having nowhere to chuck wine dregs. unless you use a placky bowl but I hate those.