The kitchen has always been the heart of the home, but has moved on from being just a place to cook and eat. Gone are the days when the kitchen was home to just a cooker and a sink. Many popular kitchen designs now include flat-screen TVs and home entertainment systems included in the plan.
The key to a perfect kitchen is good planning, which you could do yourself if you have the time and the confidence. Think about the aspects of your current kitchen that you don’t like first of all. Is there sufficient space and light? Many people like to make their kitchen space larger by knocking through to another room, or perhaps changing the windows to maximise the light available. If wishing to integrate house and garden areas, an extension to a suitably positioned existing kitchen may be the ideal answer.
Planning the layout of your bespoke kitchen is simple to achieve. It’s easy to find free software which you can download and work on from your laptop; the old fashioned method of graph paper and a pencil also still works well. If you have never designed a kitchen before, you could be better off employing the services of a professional kitchen planner. If you are purchasing your kitchen from a major manufacturer, you should get free kitchen planning advice included. A good idea to help you plan is to take a trip to larger retailers and superstores. You are sure to get some ideas here that you may not have considered.
The important thing to remember when planning a new kitchen are the needs and wishes of the person who does the majority of the cooking in your household. It can be really annoying – not to mention a waste of time and effort – if one has to constantly be moving to and fro across the kitchen when preparing meals. The cooker, work area and fridge should ideally be within easy reach of each other. A popular phrase when planning your kitchen design is to think about the “work triangle”. To save storage space and create more room, keep items which are seldom used somewhere out of the way.
When choosing wall units, remember to include space for doors to open comfortably within your plan. You could use open shelving as an alternative, but be aware of the amount of grease which will build up – even if you have an extractor – so be prepared to be cleaning regularly.
A trendy alternative to the norm of the modern fitted kitchen is to include free standing units. You can pick up old furniture from second hand shops which can be restored to give your kitchen it’s own character. For a really authentic rustic feel, you could even replace the cabinet doors with some curtains in a good quality, brightly coloured fabric.
There will always be one major superstore or another running a special offer on kitchens or kitchen components. It may be possible to negotiate a better price if you are having a kitchen supplied, delivered and fitted by the same company. Do not dismiss the idea of using smaller firms though, as a local supplier may be just as competitive price-wise. Using local specialist tradesmen will give you a much more individual kitchen than you could buy from a larger chain store. their job is too keep you happy as a customer, and so will want to make your dream bespoke kitchen a reality. If they keep you happy, then you will be much more likely to recommend them to others in need of a kitchen planner.
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