Owning your own home

It'll be for units, whites good and install. probably a bit of flex in budget. Excludes Plumbing, electrics and flooring.

I'll be sourcing white goods separately of course, and not from a kitchen supplier. Same probably goes for worktops .

Attached a plan of the proposed layout for reference. this was done by our architects kitchen supplier. They exclusively supply Bulthaup. Love the look and style of their ranges, but obviously way out of budget.

style wise I want a minimal modern kitchen - handleless (or pseudo handleless ), matt finish. Much like many of the German manufacturers like ProNorm, Noblia etc.

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And a top down view so it makes sense

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Have you looked at some of the ex-display kitchen sellers? I think you can give them your kitchen plans and they can work to see if they have anything suitable. Often these can come with the appliances which can work out cheaper (if you were planning on speccing high end appliances).

eg https://www.theusedkitchencompany.com/shop/ex-display-pronorm-kitchen-with-island-and-worktops/

Alternatively you could get cheaper units and get custom doors, worktop, sink etc

I'd not considered ex display no, its a good shout.

I had thought about standard carcasses from someone like DIY Kitchens with custom fronts , but haven't seriously researched. Other than Plykea and the like, is there anyone else who does this ?

Check your stool knee clearance by the tableware/glassware. You need more clearance and more of an overlap for the stools to be usable. If it was me I'd make the tableware/glassware cupboards half as deep, or remove them entirely.

Thanks, and agreed. There are a few changes to make to the plans tbh. The wall cabinets above the sink need to be taller to accommodate more stuff and to hide ducting from the extractor . As you say, the island and room for seating underneath needs to be re-thought. And the second fridge freezer needs to go to be replaced with storage, I definitely don't need two full height fridges. I'm not happy about the weird offset of the island and the units behind either. The space from wall to door is 310cm, so you could fit 300cm worth of cabinets then line the island up with the edge of that...

I've found Instagram pretty useful for finding things that I like and messaging people about it - generally I've found people like talking about the work they've done.

`That's a pretty good set of reasons tbf!

Is that with Metod carcasses ? How have you found those?

Correct, and they're fine - I'd prefer solid wood obviously but for MDF they're well built, and our builders found them easy to work with. The integrated lighting is excellent too

Actually really like this. Yeah decor is a bit confused but the building has character. Love that other one, that’s just a dream home.

I’m sure you’ve thought of it, and I’ve prob just missed it, but Ikea base + custom fronts is the go to no? Either plykea or if you know a local carpenter bespoke for less?

Thanks, it is indeed an option I'm looking at . I'm looking for a local CNC company to quote up for doors. If I choose the custom door route It's likely that I'll go for carcasses from DIY Kitchens over Ikea, as they don't have weird sized appliance spaces, and come pre built to minimise labour costs

Where / who / what designer / software was this?

[Edit] Sorry - just read that it was your architect's supplier

It was, no idea of the software used. I can find out if you really want to know.

This is the route I'll be going. As far as I can tell a lot of the Naked, Plykea, Custom Fronts are nicely designed but basically quite simple cut out birch ply. A friend who is a carpenter but works at a place doing big ply cnc jobs has said they can do it and he'll help me fit it. I'm replacing existing doors but when we replace the kitchen I'd do what you suggest.

Those top end kitchens have such nice configs/mechanisms etc are you going to be able to get something similar with DIY kitchens?

I am giving away this kitchen sink and tap combo.

Pick up from New Cross.

Sink is past its prime but good enough for a garage or workshop.

Tap is good!

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Yes, the custom doors do look a simple design . I'm sure there is money to be saved having then CNCed yourself. Carcasses from DIY / Ikea etc will be nowhere near as nice as top end stuff, but budget will dictate this as necessary I think

The inside of a cupboard is the inside of a cupboard.

I can't remember ever being wowed by the inside of someone's kitchen cabinet - so it seems like if you're going to save money anywhere, it would be there.

One issue to be aware of with Ikea kitchens is that their units are deeper than other brands'. If you were hoping to buy standard size worktops it could be an issue.

will you post?

I will drop the sink without the tap outside your house for free

I’d tend to agree but the internal features of the high end kitchens are pretty nice - so there is definitely a difference. It would lose out on cost/value for me but can see why some people would go for it.

£1400 to move a 2 bed house (packing boxes & disassembling furniture). Does that seem about right? Moving 2 miles away

Yeah. That's in the ballpark for our last one - same service, same approx per bedroom rate. We moved a couple of hundred metres away.

Last move for us (March 2019) from SE London to Royston nr Cambridge was £1,260 for a three bed house including packing service with Simply Removals.

Used them three times now and they've been great each time.