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Renovating Design Dilemma Kitchens

Kitchen design advice

2 years ago

We are having a kitchen diner knock through and im really struggling with the kitchen design. Its an awkward space! Currently got three different designs and i cant decide which works best both practically and aesthetically - help!

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Comments (3)

Daisy England
2 years ago
last modified: 2 years ago
Design number 3 doesn't have nowhere near as many units as the other 2, so if you're looking for storage I would omit this one. It's amazing what junk we all find to shove in a cupboard, and it's better hidden than on display.

I don't like option 2 because it has straight corner base units which are a nuisance when you want to access the corners as you will be on your knees to find whatever is in there in the 'hidden' part. If you were to swap those to 900L shaped base units in each corner it would be much more workable and then of course you would have to fiddle around with the adjoining units as the size on the plan is slightly different.

I like number 1 the most because you have taken advantage of the corner situations. I presume that is a pantry in the left hand corner and if so stick with that there as it offers so much storage even for larger items such as bread makers, toasters etc. If you could amend the 600mm drawer packs to be larger you will be far happier with that option. An 800mm is far better as a minimum size. Again you would have to jiggle what you already have but a 600 drawer pack is small inside.

Not sure about the curve as they hold nothing inside them and cost a small fortune for the doors. Perhaps you have opted for that by the door so people don't catch themselves when walking into the room but your other ends are square so that makes it looks slightly odd.

I can see it's a DIY plan and they have good reviews.
HU-243711353 thanked Daisy England
PRO
Xenas Interiors
2 years ago
Hi there,

Option 1 and 2 offer a lot more storage, and you can never have enough storage! I personally prefer option 2 as i dont think the curves are needed.

- Xenas Interiors
HU-243711353 thanked Xenas Interiors
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Hi India, first of all I feel your pain! My first flat's kitchen was even smaller than yours, but once I'd had it refitted it was brilliant for just me, so don't worry you will find a way to do it that you will love. Secondly I recommend that you approach a local independent kitchen designer/shop - your choice isn't just big shed (cheap)/bespoke (expensive): local independents should be able to help you design a kitchen using off-the-shelf units, so not necessarily any more expensive than Ikea/Howdens/etc, and you'll get a more personal service. Your Ikea design looks ok actually. The adjustments I'd make would be: - Have an inset sink without drainer (you can get dish drainers which have a lip to drain into your sink, which means when it's not in use you can put it away somewhere, sitting on end, so it doesn't take up much space). I have this one https://www.josephjoseph.com/collections/dish-racks-drainers/products/extend-dishrack-grey?variant=36470412181576. This will look much neater and will give you all that worktop space over the washing machine, when you're not drying dishes. Fixed draining boards are ugly things - I still don't have one even now I have a substantially bigger kitchen - still love my Joseph Joseph drainer which is quick to pack away when it's not in use. - I'd also change the 600mm door on the sink unit for 2x300mm doors - smaller doors make sense in a small kitchen. Or you might also consider deep drawers instead of a cupboard under the sink. - For extra storage, you could consider a top box over the fridge-freezer too. - Personally in the drawer unit, I'd have two deep drawers (with a hidden internal drawer at the top for cutlery etc) - lots of shallow drawers are frustrating as you can't get much in them other than the sort of c**p which shouldn't be in a kitchen anyway, whereas you can put pans or stack plates in a deep one. I have an Ikea kitchen at the moment, and love my deep pan drawers. I've actually had two Ikea kitchens so far. If you choose your finishes carefully, get a good fitter and really think hard about your design to make it work for you - ie don't rely on their expertise alone - they are fab kitchens, good quality with good internal organisation bits and pieces Your "dead" corner is tricky. I'm not sure whether the Howdens unit will actually open/pull out, as less than half of it is accessible - but I've never had a corner unit so not sure how they work. But they'll be able to advise you on that and again I think this is where a local independent might be able to take a creative eye to it. Worth looking whether Howdens or someone else does a 500mm sink cupboard too - in my tiny kitchen that's what I had and the round inset sink I had was plenty big enough for washing up for one person. Means you can have wider drawers next to it. Good luck!
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The waste disposal fits under the sink and as long as the disposal height fits in the sink base unit then you can fit one. You'll also need an extended sink flange for the disposal unit due to the thickness of the sink and the sink waste outlets have to be large enough (90mm) for the flange to fit. Have a look at the insinkerator website https://insinkerator.emerson.com/en-gb/food-waste-disposers where they recommend their evolution range for ceramic sinks as there's less vibration.
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PRO
Pearlosa
2 years ago
Hi,

I think option 2 is more practical however, it would be handy if you could incorporate the corner larder unit in this design. That way you'd have sufficient storage and no annoying corners to deal with.

Hope that helps

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