Kitchens, Kitchen Design, Planning, Worktops @ improvewithus.com

About Kitchens

Because you probably will only buy a new kitchen once or twice in your life, you will need all the help you can get. Especially with the ever changing trends and the home improvement and cookery programmes on television it becomes more and more difficult to make a sound choice. This step-by-step decision planner will help you on your way to your dream kitchen.

Kitchen Plan

First it is important to choose whether you want a fitted kitchen or a freestanding kitchen. If you choose for a fitted kitchen, you will make the most of your space, as all the difficult corners can be hidden and used for storage. You can choose for flat pack, rigid or custom built to suit your needs and budget. 

Choose a freestanding and you will get that individual and informal look you might have been looking for. You can use all kinds of furniture to create the ambiance you prefer. You will have to choose your furniture well though to create as much storage space as in a fitted kitchen.

Different people have different lifestyles. It is obvious that a single person or a couple will have different expectations from their kitchen than families with growing up children. Make sure the kitchen will fulfil all your needs.

Sink, preparation area and hob should never be too far apart and that the fridge should be near the entrance of the kitchen. This all will have effect on where you will plan to put your basic equipment and where the service points for water, electricity and gas will be. Keep the existing service points in mind when planning your new kitchen as rewiring and re-plumbing your kitchen will take a lot of time and money.

Kitchen Design

Because cabinet doors are the face of the kitchen, it will be very important that you choose a finish you want to look at for quite a number of years. Wood is one of the most popular choices. It can be used for a solid door, but veneer is a good alternative. Besides that, veneer will give more uniformity, as a piece of wood is cut in thin strips to cover all the doors. Wood itself is available in all kinds of colours, but it can also be glossed, painted, colour washed or waxed to give it the finish you prefer.

Laminate cupboard doors have endless possibilities in colour, texture and shine. They are easy to clean and work well in a modern or classic kitchen alike, just as glass, whereas frosted glass works best in contemporary kitchens.

A worktop will receive the most wear and tear of all the surfaces in the kitchen. It has to endure hot pots and pans, knives, water and dirt. Therefore your worktop has to be made of the most durable material you can afford. Protect your worktop at all times from hot pans and knives by using trivets and chopping boards.

Laminate is very popular for kitchens and worktops, as it is cheap and it comes in a variety of colours. It is easy to transform a kitchen just by changing the worktop. Wood is great for its character, but if used for the worktop it is highly sustainable to scratching and cutting. Oil it well to protect it from stains and it will improve in character over the years to come. 

Stainless steel can be shaped in any way your kitchen goes. The backsplash and the sink can be made into the same piece of steel, which makes that there are no awkward corners that will jeopardise hygiene. Granite is the most expensive material to cover your worktop with. It is highly durable, it doesn't scratch or burn and it keeps its colour. It's a natural material that will give great character to your kitchen. And last but not least, solid surfaces. They are hardwearing, they resist scratches, scorches and heat from hot pans, and if you do damage your surface, there are repair kits available to fix it.

Buying a Kitchen

When you go and buy a kitchen, always make sure that you get a fully itemised costing, so that you know what to be expected to pay. Never pay the full payment for your kitchen when you place your order. Purchase from someone that offers reasonable payment terms and make sure you know the terms and conditions.

Check whether the company offers a full after sales service and inspection when fitting is completed. If any questions would arise then they can be answered on the spot and maybe immediately dealt with.

Just before you decide on buying your dream kitchen, look at showroom cabinets and inspect areas that receive the heaviest wear, such as around the edges, hinges and seams, to spot any possible signs of weakness in the materials. Fully fitted showroom kitchens also give you a good idea about whether you will like certain finishes and gives you the possibility to look for different door handles, colours and materials.

For more information on kitchens visit the Kitchen Buyers Guide at http://www.almostimpartialguide.co.uk/kitchens.htm