THE BSPC PROPERTY GUIDE / WWW.BSPC.CO.UK Page 35

Kitchen Inspiration

Planning is the key tocreating the kitchen of your dreams,writesBeverley Brown

Page 36 £250,000 TO £150,000 / WWW.BSPC.CO.UK

Kitchens have to be functional - aesthetics alone justwon’t cut the mustard. However nowadays you don’thave to sacrifice style for practicality. Technologicaladvances in the manufacture of appliances and the useof new materials and computer-aided design software,mean the kitchen of your dreams is here and now.

Trends come and go like the ebbing tide but every sooften along comes something that evolves to become a must-have – such as the kitchen island. The kitchenisland concept, first launched by Poggenpohl at aCologne International Furniture Fair in the 1960s, wasarguably the first step in blurring the boundary betweenkitchen and living areas to create a more open, functionalwork space that is also sociable and relaxing to be in.

Island designs, quickly picked up by other kitchenmanufacturers, have continued to evolve to become the most sought after element of kitchen design today. The beauty of an island is that it is infinitely adaptable interms of shape and size and therefore has the ability tofulfill myriad needs, either free-standing, built-in-or-outfrom a wall or cabinets and designed to remain in oneplace, or designed to be moved around.

Given the financial investment involved, most people thesensible choice is to play safe with neutral and/orwood shades that have timeless appeal.

Coloured glass is increasingly being chosen for backpanels and splashbacks. However, texture and contrastare stealing the edge on colour, as in contrasting tactilewood veneer with smooth high gloss lacquer or laminate,which gives depth to a kitchen and looks fabulous.

Refitting a kitchen is a major undertaking and one thatrequires planning in detail to make sure you make themost of your investment. The starting point for any newkitchen installation is the one you currently have; what isit you would most like to change? What works and whatdoesn’t? Do you eat in the kitchen/need more worktopspace/storage/better lighting/more appliances? Do youneed more power points and where? Do you iron in thekitchen, in which case you might want an integral ironingboard, etc. It helps to list physical constraints, like doorand window openings, as well as other aspects likecolour, choice of materials and use of space. Plan ahead;cut out and keep anything you like from magazines andkitchen brochures and take these with you when you visit kitchen showrooms.

Ergonomics play a vital role in good kitchen design,however the old-fashioned ‘triangle’ between the sink,cooker and preparation area is now somewhat dated,since many kitchens now have dedicated zones likeisland units as part of a much larger or open-plan multi-functional space. What’s important is that the way itworks should reflect how you live and take into accountpersonal factors such as height and physical constraints.Dishwashers, for example, tend to be located at floorlevel, which if it’s used frequently can involve a lot ofbending down; integrated at eye-level height, loading andun-loading becomes far less of a chore and much easieron your back. These are all elements a good kitchendesigner will incorporate at the initial planning stage.

An island can range from a simple food preparation area - with or without breakfast bar -to a multi-functional workcentre housing cooking appliances, sinks, dining area andstorage. And just when you think it has reached its zenith,the latest design innovation is a ‘floating’ island suspendedon a cradle – a style that satisfies the desire to have alarge, functional island without it dominating the room.Islands have made kitchens sociable, which is the secretof their success. Gone are the days when cooking dinnerwas a solitary affair carried out facing a wall while familyand friends sociably conferred in another room. Put a hobin an island facing into the room – the favourite locationnowadays – and the cook takes centre stage.

Paul O’Brien, director of Kitchens International (theEdinburgh dealer for Poggenpohl, amongst other topEuropean brands) comments: “Most of our clients wantsome sort of island and see it as a feature of the room,whether it is a simple division between the kitchen andliving or dining area, or an island that houses many of thekitchen functions. Often it is also the main everyday diningarea, in which case we recommend having a raised orscreened breakfast bar to keep the cooking and diningareas visually separate.” When it comes to style, he adds:“The on-going trend is for the island to be in a differentmaterial to the wall units, often in a natural or neutral tone.This enables the taller wall cabinets to make more of a statement while the island blends in with furnitureelsewhere in the room. Shapes are also leaning towardscurves and organic shapes, especially in islands. Usinground blocks on the ends of islands – or a curved island – can give a softer look in a large kitchen.”

In terms of colour, natural tones remain the most popular – beiges, browns, creams and whites, but used inconjunction with an accent colour, in for example, asplashback or on one wall of units. Patterned and brightlycoloured units can be real show-stoppers in a kitchenshowroom but run the risk of becoming dated after a short time.

This award winning kitchen design (UK Design of the Year 2010) uses wraparound Callerton Havana Walnutlaminate furniture with frosted glass units to create a large, interesting living kitchen. From Kitchens International.

Classic Italian influence - Rimini offers a clean, simple linear design in a rangeof colours and textures that can be mixed and matched. From John Lewis

Smeg FP610SV fan oven, £899 from John Lewis, hascool-to-the-touch quadruple-glazed doors, removeableinner glass for easier cleaning and pyrolytic cleaning,which destroys all the dirt deposits at 500oC

The revolutionary iXelium cooktop is a stainless steel gashob that has a high-tech coating designed to protect its pristine appearance and make it more resistant toscratching, yellowing and corrosion (www.kitchenaid.co.uk)

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Matt or high gloss finishes? Handles or smooth open-at-a-touch cupboard doors and drawers? Traditional tiledsplashbacks or seamless panels made from stainless steel,Corian or Corian-type materials? Cupboard storage? Or deep drawers that reveal their contents at a glance,putting an end to having to rummage to see what’sstored at the back of a cupboard.

Storage is the big one. While kitchen brochures like todisplay their products in lofty settings typically the size ofan entire average house, the truth is most kitchens are farmore modest – and some are very small. Fortunately manyof the most innovative improvements in kitchen design in recent years have centred on clever storage andaccessories that ensure there are no gaps in the kitchenand that every inch of space is put to work. Pick thefeatures that will make your life easier – pull-out larderunits; plate drawers; drawer shelves; wicker baskets;integral wine and herb racks; carousels and corner units;so-called ‘magic corners’ where the action of the dooropening swings out one set of baskets, which in turn pullout a second set; worktop rails; pull-out recycling wastebins; concealed knife blocks, ironing boards and choppingboards; pop-up electric sockets and more.

There are other ways to maximise space in a small kitchen.Look for slimline appliances or have integrated versionsthat will create an unbroken run of units and make thekitchen appear larger than it is. Similarly, avoid excessivedecoration like period-style barley twists, panelled doors,ornate carving and fussy handles and instead opt forsmooth handle-less cabinets. It can also be a good idea tofill in any gaps and extend wall units right up to the ceiling– use the top row of cupboards to house items that areused infrequently. If you don’t have room for a dining tableconsider incorporating a breakfast bar arrangement or seeif you have room for a space-saving fold-down wall table.

No longer standard, some kitchen fittings have acquiredthe status of artwork as well as being functional high-techproducts in their own right – taps, for instance, which oftencombine a variety of different operations. Extractor fans areanother example of products that have moved further andfurther towards being classified as sculpture. Here too thefunctions have expanded, with some models incorporatinglighting and other looking like lights and incorporatingextraction.

Worktop options are almost endless, the most popularranging from solid hardwood (expensive but improves withage) to stainless steel, granite, acrylic composites such as Corian and laminate, the latter the most widely usedmaterial given that it comes in a huge variety of colours,textures and finishes, including granite and wood look-alikes.

When it comes to buying appliances choose energy-efficient models. By law, EU energy rating labels – ‘A’ beingthe most energy efficient and ‘G’ the least efficient - mustbe shown on fridges, freezers, washer-dryers, washingmachines, tumble dryers, dishwashers and electric ovens.They may cost a little more but can use half the energy ofthe lowest rated appliances, so you’ll save in the long term.With cooking appliances, don’t buy bigger than you need.

The larger the cooker or stove the more energy it will use.Choose a hob with different ring sizes or hotplates and ifyou have a choice, remember that gas hobs cost half asmuch to run than electric rings (and produce half theamount of greenhouse gases). If you have to cook withelectricity, induction hotplates are up to 30 per cent moreefficient than standard hotplates, while a fan oven is up to25 per cent more effective and produces up to 35 percent less greenhouse gas.

Regardless of how much work goes into the planning orhow well your new kitchen functions, it’s how it looks atfirst glance that will give it the ‘wow’ factor that getspeople talking. While the choice of cabinetry will set thetheme – from wooden Shaker and period styles to sleekhigh-gloss contemporary – often it’s things like unusual orunexpected shapes (like curved worktops and roundedunits), accessories and finishing touches that give it thevisual impact that stops people in their tracks.

Take note of how you work and make sure these areasremain close together to eliminate unnecessary walking.This means storing pots and pans near to the cooker;having condiments at hand where you’ll be cooking andwaste bins near food preparation areas. How you shopshould also be reflected in your kitchen design. Awalk-in shelved pantry is ideal for those who shopinfrequently but on a big scale (along with a big freezer),while wall cupboards and open wicker basket storagefor fresh vegetables may be preferable for people whobuy little and often. Your choice of appliances – andtheir locations – needs to be considered at the planningstage in case you need additional plumbing and electricwork prior to new flooring being laid.

Kitchen technology is improving all the time, so whatyou liked last year may have already been supersededby something even better. Visit as many showrooms aspossible and make use of a professional design serviceif you can. You might think you know what you want but professional input could result in ideas you hadn’tthought of, such as having a peninsula section if theroom isn’t large enough to accommodate an island unit.Keep looking until you find a designer you feel is onyour wavelength – and make sure you have a fullyitemised list of all the costs up-front and know exactlywhat’s included in the service. It’s also important toknow from the onset who will oversee the work andwho will be responsible for hiring the different trades.Timing is critical when you are installing a new kitchen;better to perhaps pay a bit more for a complete servicethan have to hire individual trades yourself and risk thetiler not being able to start on time because the plumberhasn’t turned up.

Many of the choices you make will be determined byyour budget, others by individual taste. And there aremany choices to make.

John Lewis’s City kitchen is available in a choice of five gloss door colours and four matt wood effects for maximum versatility (08456 049049/www.johnlewis.com)

Another contrasting kitchen, from RWK. Armano H combines natural oak with high glosspremium white. From Kitchens International (0131 337 3434/www.kitchensinternational.co.uk)