Top 5 things to consider when buying new kitchen

5 Things to consider when buying a new kitchen

Any big purchase can be daunting and a new kithen is no exception.

So, we thought we’d try and help by putting together a list of the top 5 things we find are the most important things to consider when looking for a new kitchen. If you know the answer to the following 5 questions, you’re well on your way……

1. How do I plan to use my kitchen space?

The kitchen is still very much the heart of the home but it is no longer just the room we cook in. We all have different lifestyle needs and the kitchen has become key to unlocking the design of your home and there are 3 main options that it’s important to look at.

Just Kitchen – This is the most traditional style option. The rooms entire function is for kithen use with the possibility of breakfast bar eating. This style allows for a separate dining room for more formal dining. Often clients prefer this style as it keeps the smells and sounds of a kitchen shut off behind a door

Kitchen/Diner – This style has been around for some time now and combines family dining with the kitchen space. This style is very family orientated, losing some of the more formal dining but gaining an open plan space that brings the family together at meal times. Quite often there is the need for some building work with load bearing walls being removed to create the space but this upheaval is well worth it.

Kitchen/Living – This is the most recent evoution in kitchen design and has moved beyond the kitchen/diner into a kitchen/living area. This style creates an open plan area that brings the whole family together and not just at meal times. In addition to the kitchen you’re also adding sofas, tables, TV cabinets and drinks cabinets. This style needs a large space so isn’t always acheivabe but when it is, the space becomes so versatile. It will cater for parties, family meals, casual dining or supervising the kids doing their homework while you prepare a meal or chill out on the sofa.

2. What kind of style do I like and will it suit my home?

There is a lot of choice these days and it can sometimes be a very daunting process trying to decide on which door style you want for your kitchen. No matter how many varitions of style and colour there are available, the kitchen can still be broken down into 3 basic styles and it’s important to know which style it is you want as this can impact on budget, design and suitability for your home.

Traditional kitchen – The traditional kitchen is a timeless style that often includes pilasters, mantles and dressers. The style tends to fit certain property types like farmhouses, manor houses and victorian/georgian style houses. Although the style is still incredibly popular, it doesn’t always lend itself to every property type and wouldn’t typically be seen a contemporary house or studio apartment

Modern/Contemporary kitchen – This style is still incredibly popular and has evolved in the uk market over the decades. Traditionally a slab gloss door with a handle, the style has moved on to include handle less options with either a J groove door or the true handle less rail system with accent colours and textures accenting or replaceing the gloss finish. This style is most often seen in newer houses and apartments but the style can work in more traditional homes if the interior design has been done well

Shaker Style – The shaker style or variation on the shaker is the most versatile style you can choose. Depending on the variation, this door style can be designed in a very contemporary fashion or a more tradtional theme and also works some where inbetween. The style looks at home in a farmhouse, manor house, new build or apartment.

3. What colour scheme would I want and what choices do I have?

Once you know which style you’ve chosen, the next step is to look at colour schemes. The colour options depend on which material you choose. Vinyl wrap doors and painted gloss doors are limited to the vinyls and colours offerd from the manufacturers. Even bespoke kitchen companies tend to buy in vinyl and high gloss painted doors. There is however, a large collection to choose from so it is rarely prohibitive. If you are looking at painted matt doors then you have an unlimited choice depending on which kitchen supplier you use. Suppliers who offer off the shelf products will have a limited colour pallette to choose from but bespoke kitchen suppliers like Bespoke Interiors, have in house spray booths so the paint options are endless.

4. What’s the difference between the different companies out there?

There are literally dozens of kitchen companies in the north east so making a decision on who to obtain quotes from probably feels like a guessing game. Hopefully we can help by explaining the basic differences between the different types of kitchen supplier

Flat pack/Mass produced – The flat pack and mass produced kitchens are the most affordable kitchens on the market but they are also the most limited in choice and quality. As these kitchens are made by the thousands, the materials used to manufacture them tend to be cheaper as the profits made by using cheaper matrials is huge. It also pays to reduce the amount of choice in sizes, styles and colours so the kitchens can be bought in bulk and sold on to the general public. Generally the price is the selling point for these kitchens

Tailor made kitchens – I class tailor made kitchens as a different entitiy to bespoke kitchens. Tailor made kitchen companies offer a range of choices so you can spec your kitchen within the door ranges available to them. Unlike the mass produced markets that tend to have set ranges, the tailor made companies will offer different style/colour doors with different cabinet colours. The cabinets and doors from these companies tend to be a better quality to the flat pack markets and this is reflected in the price. There are however, still limitations with this type of kitchen supplier

This type of supplier generally doesn’t manufacture and instead, buy in cabinets and doors from suppliers. As a result, they can’t always offer bespoke sizes and colours as they still buy from distributors who only deal in standard sized doors. The finished result is a better quality kitchen but you run the risk of having fillers in places you wouldn’t want them, assymetrical designs and colours that don’t quite match what you wanted

Bespoke kitchens – Bespoke Kitchen companies can manufacture kitchens to any specification, style and size with their only limitation being the materials availble in the market place. This type of company tends to manufacture some of the components themselves and any components that aren’t manufactured in house are made to order by specialist suppliers. As the components are made to order, the material used are of greater quality and the finished installation is free from unwanted fillers etc as the designers aren’t restriced by set sizes. The colour choices are also limitless as they are painted in house or by hand on site.

Bespoke Interiors falls under this category and although our set up and capabilities mean we can offer truly bespoke kitchens, the cost can be comporable to the tailor made companies, depending on which style of kitchen you choose

High end branded kitchens – The kitchen companies at this end of the market can do everything that the bespoke kitchen suppliers can do. The key difference to companies at this level is the name awareness. Don’t get me wrong, the quality of finish and specification with these companies is excellent but nothing that isn’t acheivable with some of the more affordable bespoke suppliers but just as a designer label adds pound signs to your clothing, a designer label does the exact same thing to your kitchen.

5. How much should I be looking to spend?

This is the most obvious question but isn’t always the deciding factor when choosing which supplier to go with

These are the main things we think you should consider when deciding on a budget

Which type of kitchen supplier do I want? If cost is the most important factor then mass produced kitchens are proabably the way to go.

If you want more quality and a better design then you’re looking at the tailor made and bespoke kitchen suppliers. You’ll be paying anything from 8k-50k depending on size and spec but you’ll get something tailor made for you at good value for money

If you prefer the branded products then you are looking at the Mark Wilkinson, Clive Christians etc for your kitchen but expect to pay £60-£125k

How long do I want the kitchen to last? Due to the lack of quality in the flat pack/mass produced kitchens, we’d expect you to get 10 years from these kitchens if taken care of. With a bespoke kitchen you’d be looking at twice that              

Will it add value to my home? Depending on the ceiling prices of your home, a good quality kitchen will add value to your home and even when there is no value to be added, a new kitchen can help sell your home. We advise speaking to your estate agent before deciding to buy a bespoke kitchen for the purposes of selling your home

We hope this blog post has helped with your kitchen planning but we still advise speaking to an expert designer for more detailed advice

Bathroom and Bedroom Showroom Update

Bathroom and Bedroom Showroom Extension

Update

As you know we've been extending our showroom at Kingston Park, Newcastle. 

We've added a second floor and installing bathroom and bedroom displays to showcase our designs and products

We've had a frustratingly slow few weeks with delays due to the weather, display tiles and products being delayed and due to the fact we've been so busy with installations for our clients which has to take priority over our refurbishments.

We are however making progress 

The first two bathrooms are now fully tiled, with furniture by Bespoke Interiors, Silestone worksurfaces and sanitary ware/brassware from Hudson Reed and Ashton & Bentley starting to be installed

The third bathroom is starting to be tiled with all tiles supplied by NTA which is also based on Kingston Park

On the bedroom side we've had the marble worksurfaces template and installed in the traditional walk in wardrobe

And we're starting to have the first hand painted bedroom painted

We're also having work carried out downstairs in our kitchen, living area showroom due to alterations from installing columns to support the steel floor. We've just finished installing our new tv cabinet/bookcase which would look great in a living room or kitchen

We'll come back to you soon with more updates but in the mean time please call in to our Newcastle showroom to speak to one of our designers and help us transform your home like we're transforming our showroom!

Bathroom and Bedroom Showroom Extension

Bathroom and Bedroom Showroom Refurb

Our Kingston Park Showroom just got bigger!

At Bespoke Interiors, we have an extensive range of kitchen displays that show our clients the type of work we do but we've always struggled for space to show what we can do with bathrooms, bedrooms and walk in wardrobes. 

Last year we made the decision to extend our showroom and add a 1st floor and make this floor our bathroom and bedroom showroom. This exciting new space gives us the opportunity to install 4 new bedroom displays, 2 new walk in wardrobe displays, a study and 4 new bathrooms. 

Although the end result will certainly have the WOW factor, there is the frustrating period whilst the work is ongoing and we have little to show people in terms of bathrooms and bedrooms in the mean time. 

So.....we thought it would be helpful to write a weekly blog to give a progress report on how the work is coming along.

It all started in mid December with taking down the existing ceiling and having steel fabricators install the mezzanine deck

There was  a lot of work to do once the steel was in place. A new ceiling to be fitted underneath and the showroom on the ground floor needed to be put back together

We now had a floor to design our new first floor bedroom and bathroom showroom

For the past few weeks we have been installing the stud work to form the rooms and ceilings and plastering the space

This last week we have started to fit out some of the displays so we're starting to see a real change and the end is in sight! 

We're estimating another 4 weeks until the showroom refurbishment is complete but there will be bathrooms and bedrooms to see by next weekend. We're really excited to have the place finished and hoping to give our clients ideas and inspiration

Thanks for taking the time to catch up on our progress and we'll have another update for you next week

Remember, we're still designing and installing bathrooms and bedrooms while this work is ongoing so please come down to the showroom if we can help you in the mean time!

Bespoke Bookcases and Alcove Furniture

Bespoke Bookcases and alcove furniture in Newcastle

Struggling to find bespoke storage?

Do you have tricky alcoves that you can’t get off the shelf furniture to fill? Or a wall that is crying out for a bookcase with the wow factor? If so, Bespoke Interiors may have the answers

At Bespoke Interiors we specialise in bespoke fitted furniture. That doesn’t stop at kitchens, bathrooms and bedrooms. We also make fitted furniture for living rooms, alcoves and even under stairs cabinets.

Bespoke Bookcases

Because we manufacture and paint most of our furniture at our Newcastle based workshop, we are able to create bespoke sized cabinetry to create stunning storage including painted and timber bookcases

A bookcase can turn a dull wall into an enviable feature which is as practical as it is aesthetically pleasing

With the addition of lighting, you can really create a stunning look

Alcove furniture

Houses with chimney breasts invariably leave the homeowner with a tricky alcove or two to deal with. With the variation in width and depth, finding premade, off the shelf furniture to fit the space is often impossible

With bespoke alcove furniture, you don’t have to settle for gaps

With a wide choice of colours, finishes and styles. Bespoke Interiors can create the furniture to fit your home perfectly

We also work with experienced French polishers so matching in to existing woodwork isn’t a problem that can’t be overcome

Staircase storage

Staircases are often an overlooked area for clever storage solutions. Why settle for wasted storage or a standard understairs cupboard door

With bespoke angled doors in any style or finish, you can really give your under stairs space a quality finish

Why not call into our Newcastle showroom and speak to one of our designers about transforming your home

Hand Painted Kitchens Newcastle

Hand Painted Kitchens

At Bespoke Interiors we offer both a spray painted and hand painted finish to our furniture. We are often asked what the benefits are of hand painting a kitchen, so we thought it might be helpful to give a little information about hand painted furniture

Hand painted kitchens are considered to be a higher end finish within the kitchen industry and there’s good reason for this. Although spray painted furniture has a great, durable finish, the best joiners in the world can’t cut and joint painted cornice, pelmet etc without leaving a visible joint. With a hand painted finish, these joints are sanded, filled and painted in your home as part of the process, this gives a more moulded look to the furniture and can only be fully achieved by the process and gives a very distinctive look.

Depending on the style of kitchen you’re looking for, there are also paint effects that can only be properly applied to the furniture when hand painted onsite. These effects include distressing, patina and gold/silver leafing. Our popular Manor House Kitchen design features heavy corbels and dental cornice which looks great hand painted with silver leaf effect or antiqued effect.

Hand painted kitchens in Newcastle aren’t as common as in the south and north west England, so skilled hand painters are rare in the region. However, Bespoke Interiors is lucky to have one of the best painters in Anita Arris, who has vast experience and her workmanship is second to none.

We also recommend Little Green Paint Co as our preferred paint supplier for hand painted furniture. We find their colour range to be quite stunning and since Farrow and Ball have switched to water based paints, the oil based paints of Little Green give a much more durable finish to our furniture

We hope this brief explanation of hand painting gives you an idea of the process but for more information we recommend you call into our showroom to see our hand painted display and discuss things further with our designers.

Living North Kitchen Editorial

Darras Hall kitchen feature

Living North Magazine

This months Living North Magazine contains the Interiors Guide for 2017 and Bespoke Interiors has a feature editorial on pg 30

The project was carried out in Darras Hall, Newcastle in late 2016 and comprised of a Kitchen/living area, utility room, downstairs cinema room and a walk in wardrobe

The kitchen was hand painted in Little Green Paint Co colours with silver leaf effect on the corbels and dental cornice. With fully turned doric pilasters to add to the grandeur of the design

The cinema room hand painted oak shaker with a more understated design to give a subtle elegance to the more relaxing needs of the room

The ornate theme of the kitchen continued upstairs to the walk in wardrobe

Again, hand painted in Little Green Paint Co colours mixed with natural oak veneer internals for the open wardrobes gave the classic oak/cream colour scheme finished off with gold leaf paint effect on the corbels and dental cornice

Subtle lighting on a mirrored backdrop gave the handbag wardrobe that added feature

We'd like to thank our clients for letting us take the time to take photos of their home, especially in the chaotic run up to Christmas

If you'd like to take advantage of our free design service then follow the links on our website