When buying a house, an auctioneer will ask ‘what’s your budget,’ or perhaps ‘what’s your price range?’ They will seek out further information such as location, size, amount of rooms you require etc… All of this information will determine the house that they might suggest for you. Each piece of information is relevant, otherwise there’s a possibility that you will end up viewing houses that meet your requirements, but do not fall within your budget.
The same criteria applies to a buying a new kitchen.
However, on asking a client what their budget for their new kitchen is, in many cases, an uncomfortable silence fills the room…this silence is often followed by a vague ‘I’m not sure,’ or two people looking at each other and coming up with different amounts. It becomes the proverbial elephant in the room!
The Budget
We have on many occasions thought about this from you, the customer’s, point of view. Perhaps some people think that we might inflate the price (falsely) to reach the budget and pocket the extra profit, some people feel embarrassed because they think their budget might be too small and in most cases, bluntly put, some people think they will be screwed if they tell you what their budget is!
No budget is too big or too small for a kitchen, it is completely dependent on what you’re looking for. More than anything, the size of your space is the biggest factor in determining the price of your kitchen. And remember, it is so much easier for the person designing your kitchen to give you what you want within that budget, if they actually know whether your allowance is €2,000 or €20,000. It’s also important to think about whether you need countertops, appliances, sink tap & handles within that amount.
Coming Soon, in-frame or not in-frame, that is the question. (an explanation of what in frame means & why it’s more expensive)
Sunday night’s (6th October 2019) Room to Improve (Which we were gladly featured in) proves that it absolutely possible to have you dream kitchen within your budget. Everybody wants something different from their kitchen, which is why we’ve designed the biggest kitchen collection in the country with the widest choice of colours, styles, and sizes.
Use the Room
For many of us, the kitchen is the heart of the home and fulfils many roles in the 21st-century living space. Think about what happens during a typical day in the life of your kitchen and what that means for the layout.
If you like to entertain or need a space where homework can be done while you’re prepping dinner, consider the dining area. If you have dogs and cats that call the kitchen home, they’ll need their own space too. Kitchens and living rooms are becoming a combined space, so if you’re planning a great big family room, think about how each space will work separately and together.
Make Your Space Work
Whatever else a kitchen needs to do, first and foremost it needs to work as a space to cook. Think carefully about the most used parts of your kitchen from a cooking perspective, and plot how easily you’ll be able to move between them. This is called the kitchen triangle, and focuses on the points between the fridge, sink, and cooker, which are crucial in mapping out your cooking space.
Take some time to consider where your microwave, dishwasher, toaster, and other appliances will sit in relation to this. Once you have an idea of what you might like, our designers can fill in the gaps and help create a space that suits you.
Measuring Up
The final and most important thing to consider is your kitchen measurements. We will need these to help create the best solution for your space. Measure each wall including window openings.
Note all windows and doors, including which way they open and whether they’re internal or external.
Add in electric sockets and any existing plumbing, plus fixed objects like radiators, boilers or boxed-in pipes (including the measurements).
If your room has a sloping ceiling or eaves, mark the shortest and tallest heights and how far the slope.
Thinking about enquiring? Click here to get a free quote!