We are delighted Amy and Sarah from POLISHED KITCHEN DESIGNS are joining us again as Move Revolution guest bloggers – their style, ideas and enthusiasm is infectious! We hope you love their insider splurge and save top tips…
Living in the generation of internet shopping we are used to doing our research and ensuring we get the best deals. With that, we can be bombarded with so much choice it can be hard to understand the difference in products and prices. The most expensive doesn’t automatically mean the best and equally you don’t want to compromise on quality for the most competitive price either.
When choosing items for your kitchen, think about the overall look that you want to achieve and the functionality of how you will live and work in that space. Ultimately it comes down to personal taste and what’s important to you but here’s some tips on how to shop around and add some unique and stylish touches to your space without breaking the bank…….
Handles:
There is such a huge variety of handles on the market now. Top tip would be to order a single handle first to check you are happy with the quality and overall feel of the handle.
We are loving the industrial look right now but the knob and cup combo is also still hugely popular with our clients….
Splurge: Buster & Punch Starting price £40
Save: Second Nature Knurled £15
Lighting:
Statement pendants in a kitchen whether it be over an island, peninsular or your dining table can really create an impact. Whether it’s a pop of colour or a metallic look you are going for there is a lot of choice out there. Lighting is actually a really important element of any design – think about not only the practical task lighting you will need but also the accent lighting that comes in to play when entertaining or wanting to create a softer mood within your space. For us under cabinet LED lighting is a must and we wouldn’t design a kitchen without it.
Splurge: Tom Dixon Mirror Ball Gold Pendant System £1625
Save: Made.com Boll Diner Pendant £99
Kitchen Worktops
Your kitchen worktop completes your kitchen ‘wow factor’. The marble effect is still hugely popular (but don’t go for actual marble as it’s a very porous material and not suitable for areas such as a kitchen). We are seeing concrete and matt surfaces also becoming popular, there are many different looks you can go for whether it be to compliment or contrast with the rest of your scheme. Quartz worktops are beautiful and can create a stunning look, but they aren’t always suited to a smaller budget. There are some great laminates out there that can look great and are a fraction of the price. Don’t be put off by the laminate worktops which you may associate with the 80’s era – they have improved vastly since then and there are some lovely wood and marble effect laminates these days that can look fabulous.
Splurge: Silestone Quartz – Average starting cost: £3,500 + VAT
Save: Duropal Laminate – available in 50+ effects – Average starting cost: £600 + VAT
Flooring:
We get asked a lot about suitable flooring for kitchens. Luxury Vinyls such as Karndean and Amtico have some beautiful choices whether it be stone effect or the popular herringbone wood effect. They are much warmer on the foot and very durable for heavy use areas such as kitchens rather than tiles which can be colder and not as robust. If your budget doesn’t stretch to the LVT ranges then there are some really reasonable vinyl’s on the market which include popular word effect flooring and heritage style patterns and tile effect – there is a huge range so really there is something for everyone and every style.
Splurge: Amtico Luxury Vinyl Approx £85m2 (including fitting by a Amtico approved and trained fitter)
Save: Tapi Carpets and Floors Tamar- Cooper £13.99m2
Taps:
You can get a wealth of different style taps depending on functions you want such as pull out, spray, instant hot water, filters, sparking water – the list goes on! For a good quality tap consider what your tap is made from (brass is good) – generally the heavier the tap the better quality it is. Increasingly we are being asked about different metallic finishes on taps such as gold and industrial matte black which are very on trend right now…
Splurge: Kohler Purist Single Lever Tap £887
Save: Nivito Matte Black Mixer Tap £ 467
Add Kohler Matte black imageAdd Olif Nivito black tap image
We love this ‘Splurge and Save’ blog from POLISHED KITCHEN DESIGNS. Perhaps you are thinking of moving…looking for your dream kitchen, or looking for a house perfect for you to design your dream kitchen . With 800+ five star reviews across our Move Revolution offices, rest assured you will receive outstanding customer service as we help you to find your dream house!
Call 0330 223 1000 and speak to one of our Move Revolution team today and book a valuation.
