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Our new kitchen update and vlog tour – DIY Kitchens

When we moved into our house the first thing we said that we wanted to change was our kitchen.  It was very dated and although functional it didn’t look the way we wanted it to and the layout wasn’t working as well as we wanted it to.  Once we found out that I was pregnant with Harry all dreams of a new kitchen were put aside for a while as our money went on decorating his bedroom and buying all of the baby essentials that he would need.

Our kitchen
Our old kitchen

Money was tight on maternity leave and we managed but there was no spare income to do the work that we wanted to on our house.  Now that I have been back at work for a while though and am spending so much time in the kitchen cooking for Harry, the kitchen had to become a priority again.

We decided that we would do the work on our kitchen in phases.  New units and appliances first, then the floor and plinths, tiles and paint and finally shelves and finishing touches.

Bullet journal kitchen plan
Bullet journal kitchen plan

We spent a lot of time researching different kitchens and looking into how we could get a quality kitchen on a tight budget.  Whilst doing our research we came across http://www.diy-kitchens.com .  We loved their ‘Luca White Gloss’ range and fake wood worktops and their prices were extremely reasonable.  We chose to order this range, with slow closing cupboards and drawers.  The units were delivered prompty, already assembled, which made life so much easier.  The delivery men were very helpful and went above and beyond, helping us into the house with everything as Harry was having a bit of a meltdown at the time (typical!).  Our kitchen fitter came the weekend after delivery and was impressed with the quality of the units.  He couldn’t believe what a bargain we had found and said that they were extremely easy to fit.

Whilst unpacking the units we discovered some Yorkshire Tea bags and Jammie Dodgers waiting to surprise us in one of the boxes.  It was such a sweet little touch and made me even more excited about getting the work done and filling our kitchen with all of our things again.

surprise!

On unpacking the units we also discovered that we had ordered two units too many.  DIY-Kitchens.com were very understanding about this and so quick to get back to us regarding the issue.  I had worried that ordering from an online retailer would mean we would lack the personal touch and we would struggle to get in touch and resolve issues if we had any.  This couldn’t have been further from the truth.  They have been fantastic throughout and I would recommend them to anyone who is looking into buying a new kitchen.  For their kitchens range click on the link below!

The units and worktop were easy to fit and were in within a weekend.  We also had our new appliances fitted.  We opted for a new Bosch fridge freezer, Bosch hob and extractor fan and a Zanussi dishwasher.  We kept our old washing machine and oven as they still worked well and it seemed silly to replace them when we didn’t need to.

new kitchen

20161107_095155 Bosch hob and extractor

My parents very kindly bought us our new sink and tap as an early Christmas present.  We chose both from the Cooke and Lewis range at B&Q and are so happy with it.  – Thanks Mum and Dad!!

new sink

I was worried at first that by having a bigger fridge freezer and losing a cupboard for the dishwasher that I wouldn’t have enough cupboard space. But on refilling our kitchen cupboards we found that it really wasn’t an issue.  We ordered a larder unit which goes up the side of the fridge and a small unit for above it.  This has given us usable space we didn’t have previously.  I have filled the top half with cleaning products which makes me feel safer when Harry is in the kitchen as he can’t reach them and the bottom half has been used for general food storage.  We will have even more space when we finish the decorating and put our shelves on the wall but for now it works perfectly on it’s own.

So far

So that’s where we are up to. There is still so much more to do and I will update you as we go and of course post a full tour once it is complete!

Our to do list is now:

  • Finish off the extractor fan fitting and have it all beautifully hidden over the top of the cupboard units.
  • Tile and paint the walls.  (We are opting for white tiles and sage green walls)
  • Change the flooring and add the plinths to the bottom of the cupboards.
  • Finishing touches – shelves, blinds, decorations etc!

We will be ordering more from DIY-Kitchens.com to complete the work and would definitely use them again in the future.

I’ve filmed a little tour of our kitchen so please feel free to take a look!  Any questions you have about our plans or anything in our new kitchen please pop them in the comments and I will get back to you!

4 Replies to “Our new kitchen update and vlog tour – DIY Kitchens”

  1. We are in the process of ordering ours from diy kitchens! Fab to hear someone I know give such a good review! We went to the showrooms the other week and we’re really impressed!
    It’s looking good! ‘Making me more excited for ours now- xx

    1. Hi Nicky! How are you and your beautiful family?
      How exciting about your kitchen!
      We are really pleased with ours. It feels really sturdy and is so beautiful and shiny! I’m sure Harry and his grubby handprints will put a stop to that soon! Which kitchen have you ordered? I hope you are going to share pictures when it is done! 🙂

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