Kitchens!

[Gardenia]

Hi

I'm planning a new kitchen and was hoping to get advice on other people's experiences. I'm looking at In-Toto in West Dulwich but wanted to know if people had any experience of them. Particularly if you have had one of their kitchens for a while, how has it held up over time?

I'm also finding it difficult to compare quality and cost. Quality because it's hard to know which questions to ask, what are the the differentiators on quality based on construction methods? And cost because none of them publish their price lists. Without going through a lengthy design process to see what the outcome is, how can I compare where their price point is? Have others had any luck negotiating with kitchen suppliers to get costs down?

Any advice welcome!

[Seabag]

Whats your real budget ex appliances

[Gardenia]

Currently I don't have a budget, as I have no idea what even the range of costs I might be looking at is. It's part of a larger renovation so money could be flexible if we take from other areas. I really want to feel that I'm getting value for money in terms quality. I'm definitely not looking super high end (Bulthaup are off the list!); I'd like to think that I could afford something mid-range, but I'm also thinking - is there any point? So many people love Ikea kitchens, do I really get any more for my money by upgrading?

So far differences in quality seem to be:

flat pack versus rigid factory finished cabinets

board thickness (though it all seems to be 18mm unless you go really cheap)

Door finishes (laminate/foil wrap/acrylic/glass/lacquer) - though I'm still investigating this

[Seabag]

Try looking at British Standards Cupboard makers

English, well made , supply only

Hoxton showroom

[Sue]

Seabag Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Try looking at British Standards Cupboard makers

>

> English, well made , supply only

>

> Hoxton showroom

They're brilliant. Well, depending on what style of kitchen you want of course :)

Lovely cupboards and helpful staff.

They say supply only, but they will help with design.

Website here:

http://britishstandardcupboards.co.uk/

[Gardenia]

Thanks Sue and Seabag.

The British Standard stuff does look lovely, but they only do one style, and it isn't quite what I was looking for. Has anyone used In-Toto before? I'm curious about their stuff.

[Peckhampam]

http://www.reviewcentre.com/reviews170053.html

you will find 123 reviews of in-toto here

[Oleg]

plumbing advise you to take here: houseofenki.comimportant to consider all the details of taps, that all looked harmoniously

[tomLight]

We bought from diy-kitchens.com and had some local builders we trust fit it for 2-3k - was far cheaper than the other options we looked at and have solid wood units etc.

[P.O.U.S.theWonderCat]

I bought Ikea carcasses and had a local chippie build some custom front doors and fit it for me. There were issues with installation so wouldn't recommend the chippie in question, but the approach was sound and saved me a bundle.

[TomSawyer]

pliz, not Ikea. We broke down after 3 months all the taps there. Choose domestic. Here Enki is a great option. There is a different proizoditeli but fine quality

[P.O.U.S.theWonderCat]

A couple of years on and I've not had a single problem with IKEA carcasses. What do you mean by "all the taps there"?

[Pugwash]

I have IKEA taps - have had them for around 15 years and no problem.

One daughter has black Homebase Units in her kitchen, the other daughter has Wickes both look very good and sturdy.