Hi      

With every kitchen showroom closed, now is the perfect time to plan that redesign of your kitchen. InHouse urges us to use this time to think about the design of the kitchen - before we step foot into the kitchen. 

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Any other queries don't hesitate to holler.

Kindest,

Sophie

Sophie Langley | Transform Communications Ltd | 01225 863846

Photo by Soroush Karimi on Unsplash

There has never been a better time to

redesign your kitchen, says InHouse

With every kitchen showroom in the UK currently closed, there has never been a better time to design a new kitchen. Now the backdrop to hilarious, heart-warming and heart-breaking video posts, the heart of the home is right now likely to be the backdrop for a few disagreements.

It's hardly surprising. The setting for an unprecedented national lockdown means our open-plan interiors have seen us switch from office to home, turn worktops to desktops and countertop to classroom. The kitchen is now the local restaurant, school, office, meeting, park bench and gym. Not being able to find the corkscrew, or that little bit of extra storage for paperwork may have seemed an easily forgotten irritation before, but not any longer.

"While it may sound like a recipe for disaster, there is an upside," says Wayne Dance, MD at InHouse Ltd, "Right now, we are either spending a lot of time together, or weeks on our own and it's the single biggest test of our current kitchen design. Does your kitchen make life easier, or simply more difficult? 

"We are all viewing our interiors in a different light right now. We have reconnected and connected in different ways, with learning the benefits of time spent alone and of stepping back still a work in progress. As much as we will be delighted when stay at home becomes a choice, our experience of quality time together or downtime alone, could be the thing that we are more reluctant to give up. Noticing the little things, including those that irritate, is precisely what is needed to create the perfect kitchen design. And you don't need a kitchen designer for this bit."

According to InHouse, while most of us walk into a showroom when we first think about investing in a new kitchen, we've been getting it wrong for years. The best place to start thinking about design, is when you are at home. So, they have created a list of things to consider now, that we rarely think about when sitting in a showroom.

"Ditch the kitchen catalogues," says Dance. "There is no truth in the expression ‘You don't know what you need until you see it' because you have to notice that need first. Creating the perfect kitchen isn't about ideas, it's all about solutions. So, the only thing you need right now is a paper and pen."

The Insider's guide to designing while inside

• Compile a list of all the things that irritate you about your current kitchen, alongside those that work well.

• Create a wish list. Add the things that you would love to incorporate. List in hand, ask everyone else in the house what they think. Do you need a space to work? Is it tricky lifting heavy pans from the back of the cupboard? Do you need help reaching items down from wall cabinets? Add it all to the list.

Photo by: Karly Gomez on Unsplash.

• Track people's movement. If ever there's a time you are going to notice how much your partner crosses your path getting to the sink, it's now. If you spend more time than necessary walking the length of the kitchen to grab a plate, or tripping over teens as they hot foot it to the fridge, then the current layout could be improved. Write it down.

  Photo by: Crew on Unsplash

• With home deliveries on the increase, storage will have reared its head. Organisation is the key to harmony and even in the smallest kitchen, there are a multitude of solutions to add precious storage inches. With a bit of luck, we will all continue to support local business with ongoing deliveries, so planning ahead may make this easier to stick to.

• Ask yourself how the space has worked. Would you prefer a little more privacy when you are working, or would a more open plan feel created a more spacious feel?

• Staying on top of the clutter is challenging at the best of times but it's really important when you need a space that can adapt to changing requirements. Do you want to be able to dispense with clutter in an instant or make a feature of easily accessible contemporary storage?

• Perhaps lockdown has re-ignited a love of cooking but getting the food mixer out has been a complete pain. Reconfiguring a kitchen is much easier when you notice the things that don't work so well. These are the things we simply forget about when redesigning our kitchen spaces.

• Staying in has seen a nation of homeowners take up new hobbies and restart old. Whilst great for the mind, hobbies need a place to live. Remember, in an open plan space, kitchen storage is just flexible storage. Built in adjustable dividers, pull-outs, extra wide drawers, and extra deep cabinets. By carefully considering the need - you can ensure that every inch works hard.

• Define your personality style. Do you prefer an introverted look, with a cool calm exterior that hides clutter in an instant, or lean towards a more extroverted look, with every day items on display and easy to see? Personality really is part of design and when you finally hand over your list to your kitchen designer, they'll have a clear idea of what will tick the right box.

• Don't forget lighting. When you are on your 5th hour of lying on the sofa thinking how nice it would be if kitchen lighting was a little more ambient, that is the exact time you should write it down. Apply the same principle when you are trying to finish a work assignment and you just can't see clearly enough. Adding ‘being able to see clearly at the island unit' is the basis of tailored design, but it's the kind of thing so easily forgotten in the showroom.

• Watch the day pass by, notice where and when the light fall. Do you have to turn the lights on mid afternoon or late morning? These are the kind of observations that can help create the perfect design. Some finishes absorb light and others, like high gloss, bounce it back into the room. Remember, you don't have to solve any of these problems, just write them down.

• With all the hard work completed, you can put your project on hold, or contact your local kitchen retailer and ping your list over. Great designers love solving problems. Why not try out some trend looks with an online tool, such as the free online kitchen planner from German kitchen brand Schüller until life returns to normal. When you can finally cross the threshold of your local kitchen designer and finalise designs, you will have everything you need on your list. Just don't leave home without it.

The schüller.C and next125 collections are available from InHouse's UK and Ireland network of retailers. For details please contact InHouse Inspired Room Design at www.inhouseltd.co.uk or call 01661 842304.

Media contacts:

Sophie Langley, Veronica Hannon

Transform Communications Ltd

Tel (01225) 863846

sophie@transformcommunications.co.uk

About Schüller Möbelwerk KG

Schüller Möbelwerk KG was founded in 1965. An industrial company, Schüller is located in Franconian Herrieden, Germany and has a clear commitment to the region. Here, in the middle of Europe and the heart of Bavaria, the high-quality Schüller kitchens are designed and produced for national and international markets. The high level of investment, advanced production technology and formidable innovative power, guarantees performance, reliability and security.