Home renovations in London come in all shapes and sizes. Whether you are after a simple refurbishment or a complete home extension, we would love to help with your project.  Home extensions add more functional space to a property, often creating a larger kitchen and enabling the addition of a dining area or extended living area. We also often work with homeowners on ground floor reconfigurations. In this case, you might feel like you have enough space, but want to utilise the area more efficiently. Both options offer a wonderful opportunity to design a new kitchen.  

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In general, kitchen choices are spilt into two broad categories. We thought we would run you through both options, as well as the pros and cons. 

Option 1 – design & build your own kitchen

The first option we will run through is the more cost efficient of the two options and better if you are working to a tight budget. You can buy a ‘off-the-shelf’ or ‘flat-packed’ kitchen from somewhere like Howden’s, Ikea, or Wickes. You mix and match different items yourself and decide how you want the kitchen to fit together. For example, you would order a selection of shelves, drawers, appliances, and any other items you might want to include. These would arrive boxed up, and you would tell the installer where you want each item to be located within the kitchen design. 

Here at Home Tales, we include loads of details within our floorplans as standard. We feel it’s important that you understand how the finer details of your design will work, to help you make informed decisions on what will go where, particularly on the shell and core. For example, if you are opting for a dining area, you might want to consider placing a skylight above the table. If you have a kitchen island, you might want to consider pendant lighting above the countertop area. The options are endless! We recently published a blog article about the most popular kitchen designs which you can read here. In addition to these details, we draw the outline and placement of your kitchen and appliances. This means if you’re opting for a ‘off-the-shelf’ kitchen, you can use our design to give to your kitchen installer. 

You might be wondering – where do I find someone to install my kitchen? Good question! If you are opting for a ground floor extension, reconfiguration or refurbishment, your building contractor might well be able to do it. Here at Home Tales, we have a fantastic builder that we can recommend. They will get your project to a watertight shell (plastered, electrics working, doors and windows installed), and they can stay on to complete floor fitting, final decorative works (painting etc), and kitchen fitting if you wish for them to do so. 

We designed this beautiful ground floor extension in Merton. We worked with the homeowner to create a spacious kitchen. Our recommended builder completed the build for the extension, and he also fitted this stunning kitchen which was purchased from Wickes. 

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Option 2 – bespoke kitchens 

Another option is to go to a company who offers a complete package. This usually includes the kitchen design, the kitchen (and appliances) and complete installation. These companies tend to offer a more bespoke package, and the materials are often made to measure rather than mass produced and made to fit an existing space. Kitchens in this category are typically upwards of £18-20k, so they come with a hefty price tag. With that said, there are often advantages to opting for a bespoke kitchen. One massive advantage is maximising the space you have available. The ‘’off the shelf’’ kitchens are mass produced and you simply measure what will fit within your area and buy the products to fit the space. This might mean you are limited in choice, and potentially might end up with more filler when you would like. Filler is the area between the cabinets and the walls and is used to ensure there are no unsightly gaps between the kitchen cabinet ending, and the wall beginning. A bespoke kitchen will also be able to deviate from ‘standard’ measurements. We recently completed a project in Wandsworth who opted for a bespoke kitchen. They wanted a cabinet to house their washing machine and dryer. Typical appliances of this nature measure 600mm in width, which is the exact measurement of a typical cabinet. As a result, the cabinet needed to be increased in size, to 700mm, to enable the washing machine and dryer to be tucked inside.

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Bespoke kitchens tend to have a wow-factor that the mass-produced kitchens struggle to get. Whether it’s textured cabinets, a wrap-around island countertop or a high spec induction hob – they general finish is often slicker than the off-the-shelf alternative.   

Bespoke kitchen companies often get fantastic trade deals on appliances, which can (in some cases), make the kitchen more cost efficient with higher spec appliances. The total cost is still more than a ‘off the shelf’’ kitchen, but the quality of the appliances goes up quite considerably. 

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The downside of this option is the overall cost. You are paying a premium for the design, installation, and all the bells and whistles that come with this option. Installation is generally mandatory with these kitchens as they companies don’t want anyone else to handle their products. This means you need to account for a separate build contract within your project. 

If you want to discuss your kitchen design in more detail, get in touch with team today on 02070432378. We would love to discuss your project. You can also book a telephone consultation directly via our diary here. Alternatively, you can email us at hello@hometales.co.uk.