A guide to planning your city centre kitchen


Fast-paced city life calls for a well-organised kitchen where everything you need is to hand. A bespoke designer kitchen is ideal for ensuring the space is laid out effectively and to your exact requirements, allowing you to make the most of the time you spend in the kitchen.

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Keep reading to find out how a custom-made kitchen could make city living even more enjoyable.

The layout

If you have a fast-moving life, you need a kitchen that can meet your demands, so the space will need to be laid out in such a way that you can get to what you want, when you want. Think about what you use the most in the kitchen and design the space around these vital sections.

Traditionally, kitchens are laid out so that that the sink, cooker and fridge are all easy to access via a triangular route. You can make changes to the layout by adding a central island if you have room, into which the cooker or sink can be integrated so you don’t have as far to travel between the three vital stations.

The storage

Storage can be key to an organised city kitchen, especially if space is at a premium. Make the most of the room you have by fitting corner cupboards, integrating appliances and installing wall-mounted storage devices like racks for pans.

Hiring a kitchen designer has a number of benefits, as the experts can tell you how to make the most of your cupboard space with slide-out racks and other features to make reaching things from the units easier. Alternatively, you could fit cupboards right up to the ceiling on a wall and install a sliding ladder to reach these – this sort of distinctive feature could become a real talking point at dinner parties.

The appliances

The appliances you choose for your home will need to be good quality and durable to withstand your busy life, so go for the best your budget will stretch to. A modern washing machine, a slim-line dishwasher and a stylish fridge are all among the goods you might want to consider to make city living a little easier.

Do some research and you’ll find appliances are increasingly innovative, with ovens coming with pre-programmed recipes and many appliances having touchscreen technology for ease of use.

Your kitchen designer will be able to have the appliances integrated seamlessly into your kitchen design, so they can be hidden out of sight and don’t impact on your design theme. Alternatively, some appliances make striking features, like a bright fridge, so you might want to leave some of your appliances on show.

The accessories

Accessories can be an important part of any kitchen, but the fast pace of the city means you probably won’t want to come up against too many extra bits and bobs in the kitchen when you’re in a hurry. Choose just a few signature items to accessorise the space with, such as a sleek coffee machine, electric salt and pepper mills and decorative items like a retro wall clock.

Some accessories are necessary, such as storage caddies for tea, coffee and sugar, so you might want to pick these up in colours or styles that coordinate with the general theme of the room. Match items like the kettle, your plates and cutlery to the shade or theme to cement the overall style.