There is something serendipitous about the kitchen Affordable Luxuries created for Ingrid and Perry; it was the right time, right place and definitely the right kitchen.
Their old kitchen was beginning to fail and needed repairs and they knew they had to begin the daunting hunt for their new one. ‘Everything was dying on us in the old kitchen; in fact the microwave stopped working two days before work began on the new kitchen!’ said Ingrid.
‘One day I went to order some glass for a window and the shop had a notice saying ‘back in five minutes’ so I thought I’d kill the time by having a look in the kitchen studio nearby,’ said Ingrid.
So she stepped through the door at Affordable Luxuries and knew she had come to the right place.
Clean, simple lines and hues create an elegant and serene kitchen.
Another change the couple made was to move a radiator, opting instead for a large towel rail instead - a move that Ingrid is really glad they made as it freed up wall space.
“What I liked immediately was that there was never any pushing for a sale, David McMillan came out to design our kitchen and I made a lot of visits to the showroom. I was months in making the final decisions after hours of discussions but nothing was ever a bother to them.”
Ingrid and Perry wanted a modern, contemporary kitchen in an open-plan space with practical storage solutions, along with functional appliances and accessories.
Ingrid was looking for a smooth, streamlined look; simplicity was the keyword with clean lines and everything being on hand as she worked.
David said: ‘The use of two 900mm-wide and one 600mm-wide tambour worktop cabinets allowed us to take care of storage for Ingrid’s collection of small kitchen appliances and accessories; each tambour is equipped with three sockets which meant most of the appliances are ready to go whenever they are needed.’
Ingrid loves this feature: ‘The cupboards are fantastic, everything is plugged in and I just get my food processor or mixer out and put it away again afterwards.’
Ingrid and Perry chose to have drawers under the worktops throughout the kitchen, except the corners and under the sink as this was where she planned to store bulkier items.
They decided on the Pronorm X-line range, without handles.
‘We went for the soft off-white Crystal colour in a matt finish with absolutely no grooves or mouldings to keep clean,’ said Ingrid.
These were complemented by Catania oak grey PP edged laminate worktops from Pronorm complete with matching upstands and window sill.
‘It is a wonderful, weathered oak finish and we used a soft grey paint with a warmth to it, with a hint of lavender, on the walls,’ said Ingrid.
The Blanco Classic one-and-half-bowl inset sink was finished with a Blanco Max tap in chrome; a theme echoed throughout the design as the LED ceiling downlights, wall sockets and light switches are all in brushed chrome.
As a keen cook, Ingrid has an impressive collection of books and she is delighted with the solution Affordable Luxuries came up with. ‘It was David the designer’s idea; he thought of bespoke bookshelves either side of the cupboards. The coloured spines of the books give a bright pop of colour. Do you know they even measured my cookery books to get the shelf heights right!
‘It is that kind of attention to detail that we loved. There is no wasted space anywhere; even the fittings for the corner cabinet come all the way out.’
‘Nothing was too much for them. For example I wanted a drinks fridge built in and to accommodate this it left a shallower cabinet at one side but that too was perfectly fitted out to maximize the space and it now takes all my smaller groceries and dry goods. The lay-out and fixtures mean that you can see everything.’
The kitchen features appliances by Siemens. These comprise a single oven with steam; a combi oven with microwave, an integrated coffee machine and two warming drawers. There is a Flex zone induction hob with cast iron griddle plate and also a Domino wok gas hob, along with a flush-fitted ceiling extractor hood over the peninsular in a stainless steel finish. An integrated dishwasher and the built-in wine cabinet complete the look.
“With Affordable Luxuries everything was put in to suit my life, and done the way we wanted it, I can’t image any other kitchen company providing a service like them; Tom explained everything to me at every step as he project managed the entire installation. They were wonderful - they were the way that businesses used to be. The whole experience was great and if we ever decide to move house and need another kitchen we would go straight back to them as I wouldn’t go anywhere else.”