New Kitchen Advice - Chippendale Kitchens?

JimminyCricket

Hi,

We are looking to get a new kitchen installed soon. We have found one in Wickes that we like (Chicago range), but today had a local independent kitchen supplier come round and do some plans for us. She definitely seemed to be more on the ball than the Wickes designer and gave us a few extra ideas to think about with regards to the layout of the kitchen.

One of the companies she supplies kitchens from is Chippendale, and I was wondering how they compare quality-wise to Wickes? We did find a style from them that we liked - it's in the Futura range which appears to be their cheapest range. In the brochure it says the material specification is "Melamine faced particle board with 2mm PVC edging" - again, how does that compare with Wickes quality?

Thanks in advance for any help/advice.

majjie

"Melamine faced particle board" is just a posh name for MFC (melamine faced chipboard) which is what the vast majority of kitchen carcasses are made from. The pvc edging is worth having though ... it's much less likely to chip over the years than flat melamine edging.

Chippendale carcasses come in a choice of 11 colours ... Wickes are white with coloured replacement ends wherever they show (and they have melamine edging).

Apart from that, the qualities are very similar - both are 18mm flat packs, with 15mm base unit backs, soft close as standard and a 5 year guarantee.

Is there much difference in the plans? I suspect Chippendale do a better choice of unit sizes, giving more flexibility to the design. And what about the price? I'd expect Wickes to be cheaper.

Lord_Blue

I noticed that Buildbase do the Chippendale kitchens too if that helps? Perhaps you could pop into Buildbase and look for yourself?

JimminyCricket

Thanks for the swift replies. :beer:

There isn't a massive difference in the plans as the kitchen is on the small side and so we are limited in options anyway. But whereas Wickes did their plan to what we originally suggested (and is very similar to the layout we have now), the independent lady jigged things around a little to give us a couple of other ideas to think about, such as doing away with a standalone cooker and having a built-in double oven and separate hob, etc.

We haven't had prices from her yet - she is emailing the plans later today, together with suggested other kitchens from various manufacturers now that she knows what style and colour we want - but I too am expecting it to be slightly more expensive than Wickes. But if the kitchen looks better and is of a slightly higher quality then it may be worth it. On that note, what about Omega kitchens? I think she mentioned them as well so that may well be one of the options she gives us if they have a range that matches what we are looking for. Are they of a similar quality to Chippendale?

I hadn't realised Buildbase sell Chippendale - might try and pop over to our local one this Saturday to have a look.

Thanks again.

majjie

You're welcome

Omega is the parent company of Chippendale and one of their kitchen ranges too.

So ... Omega the parent supplies:

• Omega and Chippendale kitchens - which are both flat packs (and identical spec, as far as I can tell)
• Sheraton - same spec but supplied rigid and with a couple more colours and a lot more size options
• Charles Rennie Mackintosh - more upmarket kitchens, some with inset framed doors, some modern, with high gloss and handleless options, and large radius curved units (same carcasse spec as Sheraton)

Meepster

majjie wrote: »

Chippendale carcasses come in a choice of 11 colours ... Wickes are white with coloured replacement ends wherever they show (and they have melamine edging).

tut tut, almost right, Wickes carcases are actually off white (RAL9001 to be precise) it may sound a bit picky, but when you put them next to pure white, there is a huge difference

majjie

OK ... I stand corrected!

Meepster

majjie wrote: »

OK ... I stand corrected!

Just don't do it again, or next time I might even use some %, & and !'s

majjie

Promises ... promises!