Supply-only Siematic-style Designer Kitchen - Affordable for mere mortals?

RankAmatuer

Hey everyone, seems there's a lot of excellent kitchen design and supply advice around these parts, so was hoping for some specific supply advice for our wildly ambitious new kitchen project....

..w.trendir.com/archives/001639.html
(To much of newbie to post real links, pls add your own w's as applicable)

Basically we want to have a peninsula type workbench area going from wall at one end to low level storage / seat units at other, pretty much exactly like first picture in link above (except for wall units at far end of picture). Really like the thickness of this and storage it gives with wide drawers, and offset angle of boxseat would be good as it's going in largish (6 x 7m) open plan kitchen living area with one slanted wall. Problem being only got about £5k for whole kitchen job, so siematic kinda out of the question... Have seen this kind of set up on several high-end german manufacturers websites, but no way can afford that route. So big question is, where can you get the units / carcasses for such a design supply only, and is is feasible to build such a unit relatively cheaply?

We'd probably want whole run to be 3-4m long, i.e. 3x 'floating' 1m deep drawer units, with a standard height 600m base unit at other end to bench units. Then 2 or 3 1m low box units. Sure these aren't the most advanced piece of cabinets, but are they available anywhere tad cheaper? Reckon budget for this part of project, i.e. cabinets, doors (gloss/wood veneer) and worktop (prob wood) is about £1500 max. Are we kidding ourselves or is this look possible?

On our side we have plenty of time, few friends who work in various trades and can help with fitting and can get everything trade price, and we're not scared of DIY.

RankAmatuer

Just found original page and style number of kitchen I'm talking about above. Anyone know of any other companies making this style of unit, or whether it's possible to get from siematic as supply only (poss without drawer fronts), and rough idea of price?

Siematic SE 8008 LM

..w.siematic.com/INT/en/home/themen/thema4.html

Doozergirl

Got a plan of your room? I want to see where you're fitting it, cant quite picture it.

You'll need special horizontal wall units. Lots of places do those now. 1000mm ones might be harder to find in the high street end of the market, not sure. I have 4 800 wide ones sitting in my garage, John Lewis.

£5k for the whole kitchen, fitted? You're going to have to be tight about where the money goes. I'm not sure wood in that price bracket is the best investment but if you shop around, use ebay for bits etc then you might pull it off. Be careful about scrimping on fitting if you're after a high end finish.

Brilliant though, I love to see people with a sense of adventure!

RankAmatuer

Hi Doozergirl, thanks for reply. Have attached link to plans below, but after playing around with layouts of what we had in mind I just don't think it will fit, certainly not leaving any sensible space. As you can see, we have a very annoying angled wall down one side of room, and plan was to try and fit kitchen into that corner so could use space under stairs for full height integrated appliances units then have some sort of feature peninsula coming off the angled wall, hence the appeal of odd angled siematic design. However think I've had bit of an epiphany, which is that if we replaced staircase with one going in opposite direction and had quarter turn at bottom (i.e. in awakward corner, then the right side corner of basement becomes available for kitchen, which is much easier to work with and gives more space under stairs and greater light (window is on ground floor so stairs are lightwell). Have done rough plan based on this with 4 x 600mm hell height appliances units, then 3m worktop with normal baseunits and hob and sink in front of those. Any thoughts?

flickr.com/photos/58979152@N06/sets/72157625820043519/

Doozergirl

I'm getting there. Have you got a photo of that wall with the stairs on currently as well so we can picture it?

I can't see the Siematic thing how it fits but it sounds like you've given up on that idea. But you can still use that angle, you know.

If your budget is tight then moving the stairs is going to really eat into it; it will have to comply with current building regulations and that may be simply impossible. Unless you think it makes the entire space much brighter and is worth it for that one reason alone, I'd leave it. That element of your budget might be better spent trying to get a really gorgeous kitchen to fit into the space you already have.

Is it the island, peninsular that you've got your heart set on? You can do what is on your new plan but off the wonky wall and build it parallel to the back walls you know? You just place the units parallel with the wall and fill the spaces with either filler panels or dummy doors. You cut the worktop to the wall so it's on the angle and the wall is suddenly not so awkward.

Put your full heights in front of your stairs or perhaps even have a funky set up built in under the stairs if that enables you to open up the wall above and put in a handrail set-up to get light in? And then build some extra units against the wonky wall so you have a U-shaped kitchen.

What is expensive and will push up your budget is an island extractor (the item itself) and the associated electrics through the ceiling and ducting as well if you're ducting outside. The drainage for the sink on an island if it's too far off a wall. You don't want it to be cramped. We have a 2.3 metre island with cupboards either side of it to make it 90cm wide and the five burner hob takes up more than enough space by itself.

Getting nosey now What's the reason for moving that bedroom/bathroom wall 50cm forward? I've got to go out (late as usual) - are you doing the whole place up?

RankAmatuer

Hi Doozer, sorry for slow reply. Not got any pics as not actually moved in yet, has been lots of frantic negotiations but hopefully in at end of next month. After recent revisit of place looks like stairs moving is not an option, so will have to rethink kitchen plans. For the insatiably curious we will be chronicling the fun we have with full refurb once get in there, got feeling may need little bit of advice from time to time... Watch this space for link to new post, reckon with installing glass floor, replacing ceilings / floors / kitchen / bathrooms etc this one could be quite interesting....