Island Life-a completed contemporary kitchen and the stages of a new kitchen installation
Leafing back through a 2011 Beautiful Kitchens magazine I came across a beautiful kitchen I designed over five years ago. The kitchen has white lacquered and sweet gum tree book matched veneer units, a white ‘Getacore’ worktop, Miele appliances and a Quooker boiling water tap. This kitchen epitomises good design and functionality and is still fresh and contemporary looking today.
This kitchen was installed as part of a house refurbishment and extension which is the least painful way to install a new kitchen as the Family were not living in the house while the work was going on. When a kitchen is being replaced in a home where the family is in situ it can be a more complicated project. Obviously the first stage is to remove the existing kitchen so immediately the most important room in the house is gone, causing immediate disruption.
The time to install a new kitchen varies depending on whether it is a German imported kitchen or a bespoke handmade in frame kitchen (which is generally hand painted on site after installation) and it can take anything from 3 to 5 working days, not including any works required to do plumbing, electrical or plastering work in advance.
If opting for stone counters these have to be measured when the base units are in and the new stone can take 7 to 10 working days to install from date of survey and in this case it is often best to install temporary worktops so the hob and sink can be functioning in the interim. Though these do have to be disconnected again when the stone is being installed and re connected after the stone goes in.
So in reality to install a new kitchen can be the guts of two to three weeks from start to finish. Replacing your kitchen is the most stressful job one can undertake in the home, so do be aware of the stages involved but rest assured once the kitchen is completed it can make the single biggest difference to one’s home!
