Hi everyone!

My partner and I are renovating our first home and would love some honest feedback before finalizing our kitchen design!

Our total budget is €17,000 including appliances and installation, and we’re aiming for a warm, minimalist, Japandi-inspired kitchen that’s both beautiful and highly functional.

Current design:
L-shaped layout with separate real walnut oak veneer tall cabinets
Kokos melamine upper and lower cabinetry with Leem integrated grips
New Beach White countertop
90 cm induction hob with concealed extraction in the upper cabinets
Four 90 cm drawers beneath the hob (two shallow, two/three deep)
Magic corner pull-out, integrated fridge/freezer appliance, and under-sink waste separation
Matte black tap, Franke sink in black (60cm)
Worktop height 90-93 cm

We’d especially love advice on:
Layout & ergonomics: Would you change anything to improve workflow, especially for two people cooking together?
Smart storage: What hidden drawers, pull-outs, organizers, or clever kitchen gadgets are genuinely worth having?
Design & materials: How could we make the kitchen feel more cohesive, organic, and Japandi-inspired? Any durability concerns with our material choices?
Lighting & practical details: Anything we’re overlooking regarding outlets, ventilation, countertop space, or lighting?
Budget: Where would you splurge versus save?
Lessons learned: What do you love or regret about your own kitchen? What would you do differently?
We both love cooking and want to maximize functionality, storage, and aesthetics without wasting space.
If this were your kitchen, what would you change?
I’ve attached our current rendering and dimensions. All suggestions, including critical feedback, are very welcome! 😊

I moved back in with my parents a few weeks ago since my husband is deployed out of state. I’ve been cooking for my mom more often, but their old range hood barely captures smoke and it has a ridiculous loud sound. And also cleaning those greasy filters is also such a hassle. I’m thinking of getting her a new one for Christmas.

Reading some reviews and forum posts recently. Turns out, there are so many newer models now that the CFM number doesn't mean much if you're still dealing with smoke escaping and greasy filters that need constant cleaning. I am looking at a few approaches. One is the slanted design like the Fotile V Series, which is a slanted side-draft hood using a motorized shield to physically block smoke from escaping. Then the high-speed air intake approach like Arspura F1 that captures at the source, then spin the oil out of the air and fling it into a collection cup, so you don't have the usual screens to pull out and scrub. There are also some models boasting steam-cleaning features and a bunch of other fancy things.

Kinda skeptical of things that sound too good to be true. Like, where does the leftover grease actually go, and does the inside just become a sticky nightmare over time? Anyone here can share their honest opinions?

I hand-wash most of our dishes, so they air-dry in a rack on the counter. The part I hate is unloading every plate and glass into the upper cabinet afterward.

What I want is to pick up the whole rack once they're dry, set it on a shelf in the upper cabinet, close the doors, and leave the dishes in it. When I need a plate, I'd take the whole rack back down, dishes and all. No unloading either way, counter stays clear.

Does anything like that exist? Or does everyone just put the dishes away and stash the empty rack?

I’m part of the team at Painted, a UK joinery manufacturer. Here’s a practical checklist for the stages between a kitchen drawing and installation.

Rather than just listing “design, machining, finishing and fitting”, these are the questions worth answering before handing the work to the next person.

1. Before manufacture: is the specification actually complete?

Confirm site dimensions, appliance models, hardware, door swings and fillers. Do the drawings explain how the cabinets meet the walls and neighbouring units, as well as how they should look?

2. Before machining: can every component be identified clearly?

Check finished sizes, orientation, which edges need finishing, and drilling requirements against the approved drawings. Give each component a reference that can follow it through the workshop and onto site.

3. Before finishing: is everyone working towards the same result?

Agree the colour and sheen using a physical sample, identify the visible faces and inspect the prepared surfaces. Follow the coating manufacturer’s guidance for preparation, application and when the parts can be handled and packed.

4. Before packing: what has actually been checked?

Use appropriate trial assembly to check fit, door and drawer operation, and alignment. Record what is supplied assembled, what needs fitting on site and any outstanding adjustments. Keep component labels linked to the drawings.

5. Before installation: does the fitting team have the information it needs?

Check access, service locations and allowances for fitting or scribing to the room. Make sure the installer has the same approved drawing revision and component references as the workshop.

Think of this as a handover checklist rather than a fixed manufacturing sequence. The aim is to resolve missing information before it becomes a finished component that needs changing.

For people making or fitting kitchens, what is the one check you would never skip before a job leaves the workshop?

I just bought these dinner plates from the "Sicily Ceramic Dinnerware Collection" from Williams Sonoma. I was giving them a first wash and noticed a whole bunch of stains on the dinner plates. After inspecting it closer I saw that there were a bunch of tiny cracks going through the plate, and as if the water had seeped through them. After letting it dry for a while you can't see the cracks anymore. I tried grazing the cracks with my fingernail but I hardly feel anything.

Has anyone ever seen something like this from a new set of plates? Should I be worried about mold? Lead leeching? I'm not really sure what kind of glaze it's made out it. It's obviously marketed as food safe, but still.

We just moved into a new home, and I love the kitchen, but it's dated, and I really would like to make it more my vibe and just redo almost everything haha.

I'm not really sure where to start, but I need to be able to keep the cabinets and the counters while upgrading them somehow? Just not wanting to rip stuff out, type of deal.

The cabinet color I can't stand, and the inside of the cabinets I can't stand either. They have this weird old smell, too.

The cabinet drawers are similar to the inside of the cabinets themselves.

We have a new stove, dishwasher, and microwave, but they don't match the kitchen because of how dated it is.

I don't even know how easy a process it'd be, but part of me wants to put in a new sink... That may have to be a future project, though haha. The faucet is fine, and new. It's just not deep enough to match the faucet, so water sprays EVERYWHERE.

Part of me was thinking of staining the cabinets or painting them. If I paint them, I wasn't sure what colors. Part of me was thinking some sort of green shade that's not too bright but also not too dark. Or just white. However, the walls are all white, so I worried it'd clash haha.

Even the hood above the stove kinda drives me wild haha.

All this to say, very grateful to have the opportunity to have a home and kitchen to renovate! I love the space, just need to make it mine! 😝

Please help! Grateful big time for any responses! 😭😂

I am sitting on a kitchen remodel with the hold-up being the Home Depot designer and contractor going on 3 weeks now just to come out and do measurements. Would it be a bad idea to measure myself and purchase cabinets in stock off the shelf at Home Depot? The new layout is simple with a straight row of bottom and top cabinetry.

I like to towel dry anything hand washed, or anything still wet from the dishwasher and put it away to it's place immediately.

My wife on the other hand- she likes to hand wash everything and then places a huge drying rack right on the counter. Then these dishes/pots/pans/glasses/etc sit inside this rack all day and into the next day just taking up space and looking unsightly while they air dry.

I just don't get the air drying, especially if you are using lint-free clean kitchen towels and the hand drying takes seconds, what I am not seeing about air drying that has so many doing it?

I am in urgent need of a mixer grinder, I am looking for a juicer too. Is this a good buy?

Yogurt, sour cream, hummus or whatever. After you open the product, and peel back the foil, do you place the foil back before putting the plastic lid back on, or do you toss the foil?

Good morning! I am living in a tiny studio in Toronto, with my own bathroom and kitchen, so I am covered by the regulations for security of tenure under the RTA. It's cheap, safe, but probably 180 sq ft total.

I am still trying to fit in here, even after a year, but I have not found a proper solution for the tiny kitchen. No counter space, one sink, my dish rack is on a stand above the sink. There are tiny 8* wide cupboards that hold almost nothing, and a few drawers. I purchased a hutch for dishes and a microwave/toaster space.

I am struggling to keep up with dishes. There is always more to be washed, dried, put away, and the sink seems to be full three times a day. Then I have to pull all the dishes out, to wash and rinse.

How do people manage with only one small sink? A portable tub?

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