Planning a dream kitchen

Having lived in rented houses for pretty much all of my married life, I’ve always had to make do with whatever kitchen is already in the property. We’ve had some pretty rubbish ones to be honest – decades old and falling to bits, way too small and not enough cupboard space. It’s one of the big reasons that I was so excited about moving to this new house – a brand new kitchen! I was more than is normal excited about having a shiny new kitchen – one that no-one else has ever used!

I’m sure that I am not the only one who spends an inordinate amount of time on Pinterest, pinning madly away and creating a virtual dream kitchen {please tell me I’m not!!}. I’d love one day to be able to design my own kitchen from scratch and have it purpose built to meet our needs. As I’ve given it so much thought, here are a few of the things that I’d like in my dream kitchen:

* An Aga – would love, love, love one of these to cook on!
* Kitchen island complete with bar stools so we can sit around and natter, eat an informal lunch in the kitchen and the kiddos can sit and chatter to me whilst I’m cooking
* A SMEG fridge/freezer – you know the one, the gorgeous retro one?! It’s been on my wishlist forever!
* A dishwasher – I’m mean, really – I HATE washing up!
* A window that overlooks the garden {so I can peep on the kiddos playing}
* Space for a big farmhouse style table – a kitchen to me is the hub of the home, and it’s nice to have a central place for everyone to gather
* Lots of worksurfaces – my kitchens never seem to have enough to house all the gadgets and have space to cook/bake
* A walk-in pantry {ok, I have this now, but def is on my ‘must haves’ for any future kitchen!}

A new kitchen is a big investment, but I think it’s one that is worth spending on. I’ve been looking at the TSB Loan Calculator to work out how much we’d be able to afford to borrow, it’s good to start with a realistic budget in mind!

What about you – what would feature in your dream kitchen?

Post in association with TSB. All words are my own