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Expand view Topic review: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by boonkoh » Mon Oct 12, 2020 6:29 pm

If you're looking for good value but good quality, I used KDC Kitchens. They're a good drive away (probably an hour from SW? But I was living in East London at the time). But they do Schuller kitchens from Germany, their pricing was very competitive, the fitting was done excellently, and 3 years on the kitchen is almost still as new, all cupboards still working well with no issues.

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by HulaHoops » Mon Oct 05, 2020 2:06 pm

We had a Roundhouse kitchen installed 8 years ago and it still looks and works as if almost new; the quality is outstanding.  The process at the time was also very easy and enjoyable (we too had Robyn design it for us).  They liaised directly with our builders on all aspects (they were always one step ahead).  Their aftercare is also superb.  Wouldn't hesitate to recommend.   

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by bespokekitchens » Mon Oct 05, 2020 10:19 am

Hi, 
We make bespoke contemporary kitchens and are based near Bath.  My sister lives in Wandsworth and we have completed several beautiful kitchen installations in the area. 
We're a friendly, design led company and work to a very high standard. 
Please have a look at our website and feel free to get in touch if you're interested: 

https://www.benargentkitchens.co.uk/

Ben
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Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by twocheekymonkeys » Mon Oct 05, 2020 8:53 am

I would avoid Sola. Slow, not very responsive after installation (they never came back to finish the last few snags), and the finish was poor and does not last at all well. The bottom of most my cupboards and drawers blistered after less than a year. Happy to chat, show pictures if you want to pm me. 

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by Sudi » Mon Oct 05, 2020 8:37 am

I have the most beautiful new (18 months ago now though still looks pristine despite much use) kitchen from Kitchens of Holloway on Northcote Road. Really creative in their planning of the space, I couldn't afford the kitchen side extension most people have, and all sorts of absolutely bespoke features such an exceptionally wide spice drawer and larder. I am a food writer and run Sudi Foodie quiz events and food writing workshops (from home in easier times) so exceptionally particular.

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by Bramble01 » Mon Oct 05, 2020 7:07 am

We used Robyn at Roundhouse for our kitchen renovation last year and would highly recommend them. Kitchen is gorgeous and whole experience of working with Roundhouse was great.

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by Star » Sat Jun 02, 2018 9:04 am

Another happy Higham customer. It's such a shame they are so busy. Tim Higham is an absolute perfectionist and the service he gives and meticulous measuring of the space is second to none. I believe this is why they are so busy. And the price for the quality of the craftsmanship and high quality materials used make it excellent value. We got lucky as we were complete novices. 4 years on and the doors and hinges are draws are all completely in tact and smooth as new.

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by monaco » Tue May 29, 2018 3:18 pm

Thanks Pie81. Met with Holloways as well. They seem to push for a higher budget than what we have and said they wouldn’t want us to go through the design phase with them
Unless we were sure we would commission them. Liked their all in one approach though so tempted but not sure the design is up to trends?

For info we also considered Devol. Nice kitchens and they do do a design for us. However never came to visit our house so a bit weary that we would have to adjust and change things at the last minute.

This is such a minefield!

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by muckyjeans » Tue May 29, 2018 2:57 pm

We had our bespoke kitchen made and installed by Remeb last summer. They have a small showroom on St. John’s hill and I would definitely recommend them. Great deign, flexible, quality product, attention to detail and very competitive versus other kitchen co’s in this thread.

Found other kitchen co’s on this thread varying in design, price and attitude - “you do know we don’t do kitchens for less than £35k?!” Before even asking my budget!!

You can see my kitchen on houzz - light and bright modern kitchen if you search Remeb’s pix.

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by pie81 » Tue May 29, 2018 2:47 pm

Thanks for the furher reviews!

Interesting to hear about Mowlem, I had come across their website and thought their stuff looks good but sounds like style over substance... Sorry you had a bad experience but thanks for the warning!

kranders just wondering did you go ahead with Blakes, or is your view based on difficulty arranging the initial conversations? I am beginning to suspect the organisation level with Blakes depends on who you get ... who did you deal with if you don't mind saying?

Monaco I've met with Holloways and they certainly seem top quality wise - think fine furniture level rather than kitchen cabinets! but a bit pricier than Blakes or Eclectic. Unusually they charge £1500 for the design process and then you only commission the kitchen (or not) a long way down the line. I guess in theory you could take their design elsewhere.

Anyone used Sola?

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by kranders » Tue May 29, 2018 8:15 am

I personally wasn’t impressed with Blake’s at all. They have to be chased with phone calls and emails to respond to simple emails and are often unprepared for meetings... not the level of service you’d expect from projects that are 50-150k+. When asking around about them, the general feedback I got was that people were happy with the end result, but it takes a lot of work (poking and prodding from the Client) to get there.

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by dudette » Tue May 29, 2018 7:54 am

We used a company called Mowlem’s. They were incredibly expensive and the quality for the cost was low - they showed me solid wood interiors in their showroom and we got laminate (and not even real wood). They made so many mistakes. The designer never visited the house until about six months after the kitchen was installed and then only because I demanded it. Their idea of after sales was for me to pay about £180 for someone to show me how the ovens worked. A truly dreadful company - avoid like the plague.

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by monaco » Tue May 29, 2018 7:32 am

This is so helpful, thank you Pie81 for starting that thread and for telling me that there were no pm

We had met Roundhouse and agree that Robyn’s taste is fantastic. We too wrote them off because of the price. The review here may make us reconsider it!

Tempted by Blakes as Jamie seems a “can do” guy which is important.

Finally does anyone have experience of “kitchens by Holloway’s”?

Thanks

Re: Kitchen companies - views on Blakes, Eclectic, Sola and others?

by Mum_in_London » Fri May 25, 2018 9:58 pm

Hi

We used eclectic for our recent renovation and I’ve been so impressed with them.
We had Libra and she is patient, great at communicating and really helped us refine the design.
She helped us with materials, colours etc and came up with smart ways of keeping to our budget whilst having a great designed kitchen at the end. (We looked at Roundhouse and yes they are also very attentive but Very expensive)

The whole end to end service is amazing too. The fitters are all on their staff so they know them very well and always fit within time. The worktop is very high standard as was our splashback.

Also, when we had a couple of snags Libra sorted these our no problem. She also sent us electrical details for our electrician who said it was the easiest kitchen to deal with as everything was where it should be.

Very happy with them, they seem tongonthe extra mile for you.

Good luck

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