High Gloss or Oak kitchen

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callaghanj

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Just finishing off new build and nearly ready for kitchen. I thought I had settled on a high gloss kitcken( off white with walnut sides) but not so sure now. Have heard they are hard to keep clean and also think it might date quite quickly. Now thinking of oak or walnut though maybe the walnut would not go with the oak doors and skirting. Have picked a cream porcelain tile for kitchen hallway living room and sun room. What do you think....any help much appreciated...Thanks.
 
I have an off white painted finish kitchen and love the brightness of the room - I would imagine a dark wood kitchen would be very dark. I do agree that the high gloss kitchens might date sooner than painted finish or wood though.
 
I've seen walnut with oak skirtings and initially you do look and say "two woods", then you never see it again!!

the walnut kitchen is stunning with a light brown granite worktop.

I wouldn't worry about putting the two woods together.

Saying all that I love white gloss with walnut and straight lines. :confused:

Decisions, decisions
 
Hi

Have a high gloss cream kitchen with walnut sides. Highly recommend it. Easy to clean, looks great - modern.
 
Friend has high gloss, said its difficult to keep clean and sorry she didn't gofor oak now. Looks good but a wood kitchen like oak will never date and you can over the years change tiles and worktop if you need a change.
 
I have a high-gloss white kitchen which I love and I find it very easy to keep clean, just an occasional rub with a damp cloth and it looks great. Also, because it's so highly reflective it really bounces the light around and makes the room lovely and bright.

TBH, rather than wondering would the kitchen date in years to come I think you should decide what you want to live with now. I think most kitchens have standard sized carcasses, so if you decided on a differnt style in years to come it won't cost you as much as replacing the whole kitchen, you'll only have to replace the doors and drawer fronts.

Personally I find a wooden kitchen to be a lot of wood (too much for me) but the high-gloss look is modern and urban and will never be rustic in the way that a wood kitchen can be, if that's what you're after. (Of course a wooden kitchen can also be modern and urban looking). Maybe deciding if you're more into the country look or the urban look would make your decision easier.
 
callaghanj said:
Just finishing off new build and nearly ready for kitchen. I thought I had settled on a high gloss kitcken( off white with walnut sides) but not so sure now. Have heard they are hard to keep clean and also think it might date quite quickly. Now thinking of oak or walnut though maybe the walnut would not go with the oak doors and skirting. Have picked a cream porcelain tile for kitchen hallway living room and sun room. What do you think....any help much appreciated...Thanks.
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i have been making kitcchens with 17 years and oak has always been popular in some form or another.high gloss has been around awhile now and everybody is saying it will date quickly but its just seems to be getting more popular.when i started first maple was all the rage and now its not used at all-i think walnut might go this way as well(beautiful wood though).
 
i would agree a lot with what samm says as i to have been fitting ktchens for over 20 years, solid wood kitchens regardless of timber dont date. high gloss will only be a very expensive phase. afterall shaker kitchens were first fitted by pilgrims in america. also if you do go for a a high gloss door beware of warping on some of the longer larder doors especially the narrower doors ie a 295 x 1240 on a pull out larder or on a tall int fri/freezer door
 
ive seen a few gloss kitchens. i wouldnt recomend them from what i see the gloss dorrs fade quite a bit. the kitchens were from reputable companies.
 
Thanks everyone....visited another showroom today( long established and reputable) have decided to go with an oak kitcken with granite which I think will look well with porcelain tiling throughout. It's a big kitcken and I need someting that will last and not date too quickly. I do like the high gloss too but I dont think it's right on this occasion....your help was much appreciated!!
 
I think it has more to do with the actual design rather than the material (wood or high gloss or a mixture of high gloss and matt) that will determine whether a kitchen will date or not.

Marion
 
Marion said:
I think it has more to do with the actual design rather than the material (wood or high gloss or a mixture of high gloss and matt) that will determine whether a kitchen will date or not.

Marion
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I think you make a good point, for example doors on base units are now very dated, it's all about deep drawers these days.

Re people feeling that a wood kitchen will never date, I think most wood designs are permanently dated looking but they are perceived to be inoffensive and that's why they seem timeless. However a very modern styled wooden kitchen is just as likely to look out of date in a few years as a high gloss yellow one (currently very trendy).

I think the original poster considered not only all their options but the actual kitchen it's going into and made a balanced decision based a lot of factors (including feedback here), so I'm sure they'll be happy with the decision they made for a long time.
 
I agree with Dubgem, oak kitchens are totally inoffensive, rarely garish looking and you could have one in your house for years and years. There is an old oak kitchen in my house at the moment (about 16 years old) and it is absolutely fine. However I am replacing it for a white high gloss kitchen, solid oak worktops and oak flooring with red accessories cos I think it will look really trendy and I'm very excited about it! It's my dream kitchen! I do see this house as my starter home though and know that we will eventually move on...were I thinking that I had to get a kitchen to last me 15 years then I probably wouldn't be going so trendy! Also, its worth noting that from pricing around, oak kitchens are ALOT more expensive to high gloss so you would want to be getting years out of them!
 
Yes, it is as much about the shape and style of the kitchen as it is about the colour and materials..

For example, large mouldings and 'raised panel' type doors are out of fashion.. it's all about clean lines and not too much fuss.. minimalist type of styling. Yes, drawers are definitely in fashion, I like to use graduated drawers, small, medium and big at the bottom.. islands and breakfast bars etc are also popular nowadays.. I personnally wouldn't go for a heavy timber kitchen, with large elaborate details and heavy spindles and columns all over the place,. I'm not sure if this is just me but I think those sorts of kitchens are too 'busy' and have to much detailing.. as I say, less is more nowadays...

Long runs of base cabinets with doors should be avoided.. use some drawers above smaller doors or open shelves or anything really other than six or seven cabinets all the same side by side...

Cheers
 
The kitchen may be in oak but the design is the same as the one planned for high gloss.....modern, straight lines and not fussy at all. The house is in the countyside and an oak kitchen with a modern twist will look well. I appreciate all the input ! I will be putting high gloss fitted wardrobes in one of the bedrooms so I have't gone overboard with solid wood!!
 
That sounds lovely CallaghanJ. If my house were in the country I too would go for an oak kitchen. Its more fitting of the environment and will no doubt look fab. Best of luck with the new kitchen!
 
Our house is a country house, it had to tie in with other houses in the area so looks cottagey/farm house. IMO a high gloss kitchen would have looked wrong so we ended up plumbing for an oak kitchen and flagstone type tiles. I love it and it looks right in the house. Though have seen some absolutely fab modern kitchens which sometimes make me question our decision but they'd have looked wrong. I've also seen very expensive Italian kitchens not stand up to the wear of very young (albeit very destructive) younguns.

If they were mine they'd have been moved to the garage!!
 
Just revamped a high gloss vanilla kitchen with high gloss red accents, looks a treat, the vanilla still look's good after 5 years, wood seems a bit boring.
 
have walnut kitchen and oak doors in the house. Looks great and I love the walnut! My kitchen is south facing so the walnut works well with it. If kitchen is big enough, you could go for a mix. Have seen this before in a showhouse and looks fab ... high gloss cream with walnut.
 
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