We got the IKEA shelves that are pictured in the butlers pantry photo I posted when we were on holiday in Melbourne, Australia. We don't have IKEA here in New Zealand! Hubby is going back over in May/June so will get him to get more of that sort of thing when there. We would pay about 4x the price for that sort of thing here in NZ. I need to work out what I will do now where the fridge was and there is the angle change (does that make sense?).

Hi Ang, I thought I'd follow up my earlier comment with pictures of before and after of pine cupboards I specified to be painted in a budget makeover. My clients tell me people presumed they had purchased brand new cabinetry, so startling was the makeover. Somehow I have put the "after" on the left and "before" image on the right!

I am about to finally order our kitchen and wonder what the opinion is on 20 mm benchtop (engineered stone) or 30 mm. We are having Heritage Ezi Venice extrusion handles and I am a bit worried that maybe they will overpower the 20 mm benchtop? The cupboards are white and the benchtop is Grigio Mist (grey) and still deciding on a handle colour! Cheers and thanks :_

I would like to hear from anyone who has actually had one in their kitchen and how did it perform. I'm talking about the hole in the benchtop where you put your compost waste into and it falls into a bucket underneath. I used one at a hired lodge with an industrial kitchen and really loved it but wondered what it would be like in your kitchen for everyday use. Does it end up getting smelly and is it easy to clean? Also, does other stuff (like cutley) end up down there too... by mistake!?