Howdens Kitchen

I wish ours hadn't been!  The previous owners bought our hows* house in about 2000-ish, and they did a lot of bad things to it.  A lot of our work will be undoing what they did.

* WTF?!  "Hows"?  What were my fingers thinking?!

I thought we were pretty lucky in that sense! My husband viewed some “improved” properties that still left much to be desired. But I knew I’d feel bad and wasteful for remodeling something that was just recently upgraded. I mean, if we had an endless supply of money, why not. But, real life. Haha!


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I thought we were pretty lucky in that sense! My husband viewed some “improved” properties that still left much to be desired. But I knew I’d feel bad and wasteful for remodeling something that was just recently upgraded. I mean, if we had an endless supply of money, why not. But, real life. Haha!

haha  Oh, we're not being wasteful.  I did not fully express how bad this "work" is.  I'd show pictures, but I'm ashamed... we've been living in it for 18 months now!  People might think we like it this way. 

haha  Oh, we're not being wasteful.  I did not fully express how bad this "work" is.  I'd show pictures, but I'm ashamed... we've been living in it for 18 months now!  People might think we like it this way. 

Wasn’t at all implying you were being wasteful haha! Just me, personally, only based on the properties my husband viewed.


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Howdens seems to have a pretty decent rep. We are getting a kitchen from them to be installed in late July. We are using one of the joiners/installers they approve of. Technically, they don't recommend anybody, but they have a list of people (and cards) of ones they approve of and I think they don't put crap joiners on this list. Howdens in Harrogate pretty much won't talk to you until you have already had a joiner agree to do the work. 

We found the one guy who recommended Howdens online. So far we’ve met him twice. Once when he came to measure and another time he showed us the 3D renderings of the design they came up with. He left a very good impression because he came well prepared. Seemed very professional. I’ve only seen samples of their work from pictures of their completed works on their website.

The other one my husband met in our building because coincidentally his team is also doing a complete renovation of the flat across from us. Owner is into buy and sell though so they said it will be up on the market once the renovation is done. So we got to see their work up-close. However, we’ve yet to have a formal meeting with this joiner because he recently got married. I think he said he gets back from his honeymoon on the 28th.


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I would recommend getting at least 3 quotes. You're likely to find that they vary quite considerably. You'll also benefit from the additional input of what can be done with your space.

I would recommend getting at least 3 quotes. You're likely to find that they vary quite considerably. You'll also benefit from the additional input of what can be done with your space.

This is excellent advice.  So far we’ve replaced our windows and we (finally) get our new fence next week.  We got 3-5 quotes for each job and they varied by a huge amount!  And definitely got great ideas from some people.

Thanks for the review! I wish my husband was as handy so we could save on the installation. I went to the Howdens showroom to touch and feel the cabinets and they felt pretty solid to me. Just wasn’t sure about the longevity so in your experience have your cabinets been holding up pretty good since late-2015? Do you have any young children? One of my concerns is the cabinets holding up to children’s banging and scratching, etc.


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No kids - we are oldies. But having looked at a lot of kitchen cabinets, we are happy that these were a good choice for the price point. I cook every day so everything gets opened/closed etc. They still look pristine after nearly 3 years. Wish I could say the same for my gas hob. I opted to buy appliances separately, and researched a lot. The hob (a BEKO) is total crap...will be replacing it as soon as I can sneak a new one in :-)

No kids - we are oldies. But having looked at a lot of kitchen cabinets, we are happy that these were a good choice for the price point. I cook every day so everything gets opened/closed etc. They still look pristine after nearly 3 years. Wish I could say the same for my gas hob. I opted to buy appliances separately, and researched a lot. The hob (a BEKO) is total crap...will be replacing it as soon as I can sneak a new one in :-)

We are getting a gas hob too. What other brands would you be considering when the time comes to replace the BEKO?


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We switched to an induction hob a year or two ago.......awesome. A LOT faster than other electric or gas hobs. Easy to clean. We wouldn't consider going back to gas.

We switched to an induction hob a year or two ago.......awesome. A LOT faster than other electric or gas hobs. Easy to clean. We wouldn't consider going back to gas.

I was going to say I’ve heard induction is the way forward.

I was going to say I’ve heard induction is the way forward.

My wife was always a gas lover. We moved back to the US for 4 years and we had a regular electric flat top oven......she didn't think that one was quite as fast as gas, but she loved the fact that she could just wipe the top clean....zing!! But the induction is soooo much faster at heating....and we can still just wipe the top clean with little effort. Once you've tried it....no reason in my head to stay with gas if you can afford the switch.

I was going to say I’ve heard induction is the way forward.

We looked at the induction hobs today at John Lewis. Just to get a feel. I do love the sleekness of it. Only thing is I’m Asian and I read somewhere it doesn’t work with wok cooking haha! I have to do more research.


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I am leaning toward the new technology 'direct flame' gas hobs. Hot Point is the manufacturer. I grew up with electric stoves - no gas where I lived in NC back in the day. I've had ceramic hobs as well, which are nice, but....not good for my cast iron.

I thought about induction, but again, would need to replace all my pans and there goes the cast iron. I prefer gas - but will not have a stainless steel top ever again. The Beko hob is crowded (5 burner with a central wok burner), hard to clean, and the stainless steel scratches if you look at it. And I am careful. Thankfully it wasn't uber expensive.

I thought about induction, but again, would need to replace all my pans and there goes the cast iron. I prefer gas - but will not have a stainless steel top ever again. The Beko hob is crowded (5 burner with a central wok burner), hard to clean, and the stainless steel scratches if you look at it. And I am careful. Thankfully it wasn't uber expensive.

Cast iron is supposed to work on induction. Basically.....if your pans are able to stick to a magnet....they work.

I just took a quick look online.....they evidently make a wok that is good on induction.

Hey, if you want gas.....go for it. Gas is not better for my wife (a former gas lover) and I. We went with what worked the best for us. 

Cast iron is supposed to work on induction. Basically.....if your pans are able to stick to a magnet....they work.

I just took a quick look online.....they evidently make a wok that is good on induction.

Hey, if you want gas.....go for it. Gas is not better for my wife (a former gas lover) and I. We went with what worked the best for us. 

I’m actually quite intrigued by the induction now because it only heats up the pan itself. That’s a huge plus for me in terms of safety around a very curious toddler.


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