My Forever Home – Details, episodes & analysis

Decision fatigue is one of the biggest challenges homeowners face during a renovation or new build. In this episode, Frances breaks down why the constant stream of choices becomes so overwhelming, the impact it can have on your project, and the practical steps you can take to reduce stress, stay focused, and make confident decisions for your Forever Home™.

In this festive episode of the My Forever Home™ Podcast, Frances walks you through how to create a Christmas theme that flows beautifully from your tree, to your table, and throughout your home. She shares how she designed her own Australian botanical Christmas and offers practical ideas to help you personalise your festive décorations, whether you love a minimalist nature-inspired look or full-on maximalist Christmas magic.

In this episode, Frances reflects on how the quiet of the holidays gives us the perfect opportunity to assess what isn't working in our homes. She shares personal experiences of the things that have bugged her, how it's easy to live with them, and how holiday time is the best time to make a change. 

Listen in for helpful insights on finding clarity for your home and how to finally tackle those lingering issues.

In this Forever Home Live Frances has come straight from site! She discusses the impact of having dining and island bench lights too close together and how less can often be more. Coming from site, so also references the impact of not deciding your floor material before the build starts, and shaver cabinets recessed into walls.

In this episode, Frances provides a summary of each episode of the Kitchen Design Essentials Season and how each episode adds another dimension to your overall kitchen design and outcome. From budgets to materials, from flatpacks to splashbacks, she outlines all episodes, providing a handy reference on what will be the episode to listen to next as part of the season.

SHOWNOTES:   

1 – Episode 24: Kitchen Design Essentials - Season Overview

Frances provided an overview of what's in store for the season- giving you a good insight into what was covered in the series.

2 – Episode 27: Kitchen Design Essentials - How to Determine What You Need in Your Kitchen

This episode is about working out what you need in the kitchen.  Frances talked about the importance of doing a kitchen needs assessment- analysis of your lifestyle, type of cook, storage requirements and the number of people working into that space.  Ideally using the Clear Clarity Design Worksheet from the Beautiful Kitchen Design Made Easy course.

3- Episode 30: Kitchen Design Essentials -Kitchen Design Layouts and Location

Frances, and guest Interior Designer, Fabieli Fontana talked about Kitchen layouts and locations in the home. 

• Kitchen Layout and the advantages and disadvantages of each layout- U shape, Lineal, L shaped, Galley
• The best location that brings in natural light

4 – Episode 32: Kitchen Design Essentials –The Builder's insight

This Kitchen Design Essentials episode had special guest, Jeremy Gates from Gaia Construction, who provided the builder's insight on mistakes people make when creating a new kitchen. He focused on setting a budget, and avoiding mistakes such as undercapitalising  being worse than overcapitalising by not utilising the space the best way possible. He felt homeowners esigning their kitchen was a mistake too as it held to a whole heap of issues.

5 – Episode 34: Kitchen Design Essentials – Key Kitchen Design Mistakes

This episode brings back our guest Fabieli Fontana, where she and Frances spoke about key kitchen design mistakes. They chat about experiences with clients and errors caught early enough to be reflect a better overall design- window placement, size & height, structural constraints.

6 – Episode 36: Kitchen Design Essentials – Benchtops part 1

Frances and her guest Laura Neville from Cosentino discussed the various products available from Cosentino, namely natural stone, reconstituted stone, and Dekton.

7 – Episode 38: Kitchen Design Essentials-Benchtop Criteria and Materials – Part 2

Frances talked about benchtop criteria in terms of you and your family's needs. She also mentioned other benchtop materials such as timber, porcelain, recycled glass, stainless steel, paperock, concrete, laminate, and solid acrylic surface.

8 – Episode 39: Kitchen Design Essentials – Splashbacks

Being a self-confessed fan of splashbacks, Frances outlined several splashback materials including glass, stone, windows, mirror and porcelain, including her favourite – tiles. She also pointed out how splashbacks can determine the entire selection for your kitchen. Lastly, she talked about the considerations from a regulation perspective- gas or induction stove tops

9 – Episode 41: Kitchen Design Essentials – Cabinetry Materials

In this episode, Frances spoke about cabinetry materials and the advantages and disadvantages of each materials- 2Pac, thermal wrap, laminate, timber, and Dekton.  She also talked about kickers, sizes and material options.

10 – Episode 43: Kitchen Design Essentials – Flatpack Vs Custom Designed Kitchens

Frances walks through the differences between flat pack and custom designed kitchens. She shared considerations that you need to think about when choosing between flatpack and custom kitchens such as design and materials constraints,  constraints and possible compromises on layout.

11 – Episode 45: Kitchen Design Essentials - Internal Elevations & Joinery Design

In this episode, Frances discussed  Internal Elevations and Joinery Design and why it is important in your kitchen design, why it is worth the investment and what could go wrong if you don't have them in terms of cost and design considerations.

She referenced the blog too  Why Internal Elevations are Critical for your Home, which you can read here.

12 - Episode 47: Kitchen Design Essentials – Key Kitchen Measurements

Frances outlined the key kitchen measurements to make sure that your kitchen is functional and workable. She ran through key metrics for kitchen planning such as gaps between rear-bench and island bench, the ideal length for island benches, depths of cupboards and other space considerations for fridges.

13 - Episode 49: Kitchen Design Essentials – Butler's Pantries and Pantries

This episode talked about Butler's pantries and pantries and the difference between the two. She also debunked the concept that pantries are critical in every home  and presented other options such as appliance cupboards, step-in pantries and pantry drawer systems

14 - Episode 51: Kitchen Design Essentials- Kitchen Taps and Sinks

In this episode, Frances and her podcast guest Trisha Narde from Reece Bathrooms talked about kitchen taps and sinks. They discussed the different types of sinks and taps available and buying considerations for both.  What makes a good quality tap and sink?  What makes a cost-effective tap and what are some of the issues that pose?

And if you planning to incorporate Billy and Zip taps in your kitchen, don't miss this episode as Frances and Trisha gave an in-depth review about it. Lastly, they talked about the very controversial black tap and black sink.  Should you or shouldn't you?

15 - Episode 53: Kitchen Design Essentials – Appliances - Part 1

We featured another guest in this episode- Rob Sinclair, the managing director of e&s Trading. This episode focused on fridge, dishwasher, oven or steam ovens, the buying criteria for each and great brands to look out for. He also suggested that when choosing appliances, it's important to assess your needs, lifestyle and cooking requirement.

Rob and Frances also talked about integrated, semi and freestanding options for your appliances.

16 – Episode 54: Kitchen Design Essentials – Appliances Part 2

Part 2 of the Appliances Episode with Rob Sinclair talked about stove tops and rangehoods- the best range hood and why it's worth spending the extra money. Other appliances like built-in coffee machines were also discussed in the episode. Rob also shared the latest kitchen appliances to look out for

17 - Episode 55: Kitchen Design Essentials- Handles and Hardware

Frances talked about how handles and hardware affects your kitchen's design and functionality.  She also talked about the advantages and disadvantages of handles and knobs, material considerations such as shapes, sizes and types (leather, timber, metal finishes).  Lastly, she touched on the different types of cabinetry internal hardware like runners and other proprietary systems.

18 - Episode 57: Kitchen Design Essentials – How to Choose Kitchen Colours

In this episode of the Kitchen Design Essentials Season, Frances chats through how to choose colours for your kitchen. When choosing for your colour scheme, floors would be a good starting point, as well as your leading material (I.e splashback). Most importantly, Frances said that continuity and flow is essential in your design, so make sure that you are using the same tones, whether they are cool or warm colours throughout the home

19 - Episode 59: Kitchen Design Essentials – Kitchen Lighting

Frances ran through the different types of kitchen lighting- task, ambient and decorative lighting and how you can incorporate all of it into your kitchen. She also opposed only using downlights in the kitchen and suggested different combinations of light sources to be able to dial your lighting up or down accordingly.

20 – Episode 61: Kitchen Design Essentials – Budgeting

Frances walked us through creating budgets. She outlined what needs to be considered and items that should go into it. She also ran through what you can expect to be able to do at certain budget levels ($5,000 vs $20,000 vs $40,000 vs $80,000 budget). And once again, she put emphasis on undercapitalising being an issue when  not using the space to its optimum

21- Episode 62: Kitchen Design Essentials – Outdoor Kitchens

The final episode of the season talked about the growing popularity of Outdoor Kitchen.   She ran through the different types of suitable materials and options Lastly, she talked about the location for your outdoor kitchen- separate to the house or added as an extension to your home.

Services Available:

Beautiful Kitchen Design Made Easy Course

Access the 'Beautiful Kitchen Design Made Easy' Course for only $99. It has over 21 lessons and transcripts from the Kitchen Design Essential Podcast and professionally designed downloadable resources including Top 12 Must-Do's Planner, All-In Appliances Checklist, Clear Clarity Design Worksheet, All-Inclusive Kitchen Materials and Fittings Template (including WIP) and Kitchen Budget Template.

This simple to follow short course will leave you feeling confident that you have information at hand to help you navigate your own kitchen design with ease. Click here if you are ready to build your beautiful kitchen.

Online course - $99 with over 21 lessons and transcripts from podcast, PLUS downloadable resources.

Top 5 Tips for Designing your Forever Home Webinar

Obtain key information to prepare you for your Forever Home with the 'Top 5 Tips for Designing your Forever Home' Webinar on 26th November 2020 at 7:00pm (AEDT)via zoom.

In this webinar, we will cover the following topics- Assessing for floorplan flexibility, How to get your kitchen design right, Why internal elevations are critical, How to create zones in the home and Creating different lighting options. Sign up now!

Book A Chat

Ready to renovate or create your kitchen but not sure where to start?

Get the help of a property expert and save yourself from making costly mistakes with a free Forever Home chat. Click here to get access to Frances' calendar;

Kitchen Bliss Package

Overwhelmed by the amount of decisions that need to be made when creating a stylish, functional and durable kitchen? What materials to select, what colours will co-ordinate together, what design is going to best suit the space, and your requirements.

We offer kitchen design packages that include joinery design and material selections for a complete kitchen design. Click the link here to find more.

Thank you so much for listening to Kitchen Design Essentials Series. We are working hard to provide you high-quality contents and your review could greatly help us to continue doing so.

We appreciate you taking out the time to help us improve our podcast!

In this episode of the podcast, as part of the Kitchen Design Essentials Season, Frances outlines considerations for an outdoor kitchen. She emphasises the need to plan it upfront as it may impact internal kitchen decisions. She runs through suitable materials, and those that are not suitable for outdoors, and options with regards to necessities for the outdoor kitchen space.

SHOWNOTES:  

Our warm climate in Australia, and the tradition of entertaining friends and family at home are two major reasons why Outdoor Kitchens are becoming increasingly popular. When completing a renovation or new build, we should consider the natural flow between indoors and outdoors, and how those spaces need to work together.  Which is where thinking about outdoor cooking requirements as part of your outdoor entertaining space needs to be factored in. 

Requirements and Design for an Outdoor kitchen 

• Think about your needs 
  • How do you entertain outside? 
  • What are the things that you would like to have in your outdoor kitchen? 
  • What do you need access to outside? 
  • Amenities that are going to make your life easier when entertaining outside. 
  • Space perspective vs Budget perspective 
• What do you need outside? Start with what is critical for the space (must have Vs nice to have) 

• • Smoker,  
  • BBQ  
  • Teppanyaki grill 
  • Spit roast 
  • Running water 
  • Fridge 
  • Drawers and cabinetry for cutlery and crockery 
  • Hotplate 
  • Pizza oven 
  • Sink for running water & cleaning up as you go 

•  
• You may not need everything! Every component will add to the cost. 
• Think about the space, as it is premium. What is going to add the most value to the space (not capitalisation value but lifestyle value)? 
• It is best to purchase items that you are going to have in your outdoor kitchen prior to it being designed so it's designed around your appliances 
• Also consider that things will get dirty easily outside – even if under cover - rain, dust and wind . 
• Location - It can either be a continuation of your indoor kitchen or a separate area in the garden. 
  • Consider flow of materials to create flow and continuity is continuation of indoor kitchen 
  • Located separately from the home can create more flexibility with material choices  
  • If under cover may need an exhaust fan or have more open where cooking is. 
    • Think about smoke, marking ceiling etc. 
• You may need to consider having a separate firewall to meet safety regulations 
• Get someone to help with the design so it's maximising the space for what you need. 

Materials 

• Check with your local state regulations about materials  
• Benchtops – not all materials are equal 
• Reconstituted stone is not suitable for outdoors. The warranty will be voided if you're using materials that are not allowed outside.   
• Other options;  
  • Dekton 
  • Natural Stone 
  • Concrete 
  • Porcelain 
  • Marine grade Stainless steel 
  • Terrazzo 
• Cabinetry – standard cabinetry materials is not suitable for outside. 
  • You cannot use standard laminate or melamine 
  • Look at Marine grade ply, other natural timbers – be mindful they will weather 
    • Solid timber cabinetry 
    • Compact laminate- block colours or timber look 
    • Stainless steel 
• If you can't have a complete custom-made outdoor kitchen, you can buy complete 'outdoor kitchens' from BBQ suppliers. These may not fit the space perfectly, and there may be compromises, but may end up more cost effective. 

Available Services; 

Beautiful Kitchen Design Made Easy Online Course 

Ready to design and create your own beautiful kitchen? Get all the interior designer insider knowledge in this online course to create your dream kitchen. Find out more and join here  

Book A Chat 

Ready to renovate or create your kitchen but not sure where to start? 

Get the help of a property expert and save yourself from making costly mistakes with a free Forever Home chat. Click here to get access to Frances' calendar;  

Kitchen Bliss Package 

Overwhelmed by the amount of decisions that need to be made when creating a stylish, functional and durable kitchen? What materials to select, what colours will co-ordinate together, what design is going to best suit the space, and your requirements. 

We offer kitchen design packages that include joinery design and material selections for a complete kitchen design. Click the link here to find more: 

Related Resources: 

Why Internal Elevations are Critical for your Home 

Kitchen Design to Match your Lifestyle 

Episode 61: Kitchen Design Essentials – Budgeting 

Episode 59: Kitchen Design Essentials – Kitchen Lighting 

Episode 57: Kitchen Design Essentials – How to Choose Kitchen Colours 

Episode 55: Kitchen Design Essentials: Handles and Hardware  

Episode 54: Kitchen Design Essentials- Appliances Part 2 

Episode 53: Kitchen Design Essentials – Appliances - Part 1 

Episode 51: Kitchen Design Essentials- Kitchen Taps and Sinks 

Episode 50: Kitchen Design Essentials- Kitchen Taps and Sinks 

Episode 49: Kitchen Design Essentials – Butler's Pantries and Pantries 

Episode 47: Kitchen Design Essentials – Key Kitchen Measurements  

Episode 45: Kitchen Design Essentials - Internal Elevations & Joinery Design 

Read our latest blog on Internal Elevations and Joinery Design here;  

Episode 43: Kitchen Design Essentials – Flatpack Vs Custom Designed Kitchens  

Episode 39: Kitchen Design Essentials – Splashbacks  

Episode 38: Kitchen Design Essentials-Benchtop Criteria and Materials – Part 2-  

Episode 36: Kitchen Design Essentials – Benchtops part 1  

Episode 14: Forever Home LIVE- Joinery Drawings and Why Do Them Early On- 

Episode 30: Kitchen Design Essentials -Kitchen Design Layouts and Location-  

Episode 32: Kitchen Design Essentials – The Builder's Insight  

How to Choose the Right Bench Top-  

Top 5 tips for selecting benchtops-  

In this episode of Your Forever Home, as part of the Kitchen Design Essentials Season, Frances walks through what needs to be considered when planning the budget for your kitchen, including items that are often forgotten. She also runs through what you can expect to be able to do at certain budget levels.

 SHOWNOTES:

Determine your goals and objectives when creating your kitchen.

• Are you doing a makeover, some basic cosmetic changes to freshen it up?
• Is it going to be a renovation?
• Basic Renovation- replacing what's already there and not changing the actual layout
• Full Rip out- Changing the layout, creating a different space.
• Brand new kitchen

• Kitchen to flip- short term fix
• Forever Home Mindset- a kitchen that would last for 10+ years

In doing so:

• You will be able to work out on a realistic budget.
• You will be able to identify what you need to invest for the best outcome.
• It will guide you on choosing the type of materials, finishes appliances that sit within your budget.

The kitchen is one the most important spaces in a home, so compromising elsewhere could be well worth it.

• If part of the bigger project, some areas can be delayed allowing you to allocate more on the kitchen..
• For instance, delay builtin cabinetry or an ensuite renovation.
• It may be worth waiting a little to get it right because it is such an important space.

Not utilising the space in the best way possible- In the Episode of Kitchen Design Essentials- Builder's Insight, Jeremy from Gaia Constructions highlighted one of the biggest mistakes homeowners make when creating a new kitchen.

• Engaging with experts (eg, interior designer, engineer) will save you money and minimise regrets that you are going to have.
  • Compromising on design as you don't want to spend getting the design drawings done is a compromise on the space- cabinetry to fit a space rather than it being properly designed.

• We were able to achieve things for clients what they never thought possible - Walk in pantries, appliance cupboards, servery windows – all because we have a different expert eye that can see things you may not. It's what we're trained to do. It's what you pay us for.

How to set your budget

• What do you need to spend your money on?
• • Design and consultants
  • • Interior Designer- Elevations and layouts
    • Engineers- Removing walls

• Products & materials

• Demolition Cost – If you are not doing it yourself.
• Rubbish removal
• Lighting designer
• Different tradespeople (if managing yourself)
• Freight- getting resources and materials from different locations

Other costs to consider;-

• Plumber
• Electrician
• Tiler
• Plasterer
• Painting
• Flooring
• Handles
• Caulking
• Sealing
• Opportunity cost- taking the time off work to manage all the trades, which means you need to consider;
  • Insurance
  • Warranty on workmanship
  • Your skillset and confidence to manage all grey areas that may come up when a builder is not involved.

How much do you want to spend?

• If part of a larger home, you may want to get advice on where to spend and where to save.
• Are there materials that you can re-use or upcycle?
• Are there any things that you can do yourself, without compromising the outcome? I.e Painting – be mindful of building regulation for complicated tasks.

What budget can you afford?

• Validate what you can afford with the real costs, so you can determine what you can feasibly achieve.
• Allocate 15% for contingency
  • Particularly relevant for renovations – come up against unknowns.

Let's talk figures – what can you do – indications only (2020)

• These estimations will depend on the finishes, extent of cabinetry, benchtops, and WIP.
• Remember that one material/ fitting maybe important than the other, so this is not saying you can't have it! Compromise may be required.

In this Forever Home Live Frances highlights the need to understand the various aspects of stairs before making a decision to have carpet, timber or concrete. The aesthetic is often the leading reason for people to choose their stair type without taking into consideration noise, budget, slip resistance and storage requirements, which are the areas Frances chats through in this episode.

In this Kitchen Design Essentials episode Frances runs through the critical element of lighting in your kitchen. She discusses the need for task, ambient and decorative lighting for different scenarios, particularly for kitchens in an open plan space. She also discusses the many different alternatives available to using downlights, and why it's important to use a combination of light sources.

SHOWNOTES:

Lighting affects your mood and your ability to work in a space. It is a key component to the overall functionality of your kitchen.

Provides specific and increased light to accomplish specific task (E.g reading, working, or cooking). Task lighting is critical in the kitchen, as it is in a bathroom. Proper task lighting enables work surfaces to be illuminated such as island benches, under overhead cupboards, and corners.

• A good artificial light is required regardless of what natural light is available
• Natural Lighting – Nothing beats good natural light How much natural light you have depends on orientation of the kitchen and the kitchen location in the home.
• Skylights- Can be openable which allows hot air to be released. Ambient/Mood Lighting

Kitchens are often placed in an open plan area where it's open to lounge and dining. To avoid only having task lighting, ambient lighting is needed to create mood and atmosphere in the whole open plan space, including your kitchen.

• Dimmers- an important way to create ambient lighting
• Downlights- Choose a downlight that is good quality
  • LED
  • Has broad beam which reach more space

• Decorative lighting plays a big part of interior design Pendant lights- serves as a decorative element but can also be used as an ambient light.
• If selected well, and is over an Island bench it will function as task lighting, ambient and decorative lighting.
• Allows for soft lighting to be used in the overall open plan
• If you want your pendant lights to provide task lighting over the bench, need to consider the light illuminated from the fitting.
• Need a number of pendants to match the size of the bench. Scale is important.
• Pendant lights allow you to add your personality into the kitchen but make sure that it coordinated back to the cabinetry material.

Have a combination of task lighting, ambient/mood lighting, and decorative lighting so you have the ability to dial your lighting up or down as required.

Directional spots

• Sit in the ceiling just like a downlight
• Can move around so you can get light exactly where you need it.

Track Lighting

• Can be mounted on the ceiling and offers multiple lights from one track
• You can point them where you need them to be.

LED Strip Lighting – multiple types

• Strip under the front of the island bench for ambient/decorative effect.
• Under the overhead cabinetry to illuminate bench under the overhead cupboards.
• On the top of the overhead cabinetry pointing up to the ceiling to reflect light off the ceiling.

Uplights

• Provides excellent task lighting, good ambient lighting and is also  
• Available in different styles
• Ideal for homes with high ceilings

Wall Washes

• Installed in the ceiling like a downlight
• Points to the wall and bounces light off the wall.
• Beautiful for highlighting artwork.

Cove lighting

• Sits above the overhead cabinetry.
• It creates a strip of light that pushes lights down into space. It can be built into the bulkhead.

Under cabinetry lighting

• Instead of strip LED, you may want to consider smaller lights (i.e circular or square) that sits in the overhead cabinetry.

Light from your rangehood

• A good light source
• Illuminate your stovetop

It is worth investing in getting your lighting design for your kitchen (or your whole house). Engage either a lighting designer or an interior designer that is able to do a lighting plan for you. It is only when you live with poor lighting, that you understand the value of having really good light and the impact on how it makes you work and feel in space

Available Services;

Beautiful Kitchen Design Made Easy Online Course

Ready to design and create your own beautiful kitchen? Get all the interior designer insider knowledge in this online course to create your dream kitchen. Find out more and join here 

Book A Chat

Ready to renovate or create your kitchen but not sure where to start?

Get the help of a property expert and save yourself from making costly mistakes with a free Forever Home chat. Click here to get access to Frances' calendar; 

Kitchen Bliss Package

Overwhelmed by the amount of decisions that need to be made when creating a stylish, functional and durable kitchen? What materials to select, what colours will co-ordinate together, what design is going to best suit the space, and your requirements.

We offer kitchen design packages that include joinery design and material selections for a complete kitchen design. Click the link here to find more:

Related Resources:

Why Internal Elevations are Critical for your Home

Kitchen Design to Match your Lifestyle

Episode 55: Kitchen Design Essentials: Handles and Hardware 

Episode 54: Kitchen Design Essentials- Appliances Part 2

Episode 53: Kitchen Design Essentials – Appliances - Part 1

Episode 51: Kitchen Design Essentials- Kitchen Taps and Sinks

Episode 50: Kitchen Design Essentials- Kitchen Taps and Sinks

Episode 49: Kitchen Design Essentials – Butler's Pantries and Pantries

Episode 47: Kitchen Design Essentials – Key Kitchen Measurements 

Episode 45: Kitchen Design Essentials - Internal Elevations & Joinery Design

Read our latest blog on Internal Elevations and Joinery Design here; 

Episode 43: Kitchen Design Essentials – Flatpack Vs Custom Designed Kitchens 

Episode 39: Kitchen Design Essentials – Splashbacks 

Episode 38: Kitchen Design Essentials-Benchtop Criteria and Materials – Part 2- 

Episode 36: Kitchen Design Essentials – Benchtops part 1 

Episode 14: Forever Home LIVE- Joinery Drawings and Why Do Them Early On-

Episode 30: Kitchen Design Essentials -Kitchen Design Layouts and Location- 

Episode 32: Kitchen Design Essentials – The Builder's Insight 

How to Choose the Right Bench Top- 

Top 5 tips for selecting benchtops- 

In this Forever Home Live, Frances chats about things you can do to ensure an all-white kitchen is not clinical and soulless, with a few ideas about material selections and also decorating tips to add pops of colour.