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Great design that goes alongside sensible cost can often be ALL IN YOUR DRAWERS! This may sound crazy but here's why.......

Traditional kitchen design placed a drawer at the top of every cupboard in your kitchen but more contemporary design tends to favour putting all drawers into one unit and keeping the rest of the cupboards at full height. An even more recent trend which has come into play more and more over the last decade is doing away with cupboards as much as possible and replacing them with sets of drawers as long as the space will allow for.

In terms of which look you prefer this is very much a personal choice and if you are looking to create a specific style then it is very possible that one way will lend itself far better to that than the other to your design but are there any major cost implications to doing either?

It is definitely safe to say that doing a kitchen that has all cupboards and one set of drawers is the most cost effective way. This is because cupboards require a cabinet, a door and 2 hinges whereas drawers require a cabinet, 3-4 drawer fronts, runners, drawer bottoms, drawer backs and drawer sides. Wherever there is more hardware there is more cost is the simplest way of looking at it.

This means that it you do want a kitchen that is all drawers but staying within budget it is a good idea to make the sets of drawers as wide as possible so fewer sets are needed to complete the design. At least then you may have spent more than on cupboards but you will have very useful, functional storage that is very contemporary in its styling.

Once you have considered these points it is easier to see why the traditional way of putting a drawer above every cupboard is something we are doing less and less. It escalates the cost as every cabinet must have a door and its hinges but also a drawer front, runners, drawer bottom, back and side. You also lose precious space wherever the drawer isn't a functional one ie. Under the sink unit so are ultimately paying more money for a less functional less modern kitchen. I would advise only doing this if it is needed to create a specific look or if it just happens to be your ultimate preference and paying the difference is worth it to you.