Piers Taylor and finsahomeFinsa Home were among those at the ‘Doing More With Less’ seminar with award-winning RIBA architect and co-presenter of hit BBC2 series The House that £100k Built, Piers Taylor, held at the recent Interiors UK Exhibition.

Taylor went through all the principles regarding efficient new building on a limited budget and kitchens were high on his list of priorities.

When designing his £100,000 homes, Taylor explained that he usually spends between £1,000 and £2,500 on a new kitchen. But using on-site building materials can save you a fortune, according to Taylor – rivalling similar designs costing anything up to £10,000.

As well as building specifications, Taylor looked at decorative techniques and materials that can improve your home without breaking the bank. Materials such as exposed plaster plywood are solutions that he incorporates into his designs – delivering important savings when it comes to jobs like painting and wall covering.

Sourcing local materials is something that more and more people are now becoming passionate about and Taylor is no exception. He believes this is a great way to make important savings. Untreated timber from local forests, for example, is normally a very cost effective solution for use in the home and can look just as good when finished.

And when it comes to the exterior of your home, cheap cladding solutions will give a quick and affordable solution when it comes to transforming all those ugly facades, particularly on some of those unattractive 1960s and 1970s buildings.

Away from Taylor’s seminar, our highlight was the Birmingham City University’s Trends Exhibition.

Remember, the Finsa Home kitchen range starts at £800 for a typical 9 unit kitchen (excluding appliances).

So think how far a £2,500 budget would go at Finsa Home when it comes to shopping for your new dream kitchen – even after allowing for your new appliances fitter costs.