An independent kitchen designer, and the trusted hands behind your kitchen.
I am an independent kitchen designer in the Bay of Plenty, and that word, independent, matters more than it first sounds. I am not tied to one manufacturer’s range or a single showroom’s catalogue. The kitchen I design is selected from across the whole market, for your home, rather than fitted to whatever a supplier needs to sell. The making, the surfaces, the appliances and the fitting are handled by a network of trades and suppliers I have worked with for years, and the whole of it is held by a single hand, from the first conversation to the final detail.
Why independence matters for your kitchen.
A showroom or manufacturer starts with its own product range and fits you to it. That is a sensible way to sell a product, and a poor way to design a home. Because I am not selling a range, I have no reason to steer you toward one brand of cabinetry or one benchtop. I specify what genuinely suits how you live, your home and your budget, drawn from across the market. The decision is made on your behalf, not the supplier’s. It is one of the quieter reasons a considered kitchen still works in ten years, while a configured one can begin to show its compromises.
One designer, a whole trade network.
Because I am not tied to a single manufacturer, I place each part of your kitchen with the maker best suited to it, drawn from trade relationships built over years. The cabinetry, the surfaces, the appliances and the hardware are sourced across the market, not from one supplier's range. How the design, the procurement and the project management fit together is set out in full on the services page. Here, what matters is the independence sitting behind all of it: every choice is made for your home, not for a catalogue.
The trades and makers behind the work.
I design and procure. I do not manufacture or fit on the tools, and that is deliberate. It keeps me independent of any one workshop and free to place your kitchen with the maker best suited to it. The people who build, finish and fit it are specialists I trust and coordinate closely, so a boutique studio delivers work to a standard well beyond its size.
TRUSTED MAKERS AND SUPPLIERS
Cabinetry and joinery.
Your cabinetry is built by trusted joinery makers I have worked alongside for years. The relationship, and the trade access that comes with it, is part of what you engage me for: work made to a standard, placed with the maker best suited to your kitchen, and coordinated so you never have to manage it yourself.
Cabinetry surfaces and finishes.
The cabinetry is finished in surfaces chosen for how they wear and feel in daily use. I specify from ranges such as Laminex and NZ Panels Group, selected for the door, panel and surface finishes that suit your kitchen and the way you live in it.
Benchtops.
For benchtops I draw on engineered and sintered surfaces such as Dekton or Laminam, matched to how you cook and to the character of the design: hard-wearing where it counts, considered in colour and texture.
Appliances.
The appliances are specified to suit how you cook and how the kitchen is used, drawn from reputable brands rather than a single supplier’s range. Where a particular appliance is right for your kitchen, that is the reason it is chosen.
Hardware.
The mechanisms you reach for every day, the drawers, hinges and soft-close runners, are built with trusted hardware systems including Blum, Hettich and FIT, so the kitchen moves quietly and lasts.
Finishes: paint, flooring and window furnishings.
Where the kitchen meets the rest of the room, I also guide the finishes that make it cohesive: cabinetry, materials, paint, flooring and window furnishings, extending into the scullery or laundry wherever the joinery runs.
One hand on the whole of it.
A kitchen draws on more trades than most people expect: the joiner, the surface and benchtop suppliers, the appliance and hardware agents, the painter, the flooring, and your builder. When one person coordinates them, and has held the design from the first conversation, the gaps between trades close, and the decisions that fall between them are made with the whole kitchen in mind. That coordination is quiet, and it is much of what protects your investment: less missed, less reworked, and a kitchen resolved as one piece rather than assembled from parts.
For builders, designers and trade partners.
If you build or design homes in the Bay of Plenty and want a kitchen designer who works to the home itself, the light and the flow, and holds her own detail, I would like to hear from you. I work alongside builders and their trades regularly, and I am glad to be the kitchen and interior specialist on projects where that matters. The studio is deliberately small, so the projects I take on are chosen with care, and the working relationship is direct.
Kate Blakeborough, CKDNZ. The considered hand behind every Design Suite kitchen.
Common Questions.
Do you make and install the kitchens yourself?
No. I design and procure your kitchen, then place the making, finishing and fitting with trusted specialists I coordinate closely. Staying independent of any one workshop is what lets me choose the maker best suited to your kitchen, rather than the one a showroom happens to own.
Are you tied to particular brands or suppliers?
No. I am independent, so I specify what suits your home and brief from across the market rather than from one catalogue. If a particular product is right for your kitchen, that is the reason it is chosen.
Do you work with my builder?
Yes. I design to your home and coordinate with your builder and the other trades, so the kitchen integrates with the wider renovation rather than sitting apart from it. If you do not have a builder yet, I can point you toward ones I trust.
Who orders and manages everything?
I do. Procurement is part of the service. I source and order the cabinetry, surfaces, appliances and hardware, and coordinate the timing, so you are not chasing suppliers or holding the detail yourself.
What if I already have an appliance or material I love?
Bring it. Independence works both ways. If there is a piece you already have, or have your heart set on, the design is built to suit it rather than around a range that will not allow for it.
Begin a Design Conversation.
Whether you are planning a kitchen for your own home, or you build and design homes and are looking for a kitchen designer to work alongside, the first step is the same: a conversation. There is no pressure in it. We talk through what you are hoping to achieve, and whether a considered, design-led approach is the right fit.