Hi Louie, Generally speaking, if I'm designing a kitchen for clients, I ask them to choose the appliances first. That way, one can design the kitchen accordingly so that it's designed specifically for what they want. However, obviously, that is not always possible and one has to work with what's there. I'm not sure what your situation is. As your wall on one side is 700, I'd bring everything forward on the other side, so that it's equal. The fridge handle may protrude a little (you'll probably need some clearance at the back for air circulation) but it shouldn't be too bad. See if you can locate the powerpoint for fridge in the cabinet above the fridge, which will mean you can turn it on/off without having to move it. I'd bring the face of that upper cabinet in line with the 700 wall and oven tower. There would be a gap behind the overhead fridge cabinet for the power to come up and into. The other thing I'd say is that you may not need skirting inside fridge cavity.

Just love our ice makes in the fridges we own. Have a Kelvinator about 15 year old and is bit tired. Just put a Samsung in our holiday house and love it. Wouldn't buy one of their phones but fridge is great for the price. Having ice and cold filtered water available all the time is one of life's little luxuries. Definitely not a wast of money.

Refer to your fridge specs before you close anything in. Fair Trading laws in this country have obsoleted warranties. There is now a sliding scale of reasonable expectation on consumer items which means manufacturers will rely on their tech specs more than ever. Check what minimum clearance your fridge officially needs on the sides and above the machine for ventilation before doing anything. Get your lighting working for you. Choose a 'warm white' lamp - not daylight or cool white. Cool whites kill off the warmer hues and makes things appear cold. Change, add or move your lighting to have two small gimbled ceiling lights wash down the face of the joinery instead of one bright light focussed on the fridge. Lighting can make a poor space look great or a great space look poor.

Hi Kathleen, Austere Hamlet’s comment about builders is poignant. We discovered that when a builder says, “it can’t be done”, it can be code for: • I don’t want to do it your way. Right through to, I don‘t intend on being flexible so tough luck about getting what you want in your house. • I only quoted the cheap way of doing it; variations are a nuisance. Like it or lump it. • My skills only extend to super simple solutions (but I’m not going to admit that to you). • I‘m under the pump. If I do want you want, it’ll blow my schedule (or profit). After you’ve spent heaps of money and endured the whole build, do you want to risk thinking, “I wish we’d known we could have done ‘X‘ differently”, every time you walk in the room? In your case, it’ll be every time you need that extra bench space. A good builder will give advice that helps, not hinders functionality. I’m not saying yours is bad, but they do lean towards simple and cheap solutions rather than best design for you. But their advice can only extend so far. Kitchen design is about details. Builders do the big stuff. Think of a painter. They can paint your house, but would you ask them to paint an artwork for your living room? All the very best with your project. :-)