I'm seriously considering these,
Global 3 Piece Anniversary Gift Set: Amazon.co.uk: Kitchen & Home
I have heard that Global are well known from snapping when dropped, which may not be covered under the warranty.
I've had global knives for over 15 years, dropped 100's of times and never had one snap.....
If you go for global, deffo pick up the mino sharpener, for fool proof sharpening !!
I use cheap Tesco copies of the Global style of knives.
To sharpen I use a ceramic sharpener, the rods are at a set angle, no way of getting the angle wrong. These have done me for a couple of years. Only sharpen them every month or so. just 5 to 10 passes through the sharpener is enough.
http://www.lifehacker.co.uk/2015/04/21/4-knives-youll-ever-actually-need
My parents bought my brother an i a set of knives with a fancy looking knife block, thats actually comprised of long rubbery strands inside a hollow square, the idea being, that as we worked on our own kitchen knife set, the block could accommodate a vast number of different configurations.
This way, when i get my setup correct for me, i won't have ungainly holes in my block, and i can be confident that they will all go.
just a thought
i saw one of those knife blocks with the rods at a trade stand, looked like a really clever idea.
i have to admit, its great in my opinion, since you never risk damaging the edges of the knife holes, and it doesn't look out of place when you have 3 knives or 7 in there (obviously it gets a bit more difficult the more steel you chuck in.)
And, as a versatile storage solution, it gets 3 thumbs up from me.
I bought a set of wusthof about 3 years ago. I remember the first time I used them to cut an onion and I am still impressed how sharp they are. Makes cooking more enjoyable. Expensive but they will last a long time if looked after. I have a chefs knive, carving knife, bread and 2 paring.
If a set is a bit much I would go for the chefs knive as I use that for about 90% of the time, and maybe one or two smaller knives.
Just seen that 3 piece set on amazon for £107, that is a real bargain, I would get that quick.
I've got a wooden knife block - put the knives in upside down data:image/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP///yH5BAEAAAAALAAAAAABAAEAAAIBRAA7