Would you check out my kitchen layout please?

flea72

oh and move the base units you have on the cookerwall to the other end of the run, with all the tall units starting next to the door and running towards the dining end(?)

F

jillymit

I'm not an expert but did design my own kitchen layout with some success.
With the benefit of hindsight I would have thought more about food preparation areas and I didn't quite have enough room (I'm a really messy cook) so we put a breakfast bar in at a later date which is where everything gets done now.

I also have the cutlery draws just below the hob which can be a pain if someone else is laying the table while you are trying to cook. I haven't resolved this 'problem' which my husband thinks is really funny but really bugs me!
I would see if you can get a 3D image of it done as this really helped me to 'see' what the end result would look like and how it might be to use the space.
http://www.magnet.co.uk/design-your-kitchen/
HTH.

Gentleness

Flea - those are the deepest drawers Ikea do! On the window wall they're going to be used for pans and crockery etc, with cutlery and utensils in the shallow top drawer. The 5drawer unit I'm not sure about. It is for teatowels, baking and cake decorating bits, small electric gadgets and so on...

What about safety with the oven? Never had a built in one before but I thought having worktop right beside it would be safest, and not having it near a doorway.

Jillymit - yes to lots of food prep space. I've never had that before and crave it. That's why we did sort-of zones - a drink making space, chopping space, mail-sort space (we don't have another room it could go in) and a baking space. Each zone gives me more worktop space than I get to use at the moment! But maybe I'm being overly attached to that idea... I wondered if one long run would end up getting cluttered. I'm not a naturally tidy person!

Doozergirl

A mail sort space? That's hardly going to keep it tidy! You need to think of a solution to that - I'd suggest a basket of some sort that you can put into a cupboard; it's not proper planning when you're planning a worktop to put mail mess on!

I'm surprised that none of the kitchen designers could add much to what you have - if I'm completely honest, in terms of trying to make it aesthetically pleasing and functional at the same time, you're falling over. It's a huge investment, you are spending an absolute fortune on that number of cupboards and you need symmetry in some degree to give you a stylish look that reflects your investment! I'd ask someone to start from scratch for you to give you a different perspective - take a list of everything you want from your kitchen and remember that bigger units are cheaper - if Ikea don't do big units then I'd suggest that you're practising false economy and that you could could get a cheaper and neater idea elsewhere.

It looks like you have space for some sort of peninsula rather than a complete galley - which would give you extra workspace lost by using larder units which also provide more storage for less money? I would go as far as installing an entire wall of larder units in your dining area to hide everything - it keeps the whole place streamlined and uniform and if you are not a tidy person then having concealed storage is a god send.

I really don't understand why item 14 is a completely different height and depth to everything else?

flea72

Gentleness wrote: »

Flea - those are the deepest drawers Ikea do!

Never had a built in one before but I thought having worktop right beside it would be safest, and not having it near a doorway.

Jillymit - yes to lots of food prep space. I've never had that before and crave it. That's why we did sort-of zones - a drink making space, chopping space, mail-sort space (we don't have another room it could go in) and a baking space. Each zone gives me more worktop space than I get to use at the moment! But maybe I'm being overly attached to that idea... I wondered if one long run would end up getting cluttered. I'm not a naturally tidy person!

its more the fact you have gone for 3 drawers to a unit. most people would only go for a two drawer unit, as the narrow one at the top is such a waste of space. Ikea do make 2 drawer units, so maybe look at those

as for not having an oven next to a door, in your original plan you have it next to the walkway through to the dining area, is that any different to having it next to the door. however, my idea was to site the oven centrally along that wall, within a bank of units that go floor to ceiling along the whole length. or go for a low level oven under the hob

if you arent the most tidy of people, i tend to find the more worktop space you have, the more cluttered it gets, and having small sections here and there rather than one long run, means every section of it gets covered in everyday junk

is it common for there to be lots of you in the kitchen at once, that requires a drinks prep area, a mail sorting area, etc? why cant people make drink at the sink/table . to keep the streamlined look, you could have a prep area behind the cupboard doors, or maybe have a butchers block trolley that you could put along the 'cookerwall' instead of the standalone double base unit. that way it has a home, but you can wheel it out and use it where needed

F

Meepster

Ok, my honest opinion:

Window wall
- wall units look unbalanced by having units virtually up to the window on one side and nothing at all on the other. If you aren't planning on having wall unit next to chimney hood, then have one less wall unit so you have a bigger gap next to the window
- I agree with the comments about the drawer packs, I'd be looking at making them 2 drawers, not 3 (oh and make sure the one under the sink is a SINK drawer pack, not a normal one, otherwise it's a waste of time)

Cooker wall
- I'd put all the tall units/appliances in one bank together, not split up as they now. This will give you a much more streamlined look. This doesn't have to be at the end though, you could quite easily put the bank in the middle, and have worktops either side
- it looks too much having the wall units on top of the other wall units and appliances housings and besides, the storage space will be impactical to use. If you need more storage, then use a couple of larder units in there instead

Gentleness

Thanks all - useful feedback!

I think tbh I've planned for use rather than looks! And my style tends to be more eclectic than symmetrical anyway. But you're right, I need to rethink a bit tho there are some things I'm stuck with...

The mail sorting area is a hanging system, with the files nearby - so it won't (haha) be a dumping ground. No idea why #14 shows up to be a diff depth (it is same as #13), but it is a bit taller than standard so the surface is writing height.

The zone thing is to solve the current biggest gripe we have - dh can't make drinks or wash-up at the same time as me cooking or baking or vv. It is at least 3 times daily that we irritate each other this way!

Of the 3 wall cupboards on the window wall, one is the boiler so stuck with that, and I need 1 for cups/mugs/tea/coffee and 1 for glasses. Not sure where else they could go and I can live with it looking a bit unbalanced for that reason. Maybe changing those doors back to glass would work better visually. And there will be things hanging on the walls to balance it up too.

Ok - talk to me about how an oven works in the middle of a bank of tall units! I've seen lots of pics in mags or examples in showrooms, but I can't get my head around it - I tend to get stuff out of the oven and put it down immediately beside the oven. Does it not get irritating to have to take it right across the kitchen? Do you get used to it for other reasons or does it work much better than I am imagining?

And those talking about larder banks or peninsulas - how would you configure it to still keep at least as much workspace. I love the idea of a wall of floor to ceiling larder units (like a National Trust kitchen!) but had to compromise because I wanted more food prep space and couldn't see working within open doors being that handy.

Flea - I have scoured the Ikea site & catalogue for 2 drawer units and just can't find any. If you know where they are, could you post a link please? Thanks!

Doozer - of the 5 quotes we had for similar designs but using bigger cupboards where possible, Ikea came in so much less and included more drawers. And I don't really want 30cm deep wall units unless they are SO much cheaper I can't justify swapping.

1984ReturnsForReal_2

I would take the unit away from right next to the window & either add it somewhere else or get rid altogether.


You will regret it. Its right over the drain board & stops light.

andrew-b

I'd get rid of the wall units on the window wall too. Forget about putting the boiler in a unit ...not all boilers are the same sizes and so might not fit plus it's added expense. Our boiler is in the kitchen and isn't in a cupboard and really doesn't bother us being on display but we did box the pipework in.
In our house cleaning products get stored under the kitchen sink so i'd want that base unit to not be drawers then you don't waste the space that the sink waste trap will go into. Where you have units with doors I would suggest having Drawerline base units down that side with a false drawer front under the sink..that would then make the drawer units blend in better.

On the other side...well yuk..sorry but i hate it..it looks overly complicated with 3 different height levels involved and if i moved into a house with a kitchen looking like that i'd rip it out regardless of whether it had just been refitted! The top units just don't work and likely mean you won't have much height between worktop and wall unit.

As a suggestion, you could build a floor-to-ceiling cupboard (partition wall, plasterboard and doors to match door to hall) in the corner around the boiler replacing units 22,23,5,6. Then keep the sink pretty much where it is with worktop either side (upto my new cupboard) but ditching unit #24..maybe move slightly towards dining area but still in front of window. You could even put the washing machine in there or just use it for junk storage and the kitchen mop, ironing board, vacuum cleaner etc. If you switched the hinge side of the hall door then you wouldn't be blocking out access to the opposite corner. I'd also have dishwasher under the drainer of the sink.

I would also want the oven and hob near each other rather than on opposite sides of the room . If your cooking a meal involving hob and oven cooking then you don't want to be to-ing and fro-ing back and forth across the room all the time.

Fridge/freezer and larder units i'd stick on an end rather than in a middle of a unit run.

Maybe if there is room have an island jutting out between kitchen/dining area from the window wall that could double as breakfast bar, drink making etc. Also a handy place for the toaster, kettle etc.

Think of the critical kitchen triangle...areas for storage, prep and cooking forming the points of a triangle.

Gentleness

just a super quick reply in between laundry and crying child - the kitchen is 2.85m high and the sink unit is a false door front pull out thing for waste/compost/recycling and cleaning products. might swop for double door unit same size but though it would look odd in the run of drawers... also kitchen is only 2.6 wide so island would be real squeeze...