OMG Kitchen Design - I am going mad can anyone help!?

lostinrates

Ok, well, I too am opting for little work surface around my cooker. I have been lucky enough to have a sort of mock up of my kitchen using free standing units and its worked well for me, I find my island is really useful space.


What wouldn't work for me is the walk between him and oven. I think it depends what sort of cook you are and what sort of thing you cook and if you are a planner and simple cooker or a juggler.

I am a bit of a juggler, so often need to be by my hob and my grill all at the same time, monitoring everything and the run across would be a night mare for me at high pressure cooking situations!

Fwiw, I opted not to have sink by a window for the very reasons you want to have yours under a window. With a dishwasher i very rarely wash up in a serious manner, its quick turnarounds of things needed for jobs, rather than long gazing sessions. What I do spend long times doing is prep. My sink is going to be on my island. ( I currently don't have a sink in my mock up kitchen....,and yes its a strange on, buit my utility is next door and has a sink) so like the cooker, I think knowing HOW you use the kitchen is important. I don't stand and wash up in the kitchen often, and I REALLY hate reaching over sinks to clean windows! The view from the window is more valuable to me uncluttered so I can glance at it side ways from the hob for long stirring days preserve making for example. .

I think what I am trying to say is the key is how YOU use the kitchen not how we might. How many modern kitchen users have used it has changed dramatically.

Re storage. I am a rural dweller and a hoarder of stuff. I try to go to the supermarket as little as possible and my husband does at least one shop a year for me in Italy for stuff that we cannot get here. We sat and talked cooling and calmly and I decided I wanted to go RIGHT back. This is helped my the utility and planned clever use of storage and the fact that we have day to day table ware in the kitchen but dining rooms tuff in the dining room, so storage for that not deeded on the kitchen.

Its amazing how much fits in even my temporary arrangement and how much better used it is since I took this approach. I found it terrifying at first but its really working for me. None of mine are traditional units so I cannot equate it to the numbers given here, nor will they be when the kitchen is done.

While its certainly true there is often far too little storage its not true I think there is no such thing as too much. I have a lot less storage than kitchen designers were talking about yet I have many mod cons and can go over a month /six weeks without needing grocery items.

Re space round island, Our island forms a galley or l shape with our main cooking area ( we have a range style cooker) dividing from the living area of the room, which is the larger area, just. Our units ( currently a chest of drawers, a dishwasher and an alter ) are a dishwasher open door and a pace from the cooker. The gap at either end is however much narrower. ( at one end made so my the fridge )

We like this because while we were cautioned it was too wide a gap for comfort using the island as work space for cooker I do not find it so, particularly cooking with DH, Which we do most weekends.

The narrower gap at either end defines the cooking area, or as I think of it 'my zone'. Or the area people are not free to wander at whim when I am creating. If people are joining us for relaxed supper the 'island' keeps them politely out of my area. . More social cooks, those who like help washing up or stacking dishwashers would I think prefer a different arrangement.

andrewf75

We were trying to work out the minimum clearance around our proposed island recently and came to the conclusion that we wanted 1200mm

lostinrates

phoebe1989seb wrote: »

We also chose to have one bank of drawer units and wish now we'd done away with base cupboards altogether as drawers are far more practical (IMHO), but as we wanted to be sympathetic to the age/style of our Georgian house we felt it was more authentic to keep some traditional cupboard space

..

Just want to add:o. ( I spend a lot of time planning my dream kitchen!) there is are two independent kitchen makers in my locality making cupboard fronted looking drawers. If look more than 'authentic' cupboards and the function of drawer is important this sort of thing might be an option? We are going for something slightly different again because I have to plan for not always being fully mobile, my builder looked at me as if I was mad when it came to planning sockets, but I bet you my plans will be THE thing of the future! though my kitchen design won't look it

flea72

BlueC wrote: »

F is a right-hand hinged cupboard with pull-out wire racks (left hand access). G is a corner LeMans unit. U and S are wine racks! :beer:

Cupboard F door wont open wide enough for pull out racks if hinged on right. Add 165 hinges to left and you can open door fully for access

Or add a proper L shaped corner cupboard, with bi-fold door as this makes access to whole of corner cupboard easier. Pull out shelves (carousels) are complete waste of space. Just have shelves and use corner cupboard for things you dont use that often (serving dishes/food stockpile)

Having to move between island and hob, espec if moving hot pans is dangerous, when you have through traffic. From your plan you have loads of storage, so why are dressers/wall units necessary at all. Leave wall clear and have full run of worktops either side of hob

bizzylizzyh

We had a huge island, with dishwasher, in this house when we moved in - it was a wow factor, however unworkable for me as there was not enough clearance when the dishwasher door was down. Just made it so awkward to load & unload each time. Always had to unload onto worktop and then put away. Felt like we where doing it twice.
It was suggested to us to use shorter depth units to make Island slightly narrower. this may work for you. ie depth of wall units instead of base units.

Your small units F&D would it be more useful to have one large unit, instead of two small units & incorporate into a good accessible corner unit. As it is you may have dead space in the corner unit (G) you have planned. This would mean moving your sink unit slightly to the left but you should still be able to have sink under window.
My regret/overlook in our new kitchen is our one corner dead space, but we are limited as it does incorporate our twin deep sinks also.
As everyone is saying - you know how you work, and the kitchen should work for you, not for the kitchen designers!

Personally I would prefer the oven at L - this is nearer the window for air - away from the fridge etc. - gives you more space for access without anyone trying to sneak behind you - gives you a tall larder unit beside your tall run fridge/freezer
I have a run of three narrow but tall floor to ceiling larder units, all fitted with pull out drawers, (well the top two/thee are shelves as I am too short to see into drawers) - this is just such a wonderful storage station for me.
And our extra treat was our InSinkErator (steaming hot water tap) - love it. I know these can be subjective, however it works for us, you just need to be very careful on positioning.
It will be lovely whichever you decide - it has to work for you.:)

BlueC

I added some labels and also some dimensions!

SuzieSue

flea72 wrote: »

From your plan you have loads of storage, so why are dressers/wall units necessary at all. Leave wall clear and have full run of worktops either side of hob

I agree with this. Either you should incorporate the hob in the island or have a larger work surface either side of the hob. Your work surface at the moment is only slightly bigger than a A3 piece of paper.

DRP

SuzieSue wrote: »

I agree with this. Either you should incorporate the hob in the island or have a larger work surface either side of the hob. Your work surface at the moment is only slightly bigger than a A3 piece of paper.

+2

The kitchen in our old house had a small surface adjacent to it. Very awkward when cooking!

BlueC

SuzieSue wrote: »

I agree with this. Either you should incorporate the hob in the island or have a larger work surface either side of the hob. Your work surface at the moment is only slightly bigger than a A3 piece of paper.

I am also getting concerned about the lack of worktop space around the hob. I think I am counting on the island being used instead but I've never had an island and it can't be good having to turn around all the time?

The idea of the dressers each side is because a kitchen designer who we spoke to felt it was really important to frame the chimney with units either side. She did some mock ups with and without and it did look better with them... it really spoiled the whole look not having them. The dressers really create a feature of that whole wall.

I am tempted to replace the dressers with wall units - it would be much cheaper too, but very concerned that it could spoil the appearance.

BlueC

flea72 wrote: »

Cupboard F door wont open wide enough for pull out racks if hinged on right. Add 165 hinges to left and you can open door fully for access

Or add a proper L shaped corner cupboard, with bi-fold door as this makes access to whole of corner cupboard easier. Pull out shelves (carousels) are complete waste of space. Just have shelves and use corner cupboard for things you dont use that often (serving dishes/food stockpile)

Having to move between island and hob, espec if moving hot pans is dangerous, when you have through traffic. From your plan you have loads of storage, so why are dressers/wall units necessary at all. Leave wall clear and have full run of worktops either side of hob

Cupboard F should open ok, there is a 25mm corner post attached to that corner unit that gives it the clearance necessary.

A standard corner cupboard would spoil the symmetry of the sink/window units as you enter the room. I disagree about corner carousels being useless, we have one in our current kitchen and it is fantastic; much better than the forgotten space you have with non-carousel units.

As above, I think from a design perspective it needs high units either side of the hob, but I am tempted to change these for wall units instead of dresser units to free up some worktop. I think that the lack of working space to the side of the hob is a very valid concern.