Kitchen Design with Island - Concerns

Jazzhands

Hi

We have been pouring over kitchen designs for a few months now. We have been to a local kitchen studio for some designs and prices and the designer is insistent that we can fit in a functional island in the centre of the kitchen and has based all his designs on this.

The room is rectangular and it will be an L shaped kitchen with the island in the middle. There will be 88cm between the island and the surrounding work surfaces and side wall. One end will be open to a dining area so no space issue at that end. The island itself will have rounded corners and be 180cm long by 80cm wide (so not massive).

My concern is working space around the island as two of us work in the kitchen most times - feels like we'll just be bumping into each other all the time and with drawers/applicances open it will be a dead end.
Also, the walking space is dictating the size of the island, which isn't that big really, so is it worth having one at all.

Any thoughts on whether this is a workable kitchen and your personal experiences would be appreciated.

Many thanks.

EssexExile

If you can just about fit an island in, then I wouldn't. Islands go in big spacious kitchens.

In my humble opinion.

Hoploz

Is there any reason why a U shape kitchen wouldn't be suitable instead?

Jazzhands

Hoploz wrote: »

Is there any reason why a U shape kitchen wouldn't be suitable instead?

It's G shaped at the moment as there is a peninsular bar that comes out, though the run on wall is broken due to a door into the utility room.
Just that a couple of places we've been to now are pushing the island idea - maybe it's just a trend thing!

ellie27

Is it not just that they want to sell the 'island' to you as it's expensive and makes them more money?

Do you 'need' the island eg for storage/sink/hob??? Do you have plenty storage/surfaces everywhere else that you can do without the island? If so, then don't accept it.

88cm between island and other units and wall....... so no space for stools at island? To me that would then be pointless

martinsurrey

EssexExile wrote: »

If you can just about fit an island in, then I wouldn't. Islands go in big spacious kitchens.

In my humble opinion.

I agree,

OP if you like the thought of an island, but are worried about space, get a custom built butcher block trolley on wheels (with matching work tops).

You can move it around the kitchen and adds some great usable space.

FreeBear

I've got a long thin kitchen with units down opposite walls. despite having just over one metre of space between the two work surfaces, it is cramped.

Trying to work around a second person in the space I have would cause "issues". With ~880mm gap, someone would get hurt very quickly even if it were just one person in the kitchen.

Sausage11

I'm a space planning geek and I really think you should take a look at this site: http://www.houseplanshelper.com/kitchens-with-islands.html

This covers the gaps you need to leave for different types of kitchen, with and without islands. (The site covers all rooms - not just kitchens.).

When I rebuilt my house I used this site to help with the kitchen design and it worked out really well. I have a 105cm gap from end of island to dishwasher (L-shape with island), a 105cm gap from edge of island to facing units (which includes hob) and an 85cm gap from other end of island to wall (no units). All measurements edge of work surface.

These gaps allow for 2 people to move comfortably between dishwasher and island and island and hob. Also, dishwasher can be open still leaving sufficient space for one person to comfortably move between open dishwasher and island. The island looks nicely set aside from the units but is not cast adrift.

If you used these figures for your design you'd be talking a max island size of around 160 by 60 which doesn't sound appealing.

Edit: This is the link for the dimensions page. http://www.houseplanshelper.com/kitchen-dimensions.html

However, it's well worth exploring the site as they go into the dimensions of kitchen triangle planning - it's great! :-)

cddc

As someone who designs and sells kitchens for a living I am with you rather than the designer here. Trying to squeeze in an 800mm deep island into that space is feasible if you are desperate for one, but ideally you would want more space either side.

If you are not keen on the idea anyway I do not understand why he is trying to push you into it. Not smart from his point of view as he has potentially lost a sale.

When designing for clients, I always take the view that it is their kitchen not mine, and although I will suggest things I am not offended if they take a different view to me.

After all, you are going to be the one living with the kitchen, not the designer, and it should be designed to suit your needs not his.

rosie383

We have a new kitchen with an island. I just went and measured it to see what the space around it is like.
We have an L-shaped kitchen and the gap between the main body and the island is about 120cm and I see loads of room.
At one end, the bottom of the L, the gap is only 70cm and is absolutely fine.
At the other end of the island the gap is 65cm and we have an overhang of the island which was meant to have a couple of stools at it but the stools just got in the way so it isn't a useful overhang if that makes sense.

I think that if you don't need the extra cupboard space or worktop space, then don't put an island. I measured the space which you have and I do think it would look a bit cramped. Someone else I know has a similar space to you and it doesn't look quite right.
Because of large bifold doors and the layout of our space, we needed the island to give us more cupboard space and worktop and it is invaluable.

trailingspouse

It's your kitchen.

Can I make a suggestion? Before you go to the designers, have a go at designing it yourself. OH and I have done this with our kitchen and our two bathrooms - forget about fancy design programs online (I was never able to find one that did what I wanted it to do), get some graph paper and draw the dimensions of your kitchen on it, to scale. Then decide what appliances etc you need/want and draw them on a separate sheet (again, to scale) and cut them out. Put blu-tac on the back of them, and start playing with where you want to put them in your kitchen. Once you're got a design you like, photo-copy it - and then play around again, until you're happy with what you've got.

Then go to the designers - you have an idea of what you want, they have the experience to tell you if it's possible, or there may be options out there that you're unaware of which would enhance your design. But it will be your ideas first and foremost, tweaked a little by the designer. As others have said, it's your kitchen, you have to live with it (and you have to pay for it!)