Wednesday, August 28, 2013

New Englander - Kitchen Design


Now that we've gotten the infrastructure issues resolved, we can turn our attention to fun stuff - like designing the new kitchen!  This house has a big kitchen, so we've enjoyed figuring out how to use the space.

Our must haves:  efficient work triangle (space between the sink, stove and refrigerator), island or peninsula for bar stools for casual dining and chatting with the cook, lots of storage space, a trash/recycling cabinet and beautiful finishes.

But there are some challenges to what we can do.  We have a major traffic pattern that goes right through the room, connecting the dining room to the living room.  The basement doorway is tucked into the back of the room.  There is a steam radiator in a corner.  And the furnace flue creates a 'bump out' into the space.

So......we looked at lots of different options.  We thought a long island would be a great idea.  But it just didn't fit and interrupted traffic flow.  The next option looked at moving the fridge to the other side of the room, but the cook would get too much exercise cooking a meal!  So we kept evaluation different options....






We finally decided to go with a 'u' shaped design.  It's efficient for the cooks and provides a peninsula for bar stools.  This design does the best job of meeting our 'must have' list.
For extra storage, we are putting two hutch style cabinets on the far wall, with glass doors on top.  We'll add a window seat in between - for a cozy seating area!









And design elements will make it a beautiful space.  White cabinets, dark granite countertops, white subway and glass backsplash.  And stylish light fixtures.  What do you think?





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14 comments:

  1. woah!! We jut designed the SAME kitchen for our reno! Glad to see someone else the layout will work well too.

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    1. Wow, isn't that amazing!!! Obviously, great minds think alike :-)

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  2. Hi Laurel,

    Long time reader (I always enjoy reading your blog, thanks for sharing your adventures), first commenter.

    > This house has a big kitchen....

    I really like that kitchen layout plan. Would you mind telling us the exact size/measure of the space? The work area (the U-shape area) looks like something close to a typical 10*10, but perhaps bigger than that?

    Thanks, and looking forward to this kitchen's completed transformation!

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    1. Thanks so much for being a long time reader! I went back and looked at the dimensions - it's 19' 7" x 11' 4", but the refrigerator actually sits back in a little closet, which was a big help in the layout. I love a U shape - it's so efficient, but still allows a lot of counter space for work area. Our U shaped area is roughly 11 x 11. So you were really close with your guess!

      I hope to have pictures of the 'in process' work soon!

      Laurel

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  3. These old kitchens are buggers to design, eh? My kitchen has a front door, back door, bathroom door, basement door, doorway into the dining room, and two radiators. Your design looks fab. I love my Martha cabinets.

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    1. Wow, I think you win the prize for the most doorways in one room!!! That's quite a design challenge!

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  4. LOVE it! I love seeing the progress you make with each step...thanks for sharing! ~K.

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  5. I love how you resolved the challenges and created the perfect design for space! Can you come to Mass. when we re-do our kitchen? :-)

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  6. Can you let me know the software you used to draw these diagrams? We are in the planning stages for our home and I really want to make these type of drawings to get a better idea of our plans....thanks, RJ

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    1. For the simple black and white CAD drawings, I use a Mac app called Live Interior 3D Standard. It's inexpensive (approx $50) and pretty easy to use. It does have some 3D capability, but it's pretty basic.

      For the nice color 3D views in this blog post, that was done by the system at Home Depot. If you give them detailed dimensions, they can generate the drawings for you, showing the exact cabinets you plan to use. Obviously their system is a much higher quality than mine!

      Good luck with your project!!

      Laurel

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  7. Nice plan for a kitchen design, I'm sure it would turn out great.

    kitchen

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  8. My Kitchen is almost the same dimensions. How much room did you leave between the fridge and the last cabinet by the basement door?

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    1. Do you mean the fridge opening? It's a snug fit - maybe 2 inches bigger than the fridge itself. If you mean the space to get down the basement steps, I think it's about 34". A little tighter than we wanted, but it works!

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    2. Thanks, I have been worried about having to get through the space with a washer or drier. My laundry is in the basement.

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