I don't see why it would be more of a fire hazard in a 5' x 4' pantry versus a 14' x 18' kitchen or any other room. The important thing is what is within a few inches of the toaster oven, not what is a few feet away.

Ours has been in there for 5 years. Had the trim carpenter build a work table (showed him a picture of a potting bench). Microwave is on the left side of table. Plenty of room for sitting down groceries or a plate when toasting.

Here is a link that might be useful: My pantry

johnliu,
Good points.

allison,
That looks perfect! Do you mind telling me how deep that counter area is?

As long as it's done safely with all clearances maintained, it shouldn't be a problem. I'm a nervous nellie about putting appliances in enclosed spaces, and I'd want some type of relay on the electrical outlet that would shut off power to it when the pantry door was closed, but a more careful family could probably just plan to keep it unplugged when not in use. That would be my biggest fear: heating away behind a closed door because someone "forgot" they were using it.

"I don't see why it would be more of a fire hazard in a 5' x 4' pantry versus a 14' x 18' kitchen or any other room. "

Pretty tough to see what is going on if the pantry door gets closed.

A heat producing appliance like a toaster oven should be as visible as possible.

If it catches on fire you want to know right away.

I'm the only one that closes the pantry doors, and I never do that when I'm toasting or microwave. Children are long gone, or I might think differently.

Our microwave was inside an armoire in our last breakfast area, in kitchen, and we had no problems. Toaster? No, on the counter. It does take common sense. ;) fwiw, I usually don't keep a toaster forever, or until it starts to break down. They are fairly inexpensive when you only want to toast in them (not bake or cook), I replace an often used toaster probably every other year. We haven't used this one as much, and it's probably 5 years old now.

Doonie, the table is 27" deep (front to back), 59" long (wall to wall) and 37" high. DH bought the butcher block top already made. Cedar beam legs were scraps from house beams/coffered ceilings, and the trim was extra from the house as well. I worked closely with our trim carpenter to get it like I wanted.

The lower shelf now has wicker baskets along the back wall that hold bottled water, Coke, V8 and sports drink extra until we need them in the fridge.

allison,

Thanks for the measurements. Our pantry is in a corner and rhomboid shaped. This next week I have to come up with the setup. It will be 4'5" deep with the front wall measuring 7' and the back wall 5'5". My kids are older. We use the toaster oven only for toasting and we remain present during use, so I think we will be okay there.

After reading more threads, I think putting the coffee pot in there next to it might be ideal too. I am just wondering if I will have the space to fit a nice deep 27" counter?

Actually the shape is more of a quadrangle...it's been a while since I've had geometry.

Would it make sense to open the area up and design it to be a useful part of the kitchen without having it be an enclosed pantry? We had a pantry that was close in size and we knocked it down. I found it was always a mess. I'm doing better now with cabinets instead of a walk in. Just a thought. I could see that area being designed as your breakfast bar . . . with coffee maker, toaster oven, etc. Drawers on the bottom for food storage (we keep our bread and snacks in a drawer and I like it there better than on shelves), and a pantry cabinet, etc.

Doonie,

I also want to say that I saw your message on my original thread about the bistro stools days ago. GW has been acting weird and I couldn't respond on that thread back to you for some odd reason (that's why I started a second thread for Elizpiz regarding the bistro stools).

Anyway, I'm so glad that you like the pietra art floors!! I haven't been on for a couple of months, and I didn't realize you had them installed. They're a dream to care for aren't they? They look beautiful in your kitchen AND I love your Brittany Coggs Tiles! I haven't done my backsplash yet, but I was considering doing tiles from B&C also. I see you used Winchester as your field. Do you remember how much sq ft Winchester cost and who you bought them through? Price is the only thing holding me back at this point.

I love your chandy also, and the cabinets! It all looks great so far. I couldn't make a response on your thread that is along the lines of "Progress So Far", so that's why I'm letting you know here. GW has been finicky lately.

This is the Brittany Coggs tiles I am considering for my backsplash.

judydel!

I am glad you are back on GW! I was wondering what had happened to you! I love my floors! I am so glad I went with this more neutral floor.

That tile you selected is beautiful. My Winchester color "Peridot" is very similar to that and it is handmade with a lovely translucent glaze. The Winchester was around $2.60 per field tile. I used a distributor in Dallas (French Brown) who were wonderfully communicative to work with. I used the Brittany & Coggs for all the decorative trim. What makes the Brittany & Coggs look so beautiful is that it is a terracotta tile that has been doubly glazed, so it's thick and luscious with the terracotta underneathe leanding depth to the tile.

On my pantry...it's in a corner of the kitchen and an odd part of it extends even further behind the double ovens. So it will be a contained space. We will be having a majority of shallow shelving, so I think that will be all right. I had deep undercounter storage before the reno and I would end up with 6 jars of peanut butter at a time:) So shallow is definitely the way to go!

However, I just started thinking how nice it might be if I could put the toaster oven and the coffeepot there and get them off my kitchen counters. The space actually has 7 walls to it. My GC has been very good about figuring out space issues, so I know he will tell me if it is impossible to do. (I just know, this week, he's suddenly going to want to know exactly what I want in there....so I am trying to figure it out!)

7 walls! Wow, I can't wait to see the layout of this space! Sounds, interesting : )

Yeah, I'm much happier without my walk in pantry because I just couldn't keep it organized. It was where everyone stuck stuff and shut the door. I'm sure others on here would have had it figured out. And maybe now that I've been on GW for a couple of years I could even figure it out. But it's gone and I'm looking forward to the day we put a soapstone heater in it's place. Right now we have an extra table in that spot that interestingly enough is the new clutter catcher space . . . why am I not surprised? My DW keeps coming home with stuff that he can't bear to throw out as he cleans out the old family home. And guess where it lands? LOL now that I think of it, maybe we should have kept the walls and door.

So the Winchester tile is the same thickness as the Brittany Coggs? And is it also undulated (wavy) so that it picks up the light? Wow! It's still pricey. Do you remember what the B C field tile cost? I'm glad at least that I don't have a huge area to tile. I have 12 - 15 sq ft so it shouldn't be too bad. Your tiles really look lovely! I've been trying to decide between BC and undulated white subways, seeing your kitchen makes me lean toward the BC. I think part of the trick will be figuring out what color field to go with. My cabinets are creamy white, so I will need to get samples and figure out what color tiles match or go the best. I'm pretty sure, though, if I go with BC that I'd want the blue deco tiles that I posted above. I love the way the blue-green-grey colors go with the soapstone.

Your spouse sounds like mine. Makes me crazy:)

The Brittany & Coggs field tile is heftier and gorgeous, but it is also significantly more, but I don't have an exact price for you. The dealer I used was more than happy to send me multiple samples of all sorts of tile and it was a pleasure working with them. I love that blue-green-grey with your gorgeous soapstone too. The Winchester, like I said is thinner (normal tile thickness), but it does have an undulating look to it and I thought it coordinated well with the B & C. I think your best bet is to lay your hands and eyes on some samples. I had gotten some Sonoma tile and Pratt & Larson too, but the Winchester was the only one that had that softness to it (besides the B & C).

Good luck. I am anxious to see what you decide to do!