I think it's the open counterspace that you want that keeps it from looking like a furniture hutch. That is a lot of stuff you listed to fit and use on those counters. The L'ed desk area might make part of it difficult to access? Especially if you keep a desk area half as cluttered as mine is. ;)

To get more of a furniture/hutch appearance, have you considered taking the whole thing down to the counter, but having a flip up (and slide back) door to access the counter area and use the small appliances?

Earthquakes...Are you afraid of the contents shifting and breaking the glass in the doors? Tempered or reinforced glass might be a good idea. If it's family safety you're worried about, being near the windows would be hazardous anyway, so it'd be a place you'd want to get away from.

hi rhome, thanks for the feedback. i think you are right that it is probably because i did not take the top cabs all the way down to the counters.
do you know if those flip up slide back doors end up being inconvenient to use on a regular basis? we have a pocket door right now for example that we absolutely hate because it doesn't operate smoothly and so is a pain to open and close.
regarding earthquakes, i am mainly concerned about things shifting and falling out and breaking the glass in the event of an earthquake. being right by the windows is already hazardous, so maybe it is a silly concern. thanks for pointing that out!

With your expressed need for counterspace, I think I'd ditch the to the counter cabinets entirely. Use some beadboard backer and some corbels to visually tie the top to the bottom area. Skip the center open shelves in favor of a single shorter cabinet with two cabinet doors in glass. Place a 12" deep drawer cabinet below that one, then the paneling and corbels.

What are the # 47 and 57 going to house? It seems those are breaking the pattern of having uppers and lowers separated(not a hutch look, but a more "normal" look for a kitchen area and would provide more counter space). Or else, to achieve the hutch look you need to fill in those areas that are left.
Do you HAVE TO have the areas symmetrical? It seems to me if you fill in the gap on the right hand side of the drawing with a cabinet and take out the one on the left hand side and extend the countertop that would be more functional(I'm reading that the left side ends in a corner and is connecting to a desk type area so the cabinet in that space would be a bit odd to open? Maybe I'm reading the drawing wrong)
So on the right would be your hutch and on the left would be a countertop/uppers.
Also, is there going to be a chair at the "heads" of the table? It appears the chairs would impede the access to the drawers and cabinets-again, I may be reading the drawing incorrectly or it may not be to scale, etc, but that would be a concern of mine. If there will only be seating on the bench and opposite side, no worries.
It also looks like you plan storage at the feet of the bench under the window. I'd be weary of this. What if you are all sitting down and what you need is under in those cabinets? Is someone going to climb under the table to fetch them? And even if you do store little used stuff down there, how will you access it once a table is there? You'll have to move the table or climb under it. Maybe changing the storage into a seat that can be lifted is a better option depending on what you plan to store in there.(Disregard if the table will be out far enough and there isn't a seat there with storage, but that is what the drawing looks like to me-and I'll admit I am NOT used to looking at these drawings as of yet;-) )

I think you are trying to fit too much stuff/tasks in this space.

If storage is your priority rhome's ideas about bringing the upper cabs down to the counter is dead on. Bahacca is right about the cabinets under the banquette being difficult to access. You would be better served by having them hinge on top and removing the cushions when in use. Out of all the storage needs that you listed, the only thing that these would work well for is hiding the router (if it can go in an unvented cabinet).

If counter space is your priority then live wire oak is right, just use uppers and use corbels and beadboard below to make it cosy. As an aside, don't you want your coffee and tea kettle to be located closer to one of the sinks/water source?

My suggestions - corbels or shelf supports add a lot of character, add a cushion to the back of the banquette so it looks and feels more like a couch, and finally - window treatments! Lots out there that cosy up a room.

good luck!

I think the cabinetry to the right and left of the window needs to match to get the look you are trying to achieve.

Here is a link that might be useful: [Houzz photo[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/ingleside-modern-1920s-shingle-style-traditional-dining-room-grand-rapids-phvw-vp~121778)

I agree with all of the above.

In order to look like furniture, the upper cabinet has to look like it rests on the lower cabinet--either by getting rid of the counter (or concealing it with doors), or using architectural elements like columns or corbels to provide the appearance of supporting the upper cabinet.

I think symmetrical cabinets will give you more the look you want. I don't see a big loss in giving up the desk--you've got a writing surface on the table and can keep the desk supplies in the hutch. It's not like anyone will (at least, should) be using the desk while people are dining, so I don't see where there would be competition for table seating.

I'm sure you can find an appropriate use for the drawers in the bench. Holiday linens, fine silver, crystal punchbowl--I'm sure you can think of something you use just a few times a year. Holiday decorations of any sort. Just don't choose a dining table so heavy you can't move it easily.

hi all, thanks for the suggestions. i think counterspace is a priority so livewireoaks' suggestion sounds like the best one for us. there will be plenty of cabinet space as it is in this new and bigger kitchen for us (i hope). i would prefer to have it look symmetric, my DH is a stickler for symmetry. also, our kitchen was kind of designed to be symmetric already by the architect with the windows right in the center of the room.
bahacca, the 47 and 57 cabinets were supposed to be house our less attractive appliances, but maybe those should go in the window seats.
i will take everybody's suggestions to heart and run by a new iteration for your critique shortly. thanks so much!!

I didn't want to see our microwave so designed this cubbie and door system. It is NOT a pain to use! I leave it open in when using it and when we are done with meal time close it up. Microwave cubbie, door lifts up and slides in, there is an outlet in the back, I wish I had more space in my kitchen to do the same thing for the toasteroven and coffee pot ...

hutch..

cjc123, thanks for sharing your pics! your kitchen is lovely! i really love your cabs and color, what wood is it? your hutch is really nice too. a good combination of glass cabs and wood (for hiding things). can you tell me if you used a particular brand of hardware for the sliding flip up door for your microwave? maybe i can specify it whenever i order cabs to have a smoothly functioning door. thanks!

I totally blanked on the corbel/backsplash idea. Glad LWO suggested it. It made me think of ErikaNH's kitchen, in which she created a hutch look without even using corbels...Just cabinet style and counter differentiation. You can see she incorporated the base cabs to make her idea work. Again, I think your desk L might keep this from working the same way, but it may give you a new idea:

thanks for the pic rhome! the different depths for the cabs do make it seem more like a hutch. also the furniture style toe kick and hardware too.

i still really like the idea of having a desk area, where i can have a phone and leave my laptop all the time, though it is becoming difficult to design it in.. i will play around some more though. this does give me a few more ideas. thank you!

Thanks for the kind comments, our cabinets are by Cabico, the wood is Cherry and the stain is Richland. The microwave door was done at the Cabico factory. I tried to get a few photo's (tight awkward spot to photograph). The x of wire is a pully system. I wanted to share a few things that I had the carpenter put into the custom mudroom hutch we had built on site. In the upper cabinet an outlet so I can charge my phone,ipod,camera. In the top drawer a powerstrip was installed so DH has a spot to charge all his electronics, put all his keys and stuff from pockets (yes - all organized and out of site) On the main counter another outlet for house phone. This one little spot has removed ALL clutter from the main kitchen. Hope this helps ;)

Some really great ideas, CJC.

Michoumonster, just wanted to say I'm loving your kitchen. It's not that often that we see a kitchen made up as a discrete room these days. What luxury to not have to design it as part of the main living room, and vice versa. That window wall is going to be a nice feature for anyone working in there.

You didn't label the doorways. Do the ones on the top of the drawing go to your main living areas? The one on the bottom right looking toward the range wall? What is the unlabeled closet below the pantry. FWIW, I'm remembering a picture of a kitchen desk set inside a pantry, facing and looking into the kitchen through a passthrough/framed opening. The obviously hardworking desk was central but private, any mess-in-process hidden.

cjc, thanks for the info and more pics. it is a great idea to have a cabinet dedicated to charging. i also lot your dog crate area. my little dog would spend all day in that hidey-hole.

rosie, thanks. we have an open floor plan now with kitchen and family room all in one room, and we love it, but i thought it might be nice to do some separation from the kitchen in our new house, especially since i am a pretty messy cook. the unlabeled closet is a big storage room just off of the master bedroom, the door on the bottom left goes to the outside yard, the two doorways at the top are to our family room, then the other doorway on the bottom right goes to the dining/entry area and stairway. we chose to not have a formal dining room and kind of made it as a walk-thru off the entry.

I have a similar situation. this is what I'm using for my inspiration.

and a really rough sketch of plans in my kitchen.

DH is going to make me a table like this to go in front of the seat.

Side cabinets are done but not the bench seat - still working on what to do about the baseboard heater in the way.

macybaby, thanks for sharing your inspiration pic with me. i think a similar cab would work for me too. i like the open shelf that runs along the cabinet. and your DH is so talented to be making your table!
are you trying to figure out a way to cover up your heater vent? i have collected a few ideas of that, or do you have one of those long electric heaters that run along the baseboards? those are harder to cover up for sure.

Michoumonster, If you look at my hutch you will see a toe kick blower under the center. This was put in to replace a baseboard that originally ran the entire legnth of the wall. This heater is the best! Our kitchen has never been so warm. Just wanted to share...

cjc, so the actual heater is tiny and under your hutch or is it just a vent to a furnace heater? we will be doing a furnace heater for most of the house, but a small low profile heater like that would be great for our basement!