1 Big Island or 2 Islands?
cbfromga
15 years ago
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cbfromga
15 years agonomorebluekitchen
15 years agoRelated Discussions
6 1/2 or 7 ft. long island. 2 or 3 pendants?
Comments (18)I had this exact same issue when I started designing my kitchen a few months back. My island will also be 6.5' long, and I ended up drawing the setup in autocad with the dimensions I was interested in. I ended up settling on the configuration in the image I attached. The island is 6.5 long, and the pendants are 14" in width. I think ultimately there's no right answer in a vacuum, depends on the other elements in your kitchen. Our island sits prominently in the middle of the kitchen and is the focal point when you first walk in. Our cabinets are also very simple, done purposefully so we could go a bit more extravagant on the finishing details including islanding lighting, hardware, and faucets. We played around with lights bigger than these and it didn't look right. We also played around with 2 light setups and it felt off to me. Good luck with what you choose!...See MoreKAW #1 (aka, why I love my big island with sink and great faucet)
Comments (20)magsnj, first off, sorry for jumping down your throat with my initial comment. I guess you couldn't know that we're dealing with a seriously ill DH here, and to have the first comment bring it all back, on a post that was meant to be something completely different, just hit me wrong. Please accept my apology. Now to the more fun stuff :-) Autumn4 & chrissyb2411, yes they last all week with no problems. In large part it's due to the newer refrigeration technology and partly re. bagging them and getting as much air out as possible. I'd say it's 80% fridge technology though. My old 17 year old GE wouldn't keep anything fresh past a few days, but our recent bosch and now this kenmore pro both keep veggies well past a week, and many veggies up to 2 weeks, and fruits easily for a week or longer. ck_squared & scrappy25, thanks! mlweaving_Marji, it's a Kindred sink and the smaller (prep side) bowl is 16" x 10.5". akchicago, I so agree! I love prepping facing the room; it's such a nice change from my old kitchen where my prep space was in a corner between sink and range. It was a nice big expanse of prep space, but facing the corner wasn't exactly conducive to socializing. The fridge is the Kenmore Pro all refrigerator, which I believe is a rebadged Frigidaire (or Elux .. not sure, I've gotten different answers each time I asked sears). oldbat2be, LOL on the melodrama!! Are you sure you aren't my long lost twin sister? :-) PS. we'll eat those pears no problem ... that's only one a day each for the week, and we tend to have fruit for breakfast and lunch, and sometimes even after-dinner snacks. The miracle will be if they actually last out the week. JessHS, just keep at it and you'll see it will eventually work itself out. You have a much tougher job to 'systemize' because the youngsters can be so picky. For us, I just buy mostly whatever's on sale / in season and make them into portions for the week. The trick for me is not to cut them up in advance. A portion might be an apple & pear in a baggie, then a snack-sized baggie of grapes for lunch along with a banana. If I'm on the road that day I'll just grab them up and stick them in my lunch bag with a bottle of water and it's as easy as that. If you have to cut up the apples or pears for your little ones, you necessarily have to leave it to the last minute. :) One thing you might at least try is getting those individual snack-sized baggies (they're smaller than the sandwich bags) and portion some baby carrots, grapes, cherries, etc for the week.... then see if your kids might eventually switch to eating whole fruits instead of having them cut up. I know, easier said than done, lol. illinigirl, you will love the layout, i just know it! My measurements are 42" countertop edge to edge on the range side and 43" countertop edge to fridge door on the the fridge side. With handles factored in, it's 37" at the narrowest point where the range handle is across from the dw drawer handle, and 40.5" at the narrowest point where the fridge handle is across from the countertop edge. romy718, OMG I am the total opposite of you. I wish I could garden but I just look sideways at a plant and it seems to wilt. And I know this sounds very weird but I actually like going grocery shopping ... somehow it's just my nice alone time if that makes any sense, haha, and I do get a little thrill out of getting a good bargain. You know you're getting old when the big Friday night excitement is checking out the flyers LOL!! kaysd and ali80ca, I used to think that washing and prepping veggies would shorten shelf life, but experience has told me otherwise. Perhaps it's because I do baggie them in small portions, so it's not like a single stalk of rotting broccoli could affect the whole ... or a single moldy strawberry can't ruin the entire pint. I do "baggie" almost everything in sandwich bags or in medium-sized freezer bags (the latter are better sizes for broccoli & cauliflower so I use the freezer bags for those and sandwich bags for the rest. Things I don't put in sealed ziplocks are mushrooms and asparagus ... though I do pre-prep those. The mushrooms get washed and put in baggies but don't get sealed and they last a week no problem (I know you're "supposed" to leave them in paper bags, but with the newer fridges they can be pre-prepped no problem in my experience). I wash asparagus and put them in unclosed baggies with a wet paper towel around the bottom on the stems ... then at dinner time I just have to grab a serving, break the stalks, and go. Pretty much everything else except for squashes and the like gets baggied up and sealed though. lavender, thanks for the nice comments and I know you'll get your dream kitchen one day, and hopefully sometime soon. Meanwhile you have your DH back and that is truly priceless. :-) a2gemini, agree about the berries. No issues as long as there's no sugar added. They keep very well as long as they're bagged in smallish portions....See Moredouble island, extra big island or smaller island + nook table
Comments (35)Doug's wife would hate my fridge location, lol. And, Lavender, I'm not so organized but was raised by a mom who would yell at you if you stood with the door to the fridge open for very long as it let "the cold out!" so I automatically think through what I need and where it's at so I don't let too much cold out. mlogin, it's great that you're striving to incorporate the 31 Rules into your design. Just know that many of us find we have to compromise on one or more of them. I chose to do so on my fridge location and it is working out just fine for me. Below is my kitchen showing the former fridge placement and the current one. Current placement is actually in the opening between the laundry/pantry room. It does impede traffic through that route once in awhile but only for a few seconds so it isn't a big deal. I would rather experience a bit of congestion there than at my sinks, range or dishwasher locations. Or at my prep space or baking area. I just strongly feel that the fridge is the appliance you are standing at doing something the least time of all the appliances. If any appliance has to be placed in a less optimal position, I would choose the fridge. Remember that you also want your fridge on the edge of your working spaces so that someone who just wants to access it for a drink or snack isn't walking back-and-forth inside your work areas. I just don't see another place in your kitchen plan where your fridge is accessible to both cook and a drinker/snacker. Of course, someone more creative than I am may suggest a layout none of us have thought of yet but I think it would require re-arranging most of the rest of your kitchen to find another good location. Again, I'm not writing to try to influence you one way or the other but just to give you as much info as possible to consider in order for you to make the best decision for you and your family....See More7 1/2 foot island- 2 pendants
Comments (5)We'll need to see a photo of the space. It depends on everything else you have, including the width and length of the island. Design style makes a difference as well....See Morerhome410
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