Do you really need the peninsula? To me, it looks as if you are making access to the rest of the kitchen more difficult.

I don't need it. I've been on the fence about it actually! Thank you for the suggestion.

The coffee is extremely far from the sink. I don't drink or make coffee, but don't you need to fill something or other up with water to make it?

We have an espresso machine that needs to be refilled maybe once every two weeks. Other than that, we just need electricity. We have this machine far away from the sink now and it's no problem.

I already look greatly forward to your reveal, given that great sink and range! I would reduce the 60" length on the peninsula, but I am not sure I would get rid of it. How do the ovens open on your Chambers? Maybe post us a picture? Also, can you tell us what is going on in the back corner, where you have a corner base, and then a gap? I can't quite make out what the gap is. Thanks and good luck with your project. Looks fun.

It might be my older eyes but I'm having a really hard time reading all the text in the main kitchen area where there is a shadow so I can't comment on anything in that portion. I'm very intrigued by what you're doing. A Hoosier and a library table sound great for your home's era and style. Does that radiator really intrude that far into the bench? It doesn't look like the bench is side enough to sit on.

If there is a low window behind the bench, I think I would be tempted to put some kind of decorative something there....not sure what...that would look attractive from the outside but still provide something to keep someone from leaning back. I'm sure a strong window wouldn't break but it does some iffy regarding safety to me. Maybe a rail that is softly upholstered on seating side and painted in the same colors as your outside trim on the side that will show outside?

I think this sounds like a really fascinating project!

@MizLizzie, thank you for your comment! I'll play with reducing the length of the peninsula. It would be nice for one or two people to sit with me when I cook.

My Chambers has one oven and one storage cabinet. Both open just like a typical oven:

I don't know yet what's happening in that back corner near the sink. I'm hoping it can be a cabinet I can access, maybe on an angle, but I don't know if that will be possible. That's the next step in my layout work...I just want to make sure I have all the major pieces in the right places, since I already have the sink, oven & refrigerator.

This has been fun so far...and hopefully I'll have a great vintage-style kitchen to share with everyone at the end of it.

@funkycamper, here's a close-up photo of the kitchen area. Sorry about the shadow. I'm having fun laying it out this way but it's not conducive to photo-taking. I already replaced the peninsula per @oasisowner's suggestion and am about to try out @MizLizzie's idea.

Yes, the radiator really is that large and my plan is to actually COVER it with the built-in bench. So it won't impact seating. I just wanted to note its location because even if we end up not building the bench, the radiator will still be there.

I'm intrigued by your idea of building the back of the bench in front of the window. I had just assumed that I'd have to shorten the windows, and build the back against the wall. The windows are in bad shape and should be replaced anyway. But I don't know how much more expensive it would be to actually shorten the opening.

Thank you for your comment!

I am rarely for reducing windows. Let there be light! And that will cost more as well. Cheapie me is always looking for more frugal shortcuts.

Thanks for that new drawing. I think your layout looks fine. Good placement of stove and sink/DW. You appear to have ample counters on each side of range and sink for work spaces. The rest of the devil will be in the details to ensure it's as functional as possible.

Question: How do people normally enter the kitchen? I ask because that range is totally awesome and beautiful. I would want it to be my kitchen's showpiece. If people walk in that door (swinging door?), would it show better if you switched your range wall with the sink wall?

Yes, if the stove wall and sink wall really cannot be swapped, the peninsula probably has to go. I would be claustrophobic using the Chambers up against a 90-degree turn. :-( Nice equipment, though. Not sure what you can do about that odd back corner unless you are getting custom cabs? Hopefully some of the great talents here will have an idea. Good luck.

@funkycamper, if we're already in the house we enter the kitchen through the doorway at the dining room. It's just an opening, no door. As you walk in, you'd see part of the stove. It would be nice to have it smack dab in front of you at the doorway, but there is a window there. (This is one window that I think we must shorten - otherwise we can't have a countertop in front of it.)

I think it's actually located in the more visible location as it is now. But I will play with it and consider...

@MizLizzie, what if the peninsula were narrower, to allow a 12-inch cabinet next to the stove? I think that would make it less claustrophobic, while still allowing a couple of people to sit nearby...

Oh, if it's quite visible where it's at, that might be the best location. I don't always read blueprints well. And, doh!, just realized there was a dining room there so, yeah, your placement makes sense. I'm envisioning myself sitting in the corner by the radiator on a cold, winter morning just soaking in the heat! What a cozy spot that will be. I like mccb1's tweak to your peninsula. It's not big enough to be an obstacle but looks to be a useful size. If you could afford to have it rounded on the end, that would be really nice. At least chamfered (sp?).

I like that change in the peninsula if there's room for it. Right of the range is where I have my 12" pull-out for oils, salt grinder, and large-container cooking spices. Funky's right about softening the end.

Can the radiator in the corner to the right of the door be swung 90 degrees to under the window if it fits height-wise? That could allow a nice sized counter & drawer base or tall pantry instead of the peninsula.

So, all the windows come down to 25" above the floor, including the one that you currently have the 39.5" drawer base in front of? I would not want to change window opening sizes; that really tends to not be a good thing for an older home's overall aesthetic. How will you deal with that on the home's exterior? Is there anyway you could put a counter height prep table in front of that window instead of built in cabinetry?

@gramarows, the radiator is taller than the window sill so swinging it around won't work. However, I plan to have lots of open shelving above the radiator for dry goods. I don't have much in my pantry besides baking supplies and home-canned items so while pantry storage would be nice, I think I'll be okay between the baking station & open shelves.

@Sedonia Sipes, yes, all windows are about that low. None of the windows in the kitchen are original anymore. They're all vinyl. Does that change your perspective? The exterior is brick, which I was planning to match. I'm open to having a moveable piece of furniture in that space (that's what I have now, actually) but I need storage, and that is my best space for it. I'm not sure how I could maximize my storage in that space without shortening the window.

Thank you both for your comments!

I just read an article in the 'stories' section that reminds me of the kind of kitchen you want, using a vintage sink and stove. If you scroll down, there's a pic of a built-in breakfast area similar to your plans.

[One of a kind cooking spaces.[(https://www.houzz.com/magazine/kitchen-recipes-secret-ingredients-of-5-one-of-a-kind-cook-spaces-stsetivw-vs~46317330)

Cooks' Kitchens Master · More Info

Now that I have my foot in the door with that peace offering, let me say that although I love vintage kitchens and I am very pro DIY remodeling, if you could possibly move plumbing and gas, you can have a much better, more efficient layout. In the rough arrangement below, the stove would be in a more protected area, and the sink would be in front of the window, as I think it would have been in an original bungalow kitchen. This is providing that you can vent the stove from the interior wall, and shorten the window to accommodate the higher back of the drainboard sink.

Your sink would be the focal point from the DR, but that sink could really be a focal point. Also, in this plan the fridge is on the same wall as the sink, with landing space available to the left. In the area where the fridge was drawn, you could have a microwave/snack area, and although you have cookbook space in the breakfast area, you could put them on the open shelves on the wall above the radiator. Or, you could display china or vintage pottery on the open shelves. I'd build in the radiator with perforated doors, to look like a cabinet, or with a deeper countertop, that area could also be a desk/command center. Since you have plenty of floor space, you could consider having deeper counters, for more work area.

If you don't want to move the fridge, this version has dish drawers beside the DW. A MW could be housed on a shelf above, or on the counter. The radiator area could still be a desk, or a shallow base 'cabinet' with open shelves above.

Here's a link to a thread with several other vintage kitchens with drainboard sinks.

Whatever you decide, I am really looking forward to the reveal of your new kitchen!

@mamagoose, wow, thank you for these floorplans. I'm not sure if I would be able to vent the stove from that interior wall - I'll find out. We don't have a microwave and don't intend to get one so there's no need for that. One thing I really want is to have space for one or two people to sit with me while I cook. I'll play with your layouts to see if I can make that happen.

Thank you also for the links. I also saw that Houzz post this morning and immediately saved the breakfast area - it looks EXACTLY like what I was envisioning! And I've come across your drainboard sink thread a few times. Trying to figure out how to get a dishwasher under my 200-lb sink has been challenging. Your pictures were priceless!

Well, I wish that everyone would stay out of my kitchen when I'm cooking. I can't seem to convince them, but fortunately my kitchen is laid out with a working side and a visiting side. And, incidentally, I couldn't move plumbing in my DIY remodel, so my layout is not optimal--I prep over my DW, and live to tell the tale. ;)

If you installed a deeper counter over the rad, either extending it partway across the window, or clipping or easing the corner, a couple of stools could be stored there, then repositioned elsewhere for perches for visitors. I'm all about convertible spaces, so a pull-out similar to a breadboard could be incorporated into the cabinet that I labeled 'MW/snacks', to act as a temporary counter for a guest to rest his elbows. The same type of board could be incorporated into the counter above the 'dish drawer' area in the second plan, roughly where you had the peninsula drawn, maybe large enough for two people--one at side, and one in front. Then guests leave, breadboard disappears!

Even though you don't foresee using a MW, you might consider leaving a space to accommodate one in case you change your mind, or for resale purposes. It could be used for storage in the meantime.

One breadboard discussion.

Donaleen's cabinet for a pull-out board.

I don't know if anyone mentioned it up-thread, but I remembered a2gemini's window seat with a back that folds up or down, against the window. This thread has a pic--if you scroll down, and there are a few more window seat pics. Window seats anyone?

Love the stove! And Mama_Goose's wonderful pictures :)

Would something like this work? I moved the sink to the same wall as the stove...with a window! Also kept small peninsula...maybe with 12" storage on stove side and room for seating on other side?

Moved a few other things around, including fridge (added a counter) and hoosier/coffee area. Made table a bit bigger (with chairs) and kept shallower cookbook area. Just a few ideas....

I wasn't trying to be too much of a window purist; I've just seen lots of old houses where changing the window size (or worse, walling over a window) looked pretty wretched from the outside. But of course there are good ways to do it. I do understand the multiple limitations in working with an old house, the need for cabinet storage an counter space.

I'm guessing the part of your kitchen where you want to put the seating area used to be a butler's pantry or maybe an enclosed back porch that got annexed into the kitchen?

@Sedonia Sipes, the seating area is in an enclosed back porch. The insulation is not great in that room (crawlspace beneath, very old & broken vinyl windows along the two big walls) so we'll have to improve that. Right now we are just storing things in that space. Regarding the windows, I know exactly what you're talking about. I would do everything I could to make any shortened windows look like they were always that height.

@lavender_lass, thank you so much for the great ideas! We wouldn't be able to extend the window as much as you outlined (there's a chimney in the corner) but I like this alternative. It seems quite popular to move the sink to the window. I know that is what's typical, but this is a window that looks out into my neighbor's brick wall (small Chicago lots!) so I have always thought it would be more valuable to have a workspace in front of it, where I could at least get some light as I prepped. Dishes in my house are done way after dark (we're late dinner eaters) and there would be nothing to look at out the window anyway.

There are lots of ways to 'dress up' an area over the sink! You could use a pretty picture, a plate rack, glass uppers, even a small stained glass window hanging from hooks.

I love old, vintage kitchens....in fact, I'm trying to replicate that look myself, so I'm really looking forward to seeing your progress :)

I thought of your kitchen today, when I found this article on houzz.

[Great Solutions for Low Kitchen Windowsills.[(https://www.houzz.com/magazine/great-solutions-for-low-kitchen-windowsills-stsetivw-vs~25381595)

@mamagoose, thanks for thinking of me! These are beautiful solutions. I'm thinking about using one or two base cabinets on casters. Will keep you posted :)

I'm back...with an updated design.

I met with an architect yesterday about some future projects, and he suggested dedicating more entryway space at our back door.

In this new design, again we're keeping all utilities where they currently are. We explored other possibilities based on great feedback on this forum and I think we really prefer this layout. It gives us a protected "sink wall" for doing dishes and putting them away, keeps the trash near the main prep areas, makes space for a baking counter and allows my gorgeous stove to be front and center when you walk in the room. We would switch the swing of the back door so you walk into a little nook (new swing in red). I preserved some in-kitchen seating while also expanding my counter space. The sacrifice is that the refrigerator is further away. I think the inclusion of the counter next to the kitchen will be handier, however, for putting groceries away and laying out ingredients. I think most nights my husband would be seated at this counter while I cook, easily ready to grab whatever I need from the fridge for me.

Please let me know what you think of this new plan! Thanks in advance for your great advice :)

I don't understand your corner base at the top right. Why are you avoiding having an L shaped kitchen for one and two the corner base looks like you'll have less than 12" to open it up.

@cpartist, I will be getting custom cabinets so I'll ask the designer to help me come up with a solution for that upper right corner that permits access. Maybe it will be an angled cab, I don't know.

I'm not sure I understand your comment about avoiding an L-shaped kitchen. I don't think I'm avoiding it, but it doesn't seem possible to have one. I'm keeping my current refrigerator (unfortunately) and it's a french door model. Putting it in the corner where the baking station is won't allow me to open the freezer all the way. So it can't go there. The stove is too wide to fit there as there's a window immediately adjacent. I'm not interested in putting the refrigerator immediately next to the stove (and it wouldn't fit there anyway). Do you see an opportunity for an L-shape that I'm missing?

Why do you have a space between the corner cabinet and the cabinet on the wall next to the corner cabinet? Also you have a 20' kitchen. I think you should be able to put it all in that space.

@cpartist, do you have a suggestion for that corner? As I said I would like to discuss that corner with a designer, I'm not sure how best to use it/access it. I needed to lay out the center cabinets on that sink wall because my sink is 5ft long with double drainboards. I just wanted to make sure I drew cabinets that would support that sink. That corner was a detail that I was planning to address later - maybe it will be an angled cabinet, maybe I can access that corner through a cabinet in the baking station, I don't know. A suggestion would be welcome.

Hello all! I'm back with a new layout. Would love any suggestions or comments!

I had an "aha" moment when I realized that dishwasher drawers need less clearance than traditional dishwashers. By replacing my dishwasher with drawers, I'm able to shift the doorway into the kitchen and create enough space to bring my refrigerator back into the kitchen.

Style-wise, cabinets will be a mix of quartersawn oak and white. Countertops will be copper, soapstone and butcher block (on the cart). White subway tile backsplash, white Chambers stove, and a 5ft white double drainboard sink.

Some particular questions I have: my current refrigerator is 24 inches deep but I'd really like to have an extra-deep cabinet next to it - 27 inches - so I can store my blender at the back of the countertop. Any issues with simply pulling the refrigerator forward a few inches to accommodate? I'll still have plenty of walkway space in front of the fridge.

I think I have my trash pullout in the best location - anyone disagree?

Thanks!

It looks great! Don't you love those "aha" moments? :)