I have seen many beautifully designed kitchens where the sink is not in front of window but for me, personally I gotta have it that way. But it is like everything else, people who like pools will likely not consider a house w/o a pool or people that like sink by window will ignore house that is not laid out that way. So design as you like and need. Why design for future owners?

errrr, wrong. I spend much time in front of sink on food preparation, juicing, cleaning my organic, good for you foods, etc. However. If the family lives on takeout, then yes, time spent in kitchen is not as much as In The good ole days

BossyVossy - that's prep, not cleanup.

I don't see where OP is making a distinction and most average folks use one sink for both, at least I do

Well, a prep sink is becoming more and more common. However, if you read my entire post you'll see that I do bring that up. Let's wait to hear from homey_bird to see how her/his Kitchen is laid out and what it contains.

There have been many threads about this. Here's one:

http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/2692694/please-post-pictures-of-kitchen-sinks-without-a-window?n=48

and if you search for "sink without window" you'll find many more.

Thanks everyone. One thing is, if I am so strapped to find a good spot for one sink, I do not think I can find two! :-) So currently I have only one sink planned.

Secondly, I may be an odd person, but I do not prep in front of my sink. My sink is used as receptacle for dirty dishes. Sadly, it's always so full of dirty dishes, that I end up chopping etc. using a board at the counter. (Ironically this stretch has no window in front of it and it has never bothered me!) All the scraps go to a compost bin. (I should also add that we are mostly vegetarian. My 9-yo eats meat but it's mostly either take out or already cleaned, therefore there is NO meat prepping - except marinating - in the kitchen).

On a related note that deserves a new discussion thread, I have considered Kohler Stages sink for prepping (space permitting). It cannot be the only sink, coz it will get dirty. It will have to be additional sink. I am keeping my fingers crossed.

I like buehl's solution of allocating extra depth to the sink counter, so that it does not feel like your face is in the wall while doing washing. It will flow naturally if we choose a deep refrigerator and place it along the same line. I must admit, my washing is definitely non trivial. I do spend fair bit of time scraping and cleaning pots and frying pans etc. But I also work with my head down, not looking out the window! :-)

Buehl, I have a plan but this weekend we are meeting with the architect and most likely a few things on the plan will change - so I am refraining from posting the plan for layout review. Hopefully in a couple of weeks after he incorporates our current wish list. Having some idea on this issue will help me prioritize my other "wants".

Hmmm., is this architect a kitchen specialist? Sometimes architects are a little too high level to deliver the best kitchen layout. And they usually bill by the hour.

I don't prep in front of my sink, and I spend as little time as possible washing dishes. A view from the sink is of absolutely no importance to me. Having the sink in the right location in the kitchen is of huge imortance.

Kiko, no, my architect is not a kitchen specialist, nor does he claim to be. He's made it clear to me that he will show range, refrigerator and sink on the plan, built ins such as walk in pantry space and island and walls/windows. Rest is up to me to decide.

Our plans that will change are overall space plans, and kitchen dimensions and even orientation is bound to change. In fact, we will check if we can incorporate an L-shaped Great Room. Current plan is a Kitchen-Dining-Living stacked one after another, and I have some concerns that it will be too long-ish.

I am ok with this model because kitchen design usually comes free from cabinetry shops, and I knew I could always get help from Gardenweb :-)

My prep sink will not be in front of a window. However, my prep area will be directly in front of a window. Hoping the new houses they build across from us are not butt ugly so I have a nice view. ;) As for cleanup, I put that on my island. This way, DH can have a view out the back when he cleans up the dinner dishes, or if he's doing the barbecuing, then I can have the nice view.

I have a good size bay window over my kitchen sink that overlooks a pretty flower garden my mom & I plant in the Spring. When I'm doing dishes I'm not looking out that window, I'm looking down at the dishes. When I prep beside the sink I'm not looking out that window, I'm looking down at the food I'm chopping. So no, I don't think a window is a must for over the sink, or prep area. Our window is necessary to bring natural light into the kitchen - it would be a less pleasant place to work without it. It is also, barring the front door, the ONLY window on the front of the house. It's nice to be able to look out and see the front of the property, and see who might be coming down the driveway to visit.

I think window-over-kitchen sink became common because people want and need natural light and ventilation in their kitchen and over the sink is often the logical place to accomplish that. It's fine if a sink run on an interior wall works for you, but I hope you plan to incorporate natural light and ventilation in some way in the kitchen. If you don't, your kitchen may end up feeling a bit cave-like, and that is what could hurt you at resale.

One of the very few specific requests that my wife made for our new house was that their be a nice window over 'her' sink. We have windows on two walls of the kitchen, and although I don't often really look at what's outside, I like the connection to the outside and the natural light. Our kitchen is just such a nice place to be. Our last two kitchens were awful, and had no windows. That being said, not everyone likes a lot of windows. My SIL is bothered by bright light, and keeps the shades drawn on the one small window in her dark kitchen. I would need a flashlight to work in there!

My last house had a window over the sink but it was too high, and I could not see out. My current house has cabinets over the sink, and they're only 14" off of the counter. My next house will have no uppers and windows galore because we're doing a solar tempering design.

It's funny because the only time I'm in the kitchen and find myself even wanting to look out the window is when I'm waiting for something to finish in the stand mixer, oven, or making a grocery list. Sure my prep will be in front of windows, but I won't really use them as I told my architect I would like to keep all of my fingers when I'm finished with prepping. Really how can people make sure a dish is clean or watch what they're cutting if they're looking out a window? It seems so impractical.

My preference is for a sink under the window. We have a big family that's home all day, and so there are always lots of dishes to be washed, even with a dishwasher, and I like the view while doing so.

That said, I also think there is a place for sinks with no windows over them. It opens up opportunities for storage above the sink that you can't do as easily if there is a window there.

For a time, we had a windowless sink, but it wasn't altogether bad because we had views outside by looking out the windows to the right and to the left of the sink run.

I'd recommend posting your plan and seeing what folks have to say. I've seen improvements on architects' plans so many times that I recommend giving it a try. You might be pleased with what options open up.
Pictures of sinks with plate racks over them

Windowless Sinks

I wish I didn't have a window over my sink because the neighbors house is 12 ft away. The shade is closed most of the time.

Here's just one of many pictures of mirrors over the kitchen sink.

If you search on Houzz, there are a lot of pretty options.

Miss TKO 2015 has just posted her new kitchen where sinks are nowhere near windows. Gorgeous! While I am from sink under window camp, maybe you could twist my arm to like this one. I guess windows are more relevant as sources of light rather than as source of distraction while on kitchen duty

In my previous house the kitchen was located in the middle of the house and opened up to breakfast and family rooms that had walls of windows. In that house the prep sink was on a peninsula with no wall cabinets and faced into the family room. The bar sink was on an island. Worked well for us because there was good natural light and unobstructed sight lines between the kitchen and the family/breakfast rooms.

I sure wouldn't want to be watching myself at the kitchen sink or cleaning that thing.

My kitchen is small but it has a nice window over the sink and prep area. The view is nothing special: my small backyard, fence, and neighbor's house beyond. But sky, clouds, and natural light, wind in the trees, birds of all kinds passing through.

I don't think no window over the sink is a deal-breaker, but having one is a spirit-lifter.

ETA: Everyone's priorities are different. I would choose a window over other things, even if they weren't as time-saving. I have to walk a couple of steps from my DW to where my dishes are kept. Twice a week. I'm at my sink/prep area all the time.

Once again, thank you all! This discussion was helpful. Now, when I do meet with the architect tomorrow, I will be more open to considering plan options that have windowless sinks, if it gives me something more important in return. Like I said, helped me decide order of priorities! :-) Cannot wait to post kitchen plan (will be by new year's hopefully!).

To recap, my concern was for resale. It is encouraging to know that windowless sinks are not all that uncommon as I had imagined, therefore future buyers will not be horrified. That said, I hear that I build a house for me and not next buyer.

Thank you everyone and wish you a relaxing and happy holiday season!

I always thought the sink was traditionally under a window because of upper cabinets. When at the sink, you don't want cabinets in your face. And, unless you put glass behind the cabinet, one cannot/should not, exist over a window. So, if a kitchen can have a window, the logical place to put a sink is where a cabinet cannot exist. Our kitchen design includes a stages 45 in an island and a clean-up sink along a wall without a window. The kitchen is in the interior of the house, with an island that overlooks a breakfast bay with lots of windows and doors to the back yard.

Good luck with your planning. We are not done yet, but below is a photo of the wall sink area. The base cabinet is 27 inches deep and the counter will be 3/4 inch overhang, so 27.75 inch counter space. The sink base is 36 inches wide. The shelving above starts at 34 inches above the counter and is 18 inches high. The uppers right and left of the sink are 16 inches deep. The shelves are pushed back 3 inches, so 13 inches to the wall. The width of the shelving area is 54. The space somewhat mirrors the adjoining wall with a 54 inch range hood set 34 inches from the counter and 18 inches high.

ETA -- I would not want a corner sink. I am short and I think the empty space in the corner would frustrate me. However, I have used corner ranges and actually liked having the counters right and left at an angle, but only for a 1 cook kitchen.

A designer and builder might tell you to build a house for your needs not for resale, but a realtor would tell you to take resale into consideration. There's always a way to balance both. If you think its likely you will want to sell the house within 10 years then you should take resale into consideration. That does not mean the design has to be boring/bland -- rather it should be classy and not overly personalized. For example, if you think you might want to sell the house within 10 years you might want to skip that turquoise/orange backsplash, gold leaf moulding, or geodesic dome floor plan no matter how much you like it.

Having the sink away from a window will not be a show stopper for most buyers. There are some markets where buyers assume they will do a full kitchen reno when they move in; in other neighborhoods that's not the case. If you aren't certain about your neighborhood I'd look at listing photos online to get a feel for what houses in your price range look like or talk to a realtor.

NIghtowl, in my current condo, I not only don't have a window over the sink, I do have upper cabinets there, which also do not bother me at all. That said, natural light is not an issue, we have (literally) 51 linear feet of 9' tall windows in the same (great) room.

I thought some of the linked pic's with uppers spanning the sink wall were quite attractive. Overseas kitchens often have a bank of upper cabinets over the sink, which makes me wonder if the window-over-sink may have developed as a US custom we've come to see as standard.

I do most of my dishes by hand - by choice - and for a few years now I've been intrigued by the Danish invention of dish drying cupboards above the sink. Seem so practical.

"I knew I could always get help from Gardenweb"

This is the best place to come for that! We've seen some really bad kitchens designed by architects and KDs (maybe I should say some who call themselves a KD).

I have a window over the sink (it came that way) and I like it. I do wash most of my dishes in the sink and like the natural light. I also like that I can look up sometimes and look outside. If I was building or remodeling a kitchen (with no limits) I'd have a wall of windows along the sink and prep run.

I do have 2 skylights in the kitchen too, so I have plenty of light during the day (it's AZ!).

Being short I use the corner area for my mw. I can't reach to the back of the corner area. When I move the mw over to clean behind it, I have to get my 1 step rubber maid 'height helper' to clean back into the corner and ledge of the 'counter top BS'.

you're gonna make us wait w e e k s to see your layout? wow, you are cruel!

Desertsteph, LOL. I have the meeting tomorrow when we will hash out a few details and also hopefully decide if we will go with L-shaped Great Room or big rectangle with K-D-L in one line. Then, the architect takes 2-3 weeks to turn around plans of the whole space. Since we are working within a lot of constraints, he has to go back and re-draw the whole house each time we make major changes to the plan that change square footage and exterior walls.

But I can totally relate to how you feel. I'd feel the same way! One thing I can do is, after our meeting, draw my own schematic and post. His final version may still come a little different, but I will not be accused of cruelty by TKO's :-)