Help reconfiguring attached designs for L-shaped kitchen remodel
We are remodeling the kitchen in our 1920s bungalow. We're taking out the wall between the dining room and kitchen, which also currently houses the stairs to the unfinished attic and the basement. The attic stairs will be relocated, but the basement stairs will be refinished in the current spot; half-walls ("knee walls") will be built on either side of the stairs, which will separate the kitchen from the dining room.
In our current design (posted here), the range would be on the other side of the half-wall that is in the kitchen, facing the dining room (sort of overlooking the stairs to the basement), which would require an island hood. We've gotten enough negative feedback about this part of the design (from our contractor and posters here) regarding difficulties with ventilation, etc, that we're thinking about reconfiguring and trying to find wall space for the range and a wall hood.
My thought is that we drywall over the window on the (west) wall next to where the fridge is currently shown and then have that as useable wall space. My question is how to best configure the kitchen (i.e., placement of range, fridge, single pantry cabinet, etc) with this idea of "flipping" the east and west walls. I think the sink and dishwasher would stay where they are in these drawings. Because we can't fit cabinets on both sides of the island lengthwise, the half-wall by the stairs would not have anything on it; maybe some shallow built-in shelves or something (open to ideas here, too!) The island would shift toward this (now bare) east half-wall by the stairs.
Thanks for your feedback and ideas!
(RE: The X-ed out portion of the dimensioned drawing: Those were plans to open the kitchen into the mudroom, which we've scrapped due to cost concerns. The window on the south wall that I'm talking about drywalling over in favor of gaining wall space in the kitchen looks into the mudroom.)
Comments (10)
7 years agolast modified: 7 years agoYou can still have an L shaped kitchen, with the range on the back wall and fridge and side pantry on the mudroom wall. You could have upper cabinets on the fridge wall, or end the uppers in the corner, and have a smaller window into the MR. If you can move the sink drain a few inches, moving the DW from one side of the sink to the other is fairly easy.
I made the island slightly longer and put dish storage in drawers facing the sink and DW. The upper cabinet to the right of the sink could be open shelves, or an open box, with storage all the way to the counter. It would be a good location for glasses and cups, although you might have to unload those first the counter, then to the shelves.
MW can be on a shelf next to the fridge, or a MW drawer on the island, facing the fridge.
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Comments (34)Going off Bellsmom last post, that is why I drew my layout the way I did. If your heart is set on an island, it is certainly possible, you just won't be able to have cabinets on both perimeters. I drew mine the way I did b/c you mentioned that you could raise the large window up but you didn't say you could/would raise the smaller window so I didn't want to put cabinetry in front of a window that is only 32 inches from the floor. If you eliminate cabinets on that wall then you have a 9 foot area with a run of cabinets, a walkway, a narrow island (maybe 18 inches) and then a walkway behind it and the wall. I don't think your 48 inch range top will work on the 6'8" wall considering the sink cabinet facing the front would be 25.5 inches. 25.5 plus 48 is only going to leave 6.5 inches. I hope this makes sense. I'm on my phone right now so no pics. I think a mash up of my and Bellsmom plans might be closer to your liking. FYI, on my plan, the narrow pullout at the end of the sink run next to the dishwasher, I was thinking a pullout broom closet. I've seen so many great little pullouts like that here on GW and I don't have one in my kitchen so I put one in yours. :) The other corner next to the sink (near the 6'8" wall) I put a Susan cabinet. Last note, you might try making a new post that says layout help in the title to attract the attention of all the layout gurus. Until then, I'll keep commenting so your post stays near the top! ;)...See MoreU-shaped w/ small island or L w/ larger island? Help pls
Comments (26)OK - I may have gotten a little carried away...but here's a layout with what appear to be all your wants. I don't see a pantry, so I added cabinets behind the island as well as b/w the DR and TV room for extra storage. You actually have plenty of storage in this kitchen! The base cabinets on the top wall are 27"D (but could be as deep as 28.5"), the upper cabs on the top wall are 15"D. There are two excellent Prep Zones, although I would prefer to prep on the island facing everyone! (Prepping is 70% or more of the work/time in the kitchen; cleaning up is 20% or less.) The Cleanup Zone is out of the way of the Prep and Cooking Zones and there's no crossing through the Cleanup Zone to get to the Refrigerator or MW. With an undercounter MW like a MW drawer, you don't lose counterspace or have anything in the vertical space b/w the counters and cabinets. There's a nice stretch of counter to the left of the ovens,for a snack center or even a tea/coffee center (43" of counterspace). The ovens are in a 31.5" wide cabinet - the reasonable minimum needed for 30" wide ovens (which I assume the wall oven is at least - I don't know how wide your steam oven will be). There's a 42" wide counter-depth refrigerator - hopefully that will allay your DH's concern about a counter-depth model... In the DR, the table can be moved a bit to the left, especially if you don't put an outside door in the DR. Moving the table to the left will give you a few more inches b/w the shallow cabinets and the table. Note that the cabinets b/w the DR and TV Room are 6" taller than standard - that means the counter will be 42" high (bar-height). The cabinets + counters not only give you more storage space, but they also provide you with a separation b/w the DR and the TV Room as well as provide counter space in both places. The cabinets are 12" deep, but the counter is 15" deep. The TV Room has a sofa and chair - the chair can be moved to view the TV or stay where it is for conversation and visiting. (I even added end tables :-)) A note about the doors - I don't understand why you don't like the "line of sight" from the front door to the back door. The problem is, that middle section is the ideal spot for the back door - no obstructions, easy access to the kitchen, and out of the way of all work zones and seating areas. It keeps the traffic out of everyone's way - it's the perfect location! Put up some nice window/door dressings and you'll have a pleasant view for anyone entering your home from the front door. I wouldn't want the door to be in the kitchen (in the 8' span) b/c it would draw everyone through the kitchen to get to the backyard - the last thing you want in a kitchen! The island will help direct people around, but inevitably, some people will choose to go through the kitchen (b/w the island and perimeter) and get in your way - especially if someone is sitting at the island. If you absolutely must have the door there, then I suggest a sliding door with the opening as far away from the kitchen as possible - so that would mean the bottom of the 8' span. The rest can be windows. It's still going to be an issue, though... Here's the layout (select/click on a picture to see a bigger version): I labeled the cabinets and counters with suggestions for storage and usage - but you should tailor it to what would work for you... Here's a zone map:...See MoreL shaped kitchen with island from Ikea - feedback on design
Comments (19)Dear Rosebloom2, Having not interviewed you I have no idea what you’re trying to accomplish. I have reviewed your kitchen design with this in mind. A kitchen’s purpose is to provide food and beverage service. If you design your kitchen well it should last 50 years and remain current and valuable regardless of changes in design trends. Being a simple machine with the only moving part being whoever is working in it. It should perform its purpose as efficiently as possible and look great while doing it forever (50 years). I believe you should buy your kitchen once, use it, enjoy it, and reap the benefits of owning a kitchen that doesn’t need to be replaced in 8 to 12 years when your appliances start to fail. If it’s designed to meet the latest trendy, new, and wow, and most are. The Impact You Expect your kitchen project to have could be extremely short lived. And you’ll quickly find you own a kitchen much like the one you so desperately wanted to replace. My Review: You have no pantry (could be a huge problem). Having all the mass (weight) of the refrigerator and broom closet on the one short wall makes your kitchen composition unbalanced (lopsided). Having the broom closet doors open to the left make the sides of those cabinets, in context, look out of place adjacent to your refrigerator enclosure. The inside corner wall cabinet is a waste (in my opinion). Sure you can fill it with lots of stuff but you can’t reach the back of that cabinet from the bottom shelf of it, and as you go higher it gets even less accessible. You could install a wall lazy susan but the results aren’t great because it leaves a lot of cabinet space unusable. What is in the front you see and what is behind that consider it lost because you’ll have to take everything in front out to get to it. continued.......See MoreRemodel to L Shaped Kitchen W/ Island - design dilemma !! 3 entry ways
Comments (15)Here is an idea for you. Minimal framing and it would open up the kitchen space: 1. tear out the pantry and the internal walls of the powder room and the powder room sink. 2. Frame in a pocket door and solid wall for the powder room, reorienting the door. 3. change up the sink in the powder room for a very minimal thin sink hung on the wall across from the toilet and change the toilet to a round bowl that takes up less space. 4. Frame in a new wide archway to the dining room that is next to the stairwell 5. eliminate the existing door to the dining room 6. counters along the exterior wall with sink under window and cooktop on exterior wall for venting 7. countertop along dining room wall anchored by a double oven 8. refrigerator and pantry along opposite wall from sink - can make pantry depth of standard depth fridge to save on appliance cost - pantry can be doors with shelves all around or cupboards with pull outs. 9. island with 42" space to sink area and aligned with dining room opening 10. not to worry about work triangle with fridge because island becomes prep space see sketch:...See MoreRelated Professionals
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7 years agolast modified: 7 years ago
I've attached a rough sketch of the main floor of the house (not drawn to scale, but you can get an idea for the layout). Regarding the kitchen - the pantry (as shown on this sketch) is a mess and will be taken out to provide more space in the kitchen. This change is included in the designs I attached to my original post. And, as I mentioned before, the enclosed stairs to the attic and basement will be opened up. For the time being we'll install pull-down stairs in the hall in front of the 2 front bedrooms and bathroom. The basement stairs will be kept in place and refinished.For some info on how the space is used...We are a family of three, me, my husband and a 2yo. We're expecting a baby in Feb. We'd like to open the kitchen into the dining room for a more open feel in general, but also so we can see kids playing in the living room while we're cooking. There's currently no play area visible from the kitchen. We'll need a mudroom because we usually enter from the back of the house. We need all three bedrooms. We don't currently spend a lot of time in the dining room, but hoping this will change some with a more open plan. I realize the island in the kitchen will be a little tight to walk behind, but we've done the best we can with the plans there and we want some seating in the kitchen.
Hope this drawing helps with ideas for my above-posted layout questions for the kitchen. Thanks!
7 years ago- 7 years ago
- 7 years ago
One of the best things about having a kitchen on the back of a house is so you can see into the backyard. Since your kitchen location won't offer that, did you consider reconfiguring your house so public spaces are at the front and private spaces are at the back?
In a small home with little kids it is so nice when their rooms are in a quieter area of the house. In your home's present layout, potentially noisy spaces share a common wall with all the bedrooms. Public space and private space separated and buffered by a stair well and a bathroom should greatly improve noise transfer.
So this is what I was wondering about. Your stairwell stays in place, front bedroom becomes kitchen, main bath gets a bit bigger, secondary bedrooms are in kitchen and mudroom, master bedroom could have room for a walk in closet or a future en suite bathroom.
Downside is that you have to enter on the side of the house from the garage and not the back.
This is just food for thought. I spent almost a year working on our floor plan to turn our small 2 bedroom, 1 bath into an efficient 3 bedroom, 2 bath and then rearranging layouts became a hobby :-)
- 7 years ago
- 7 years ago
- 7 years ago
7 years agoI like mama's idea but since your aisles will be very tight it may not be a very good idea to walk in front of the range every time anyone needs to go back and forth b/w the fridge and the sink or even from the other rooms to reach the fridge when island seats are occupied.
Instead, I'd suggest keeping the window, using the south wall for storage and snacks and have an island on casters. Island can have a drop down counter for 2 for perching or quick meals.
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