I have to disagree with livewire on this one. We have an approx 9' island with the stove in the middle. I do most of my prep work in the kitchen on the 3 ft stretch to one side of the stove. The sink is right across the aisle. The majority of my kitchen works as a galley with the island being one of the sides. We got our island venthood for $1k at a Sears scratch and dent sale. It had been ordered by someone who ended up not wanting it, so we got a huge break for noticing it up on a shelf out of the way of the main area. If you have an appliance store nearby which runs sales like that, you may want to check in frequently, either by phone or in person. Ours retailed for well over $2k. I noticed it one time and was not exactly sure of our layout at that point and wanted to do my GW research on it. It was approx $1,200. I went back a week later and it was $950 before tax, so I grabbed it quickly, knowing it was worth way more so I could resell it if we could not use it. If you are patient, you can get lucky too. It is abut being at the right place at the right time and taking advantage of that. If you don't try, you won't be lucky.

I don't mind casual at all--not even wrinkled--as long as it's clean. Don't care for the 'here are my boobs, take a good look' style common today. But interesting you should post this. I was just thinking this weekend about the difference in clothing styles from when I grew up. When I was a teen, your bra was NEVER supposed to show--ever. Not bra straps peeking out. So I'm really torn when you see gals wearing spaghetti strap tops with their bra straps visible--glad they're wearing a bra, but I don't want to see it. And does anyone remember a time when, if you were wearing 2 items (2 shirts, a shirt and a jacket, etc--the inside one was NEVER supposed to be longer than the outer one? It looks SO sloppy to me, the current trend to wear a shorter outer top over a longer inner one--looks like something is hanging out that shouldn't be (is the visual here making sense?). Oh, well, guess we're showing our age. Will add--we went to dinner at a restaurant last night. There were people there who were very dressed up, many were casual (we were)--didn't bother me a bit. I really think clothes should be worn for comfort, and in all honesty? I thought the casual people looked much more comfortable than the dressed-up ones.

There are two unusual treatments I have done to the back of exposed cabinets. However, they were both situations where only the back was exposed, and the cabinets were bracketed by wall on each side. I don't know how this would look in your application. In one application we ran the flooring, in the same direction, up the exposed cabinetry. It is a very modern look because the cabinetry actually disappears a bit and the counter seems to be suspended between the walls. (There is seating there so it is also durable) In the other application we ran the same white subway tile on the back of the cabinetry that was used in the backsplash. However the back wall of the kitchen has tile to the ceiling including the window jambs and sills. The cabinetry in question parallels this. Again, there is seating there so it is durable. This was influenced by commercial kitchens and by certain types of French bistros that are tile-heavy.

Before this thread, I had never heard the term "open concept" used outside of Canada, but I guess it has spread south. I still say "open floor plan" instead. I do not like it with regards to kitchens because it means that there is less wall space available for upper cabinets, and I hate lower cabinets, and I cannot understand how anyone can store dishes in drawers! I want my dishes stored vertically, so that I can easily get to them. Also, I do not like having to stoop. I also like to contain noise, but that is less of an issue now, but if someone is watching a football game on TV, I absolutely do not want to have to listen to it when I am in the kitchen. In the late 1960s and early 70s lofts were very popular, and in 1973 I lived in a converted storefront in San Francisco with several roommates. My bedroom was in the upper portion of one of the store windows, and so I got a lot of natural light - not so much privacy. Actually, the storefront had been converted to a dance studio before it was converted to a living space and still had ballet bars. Anyway, I'm over it now, although I think it is fine for younger people. I remember houses in Texas that had been built in the 1930s would often have a sight-line to the back door when you opened the front door, and these houses were called "shotgun" style and considered vulgar and unappealing. Fortunately, I never lived in one of them. I like houses that have an open central courtyard (as in ancient Rome) with rooms surrounding the courtyard. I've been in many houses in Mexico like that, and I find them very delightful. There are also a few houses here in Los Angeles like that. If I want open space, I go to my pergola, and I get all the openness I want. We frequently cook outdoors, and we also often eat outdoors, but do not have TV outside. The inside is for privacy. My brother laments that with fewer walls, there is less space for him to hang paintings, and so we have a lot of them stored in the garage.