Kitchen layout help please! Old house. Brick walls.
Hello dear Houzzers! I need your help please. My friend has learned a lot here and suggested I ask for some of your expertise on my kitchen plan :-)
Background: this is a 1910s townhome in a large city. Walls are masonry, load bearing, so adding on/ opening things up is not an option. We have decided (with consultation) to remove that wall dividing the kitchen from the dining room. We’ve got a good builder and a KD who came up with the very preliminary plan I am attaching here. There really are a lot of constraints, so I would be grateful for a fresh set of eyes on the possibilities.
Here’s what I want from my new kitchen: In the most general sense, to be able to prep, cook and clean-up without feeling crowded and irate. I’d love to be able to have other people in the kitchen without wanting to kill them and would like people to be able to talk to me/socialize while I am in the kitchen.
Here’s what I don’t have now: Space, enough counter-top work space, cabinets that work, a stove top that works, a fridge that makes sense.
So far, I’ve told the KD that I’d like more space and the ability to socialize in the kitchen. We also talked about the fact that my kitchen is FREEZING COLD in the winter and that the re-design will need to address this somehow.
I know it’s going to be expensive, and we will take the opportunity to upgrade some outdated infrastructure like electrical. The builder is familiar with houses in my neighborhood and we know there are going to be some unknowns.
I understand that the weird little powder room is probably going to have to go. I’m OK with that, if it gets me a more functional and pleasant space.
Full disclosure: my dad is a retired architect and I have been advised to keep him away from this. Please save me LOL
Thanks so so much in advance!!
Comments (10)
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Layout Advice Requested - Old house kitchen reno
Comments (15)Wow, lovely home. Try to go with 30" deep counters on at least the bottom wall, although I would do both. You can do this inexpensively by building a 2x6" frame behind the counters, or more expensively by ordering extra-deep countertops. You will incur the extra square footage cost on the countertop materials, but it's sooooo worth it. I grew up in the tiniest kitchen but never really noticed because it had 30" deep counters. This will also make the kitchen easier to work in by virtue of shrinking the middle aisle. Also, those uppers over your prep space will be much less in your face, although I would try to get rid of them altogether or at least not let them come down to face height.. it's miserable prepping with uppers in your face. As for layout, I would make the bar sink 6" larger, the cleanup sink 6" smaller, and switch their positions. Like this: Top wall from left to right: 24" DW with dish storage above, 30" cleanup sink w/ trash underneath, rest of wall as shown in your plan. 18" lower next to Fridge becomes dish storage. Bottom wall from left to right: 18" dish storage overflow/cookbooks, 36" cab but with larger square prep sink instead of small round bar sink and trash underneath, two 27" cabs for your prep for a total of 54" inches of prep space (you gain 6" because of the loss of the DW from this wall), rest of wall as shown in your plan....See MoreSmall kitchen, old house, layout help appreciated
Comments (12)Oh, trash under the sink. I forgot. So you can kind of see on the plan, I have the sink cabinet bumped out a couple of inches. That's to help deal with the shallow cabinet run and fitting a sink in. So I am thinking that a farmhouse sink will also help with that as the sink can be pulled proud an inch or two of the cabinet. And that should give us enough room to squeeze a deck mounted faucet behind the sink. But I'm not sure how much room that leaves for trash under the sink? And I'd like to fit trash, recycling, and compost because our trash service hauls all three for us. If that can all fit under the sink in some kind of pull out configuration, I'd be willing to do that. I was putting the dishwasher on the other side of the trash pull out so I could scrap then load. Also if it makes any difference the doorway between the kitchen and the breakfast nook is seldom used. The breakfast nook is used as a kid art space at the moment and eventually I'd like to get it set up as my home office with mail sorting and bill paying in there. But it is not used for eating at all. We always eat in the dining room. Thanks!...See MorePlease help with new kitchen layout in old house
Comments (34)I've been quiet but busy and wanted to thank everyone again for the floor plans. algeasea, my husband said some tankless heaters can be mounted outside, but not the one he bought. I have spent countless hours trying to research refrigerators and freezers and don't feel that I have gotten very far. Same with ranges - but at least I have been able to channel some of that frustration into demolition (which has uncovered some old termite and water damage.) I have followed cpartist's advice in another thread and sat in the kitchen with all these plans and tried to picture how they would work. Sena01, I moved all that junk off the wall so I could try the refrigerator over there, then realized the water hook-up for the ice-maker was still attached, so still working on it. benjesbride, I have tried to open up to losing the built-ins, but just can't bring myself to do it. cpartist, the bricks could probably be taken out, and I would love to do it, but the fireplaces haven't been used in years and the tops are actually now taken down to below roof level. Plus, other nasty surprises keep knocking that as a project lower on the list. mama goose, I did some research on how cold the GF flours need to be kept, and while a lot need to be in the freezer, some of the starchier ones would be fine in the refrigerator, and some in the cupboard. I'm glad you asked because I threw them all in the same place to make things easier at the time, and any less freezer space used will help me get closer to getting rid of the chest, which I agree is ugly and a space hog. Caligirl5 , I'm going round and round with the same problem of wanting to separate the laundry but not wanting to sacrifice the extra light and space. cpartist posted some photos of people that handled it well. Has anyone done a study on the emotional stages of kitchen renovation? So far mine have been (sticker) shock, confusion, frustration, panic, anger, and depression....See MorePlease help with house layout - & kitchen addition
Comments (41)I have a question. Looking for more wall space to help with the kitchen. If I take the 2nd bedroom, turn it and put it where the foyer is....Then take the bathroom and connect it to bedroom. That should create a wall for the kitchen. Move the laundry to where the bathroom was. Make the master closet smaller. I think that gives me a foyer and hall to the dining room area. Need to look at getting a door from the garage to the inside. But would that work?...See MoreShadowKitten
4 years agoShadowKitten
4 years ago
PROJAN MOYER
4 years agolast modified: 4 years ago
2beachlovers
4 years ago
scottie mom
4 years agoWhat about this idea? Is there possibly enough room to fit the fridge in that spot and then extend the counter down?
It certainly wouldn't be a seating peninsula, but a place to prep and plate.
ShadowKitten thanked scottie mom
mama goose_gw zn6OH
4 years agolast modified: 4 years agodo you think there’s any way to get the sink onto that peninsula? Not the sink and the DW, and a prep space, which should be beside the water source. You could add a prep sink to the peninsula, and keep the clean-up sink in its existing location. With a basement, moving plumbing a few feet shouldn't be a big problem (in the grand plan).
You might think that the kitchen is too small for two sinks, but you could choose where to prep, and if you have help in the kitchen, you'd have separate work areas. If you wanted to return the prep sink to counter/serving area, get an integrated cutting board. Having the prep sink on the island would allow you to move the range down toward the window, leaving more counter between it and the fridge, and would give you a bit of step-back space when opening the oven door.
I don't think I'd put the fridge any deeper in the kitchen, especially with the narrow work aisle, which is also a traffic aisle to the back door.
ETA, I'd keep the wider table. We have a multipurpose room, 12 x 24 on the outside, with window seats and closets on one exterior wall. The other long wall has a cabinet with a prep sink (while it's technically not in the prep space, I love my second sink), another closet and a bumped-in area which is the former exterior part of the chimney. So, we have about the same width to set up tables for holiday dinners. We use 30" x 72" folding tables, which are fine for an occasional meal, but there is no space on the tables for any serving pieces larger than s&p shakers and a butter dish. Every holiday meal is served buffet-style, which is still better than balancing a plate on one's knees in the LR.
ShadowKitten thanked mama goose_gw zn6OHShadowKitten
4 years ago
chiflipper