Kitchen reno, layout opinions please
EDITED POST FOR COURTESY:::::::After reading Buelh's tips on how to post to houzz so the community has the information they need to help, I am editing my post. Much gratitude to those who have given me their feedback and expertise already based on the limited information I provided. It has been extremely helpful as we try to navigate all of these decisions. Below is more information which I hope will be useful as you review my request. Thank you.
We are doing a major reno to our kitchen. Attached is the proposed floor plan by our cabinetmaker as well as a few 3D diagrams. We are wide open for opinions. And I truly appreciate anyone who takes the time to offer their opinion. We have been waiting 20 years to do this and want to make sure all angles are considered before we forge ahead. Thank you!
A few things you should know:
1. We have a 2-story brick cape code house which faces east; I've noted our front door on the diagram. When you walk into our house we have a small very entrance: straight ahead you go upstairs to bedrooms, go right and you are in the DR, a step left and you are in the LR.
2. We are taking down a wall between our formal dining room and current kitchen to make a larger space. It has a full basement underneath. It is a loadbearing wall; our preference is to not have a header that can be seen rather a ceiling which is flush between the two rooms. We know it will be more expensive.
We cannot take down the wall between our kitchen and family room as the FR was an addition using an outside wall of brick; it does not have a full basement underneath, it's built on a slab and has a 2-stair step down.
3. We are empty nesters who cook dinner on a regular basis, but we are not chefs.
4. Our primary goal is to update our kitchen overall (it hasn't been touched in 20 years) with highest *priority* to having better entertaining space.
5. The space behind the penninsula is where I envision putting a round table and chairs.
6. Appliances:
Refrigerator: we currently have a 30 inch fridge as we replaced it when we moved in (we live in a full brick house from 1960 and that is all that would fit in the current kitchen); we plan to replace with 36 inch refrigerator.
Microwave: we are planning on a drawer microwave; it's currently placed in the penninsula.
Dishwasher: standard dishwasher planned
Range: per our current floor plan, we are anticipating a slide-in range with a separate hood; we would like to have open shelves on either side of the hood
I'm not sold on the angled cab at the end of the uppers... anyone have opinions on it? (see below)
Comments (13)
jmp1228
3 years agoRelated Discussions
Kitchen Layout Opinions/Help Please.
Comments (1)Just figured out how to insert the pics so that you don' have top copy and paste:...See MoreNew Kitchen Reno Layout, Please Step Inside.
Comments (36)Again, thanks for the reply. Yes the sink has been purchased, I considered a single bowl sink and was veto'd by dear wife stating she wants two bowls (undermount), one 10" deep slightly oversize, second 8" deep undersize with a food waste disposal. She was very specific. Although I'm building my own cabinets, the sink manufacture specified a 36" cabinet and I'm going 35" outside dimension, that fact that I'm using 3/4" ply makes the inside cabinet size even smaller (33 1/2"). The fact that I'm building my own cabinets won't help allow for the amount of space needed for the dw to be beside the sink as I can't change the total 127" wall dimension, in other words, I can't fit a 24" dishwasher in a 22" space. Yes the dishwasher has been ordered. robotropolis I can't consider a 30" sink base, or even 24". since the sink has already been purchase and dear wife doesn't want to go smaller which will take away from what we have now. In other words, she dislikes smaller size sinks and or a single bowl. She needs the divider in the sink, one side takes care of the disposer (discards food after cutting and pealing) and the other side washes the vegetables etc. In other words, two people prep the food. The fridge has already been ordered and dear wife doesn't like how shallow the counter depth fridges are as well it would have to be very wide to be round 29 sq. ft and that would take away from counter space. She also got really turned off at the fact the counter depth was 35% more in price, so I'm recessing the standard size fridge (4") to give the look of counter depth. I can't move the stove further into the sitting area as it's already being moved 6" due to going from a 30" to 36" range. As for recessing that wall, it's not only load bearing but it's also an exterior wall so I'm very limited in my options. Wife wants both drawers and pullouts and I've accomplished that in our design. As mentioned earlier, she also really dislikes lazy susans. So far it seems the design remains the same and I've still got the same problem with the dw. I don't think there will be an acceptable solution. Thanks again for trying. This post was edited by Renosarefun on Fri, Mar 14, 14 at 15:57...See MoreKitchen Addition Layout Advice/Opinions/Suggestions Please! (Pic)
Comments (19)christamarie, any room you design, you need to work from outside in at the same time you design inside out. The extension you put on your house has to go with the existing look of the house. Right now, I envision an ugly nose stuck in the middle of your current house without other information to go with. The window over the sink is not even centered on the extension as is. The roofline of the extension has to tie in nicely with the extension. This can be quite expensive depending on what you do. If the rooflines are not tied in well, you can conceivably create leak points. If the additions are not done well structurally, they tend to sag and fall apart from the existing house over next several years. You can see this when you look at old houses that had 'suboptimal' additions put on them. First, the esthetics of the extension from the ouside has to look harmonious and well designed with the existing house. This is what makes you look at the house and say 'that house looks ugly' or 'that house looks nice'. People will have a gut response to the exterior of the house immediately. A well-done extension will improve the look of the house. If not well done, it looks like an ugly sore. You also have an opportunity to improve the way the house relates to the natural light coming into the house. I see tiny little windows added to the extension. This is a wasted opportunity IMHO. Ourside corner windows can be used beautifully to add wonderful architectural interest to the house. In your case, you have put a pantry there. Try to get some 3D software and try to envision the exterior of the house first. There will be many iterations as you work the exterior as well as the interior at the same time. This type of design is NOT EASY......See MorePlease help me with our Kitchen Layout. All opinions appreciated
Comments (4)I Love all the windows! It doesn't look like you have a lot of room for upper cabinets, so will you also have dish storage under the island, in dish drawers or something? I'm imagining making sandwiches, snacks, breakfast. The dishes are probably near the dishwasher, but most of what you need (meat,cheese,milk, lettuce) is way on the other side of the island. Then when your clear the table, you are walking around the probably-open dishwasher to get to the disposal in the sink. So the DW should probably go on the other side of the sink, with dish drawers in the island across from the range. You're on a farm, right? You might want a utility sink in the laundry or mud room. ( I miss my old double concrete sink!)...See Morejmp1228
3 years agojmp1228
3 years ago
mama goose_gw zn6OH
3 years agolast modified: 3 years ago21" won't be a lot space to store dishes, especially when plates are now 10.5-11" in diameter. When the DW door is fully open, you won't be able to reach most of the cabinetry in the corner--upper or lower, which is why I asked about dish storage. If you keep dishes in drawers in the cabinet on the end of the peninsula, they could be easily accessed, but again, that will be your prep space. Helpers won't be able to unload the DW or gather dishes to set the table, while you are prepping, but could wait until you move on to cooking tasks.
The logical spot for a trash pull-out is the narrow cabinet on the peninsula but you won't be able to open it if the DW is open at the same time. You can adapt to these issues and work around them, but it's better to know the shortcomings of a layout before you start cooking the first meal in the new kitchen. If you make that narrow cabinet the trash location, and store dishes in drawers on the end, I'd suggest narrower trash, and wider dish drawer. ETA, or add a few inches to the island--at 51" in the traffic aisle, you have space to adjust.
jmp1228 thanked mama goose_gw zn6OHjmp1228
3 years agoBuehl
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoWith the measurements you provided (several were missing) and assuming a 48" round table, this is what you have:
You have less space to work with than you think b/c you need to accommodate the table. E.g., there are only 103" to work with on the sink wall, not the approx 138" you show. The available space for the bottom/range wall is also less.A rectangular table 39"D would save you 9". A bench along the right wall would save you another 12". That would increase the 103" to 124". Like this:
jmp1228 thanked Buehlmama goose_gw zn6OH
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoSince nothing is going on the 103" wall, if you can extend the island by 9", I think Sammy's idea would work. Move the sink and DW to the peninsula, and put the range to the left of the window. I drew a hood 6" wider than the cooktop, to help contain the steam and grease plume. Alternately, you could center the range between the window and wall, and use a narrow upper on each side. You wouldn't have much landing space to the left, and the range would be very close to the entry--farther from the entry is safer, to give someone entering the space to swing away from the cook.
Normally I'd want the trash pull-out below the prep space, but putting it beside the fridge would give you space for wide drawers to the right of the range. Again, dish storage will be in the prep space, but there is room for the pe3rson prepping to move over to the left, to allow loading and unloading of the DW. A trash pull-out under the sink would also work.
The peninsula cabinet against the wall would open under the seating overhang--27" width would allow for the sink cab to be 3" from the perpendicular drawers, and filler on the other side of the corner would allow hardware to bypass on each cabinet. An advantage to the longer peninsula would be more space for each seat, so the little corner upper could be a full cabinet without being in someone's face.
36" for the traffic aisle is sufficient, since there is no cabinet or appliance opening into the aisle. Keep in mind that a DW on the end of a run will need a return panel, and the final length of the peninsula will depend on the width of the sink cabinet. I used 33". In either version, the peninsula can be moved a few inches toward the left (as drawn), to provide more space for the table and chairs.
Thank you for asking but I am not a pro. :)jmp1228 thanked mama goose_gw zn6OH
Buehl