Advice needed: Kitchen in new house is ugly, has an awkward layout
Megan S
2 years ago
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New build kitchen layout advice needed
Comments (16)Here's an idea: The counters and cabinets along the perimeter are all 3" deeper than standard: 28.5" deep counters 27" deep base cabinets 15" deep upper cabinets The deeper cabinets provide a lot more storage and the deeper counters provide more workspace. If your cabinetmaker does not offer 27" deep base cabinets, then simply pull standard depth base cabinets out 3" from the wall. Most, if not all, cabinetmakers offer 15" deep uppers. The Cleanup Zone and Dish Storage are near the Dining Room for ease of setting the table and cleaning off the table. They're also a direct shot from the Living Room. Dish Storage is in a 30" wide dish hutch. The upper cabinet goes from the counter up to the ceiling (or however high your uppers go). This gives you a lot of storage space for dishes, glasses, etc. With the deeper counters, the upper cabinet of the hutch is 15" deep so you can fit all your plates and platters. The two Prep Zones are separated from the Cleanup Zone, which allows you to have someone cleaning up while others are prepping/cooking. With two "primary" Prep Zones, you can have two people doing major prep work at the same time. It also provides you with a choice of where to prep - on the island or b/w the range and cleanup sink. As your toddler grows up, s/he will be helping in the Kitchen, so you will each have your own space! It also allows guests, etc., to help out during get togethers. With the prep sink offset, you have a wonderful expanse of workspace for large projects such as baking, cookie decorating, crafts, school/science projects, wrapping gifts, staging food during parties, etc. Both the MW drawer & wine cooler are on the sides of the island to keep people out of the main work zones. It really doesn't matter which side of the island they're on - you can switch them. I can argue for/against both arrangements. The refrigerator & freezer are on the periphery of the Kitchen for the same reason. The trash pullout is located so it's easily accessible from both Prep Zones, the Cooking Zone, and the Cleanup Zone as well as on the periphery. Small Appliances...There's a mixer lift for your stand mixer and the other small appliances can be stored in the 27" wide drawer bank across from the mixer lift. No appliance garage, but in all honesty, most people end up taking them out when they remodel b/c they take up too much counterspace and the what counterspace there is in front of the garage is useless b/c you don't want to block access. Better to store them where they can be easily accessed without having to move things around or even to shuffle appliances around in a smaller space inside a garage. With the drawers, they're all accessible without shuffling or taking up valuable counterspace. If there's room, you could also store them in the Pantry - 12" deep shelves hold the vast majority of standard small appliances. Cookbooks could be stored in the shelves of the 24" upper cabinet, if you'd like. I ended up storing mine in an upper cabinet next to my hood b/c I forgot to plan for them and that location is actually working out quite well! They're right were I need them! If you have dozens of cookbooks, they probably won't all fit, but you could at least store your most used cookbooks there on 1 or 2 shelves. I put in the Savigny range. It's still quite large, but at least you gained a few inches of workspace! The pantry is a reach-in, possibly step-in pantry with only 12" deep shelves. Built-in pantries are much more efficient and flexible storage if their shelves are not too deep - and they're less expensive! They provide a full view of what you have so there's no opening/closing drawers or roll out tray shelves looking for something Shelves can be adjustable for not only flexible storage initially, but if your needs change later, you can re-adjust them. If needed, you can store larger items on the floor. You have access to the entire space for storage - floor to ceiling. You can even use the side walls to hang a broom or mop. The "sweet spot" for pantry shelf depth is 12". Just about everything will fit on 12" deep shelves - cereal boxes, rolls of paper towels, cans, boxes, small appliances (food processors, mixers, blenders, breadmakers, standard size toaster ovens, toasters, waffle irons, etc.). The shallow depth doesn't allow you to store things too deep so things do not get lost. If you're concerned about organization, get bins or similar to organize smaller items on the shelves. The problem with 24" deep pantry cabinets is that they are not particularly flexible, things get lost in the back and in the "middle" of the roll out tray shelves (especially those above your chest), and if you're not quite sure where something is, you have to open/close multiple drawers/roll out tray shelves looking for the item. In addition, you only have "access" to the internal height of the pantry cabinet - usually quite a bit less than floor-to-ceiling b/c of toekick and limited cabinet heights available, Oh, and they're expensive. . Layout #1: . Layout #1 Zone Map: ....See MoreLarge & awkward master bedroom needs TLC, new furniture and lay-out
Comments (9)The first thing I notice is the almost total lack of color in your bedroom. It also lacks curtains, and there is very little softness, and a lot of dark and angular furniture. In the inspiration room that Beverly shows there is a definite and very cohesive color scheme, and much more softness to the bedding, and some strong and definite pattern. You might consider buying an area rug you love and taking color and pattern inspirations from that. The art in your room is too small and timid, and I would look for much larger and more colorful art to bring life to this room. A large easy chair in front of the window in a beautiful color and some decorative pillows could also become part of your color scheme. A very spare and modern aesthetic may not give you the warm and cozy vibe you say you're looking for. It might be better to wait until you've bought the furniture you want before asking for advice since I gather everything in the room will be different. The orientation of the bed looks good to me in relation to everything else, including where the door is....See MoreNew house layout - advice needed
Comments (16)I agree with most of what's been said. The big issues in my mind: - Lack of proportion; that is, some of the rooms just aren't wide enough for realistic comfort. - The bathrooms aren't efficient. The basic 3-piece American bathroom is usually built in a straight line so that all the water lines are in one wall ... something like this ... you could flip-flop the sink and toilet, you could make the vanity longer, you could add a small closet ... but this is the best bang for the buck: - You want to have windows on two different walls, if at all possible ... you don't want to give the coveted corner positions to a storage room. - You want your table to be near the kitchen. - Here's my best suggestion for tweaks to this plan: It's an efficient, inexpensive to build rectangle, which means you can have a simple roofline. Every bedroom has a closet. The bathrooms are simple but efficient ... the master even has a small linen closet inside the bathroom. The laundry is near the bedrooms. All your water is consolidated in the middle of the house, which is efficient and cheaper to build. Your pocket office is small (definitely a one-butt office) but can have a window ... I'd close it off with pocket doors. Having it open to the foyer will make it feel a bit larger when in use. The kitchen isn't big, but it is hidden from the front door, and the large pantry will make up for its modest size (and your hot water heater can fit in the deep corner of the pantry). You can have a window in the kitchen. Your living room and dining room are one long, narrow space -- and a good-sized space -- which means you'll have great cross-breezes in good weather. You can have a large table, which , of course, will go next to the kitchen. You can have windows on two walls of your most important space -- your living room -- and one of those windows will be a bay window. The garage is front-facing, which is least expensive /works on a small lot ... but is set back from the house, so it isn't the first thing you'll see....See MoreMy Home Exterior is Ugly, Need Advice
Comments (35)awm03 - That design is really amazing, thank you! capist - Thank you for your mock ups as well. I am a very visual person, so seeing these examples really helps. And the more I think about it, the more I agree that incorporating a subtle Craftsman vibe is probably the right approach. I have always loved the farmhouse look, but I'm realizing that it just doesn't work with our house. And because our house already has such wide room pitches, it already has a slight Craftsman feel. I am surprised to see that I like a darker color better and I think a more earthy tone is better because it works better with the red brick. I am really liking some of these brown tones. A new, wooden door is already on our short list and I love this example. I am a big fan of double doors, so we plan to go that direction instead of side lights. Windows are also in our plans too, but probably a next year project. So my thoughts is that we may get a start this year with paint and landscaping (and MAYBE a new door) and then we can do some other upgrades, like windows, next year. It's worth noting that the top windows do a decent side trim around them already, but you can't really see it in my original pictures because the trim and stucco are basically the same color. If the trim were painted a bright white, it would stand out a lot more, especially against a darker stucco color....See MoreMegan S
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