Post up a floor plan with all dimensions filled in as the renderings make it somewhat tough. What is the aisle dimension between the cabinets and the island as it looks tight in the elevation.

Hi @millworkman, I tried my best to draw up a floor plan. I think there's space for the aisles to be 42". I am not super sure how we will place the fridge. I think the doors will stick further out for the doors to open, and the doors (and handles) will stick out by about five inches, so the aisle will be narrower there.

(not a pro) Can you clarify your fridge placement please? In the overhead view, it looks like it's next to a wall. In the elevations, it looks like it's next to an opening.

Asking because you won't want it next to a wall, at least not a wall that's deeper than the box. The hinges need to stand proud of any wall so you don't end up with like the picture below (unable to open all the way.)

It's great that your fridge can be recessed, and be sure to get the dimensions and space requirements of the fridge to make sure you account for ventilation, handle depth, etc. (Many refrigerators require 1" or so of space in the back for ventilation; and even 'counter depth' are deeper than counters.) Look at your specs for a picture like below (this particular example needs 2" behind the fridge, so the depth with the doors open 90* is about 50" from the wall.)

@chicagoans It is next to a load-bearing wall, but it is not a full wall. I have looked into the dimensions of our new standard depth fridge, and gave our cabinet designer the dimensions too. I think there is sufficient clearance. That's one of the things I am worried about, and I am not sure about the depth of the cabinets around the fridge that he is suggesting.

I'd definitely ask about the depth of the cabinets so you can gauge how it will look, and function. Over-fridge cabinets are hard to access if they're shallower than the refrigerator. I'm attaching pictures of my last kitchen (sold last year and these are from the listing, otherwise I'd take a better picture for you.) (This might not be at all how you want your kitchen to look, so I won't be offended if you show your cabinet guy this as an example of what you don't want!)

You can see how the cabinets to the right are shallower than the refrigerator, and the side panel extends past them so you don't see the side of the fridge. (Sorry that the lower part is blocked from view by the island.) If your cabinets to the left of the fridge in your plan are shallower, you could ask him for this kind of side panel.

Also you can see how the cabinets above the fridge are deeper / come further forward than the cabinets to the right. This made things toward the front of the cabinet easier to reach (I still needed a stool to grab things from the back.) In the house I'm in now, the over-fridge cabinets are the same depth as the wall cabinets and they're hard to reach, even though I'm tall.

Not sure if this is relevant to you, but showing the view of the panels on the other side:

Love the look of this kitchen, warm and inviting!

Would swap locations of sink and stove.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/2699918/looking-for-layout-help-memorize-this-first

I agree with @MDLN that the sink and stove need to be swapped.

I would add a prep sink in your island. That's where the comments below about switching the sink & range are coming from. Personally, I think the sink is better where it is - at least it is accessible for non-cooks while someone is cooking. Having anyone trying to get to the sink while I'm cooking if the range & sink were swapped would drive me crazy. And at least the dishwasher is out of your cooking zone. But if you have any interest or desire in having a prep sink, it would work well in your kitchen.

I would reconsider the aisle between the fridge and island. I would not want anything less than 48" - and that's from the fridge. If you are 42" and your fridge sticks out into that space...that is really too small, especially since it looks like a walkway from the office/second living.

Also, are you planning on doing something under the window? It looks unfinished...

We are also doing knotty alder in our kitchen (mission oak stain). But we will have white uppers and white quartz to balance the darkness of the wood. I have seen some kitchens look really beautiful with wood and dark counters, though. The heaviness of the wood gets broken up by glass doors in a lot of these kitchens, so maybe you want to look into adding some of those?

Purcellville Country Kitchen · More Info

@chicagoans thank you for sharing the photos! I feel better knowing the kitchen will look ok if I have stained kitchen cabinets.

@MDLN thank you for the suggestion. Unfortunately, we will not be able to do that at this point. The solid hardwood floors have been installed, and it will cost a lot to swap the location of the sink and stove. I will definitely keep that in mind if we ever move again!

@anj_p Yes, I am worried about the aisle between the fridge and the island, but I don't have much space from the island to the other side of the wall too. We bought a new fridge that the store is holding for us. I wonder if I should choose a different fridge that has a thinner fridge door or without handles. Don't know if we should pay a premium for a built-in fridge since space is a premium for us. And yes, the area near the bay window is a dead space. I don't know what to do about it. Here is a photo we took before our demo.