It can take a lot of time to learn about the choices available, and then make the choice. Then order, wait for delivery, sometimes wait for the installation. Right there is one reason for knowing what you want before the build begins -- if you want an item x in mocha, it's better to know in advance that it might take 3 months before it can be delivered. Unfortunately, even in the best of plans, there can be totally unforeseen delays from late delivery, unexpected weather, unavailable work crews, or even theft [which can take time to replace the stolen material]. But with pre-planning, at least the crew won't be sitting around waiting for you say which faucet you want. You will have last minute decisions in approving the color/size/cut of stone or brick should you be using those items, for the reason that samples are always approximations and you won't know what you get until you get it. However, stone/brick is just about the only category that has a last-minute decision built into it. The next reason for getting specific in advance is that it can be difficult at best and overwhelming at worst to make a lot of important decisions in a very short period of time. Unless one is already a professional designer /builder /carpenter /tiler /plumber /electrician / decorator /et cetera, one is going to have make choices and decisions about things we just have never even thought about! It's an exhausting process, and that's a major reason for stress for the builder. Another reason for making as many decisions as possible in advance is actually the simplest: budget. And there is no way to have a budget without knowing what numbers are in it, and what those numbers represent. Unless you have an endless supply of money, there will be a limit as to how much can be spent. A pre-computed budget lets you know that if you spent $30,000 on kitchen counters then you won't have $20,000 for lighting. It gives you a chance to determine which is most important to you -- waiting to the last minute decision might find the counters installed but leave only $1000 for lights when in real life you don't cook much and it is the lighting that's important. Keep in mind that every time the owner changes his/her mind *during* the build, it is money wasted. Cosmetic changes [such as finding the "blue" paint is really brown when on the wall] can usually be fixed at once and during the build. However, changing the placement of a window or door is in the same category as changing a ceiling height or where the staircase is located -- the structural integrity of the whole house can be affected, and changes from blueprint shouldn't be done without approval of a structural engineer (ahem: $ and time), and the change may require re-inspection to be sure codes are still being met (ahem: lost time -- and $ while the crews wait). And another page of the budget is simply that there is difference between what the average GC thinks you'll be satisfied with and what you actually are satisfied with, in terms of quality, uniqueness, and customizing. Sometimes the difference is even more -- I've seen kitchens put together from the local discount-mass produced store and I've seen kitchens where every detail from crown molding to toe-step was handmade by a craftsman. Not going to say that one is better than the other, but IMO the wallet-holder should know -in advance- that there really can be tens of thousands of dollars difference in the final bill. The same is true of almost every detail on a home: you can get mass-produced in all levels of quality as well as getting custom-made or handcrafted. But if you didn't get specific on the contract, the odds are pretty good that you will be getting the least expensive whatever. On this same page is simply that item A can be the same or very little difference from item B, except in the price tag. Many builders are going to use the less expensive because they have figured a set price which includes their [or the subs] labor -- and the cheaper item will give them a bit more profit. And the last thing is, if it isn't written in detail in the contact, you shouldn't expect to automatically get what *you* want. The builder must make a profit -- and that's fair. But there is flat-out no way to reasonably expect the builder to know what you want if you don't already know, and finding out during the build is the most expensive way to go -in terms of time and money and stress-building.

Am I correct in thinking that the pantry wall is where it is and the island extends farther out into the corridor so as to allow a relatively generous view down the length of the house to your windows across the back? I.e., the view from the front door would be over the island and the dining table to the end of the living room? If so, would you consider having the island crafted with the vertical surfaces of the two ends and the corridor side length running six inches or so above the countertop. [The photo shows this kind of arrangement to provide an eating area, but the whole surround could in fact be just a couple inches deep.] Then you could have all the plumbing -- the majestic Rachiele sink and the dishwasher -- in the island. This would allow you to have more space for small appliances between your fridge and your range, as well as more work area, on the outside wall. One thing I am not clear on is whether you plan to have have upper cabinets in the outside wall run or are going to primarily use the pantry for storage. If you have nine- or ten-foot ceilings, uppers to the top on the outside wall might look nice. If I am totally misreading your intent, never mind. I too live in a long narrow townhouse, but with the kitchen at the back where the dogleg narrows it to 11 feet. I love to see how people deal with the challenges of these spaces. Cheers.

Seattle, Thanks very much for the drawings- they look great! Sochi: Thanks for the notes about the island. We are considering between 42-50 inches, leaning more towards 42 now though. We love your idea of no uppers, would bring so much more light into the kitchen. buehl: Great questions that brought up some good discussion. Here is more info. 1. The sink does not have to be under the window and does not have to be centered. We strongly considered putting it and the dishwasher in the island, but were worried it would mean we would want a wider island and it would be less walking space between the island and kitchen table. At this point we are still up for other considerations though! 2. We are very flexible, although my husband only wants to move the plumbing to one location (not split the sink and dishwasher between the island and window for example). 3. Sink in island: We were a little concerned that the sink may seem too close to the open front door under the window, however there is quite a bit of clearance. 4. Unfortunately our budget does not permit us to put in headers and make more window's. We are doing this all ourselves. We just replaced window 2 so a counter will fit underneath it. 5. Yes to considering sink in island! 6. Basement underneath the kitchen is unfinished. We would have to run plumbing through a small finished bathroom in the basement though. My husband thinks it is feasible for both the under window 2 location and also in the island. 7. Cooking, cleaning, parenting... everything happens at the same time in our kitchen!! We discussed having two sinks, however have decided that we want a little more counter space and also less plumbing work. 8. That is a great idea to put a layout. I will sketch one and attach it. Thanks! 9. Our family: Two preschoolers, I am a stay at home mom (for a couple more years at least), we are very active, cook most of our meals from scratch. The kids are always in the kitchen with us. They love to stand on chairs and "help". We expect to use the island seating for homework when they get older. So I would say all of the above for kitchen use! eating, entertaining, baking/cooking projects with the children, homework 11., 12. Yes, we are almost always in the kitchen together. Dinner prep we are often two (myself and DH) We are re-doing the kitchen for ourselves! We plan to be here 5+ years. Thanks to all for the feedback so far. Excellent things to consider.

IKEA in my last home: This photo is of a 7 year old kitchen, the door style is no longer available. The kitchen was tiny, 9' wide by about 11' that I opened into a dining room to make it more functional. The ceiling was slightly less than 8' in some areas, very sloped, and as you can see, the uppers went within an inch or two to the ceiling. I set the bases higher than usual, and the space under the cabinets after 2" light molding was about 17" which was adequate, but not generous. It was a very functional layout, I cooked and baked several times a week, and the cabinets interiors were pristine when I sold the house. No failed hardware, no chipped laminate inside the cabinet boxes where pots/pans/knives were stored and I never lined a shelf or a drawer in this kitchen. The shelf where I stored oils cleaned up with soap and water with no residual yellowing or gumminess. Cabinet fronts had a tough baked on finish that cleaned with soap and water, or BONA finished wood spray and a towel and were not streaky. The cabinet doors did occasionally scratch, though not in a way that was not to be expected from wood, and I tried several brands of brown children's markers and found the brand that matched best, and kept a few in one of the cabinets so when I cleaned and noticed a scratch, I could fill it in. Though I did use the 39" uppers, you should know that I rarely used the things stored on the highest shelves and didn't really know what was on some shelves until I moved because the shelves were too high for me, or my over 6' relatives without using a chair. I was mounting to old cracking plaster with irregularly spaced studs on a very sloped floor so I screwed a leveled 2x4 to the bottom of the wall where the bottom of the base boxes were to rest, and a 1x4 behind where the top of the base boxes were to be and used the IKEA provided screws to mount the base box brackets to the 1x4. It was very sturdy when done and the granite guys were appreciative and had no issues with installation. The cabinets are trimmed out in standard end panels, and the peninsula has a 3'x8' panel trimmed to cover it. The store associates drew pictures for me to show me how to use the trim they provided. I had a miter saw that I rented for the day for the light rail, and used a jigsaw for the rest with a laminate blade and masking tape to prevent pulling the veneer off when cutting. What is different today compared to when I bought the 2004 kitchen is the boxes above were made in Germany and now they are made in the US. I put in IKEA boxes in my new house and the quality is the same, as far as I can see. The door fronts above were made in Spain and now they are made in the US. The hinges and drawer hardware are still German Blum, but now soft close is included in the price, though you can purchase the soft close pieces separately, and take them off your order if you wish. The new version of the lazy susan is an improvement over the old one. I loved the appearance of the slim door pulls visually, but functionally, the ends were square and things used to get caught on them as I went by, but that is not an IKEA issue, per se. IKEA 39 CABINETS ARE 39 1/8. If you ceilings are 92 and you are set on 39, you can fudge the bases down a bit and still have 17" below uppers to the counter tops. As long as you guys aren't tall, you maybe ok with this as most appliances are under 16. I do not recommend this, I would personally go with the 30" boxes mounted higher and then extend the molding to the ceiling, I think this would give the room more visual height, but there are designers on this site that could give you the best insight for how to do this. I have had three IKEA kitchens now with various levels of customization, and I would say that if you can use the boxes they have, it is the best deal, and if you can find a door front you like, the deal gets even better. There are enough panel sizes available to customize with.