I’m so glad you all enjoyed the pictures… I was really worried I posted too many. And thank you so much for all the kind words. It means so much because no one was sure I could pull this off, including myself, so to see it come together just how I envisioned is such a relief!
The key for me was using Sketchup. It is a powerful FREE 3-D tool and I was able to really see how things would work and go together (YouTube tutorials were my best friend for a few weeks). I was able to see problems in the 3D space from any angle and troubleshoot. I built it first with IKEA boxes (someone already has them in the Sketchup library so I didn’t need to do any work there) and then added the doors after the fact. Here are two drawings so you can get an idea for how detailed it is (in this drawing, I can move the doors away and I’d see the boxes behind):
Once the drawings were done, I went though each section (butler’s pantry, dry bar, refrigerator wall, etc.) and plugged that space into Excel line by line with every part it would need and the IKEA 9 digit corresponding code. That way, when everything was plugged in, I could have Excel tally each 9 digit code and I was able to hand that tally sheet to the IKEA employee making it really simple to place the order. I did have to be super OCD because I live 2 hours from IKEA and couldn’t be driving back and forth! :D
I'll answer everyone's individual questions in an additional post coming shortly.
Q
Dimensions/layout are about what I had in mind (might need more space between fridge/pantry and island if there is going to be seating?). However, I do not particularly like the style, and would prefer a movable more furniture style island.
Q