The Kitchen Island
When you think back to when we were kids, no one had islands in their kitchen. In fact, in the suburban neighborhood I lived in almost everyone had their kitchen table smack in the middle of the kitchen.
Now an island is practically a given.
Islands now can contain sinks, the cooktop, the dishwasher. The island often takes the place of the fourth wall of the room so that the cook can look out into the adjacent family room. Since everyone always ends up in the kitchen anyway, the next logical step was to enlarge the kitchen and incorporate it into the family room, making the Great Room.
There are some things to keep in mind as you plan your kitchen island:
1) Size of your kitchen. Unless your kitchen is at least 12ft x 8 ft, do not even think about putting an island in.
2) Size of Island. An island needs to be at least 4ft x 2ft in order to be of any use.
3) Purpose of Island. Will it be a cooking island? A food prep island? Will there be seating for eating meals?
4) Function of Island. Can you open the cabinets around the island? Is the dishwasher able to open fully without impeding traffic? Is there enough room for two people to work comfortably? Make sure that whatever you need for working at your island is stored there.
Most kitchen islands are made from the same cabinets as the rest of the kitchen. But this doesn’t have to be the case. You can get a long butcherblock table or an antique farmhouse table can be re purposed as an island. Using a freestanding piece of furniture makes the kitchen uniquely yours.
