Planning Your Kitchen Layout: Start with Storage

The Kitchen, a room typically used to prepare meals, and store cooking wares, utensils, and foods, may often morph into a combination of many other rooms in your home. Without conscious deliberation, the kitchen transforms into an entertainment area, makeshift office, a lounging room, a homework spot for your kids, and a food-prepping and cooking space. Therefore, designing a kitchen requires a thoughtful process that begins with the layout for cabinetry storage, lighting, and traffic control. These factors all affect the functionality of this multi-dimensional room.

Decide How You Intend to Use Your Storage

Cabinetry layout is the most vital and complicated aspect of a kitchen. How you position the storage will dictate whether your kitchen will have sufficient functionality. Determine first how you will utilize the cabinetry. Will you need extra storage?

This will then help you plan the exact size, design, brand, and location for storage. It will help determine how far or close you can install the cabinets or cupboards from other appliances.

Lessen the Traffic

Your kitchen will be a high-traffic space. How do you plan to position the most used kitchen appliances or workstations? Your decision will affect your kitchen’s traffic. Think of the distance separating these workstations, whether there is enough space and a clear path free of destruction between these stations, and the width of your kitchen walkways. Reserve at least 36” between these stations. Make the space broader than 36 inches if your family is large. You can make it as wide as 54”. It will allow two people to comfortably pass through the walkway.

Cabinetry Choice

Do your research in selecting the brand and design. Cabinets cover a massive part of your kitchen therefore the aesthetics are a high priority.

There are lots of cabinetry styles to choose from. You can install a shaker, flat-panel, louvered, distressed, inset, contemporary, or customize a style that suits your style and preference. You can use wood, high-quality composite material like MDF, plywood, stainless steel, melamine, polyester, thermofoil, or high-pressure laminate.

The myriad of styles and materials available makes brand and style selection more complicated. A qualified kitchen contractor can guide you to make the right choices. Give thought to visiting the professionals from Cabinet IQ. They have highly qualified professionals who can guide you into making the right cabinetry choices.

Visualize the Floor Plan

Save yourself from costly mistakes by visualizing your floor plan. You can use sketch tools to sketch and envisage your new kitchen. Sketch the floor plan. Place your cooktop, island, cabinets, sink area, the pathways between workstations, and the windows. See your floor plan in 3D. It will help you find any flaws in your desired kitchen layout. You can fix any problem with the floor plan before wasting more time and money.

How Do You Plan to Use the Island?

Do you plan to use the island as an extra storage area or an extra workstation? Or both? Research “how do I plan on using the island” will help you design a functional and visually attractive island.

Reference

1. https://www.hgtv.com/design/remodel/kitchen-remodel/how-to-determine-kitchen-storage-needs

2. https://www.cliqstudios.com/work-triangle-floor-plan/

3. https://www.thoughtco.com/find-tools-draw-simple-floor-plan-178391

4. https://www.deslaurier.com/en-ca/learning-centre/learning-centre/mdf-kitchen-cabinets-review

5. https://cabinetiq.com/

6. https://www.thespruce.com/basic-kitchen-cabinet-doors-to-buy-1822052

7. https://www.kitchendesigncentre.com/our-world/why-is-cabinetry-important-so-important-to-your-kitchen/

8. https://purcellquality.com/2018/01/the-kitchen-is-the-new-living-room/