Plan Your Kitchen

The starting point when buying a new kitchen is planning it

Unless you are building a new house or carrying out major renovations, there are some things you cannot change.  The shape and the space available.  Your aim is to make the best use of the available space for a kitchen that is easy to work in and meets the needs of your particular situation.  Obviously a small space will not accommodate a large seating area or an island.  A small breakfast bar or table table might just fit though.  In a big space, the island and/or seating area could take a big part of the space.  Decide which part of the kitchen area you want to commit to seating and work your kitchen around it.  Don’t forget storage of course.

Who will use your kitchen?

Your lifestyle will dictate the kitchen planning.  Families with growing children have different needs to those whose children have flown the nest.  Do you all sit down as a family in the evenings?  Do you eat out most of the time?  Do you do a lot of entertaining?  Do you store a lot of food and/or appliances.  What size of oven and hob do you need?  How many sinks?

The Family Kitchen

With growing children you might want a breakfast bar.  This is an ideal way to supervise youngsters whilst they eat and you work in the kitchen at busy times of the day.  If you have enough space an island is the obvious place to put it, with easy access to the fridge so the kids can help themselves.

If you sit down together for your evening meal you will want to make sure that it is easy to serve food to the dining area.  Placement of suitable bench space for plating and serving is an important consideration.

Safety considerations are important.  Storage of dangerous items and liquids have to be taken into account.  Trailing kettle and toaster leads are to be avoided.  Water temperature at the tap, storage of knives, pots on the hob, etc.

The Entertainers Kitchen

If you entertain you will wish to consider the circulation and flow of your guests; a suitable place for filled platters; where you store drinks, maybe a bar fridge built in; storage of glasses so that guests can easily help themselves.  If you have formal dinners at the dining dable, suitable plating and serving areas.  Where will the dirty dishes be stacked prior to rinsing for the dishwasher.

The Compact Kitchen

The major issue in a compact kitchen is storage space.  It is important to get the balance right between storage and work surfaces.  It’s no good having fantastic storage space if you have nowhere to roll out your pastry.  There is a great choice of compact appliances, which can free up work and storage space in the smaller kitchen.  Careful thought and clever design can make the most of smaller spaces.

There are a lot of handy storage solutions to maximize your space in the section.

What kind of Furniture

The trend over the years has been for fitted kitchens.  However some people see the benefits of freestanding kitchen furniture.  There are several advantages to this if you have enough space.  You get a very individual look with attractive cupboards, freestanding work surfaces such as wheeled butchers blocks that can be tucked out of the way when not in use.  You can consider a kitchen table instead of an island.  When you move your lovely kitchen furniture moves with you.

Free standing furniture tends not to be so practical in a very small space though, where fitted cabinets can be designed to maximize use of awkward corners.

Different people have different lifestyles and since the kitchen is the heart of the home where food is prepared, children nurtured, comfort sought and guests entertained, lifestyle is the key to planning a kitchen that works for you.

Step 1 - Plan Your Kitchen
Step 2 - Choosing a Kitchen Style
Step 3 - Choosing Kitchen Colours
Step 4 - Buying a New Kitchen