A Preview Of What My New Kitchen Might Look Like
I took a little bit of time yesterday morning to play around with a kitchen layout on the IKEA kitchen planner based on the new idea of moving our kitchen to the breakfast room area. If you missed that plan, you can go back one post and read about the decision-making process and why I’ve chosen to do things that way.
If you missed that post, you can find it here: The Most Influential Floor Plan Suggestion (And A Look At Our New Floor Plan)
But if you don’t want all of the explanations and you just want to see the floor plan, this is it…
So as you can see, the new kitchen will be in the space that is now the breakfast room and pantry. It will be open to the dining room with a big cased opening. That big cased opening is already there, but right now it’s between the kitchen and the breakfast room with a peninsula separating the two rooms. Currently, it looks like this…
The plan is to move the kitchen sink to the front window wall of the breakfast room/sitting room and close up the door from the breakfast room to my studio. And then this wall that separates the sitting room from the pantry will be removed. I built that wall myself, and it’s nothing but 2×4’s and drywall. There’s nothing structural about that wall (i.e., it’s not load-bearing), and there’s nothing in the wall like electrical or water. So taking that out will be easy peasy.
My mom and I both laughed about the fact that removing that wall basically takes me right back to how this room was originally when we bought this house. It was just one big, open room with two windows on the back wall. And there was a door on the left, which I closed up, and which will be added back in for the new design. 😀
I know that the idea of undoing and redoing things really bothers some people, but I’m the homeowner, and I’m not bothered in the least by this. These rooms have served us very well while we had them. Matt’s sitting room has been very good for him to have, and I’ve gotten a ton of use out of the pantry. But I’m okay with moving on to a more efficient arrangement that will serve us even better. Those rooms were fun to work on, great to live in, and the next ones will be, too.
Anyway, with all of that said, I wanted to play around with the IKEA kitchen planner just to get an idea of what a kitchen might look like in this area. And remember that the studio bathroom will be turned into a walk-through pantry, so that will give me more storage space. But for now, I just wanted to focus on this room, which is 21 feet long and 12′ 3″ wide.
I didn’t take the time yet to determined the exact arrangement of drawers and things like that. For now, I just used cabinets with all drawers for the lowers, and I didn’t consider which items I would store where. So some of those cabinets will certainly be swapped out for other types of cabinets. But I just wanted to get a general feel for what a kitchen would look like in that room, and here’s what I came up with as a jumping off point.
Starting at the front wall, I put the sink centered on the windows. I chose to put the sink here instead of the back wall of this room because the back wall has the sloped ceiling. The ceiling in the current pantry slopes from eight feet to seven feet at the back wall. I’m sure that could be changed, but I don’t know that it would be worth the cost. And I don’t really care if my sink looks out to the front yard or the back yard, just so long as the sink is under windows. That’s my only requirement. It’s what I’ve envisioned ever since I started talking about and planning a new kitchen, so it’s a non-negotiable item.
So here’s the sink under the front windows with the cased opening into the dining room (i.e., the current kitchen) to the right.
The “camera” view of this screen shot makes the proportions look way off, but this is the 21-foot wall. The current doorway from the breakfast room into my studio is about where those cabinets are between the fridge and range. So that would be closed up and a doorway would be added towards the back of the room (to the left of the fridge) that goes into what is now the studio bathroom, but will be a walk-through pantry that leads to the back doors of the studio. Again, try not to be confused by this perspective. The view looks really stretched out from the foreground to the fridge wall. That distance from foreground to the fridge/range wall is really only 12′ 3″ wide, while the actual fridge/range wall is 21 feet long. I don’t know why the perspective and proportions look so distorted.
And here’s a look at the back corner with the doorway to the walk-through pantry and a portion of the back wall. Again, the back wall of the kitchen is where the current pantry. I just put wall-to-wall lower cabinets and as many upper cabinets as I could fit on that wall.
Here’s a straight-on view of the back wall where the current pantry is. The smaller cased opening on the left goes to the new family room, which makes this back wall of countertop a perfect place for buffet-style serving when we have people over.
And then this is the wall with the big cased opening to the dining room on the left and the smaller cased opening to the family room on the right.
So that’s a fun first look of what a kitchen might look like in that space. I’m playing around with the idea of adding an island, but I haven’t settled on that yet. In fact, none of this is set in stone. This was just a fun exercise to get the ball rolling and to help me start envisioning this room as a kitchen, and to imagine the possibilities.
There are still lots of questions to answer, such as:
- I’d like a beverage fridge and a small 15-inch built-in nugget ice machine, so where can those items go?
- Will I keep my stand-alone freezer? And if so, where will it go? Is there enough room in the walk-through pantry? (I think there is.)
- Is the cost reasonable to raise the roof on the back side of the room so that the entire room has an eight-foot ceiling with no slope at the back?
- If it doesn’t break the bank to raise the roof on the back side, am I really as indifferent as I think I am to which end my kitchen sink goes on? (I genuinely don’t know the answer to this question.)
- If I add an island, how big would it be? If the range is centered in on the big cased opening (which my brain tells me it has to be because…symmetry), then there’s no way to have an island centered with the range. Does the range really need to be centered in the cased opening? Would it drive me batty if it weren’t centered? And can an island be off center with the centered range and not drive me crazy? I don’t know that anyone can answer those questions except me, but if I could see pictures of off-center islands and see if it’s the equivalent to nails on a chalkboard for my symmetry-obsessed brain, that would help immensely. So if you come across pictures of kitchen with islands that are off center with the range wall (and where the range wall is the focal point of the kitchen), that would be so helpful!
So I have those and probably many more questions to answer before anything is set in stone. But it sure is fun to start thinking about, dreaming about, and planning this! And of course, I’ll share every detail of every step along the way. 😀
FYI, I had planned to share Part 2 of the chair reupholstery tutorial today because my mom and I worked until 8:00pm last night and got all but the trim, nailheads, and separate seat cushion finished. It looks SO GOOD, and I can’t wait for you to see it!
I knew I had taken lots of pictures, so I thought it would be good to break it down into two more posts so that I don’t overwhelm you with so many pictures in one post, and we finished up last night at a natural stopping point. But when I sat down at my computer this morning and counted the pictures, I realized I had taken seventy-one pictures. 😀
I realized immediately that there’s no way I could sort through seventy-one pictures, edit them, post them, and write a thorough description of the process all before 11:30am when I need to leave the house. (On Wednesdays, I have lunch with my mom and brother.) So I’ll post Part 2 tomorrow showing the bulk of the upholstering process, and then the final post on Friday showing the process of trimming out the chair, making the cushion, and I’ll show you the finished chair. Y’all, it’s so gorgeous that I almost hate to sit on it! 😀
Addicted 2 Decorating is where I share my DIY and decorating journey as I remodel and decorate the 1948 fixer upper that my husband, Matt, and I bought in 2013. Matt has M.S. and is unable to do physical work, so I do the majority of the work on the house by myself. You can learn more about me here.
What software do you use for your floorplans? My husband and I have been struggling with our kitchen layout and brainstorming/sketches ideas that quickly get tossed out. Your posts inspired me to think outside the box and consider relocating the kitchen so our floor plan really works for us, but hand drawing with my terrible spatial awareness is just not working out anymore!
Years ago, I used an online floor plan creator to make the original floor plan, and then I’ve used my photo editing software ever since then to move things around, add to, remove, etc.
But just a few months ago, I found another fantastic floor plan creator, so for new floor plans, that’s the one I use. It’s called Smart Draw: https://app.smartdraw.com/
Bask in the plan! It must feel so good to think you have a great plan going forward and even better than you imagined. I cannot wait to see the chair…I want to make a cover for my workroom chair. I love my chair, just not the aesthetics…
I had to laugh out loud today reading this! I love a sink where you can look out a window. It’s what I’ve had in the only two houses I’ve ever owned! I’m not saying I’d never have it any other way, but I do love it. But we recently got new neighbors, and their kitchen also has a sink looking out the windows. It was like that when it was built, and the previous owners, who we were friends with, didn’t move the sink when they renovated the room. Well, the new owners–or at least the wife — hates it. She said, “Come see our kitchen for an example of what NOT to do in a kitchen renovation!” And the sink placement was her biggest complaint, followed by the placement of the range. Now, those are two items that are costly to move, as you know, because it involves moving plumbing, etc. So I’m not sure if she knows that, or if money is just no object to her so she assumes it isn’t to others. But anyway, she’s always griping about it, and I always think, where else would you put the sink? I love it being under the windows! Maybe she wants it in the island, facing into the family room? I don’t know. But I’ve never heard someone complain that their sink let them look out the window. And I love that you’re specifically placing yours there.
That is funny. I wish I could have my sink by a window…It hasn’t worked out in the last three houses. Not even the new house we are downsizing to. Just couldn’t make it happen…! It would have definitely been my choice it it could.
Cool! My own kitchen space, which is 20′ x 13 (or will be when we delete the corner bathroom…), is under renovation considerations now. Obviously our doorways are a little different, but I really love the layout I’ve settled on after many iterations. It has an L of cabinets with an opposing narrow island in the upper two thirds of the space (taking up about an 11×14 footprint, and a banquette seating area tucked at the long end. The walkway is along the other long wall that wont have a ton of kitcheny business to be interfered with. I don’t need perfect symmetry like you do, but I will email you a floorplan and renderings of what I have just in case it’s helpful.
Quick comment about practical issues.
1) Fridges are the one appliance that doesn’t have a fixed size, so it’s good that you have it free-standing at the end of the cabinets; when the time comes to buy a new fridge it will be much easier. Plus, it’s accessible from people in the adjoining rooms, without them entering your work area, and close to the entry for when you come with groceries. So all-round excellent position. But I would remove the cabinets over it, for the aforementioned size reasons, but also for better air circulation; besides, they are pretty useless, seeing as you don’t need the extra space and you can’t easily reach above the fridge. Symmetry isn’t achieved using them either, because those cabinets will typically have to be deeper to match the depth of the fridge, which means they won’t match the rest of the cabinets (and AFAIR, IKEA’s over-the-fridge cabinets, the ones that have openings at the back for air, only come in that depth, so you can’t match them with the rest of the cabinets; besides, that would look even worse. And let’s not even talk about the finishing panels).
2) The triangle. I feel the stove is one click too far from the sink – and at the same time, the distance between stove and fridge could be bigger. This is a good place to have a coffee station/secondary work station or even a microwave, so a little extra space would be useful. I’d switch the stove with the cabinet to its’ immediate right. Once you remove the cabinet above the fridge, that will make the hood above the stove sit in the middle of the top cabinets – and that’s more visible than the stove itself (well, it depends on the appliances you have really, but still).
3) I commented on one of your previous posts, but while planning your kitchen do think about how it would accommodate whatever you are doing at the studio, since it no longer has a bathroom with a sink. Crafting often needs access to water (even if it’s just to wash your hands between steps so you don’t mess up what you work with).
4) If we are talking about a worktop ice machine that needs access to water, I think the best place will be on the “buffet” cabinets. If you do put it there, consider adding some plumbing in that wall – maybe a small sink in the pantry/entrance could also be added, to accommodate point #3? Or not, not sure if I even like the idea! lol
I have worked with the IKEA cabinets to excruciating detail, if you have any questions about them that can only be answered after you actually have them in your house I’ll probably know – US and Europe versions are pretty similar.
PS: “Quick” was referring to typing time, not post length, so if something is incoherent feel free to call me out on it and I’ll fix it! lol
I think I would definitely put an island in the kitchen. That way when you walk through on the way to your new family room, the island would define the “kitchen” space and lessen the feeling that you were walking through the working part of the kitchen. And it would give special definition to the back wall space that will be used as a serving/ entertaining area.
Dear Kristi,
I love the new floor plan! I think it’s a good compromise of all your stated needs and wants.
Your kitchen design took me by surprise. I had envisioned the sink under the window overlooking the back yard. With maybe a window seat below the triple window. (I get your reasoning of the lowered ceiling overlooking the back yard to not do your sink placement there.)
As an avid hostess and entertainer, I would not want my kitchen sink (and potential dirty dishes) easily viewed from the dining table/dining room.
Also, the sink by the back window would allow you to easily look in on Matt in the T.V./family room throughout the day, if that’s where he’ll be spending the majority of his time. Maybe you don’t spend a lot of time at/near your kitchen sink in a day’s time?
Please consider adding a transom or arched window, high on the wall, in the dining room on the wall shared with the family room,. That would allow light to fill your dining room from your lovely, large windows in the T.V./family room. Leaded or stained glass might be nice. That would brighten up that dining room space considerably. *I just noticed that on today’s floor plan, the dining room has an opening directly to the T.V./family room. The last plan I saw had a solid wall there. If the plan has changed, or I mistakenly thought a solid wall was separating the proposed dining room from the T.V./family room, please disregard the above suggestion for a window in that wall.
If you had a window seat or mini banquette of some kind under your triple windows, it would allow you to place a table there, either permanently or on occasion, that could get your guests all in the same general area for dining (if you had more guests than your dining table could accommodate).
Just some thoughts that came to mind as I looked over your first draft of your kitchen design. Have fun figuring out the perfect placement of appliances and cabinets for your specific life and entertaining style!
YHWH Bless You : )
My immediate reaction was, drop the uppers on the back wall and add more windows, so when you wondered about raising the roof I joined Team Back Wall 😀
My island is not centered on the range because the work triangle works better this way, and my symmetry-loving brain looks right past it at the symmetrical range wall and is happy.
I really love this new floor plan. Is all i ever dream for your house. And im glad you are doing it. I think this is the best option because who needs a breakfast room when you have a dinning room. Because you are going to spend more time in one than the other and i’ve seen it all the time.
I think the beverage fridge and nugget ice maker go on the back wall in the buffet cabinets. Perfect spot for a drink station.
Re the island and off centered – I too have a deep love for symmetry. we have a very large island that has a sink in it, and the range behind it that is flanked by windows. I had to give up the island being symmetrical with the range/window wall if I wanted the big island. 100% was worth it, and my eyes don’t twitch over it. I was a little concerned about it before hand though.
My related question is – is the cased opening size between the kitchen and the dining set in stone? I know that it’s that way right now, but could you make the cased opening smaller? If it was a doorway that was in line with the music room doorway, you no longer have to worry about the symmetry of the range wall working with the cased opening. I think it would still be easy access to the back “buffet” cabinets, even with just a doorway. You could then also play with U shape kitchens on the breakfast side wall.
However, if you want a bigger open space (understand if you do – that’s what I have) then that doesn’t work at all and ignore the entire previous paragraph. 🙂
The size of that cased opening isn’t set in stone. I’d be open to making it smaller, just as long as it’s not so small that it makes the kitchen feel closed in. Although, since this kitchen is much larger and will have windows and lots of natural light directly into the room, I don’t think it’s possible for it to feel as closed in as the original windowless kitchen that had more walls and virtually no sunlight. So I think it would work to make that cased opening a little smaller.
Hi Kristi, I fall into the category of reader who wants you to leave the beautiful work you have created where it is and try to work with what you have BUT I did send a plan suggesting you move the kitchen to where you have decided to move it to. My question is… why can’t you use the cabinetry in the pantry and work with it versus tearing it all out and starting over? just curious…
Also, as you budget for the new addition, do you take into consideration all the money to be spent on rearranging the current house in your TOTAL renovation budget?
thanks,
Jane
I haven’t made any definite decisions regarding cabinets yet, but chances are that if I use IKEA on part, I’ll want IKEA for the whole kitchen so that they all match. And while I do love my pantry tile backsplash, I’ll probably be ready for something new by the time I get to this kitchen remodel. Everything is being considered for the budget. 🙂 The good things is that the various rooms will be done in stages, so we don’t need everything up front to get started.
Hi, I really like the new plan. Is there going to be a pinch point between the fridge and the side counter cabinets? Hard to tell the dimensions. The fridge to me, looks like it is blocking the flow when you walk into the room. Elbow room? Could you bump it over and put the small base cabinet to the left of it? I know that monkeys around with the stove symmetry and that would be unpleasant. Good luck with all the suggestions.
I think it’ll be fine. I put a 36-inch door there, but I could go a bit larger. Maybe 40 inches.
This is just lovely! I love the two cased openings and plan to refer to this when we remodel because of so many load bearing walls. How do you make this accessible for Matt? All flush floor surfaces going from the kitchen, through the pantry into the car port? Does Matt want an island or counter surface that he can come up to? How wide should the doorway from the kitchen to the pantry be? I am asking for my future self as much as I’m asking for Matt! 😉
All of our floors are, and will be, the same red oak hardwood flooring througout, with the exception of the bathrooms. So there are no transitions in level or transition strips from room to room that he has to go over. Things like islands are most often obstacles for Matt. All new doorways will be a minimum of 36 inches, which is more than enough space for him to get through.
On the island issue, just put it on wheels like your floating table in your studio. You won’t have electric in it or plumbing so why not. This way you can move it wherever you want when you are needing it. And if it no longer works for you, you can move it to your shop or???
🙃
Kara
Agree. Our kids bought us an ikea free standing for our kitchen and we are always moving it in and out. But we basically only use it for working on or as a serving area.
Can’t wait to see how this evolves!
BTW, have they started on your workshop?
My workshop has been delayed one week. 🙁 Evidently, they accidentally overbooked deliveries/builds for today (when it was originally supposed to start), so I’ve been rebooked for next Wednesday and Thursday. Hopefully there won’t be any more delays!
I love the idea of the back wall being a place for a buffet/serving area for guests. If you go forward with that plan, one idea is removing the upper cabinets from this plan (the ceiling is low anyway) and putting some stunning artwork back there. It would bring so much character to the kitchen. I like what someone else said, too: keep the lower cabinets from your pantry. You could keep the current tiles, too. And the current shelves 🙂
For me, I like the sink very near the fridge. It seems I do the majority of my prep by my sink and I’m constantly taking things in and out of the fridge. So I would switch the sink wall and buffet wall. You certainly have plenty of options in such a large space.
BTW my island and range are not centered to each other. The wall seemed more important to me and I couldn’t have both.
Ya wanna sell those alcohol ink tiles that are in your soon-to-be-ex-pantry?
I’m truly enjoying your processes here and looking forward to watching the design evolve. But I really am concerned about those tiles! Lol
I doubt that I’ll be able to get them off in one piece. But we’ll see how it goes. 🙂
If they need to be broke off. Could you take some & use them inlaid in a table top (s) on your future patio?
I love those tiles, too! Please consider a tutorial on tile salvage and a post-demolition auction. Glad you are really considering all the options before building. This makes me wonder about the house next door to you with the horribly designed kitchen – did it ever sell, and did they re-do the kitchen immediately? Thanks for all the the insight into planning.
A few thoughts: While I love my windows over my sink looking out over the backyard, I think you will find it more useful to have your long countertop on the back side – a place for groceries to land and be put in the fridge or pantry as you come in, a buffet serving area, your minifridge and nugget machine spot perhaps.
The windows over the proposed sink look to be smaller widthwise than those in the current breakfast room. Perhaps to accommodate the upper cabinets which will be deeper than your display shelves there now? How does that affect the exterior?
I have an island that is not centered, but mine runs the other way than yours would so that’s not helpful. And as someone else mentioned, would tightening up the opening to the dining room a bit be at all helpful for your symmetry?
The current windows are too tall, so I’ll have to order shorter windows that can go over countertop height. That will affect the exterior. The lower portion will have to be filled in with OSB, house wrap, and siding.
I edited my IKEA floor plan to make the cased opening smaller and turn the kitchen on that end into more of a U-shaped design. I think I like it!
I love seeing how your plans evolve! I adore rooms with windows on opposite walls because of the way the light changes over the course of the day and year so I was disappointed when the pantry needed to be closed in. I would love to see triple windows on both ends of the kitchen to enhance that open, breezy feel.
You might give some thought to making the cased opening to the dining area a bit smaller? That way, if the kitchen is a bit messy you won’t see it while entertaining. Good luck!
I’m definitely open to it.
The wall cabinets are mounted too high. They should be at 54″ AFF. Rows of wall cabinets look better when all the doors are the same size. I see filler here and there but not everywhere. It needs to be a every place a cabinet meets a wall. Recommended is 1 1/2″ minimum.
As I stated, this was a very quick mock-up to get an idea of this space (this room) would look like as a kitchen, and to see how it might be arranged. I’m probably months away from actually designing this kitchen and choosing the exact cabinets that will go in my kitchen.
Wanted to mention a suggestion on a nugget ice machine. I was in the market for one about a year ago. Some of the expensive, high-end models have to be manually filled with water, which in my opinion, was not acceptable. I found a model with a water line input in the back – and it worked out because we also have an osmosis water filtration system, so I have a filtered water line directly to my ice machine. I love having continual nugget ice!! Thought I’d mention it as you start making decisions for your new kitchen! Looking forward to all the new designs to come!
If you put the kitchen sink on the back wall, you will be able to look out to your (eventual) beautiful back yard space. This would leave the front of the kitchen open for the buffet space which is closer to the dining room.
Possible option to avoid symmetry issues with the stove, you can get one of those cooktops and have a wall oven put somewhere? I’ve seen some very sleek glass top options. Just a thought.
Are you going to try and save all those beautiful tiles in the current pantry, maybe re-use them in the new plan?
I LOVE those tiles, if I lived in a place I could do something like that, I would.
I like the new layout.
I doubt that I could get them off the walls without destroying them, and I will need to get into that wall for what I have planned.