skip to main content
Photos
Photos
Advice
Stories From Houzz
Houzz Discussions
Houzz Research
Sign In
Houzz Logo Print
Explore Discussions
KitchensDesign Dilemma
webuser_957576751

Which way to have the kitchen island?

Bahar Irdem
3 years ago

We have finally gotten our planning permission granted after 2 years! Me and the hubby have been working on some kitchen designs.
We have currently placed the kitchen island parallel to the longest wall in the kitchen. The island will face the garden. This design has started feeling rather odd to me. Although it would be beautiful to have the island face our garden whilst I wash the dishes (sink will be on the island) and do food preps.
I feel as though the island needs to be flipped to face the dining area where we would have our dining table. However when we do flip it we are not able to get a symmetry with the hob/oven being centred to the island which is quite important for us. Also, we have to decrease the size of the island from 2.4m to around 2m.
What are your ideas and thoughts? Is there a right or wrong way to have the island configured based on our kitchen and dining room layout. All your ideas would appreciated and thank you in advance.

Featured Answer
  • Nicola M
    3 years ago

    I would probably go for the original layout with the island facing the garden & move the hob/oven to the internal wall. I think it works better for the space. Something like this is what I am visualising with a tall run of units on the wall where your hob is in the first photo but with the hob & sink switched.




    Comments (25)

    • CWD
      3 years ago

      I think having it parallel to the hob section makes most sense in a kitchen. so you have two options - turn the island the other way and get over the lack of symmetry (it's not important). or switch the hob to the other wall and keep the island as it is. given the shape of your room I think it makes sense to keep the island in current position - and also to keep it as long as possible (2m isn't that long for an island with a sink in it).

    • Christian Meikle
      3 years ago

      Are you putting stools one side of the island?


      is the long wall to the garden glass (eg sliders/bifolds)?


      assuming the picture is to scale then I would keep the island the direction it is in the picture and enlarge the island to the same length as the wall units. I’d move the oven and hob to the other run of units.


      if you turn the island, you are going to end up with a short island and a big gap in the middle of the room!

    • Related Discussions

      which way to lay our kitchen wood floor?

      Q

      Comments (7)
      Hi Jaclyn, we always recommend laying the flooring in the direction of your light source. The effect is more attractive and can help to emphasise those beautiful grain patterns and natural textures that we love about wood flooring. As your kitchen is longer than it is wide, you'll be able to lay a good few lengths down the room and this will look really impressive as you walk in. We wouldn't worry about this meaning the planks are laid a different way to your living room - it's how the room looks when you're in it that counts! (:
      ...See More

      Tiny, angled kitchen - which way to lay flooring?

      Q

      Comments (10)
      Taking principles from external design, I would avoid option 1, as it adds another angle to an already busy scheme. Option 2 Perpendicular to the light source is best as it will add width to the space and the bond is contra to the line of view. The option above with bond perpendicular to the door, leads the eye to the washing machine making it a focal point, also any inaccuracies in laying the bond will be apparent as you enter the room. As mention above a non linear material could also be an option.
      ...See More

      Kitchen islands: which shape is best?

      Q

      Comments (2)
      In our previous house we had an octagonal island which worked perfectly and looked great.
      ...See More

      which way should internal doors open?

      Q

      Comments (12)
      Minnie - I was going to leave about 3’ or so behind the sofa - so bit wider than the door so it doesn’t feel too cramped. Matt - I know rules for rooms of door opening in is best for bedrooms (so you don’t see the bed straight away in case people are naked, ha ha) but wasn’t sure what’s best for this room.
      ...See More
    • minnie101
      3 years ago

      The room looks to be 11.5ft max so I don’t think there’s an option to switch it the other way unless I’m mistaken? It looks as if it would need to move down from the oven too?

    • Bahar Irdem
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      We are not planning to put stools if we keep the island this way around, but we can consider putting some stools if we flip the island around because we would have some free space in the middle. We are planning to get glass sliding door all the way down.

      I am just finishing up drawing the island the other way around. I had to eat a bit into the pantry and the toilet and just about managed to squeeze in a 2m island but like Colourwisedesign mentioned, I think it might be slightly small for an island with a sink in it.

    • Bahar Irdem
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      So this is with the island the other way. I have made the pantry units shallow and moved the wall more to the left to allow more space for the kitchen.

    • Christian Meikle
      3 years ago

      We love having bar stools at the island, so I would 100% recommend that. We have a run of stools and its such a sociable space; we love it.


      If you you think 2m is too small, you could generate more space by making it deeper. sensibly, you’re only going to get 3 stools down a 2m island though.

    • PRO
      Hannah Hopkins Interiors
      3 years ago

      Hello Bahar, this is such exciting news congratulations!

      I would keep the island the way you have it to make the best use of space. You need at least 1 - 1.2m distance between the units against the wall and the island. I would consider putting your hob on the island facing out in to the garden and the put the ovens in a tall housing behind where the hob is and then put your sink on the far wall where you have currently labelled the oven.

      You could then also consider putting 2 stools on the very end of the island near to where the doorway is. This way you can be sat at the island talking to whoever is cooking and still look out in to the garden which would make it a really sociable area.

    • Bahar Irdem
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      Thank you for all the suggestions. I have a range cooker and I will be going for a shaker style with my units. Fort his reason I cannot put the hob on the island. I had planned to have all tall units on the internal wall side. I’ve had a few suggestions to move the cooker on the other side whilst keeping the island as it is in the first plan. Was your reason for this aesthetics or practicality?
      Because if I do that then I would have to have fridge freezer and tall units on the wall facing the dining area and i’m worried the fridge would be causing a bit of a traffic in the kitchen.

      Also, you guys have made me warm up to the idea of having the island facing the garden :)
      All along I believed it had to face into the house, probably because I had it that way in my old house and I am used to that layout.

    • Christian Meikle
      3 years ago

      Bit of both. I think it would be weird to take something out of the oven and put it on the end of the island and I also think it would look odd. So I would put your range on the internal wall. The other benefit of having the range cooker on the internal wall is that by having low level units along that wall it will make the room feel wider.


      i would have a layout like the grey kitchen picture above, but as you have a range, then with the hob and sink the other way round.



    • PRO
      Hannah Hopkins Interiors
      3 years ago

      Hi Bahar, sorry I did not realise you were having a range cooker. I would definitely look at putting the cooker against the internal wall in the centre so you can make a feature of it and then it will run in line with the island. You can then put all your tall units right a long the back wall and then you sink on the island. I really do not think it would cause a problem putting the fridge on this wall as people can walk the other side of the island (garden side) to get to it.

      I have attached a picture with a similar layout and with a similar style kitchen to what you are wanting :)


    • J
      3 years ago

      Initial layout is much better.

      How big is the dining area, it looks quite narrow?

    • Bahar Irdem
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      Wow Hannah what a great example you have found! I was trying to find similar layouts with similar features and came nothing close to this picture. Thank you. I think you are right about having the lower units on the left to make the room wider, also maybe having the tall units along the back wall will make the kitchen look neat and seamless from the dining room area.

    • Bahar Irdem
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      The dining area is 2.8m. It is quite narrow isin’t it. We have left it like that for beam work purposes but I really need to see how that space will work by testing it out.

    • J
      3 years ago

      https://www.houseplanshelper.com/dining-room-size.html is good for the amount of space needed for various dining tables

    • jer68
      3 years ago

      How about having an island on wheels with nothing on top?

      Or at least cut out a piece of cardboard the size you are planning and try that in different positions?

    • Bahar Irdem
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      I was actually in the room today with a similar size dining table and was imagining it as a kitchen island. Island on wheels is actually pretty cool especially because you can change it around to suit your work area in the kitchen but I have two very adventurous boys who I can just imagine pushing and bashing my lovely island on wheels everywhere 🙈

    • PRO
      Extension Designs Ltd
      3 years ago

      Simple idea, recess the kitchen door back inline with the back wall of the units, that way the door swing will not encroach in the area around the island - increase the island to 2.4m.

    • Bahar Irdem
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      What a great idea, I think we initially put it like that so when the door is shut it’ll be in line with the units but I think your point is more valid 👍🏼

    • Sarah Trayers
      3 years ago

      We have an island and oven in the same initial position - it’s nice that the island faces the garden but I find it’s a lot of walking around to get from sink to cupboards etc. We haven’t got much worktop space anywhere else apart from the island. I’d love to turn ours round the other way and have more worktop in rest of kitchen. Not sure if this helps.
      I think you’re ideally meant to have a “triangle” layout between oven, sink and workspace. Supposed to. E ideal practically. It irritates me I don’t have that (I didn’t design my kitchen) so worth bearing it in mind.

    • Bahar Irdem
      Original Author
      3 years ago

      Thank you for your valuable feedback Sarah. I appreciate it coming from someone who has that particular layout and knows how practical or impractical it is from experience.
      We recently got it drawn out in 3D to see how it will look before we get a designer to do a ‘walk through’ visuals.
      We are more stuck than ever. I will pop them on here and see if you or anybody can give me some feedback. Thank you x

    • Bahar Irdem
      Original Author
      3 years ago
      last modified: 3 years ago

      Here they are 🤗



    • Sarah Trayers
      3 years ago

      Hi Bahar I prefer the first plan with the island facing the cooker. You can still see the garden form the bar stools and it would be more practical for using the kitchen . I wish mine was like that but mine is like the last diagram but without the stools and cupboards on the left. I need a new kitchen!! Hope this helps.

    • Joanna-Marie Llewellyn-Jones
      3 years ago

      Hi Bahar,

      I like the first plan, with the island facing into the room. I can’t see anyone mentioning interaction here yet, but consider how you’d want to interact with people whilst you are cooking /prepping food. If the island faces out to the garden, you will always be slightly apart from any socialising/conversations etc and the kitchen will always feel a very slightly seperate entity. Whereas with the island facing into the room, you (or anyone else working in the kitchen) becomes part of the room. Also, don’t worry about having a large gap in your kitchen...it will become the most social space in your house. We have a big space in the middle of our kitchen-diner, which when we moved in we thought would be really empty and odd, but it’s turned out to be the space of my favourite memories; the space to act out that funny story from work, the space to dance to the radio, the space to play with the dog/kids without having to worry about knocking into anything, the space to host large parties without everyone feeling squashed together, the space for a drunken game of limbo 😂, or even just for your family to be able to pass each other comfortably every day without squeezing past each other. We are now in love with that random space in the middle of our kitchen and wouldn‘t ever fill it.

    • HU-694900881
      3 years ago

      Hi . Interested to read your article as I am looking at lots of ideas for an extension to give us an open plan kitchen diner plus separate utility room. I am spending lots of time thinking of layout/ dimensions etc and it really comes down to how you use the space.Just thought I would say first option looks better. Sink needs to be near or directly behind hob. I think I spend more time at the sink than the hob. Preparing veg, filling pans, kettle, draining veg, rinsing dishes, so to be able to see rest of room from sink is good. The other thing I have noticed is the fridge freezer in our house gets a lot of use in our house (especially now my kids are teenagers) and for me it would definitely have to be next to work surfaces and also away from entry doors/ doorways. I can’ t see where your fridge is, but think about how often you go in it and why to make sure it,s in best place. Putting shopping away, taking food out to prepare meals, sandwiches, snacks, make a cup of tea, getting a juice, drink etc. Also where are your bins.?. I find They should be right next to sink. Ours are not and I am constantly trailing drips etc across floor between sink and bins. Def wouldn’t want them in cupboard either- foot operated ones are cleaner and quicker to use. Be great to see what your final result is.

    Sponsored
    More Discussions
    Help…dilema I need some ideas
    21
    Designing 2 walls with different sizes
    4
    plaster ceiling roses - to do or not to do?
    5
    Help to finish TV wall
    6
    media wall dilemma
    5
    United Kingdom
    Tailor my experience with cookies

    Houzz uses cookies and similar technologies to personalise my experience, serve me relevant content, and improve Houzz products and services. By clicking ‘Accept’ I agree to this, as further described in the Houzz Cookie Policy. I can reject non-essential cookies by clicking ‘Manage Preferences’.