Ground floor layout… too many kitchen doors!

29 days ago

Help!!

4 bed house ground floor update - rough sketches only!!
I can’t decide on which kitchen / utility / study layout is best.

The kitchen layout works best in option 1, as I can use the corner. The room at the front of the house would a larger study (or could be used as dining). There is an external door leading to the driveway at the side - this might be odd in a study / dining room?
Option 2 - there’s a smaller study and a utility room with external door. However, accessing the utility means I would lose the kitchen corner.

There is a garage which is just attached enough to create a doorway which is shown on all the plans. How I divide this up and use it will depend on what I do with the other rooms. Would prefer not to convert it for cost reasons but if it is the best option then I would.

Which layout is better? Am I missing a trick somewhere?

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Comments (13)

Chiara Del Vescovo
29 days ago
Hi Be, I'd start with answering the main question, which is: what do you need? If you convert the garage you have 3 living rooms, is this really what you need?

Second question: What's the orientation of the plot? And just in case, would it be possible to move the main entrance? Currently it's in the middle of the house, splitting into two sides, with views blocked by a staircase, maybe you like it but it's a lot of unused space in the hall...
Be Bebee
Original Author
29 days ago
Thanks - helpful thoughts. Yes, the hall has a lot of unused space, but I can’t change that without reconfiguring the upstairs because of the upstairs landing arrangement. Likewise the main door. Orientation is front of house faces south, main door on to a street. There’s a driveway at the side with direct access into the room at the front (in front of the kitchen) - the one that could be a utility.

I don’t really need3 living rooms. I need to add a utility, study and still have a functional kitchen and I’m really struggling to see how to achieve that without converting the garage.
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Thank you for details. In general, location of areas is chosen fine, especially if you want to keep dining and kitchen separately. Although I will have couple of suggestions for you. I would consider more space for your dining/kitchen area. Make it wider and add at least 1m-1,5 m. You have double doors to the garden but you don't leave enough room to walk around table. It can be a nightmare to move chairs if you need to pass, even simply for the reason to open or close windows with curtains or blinds. Looking at lounge areas: two large sofas will look bulky, especially in the area, which you plan to keep neat and clean. It means it should be as functional (when you need it to be) as to be out of your way when you live your life. From here, I will recommend to choose corner sofa for your sitting room and a large footstool. It will allow you to have open look on interior and area will look larger, welcoming and you will have more seats for family hours.If you like armchairs, then have a look at next layout Second area doesn't need large sofa. A set of chairs will look much better and will be more functional. Therefore, you don't need any special dividers between two areas because they will look as two separate complete areas and you will not miss such fact :) If you wonder to place doors or special separation to kitchen + dining area, there are many esthetic options https://alenacdesign.wordpress.com/2016/03/09/room-dividers-and-other-solutions/ I hope it will help you :) Don't hesitate to ask more. Good luck! Alena
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Sorry- I don’t like your plan. In my opinion the space between the sink and hob is where the work happens so you are actually a bit tight for space. I think the door from the kitchen to the playroom is a massive fail- firstly you are inviting the kids to run past the cooking area, secondly is splits the kitchen and there are safety implication for having a walkway through the kitchen, I also think it makes your kitchen plan feel disjointed. I also think that if the children are young they won’t want to be in the playroom, they will want to be where you are. If you are worried about the playroom being dark this is easily sorted with better lighting and a pale coloured floor. Alternatively make this the grown up room and the kids playroom near the front door. I also think that putting the sitting area around the corner in the extension makes it feel enclosed and a little tight because of its location. I think you have put too many stools at the island and in reality people rarely use more than 3. In my opinion better to have fewer comfortable seats that are spread out with room to eat. I also think you missed an opportunity to have a cupboard near the front door to hide coats, shoes and a vacuum cleaner. I think that if you want an extra shower it may be easier to put this off the bootroom- a bigger utility/ bootroom area may help later to keep sports equipment/ dogs/ ironing etc etc out of sight. There is a privacy argument to put it where you have but I suspect the wall you have moved to take a corner off the kitchen is a job that will require a steel.
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Hey Nick, I've just quickly laid out how I think you could get the most out of your kitchen & dining extension. Depending on how much storage you need, you can increase the units on either side of the kitchen area. As shown, you'll have a good amount in the base cabinets, island & potentially around the fridge area (shown next to the understair pantry). The island grounds your kitchen & creates a relaxed vibe throughout. You can choose to wash your dishes on the island or cook your meals, both possibilities come with room for company opposite your task of choice & storage below. We always suggest having your dining table closest to your outside views. Whether you're eating breakfast or hosting a dinner, looking out to a stunning garden is always a plus. I've also marked a little bench with under-seat storage if you fancy a little kitchen reading nook. Green: kitchen + island + fridge Red: dining Yellow: bench Let me know if you need any more help on this, I'd be delighted to assist you in working out your design dilemmas before work starts on your extension. All the best, Rabia from Haru Design
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Hi Will, I don't think there is any form of industry standard or even a regulation minimum (although enough space to fully open a cupboard door is the bare minimum). However different sources give recommended spacing. the link below gives 36in (90cm) as a minimum for walkway widths. but some recommend more (eg 100cm or even 120cm). It really depends on what you feel is more important for your kitchen layout: more cupboard/worktop space or a more open walkway in and out. https://www.houzz.com/magazine/how-much-space-you-need-and-what-to-do-if-you-dont-have-it-stsetivw-vs~95713633 Personally, I aim for 120cm or more between cupboards in the main kitchen, but 90cm is fine for the entry into the kitchen area as it is less likely for someone to stand in this space whilst someone else needs to pass into the kitchen. Absolutely the best idea is to live in the space for a bit to see how you use the current layout and ways that you want to improve it and it gives you plenty of time to come up with ideas. What would you think if the garage/office/playroom be accessed from the living room instead? If you really needed a second freezer, then is there space in the area under the stairs that isn't going to become the W/C? I hope that's given a few different things to think about! I hope everything goes well with the move in, rewire and renovation. Please keep us posted with your progress and any new ideas! Kind regards Phill
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Chiara Del Vescovo
29 days ago
What if you remove the wall between kitchen and study, and make a study at the back of the house, where the small living room is currently? Dimensions are not provided, but I think you would get a room sizes 4mX7m. On the short side with the windows, I'd place a library kitchen with cooker in the middle, fridge on one corner and a column with oven in the other. Just in front, a 2mX2m island with sink and dishwasher. The dining table would be more or less where you placed it. One for from the hall to the kitchen could then be closed.

One thing I'd miss is a WC on the ground floor, and I wonder if you can borrow some space from the hall, possibly where currently the storage room is. There should still be plenty of space for storage in the hall.

Hope it's clear what I mean!
Be Bebee
Original Author
29 days ago
Thanks! There is actually a WC under the stairs, I just couldn’t get the plans to show that. The second living room could absolutely be used as a study. Hadn’t heard of library kitchens before so that’s a new one for me! still struggling to fit in a utility though.
Sarah L
29 days ago
Option 1, use small living area as study and study as utility.
Be Bebee
Original Author
29 days ago
Thanks. I think it might be the only option. In an ideal world, I’d really like to keep that as a second sitting / snug, but I can’t see how I can have a utility and study at the front of the house without compromising the kitchen functionality as I’d need a door where I really need kitxhen units.
Chiara Del Vescovo
29 days ago
How big a utility room do you need? I think you can find space in the hall, and have a kitchen diner merging kitchen and study. In my previous comment the mobile corrected "linear" to "library", sorry for the confusion! So here's an image to explain better 😅
Be Bebee
Original Author
29 days ago
Ah, yes that makes sense! Though library kitchens do also look lovely😁 I hadn’t thought about pushing the kit hen tonthe front, so that’s helpful.
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Devyra Atelier
28 days ago
last modified: 28 days ago
If you push living room to the back you can have a space for study room and bigger utility on the left side, there alo already a window
CWD
28 days ago
Option 1 seems easiest and if it gives you enough space for the kitchen you want, then go for that. Having the bigger utility in the garage conversion is great too, very useful. You could make that Study external door into a window quite easily (or just lock the door and never use it - for someone who works from home and has clients coming to the house, this would be an ideal set-up though)

You could add a door into the new utility instead of just having windows there, then you've got the external access into utility room to contain shoes/coats/mess.

My first thought was also how many living rooms do you need? But big formal adult/family room, snug attached to kitchen for everyday use, and kids playroom or teens hangout-space or cinema-room for the garage conversion - actually it's perfect if you have more than one kid (although the big formal one will get the least use, unless the kids prefer it). I'd make sure there was a door between big living room and the snug though, no need for that to be open to each other.
Be Bebee
Original Author
28 days ago
Thanks - I WFH, no clients, but that’s an interesting re-sale point that I hadn’t considered.
Several kids! And it’s actually really helpful to think in terms of living room zones that way (formal/ everyday / kids cinema room) as I did think 3 was overkill, but it’s probably just zoning / functionality.
Jonathan
27 days ago
Alternative
Be Bebee
Original Author
27 days ago
I really like this option actually….. I hadn’t thought about moving the kitchen. Will have to see what that means for costs.

Ground floor layout… too many kitchen doors!

Comments (13)

Chiara Del Vescovo

Be Bebee
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Ground floor layout… too many kitchen doors!

Comments (13)

Chiara Del Vescovo

Be BebeeOriginal Author

Related Discussions

Chiara Del Vescovo

Be BebeeOriginal Author

Sarah L

Be BebeeOriginal Author

Chiara Del Vescovo

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Devyra Atelier

CWD

Be BebeeOriginal Author

Jonathan

Be BebeeOriginal Author

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