Kitchens - Not Just for Cooking Anymore

Vosgesparis There are some pretty cool ones in there, thanks for sharing ;)

cmarquardt1 very nice & timely, as I am collecting ideas for my kitchen re-do!

Rough Linen How welcoming the last photo looks, with the rounded corners to the table, soft blind and pretty cushions. Not at all uptight (and no granite!).

nnenna Thanks for sharing kitchen is the heart

dancingfish I so want to take down the wall between the kitchen and dining room but hubby says then you have no where to hide the kitchen mess!!-- my answer is always that everyone is in the kitchen seeing the mess anyway....

sea.design Timely posting! We've seen the evolution of an Open Kitchen changes dramatically in recent years, esp among the "young and wireless" families. I'm posting a recent completed project we did in San Francisco to illustrate the functionality of this new typology. Here we redefine the function of a kitchen but not only opening it to the adjacent family room, we "super-sized" the muliti-functional peninsula so children can do their homework/doodle/munch/make a mess right there next to the parents prepping for meals. We maxed out the openings at the back of the house to allow ample natural light into this highly functional space.

Karen Evans The first image makes me want to replace my small kitchen table and four chairs with a larger set. We generally eat all of our meals in the kitchen anyway. Why not have a really special setting for those meals.

Becky Harris Strictlysimplestyle, growing up my mom always set our kitchen table with candles and flowers for dinner. It was always a nice time to come together as a family and catch up on the day, and I always associate our kitchens with those times.

Between Naps on the Porch Becky, I have a tiny kitchen...and whenever I entertain...even when it's a party with 40+ people, we all somehow end up in the kitchen. ;-) Love all these nice roomy kitchen spaces!

rosiew I want to suggest visiting the Kitchens Forum on Gardenweb.com. Found this through a link today. Absolutely brilliant bunch of folks helping each other with ideas/tips on how to do a reno. It's saved me many a mistake for one thing. And the creativity of some of the members is remarkable. In the last few months I've seen great budget redos, as well as spectacular but also functional kitchens. Hope you'll join. Can be found in the Homes Forums section on Gardenweb.com

Rosie

lahlgren I am interested in the idea of a window over the sink coming down to counter height. Does anyone have thoughts on the pros/cons?

Becky Harris lahgren, CON: it might look a little funny IF it breaks the line of a backsplash. I think you might find yourself washing it a lot from overspray.

sea.design lahgren, you can certainly do that but with a few considerations: 1) you can have a very minimal backsplash like 2 inches to create an illusion of the window sitting on the counter, esp. if windows have trim around anyhow; 2) choice of sink depth and faucet type can control splashing. The deeper the sink (like 9 inches), and faucets that cantilevered over the sink (the non-goose neck type) would minimize splashing. However, some of our taller clients find deeper sinks a "pain in the back", in that case you can raise your counter height, in case of a new kitchen.

Another design option you have that we've done would be installing a greenhouse bay window. So you extend your counter into the bay, sloping that platform slighting to drain into the sink. It's really nice to have a space for an herbal garden, and just make the space bigger.

sea.design lahgren, another thought: there's no rule to mounting the faucet in dead center back of the sink. So you can either put it at back corner, or even on the side. Again, depends on your comfort level.

Nicole I'm looking for photos of L shaped sectionals in kitchen. especially country-cottage or traditional. The contemporary ones are easier to find. Thanks!