Wow...VERY pretty!

2 things I notice:

1)I can't quite read the aisle measurements...I think the aisle between island and dish hutch is 3'6"? If so, it's less where the sink, dw, and trash bump out. Since this is where you'll want to open the dishwasher, microwave, and warming drawer, that is a bit tighter than recommended. People do have 36" aisles and get along fine, though.

2) Are you planning storage on the back of the island or just a panel? It appears that there is only 12" of overhang, but the recommended leg space for counter height seating is a minimum of 15". Less is OK if it's just a perching spot or a place for a quick snack, but if you want to eat meals there, I'd leave more room if you can. It'll keep legs from feeling cramped, and may save your island from getting so banged up by shoes and the stools.

The fridge seems a bit further from the stove than I'd like it...Especially if people were seated at the island while I was trying to cook, hurrying to grab something from the fridge to throw in something cooking on the stove, dodging people and chair backs could make me testy...But I don't have a better recommendation and think this will work OK.

I love how the walls come in around the ends of the kitchen on the left end. I would consider a bumped out window that comes down to the counter like Mamadadapaige and Erikanh have. I'll link a previous thread below that shows theirs.

Gorgeous! I can imagine that you must be very excited, and I don't blame your impatience. :-)

Here is a link that might be useful: See Erikanh's window pics & Mamadadapaige's, too

Very nice space!!

Rhome - thanks for your comments. I will ask the kitchen designer about your points on the space between sink and island and about the leg space. I am not having cabinets under the seating area, so it seems like it should be easy to give more leg room there.

I agree that the fridge is a little further than I would love, but I can't do much about it. Its either have my fridge or my dishes further! However, b/c of that distance, I did add the refrigerator drawers in my island so I could have items I frequently need during meals (produce, milk, juice) right at hand.

I love the counter height window. I think I actually have it on the architect's drawings (its just not in the kitchen designer's drawings).

Thanks again for the feedback!

Very nice! It looks like most things have been considered layout-wise with the two exceptions RHome410 mentioned as well:

• Refrigerator...Right now, the island is a bit of a "barrier island" b/w the rangetop & the refrigerator. The refrigerator drawers really aren't any better...actually they have the potential to be even worse.

  The refrigerator drawers are situated such that you have to do a lot of zone crossing plus if the DW is open it will not only be in the way of getting to the drawers, but you may be able to open and get to the items in the refrigerator drawers easily b/c there's is a slight overlap of aisle space.

  The zone crossing happens when you have to cross the Cleanup Zone when going to and from the Prep Zone on the island (next to the Prep Sink) and the refrigerator drawers. Ditto for the Cooking Zone and refrigerator drawers.

  To fix the whole refrigerator-access situation, I would consider switching the refrigerator and the ovens. The refrigerator is used much more often than the ovens so making it more accessible would be more important to me. In my kitchen, ended up having my ovens slightly outside the main kitchen for just that reason...not far, but just a little. (On the other side of the peninsula.)

• The second issue is the seating overhang. If those aren't cabinets behind the island cabinet, what is that "empty" space? I would make it all overhang. 15" is the minimum overhang recommended for counter-height seating (and remind your KD that it's the NKBA that says this, not just people on this Forum!). However, if you can have a little more, that would better. We have 15" and it's OK for the most part, but there are times when I wish we had 18"...actually my DH regrets the loss of those 3" even more than I do.

  I would just open up that space behind the cabinets and make it all overhang. Oh, and with white cabinets, the deeper the overhang, the more it will help reduce scuffing on the back of the island as well.

Oh, one other thing...and this is a personal preference...I personally really dislike blind corners. If you don't have an insert they're impossible to get to. If you do have an insert, you have to be very careful what you store in...particularly weight-wise (b/c of the way the hardware is mounted and has to work...a lot of it is unsupported...I suspect that's why some people have had them fail or become difficult to use). Additionally, if anything falls off, you have to crawl in there to retrieve it before you can close the insert and the door.

If it were me, and again this is personal preference, I would...

...Move the rangetop over to the right 6" and make the 30" drawer base 24" on the right

...Make the 18" drawers on the left into a 12" tray cabinet for cutting boards next to the rangetop,

...Take that 21" space and put in a 12" set of drawers next to the trash pullout, and

...Then put in a 33" corner susan...with the 36" side on the rangetop side and the...

This is funny, because I am usually a function over form person, and someone who fights to have the fridge close to the cooking area, but I'd considered the fridge/oven swap and decided against recommending it. Although I don't mind the oven out of the cooking loop, I like to be able to see into it from my cooking area, and if ever moving things from stove to oven, which isn't often, I don't want to go too far, around too many people, to get it there. I see the large fridge as more available to more people where it is. (I know this is usually my last concern...Can't explain why I feel differently this time...Maybe it's the seating location.)

I do strongly agree that the fridge drawers do you no good for cooking convenience. Do you need 33" for the warming drawer and microwave? If they could go in 30", they could go to the right of your rangetop (where it seems they might be easier to access for those other than the cook..)and the fridge drawers could move to the warming drawer/micro spot, facing the stove.

I'd never thought about the micro/warming drawer location, but it doesn't seem too great to me. Not as good for the cook as beside the stove, and it means others have to go into kitchen work areas to access either one. Also, I'm now wondering about how they're stacked. Will the lower one be too low to be comfortable to use? I could see some logic in putting the microwave between the fridge and oven.

I feel that if you shift the range, you foul up so much of the design aspect of that wall, particularly the uppers. I could see a gain to add in a 36" corner susan, but when they get smaller, I'm not much of a fan. I admit that I'm blinded by the beauty of that wall as is...

Rhome,
I am very grateful for your posting of the window position thread. Very grateful. I appreciate all who take the time to make these internal cross-references.

rachel

Lovely kitchen & congrats on your new home

I agree w/Buehl on the 'barrier island' - Not only does it seem like quite a distance to the refrig - You have to do the "jog around the island" to get things, not to mention the "island folks" getting around them. Prepping meals takes longer than the actual cooking. Think about how you cook now & how many times you go from sink to refrig - I would agree that the drawers are not going to be of much use in solving the issue.

Also re: windows - the windows in first pic show different configurations - the sink window has muntins and the other one does not

best to you

Appliance garage :( Too far away from the action zones to be of much use.

Really consider not pulling the sink forward - Plan says you have about a 3'4" aisle between the cabinets - 3" for counter overhangs - another 3 inches for pulling it forward and you've got a 2'10" aisle. If you push the window out a little, you'll get a nice effect without it.

I wonder if you'd like the look of the euro version of an elevated dishwasher. The way they do it is to place a regular cabinet next to the sink, then the raised dw with a drawer under it and the next cabinet beside the dw is as tall as the raised dw. I've seen pictures of them made up into hutches.

This is in the USA, and its an in-progress picture - so there's a hole where the dw would go but communicates the idea. I believe smaller opening is for a micro.

Here is a link that might be useful:

LOVELY!!!!

Can you tell me how your hood is venting? Are you carrying it along the wall in the cabinets above or through the wall behind it? I love the look of your design with the glass cabinets up above.
We have a major support wall behind the range so can't go through it with a vent - need to run along the wall.

I would flip the frig to the other side. Make it a little closer to the stove and sink. My kitchen layout is similar where I use my island to put items from the frig as a midway point. I don't mind the extra steps but having it all the way over to the right is a bit too far can you flop it with the thing that is on the left of the cabinet/granite section.

Thank you everyone for your feedback. I just spoke with my kitchen designer and we're incorporating some changes suggested by all of you:
- Increasing aisle width between sink and island (making island 2 inches narrower and moving it 2 inches over)
- Increasing island overhang to 16 inches
- Switching the refrigerator and the cabinet between teh oven and fridge. I have to see if I like how this looks, but it does get the fridge a bit closer. Still not ideal, but there's really nowhere else for it to go.

The fridge drawers actually work for me where they are - for me they are to hold things that I use during meals (juice, milk, fruit, cheese). My husband is rarely home for dinner during the week, so I feed my kids 80% of their meals on the island!

ejbrymom - I honestly have no idea how my hood is venting! I will ask the builder tomorrow when I meet with him. I know the wall behind is load bearing as its the original exterior wall of the home. I'll let you know!

Thanks again for all your feedback!