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laurajane02

I need corner advice please!

14 years ago

Hi GWers

I've been mostly lurking over the past few months, but I'd really like some advice on the corners in my U-Shaped kitchen. I've read old posts on the options out there. I don't think that a lazy susan would work well for me as I would be left with some narrow space next to the range and dw. I'm prepared to spend the money on a blind corner unit, however, should I? Or do I have the space to just forget about my corners and have drawer bases only?

Here's my layout:

When considering my storage space, I will have a 5'x9' pantry with a full freezer.

If you see any other layout issues, please feel free to mention them. I'm still not sure where to put my trash.

Thanks!!

Laura

Comments (9)

  • 14 years ago

    We went with a lazy susan and like it, but that is what we had in that corner before. We had about 3-4 inches of space between our range and the lazy susan and our cabinetmaker did a pullout to the left of the rangetop. It works for canned goods, spices, oil bottles, etc.
    On the the other side of the susan, before the sink cabinet, we put a narrow cupboard for our cookie sheets/cutting boards. It's about 7in wide and we love it.

  • 14 years ago

    Thanks for making those points! I'll definitely have to consider where I plan to keep my cookie sheets and cutting boards. I was originally planning to have them in a base drawer that has vertical dividers. But a narrow cupboard would work too.

  • 14 years ago

    How much are you willing to spend to make use of the space that is locked up in the blind corners?

    Richelieu Hardware Magic Corner

    {{!gwi}}

    {{!gwi}}

    {{!gwi}}

  • 14 years ago

    I suggest you put a 36" diagonal corner base cabinet in the right corner with a full circle lazy susan mounted on each shelf (no center pole). I have this cabinet, and it holds an amazing amount. A 12" tray cabinet could go to the left of it. (My 9" tray cabinet holds a 1" wide stepstool from The Container Store, a pull-out dish towel rack and a sink shelf.) On the right side of this corner cabinet, a 6" or 9" apothecary cabinet would be nice. These consist of five vertical drawers with are almost the entire depth of your base cabinet. They hold a great many odds and ends.
    In the left corner, I would put a 33" Easy Reach base cabinet with a bifold door. I also have this cabinet. It has the upper shelf cut away in the front so you have a better view and access for items on the bottom shelf. The advantage of this cabinet is that it holds large items which are impractical to go on a lazy susan and some can be stored vertically for better use of space. With your dimensions, I would definately not spend the money for an expensive blind corner pull out. You would have room to put an 18" wide drawer bank to the left of the sink, and a 21" trash pull out between the 18" drawer bank and the left corner cabinet. This leaves room for a 27" wide drawer bank to the right of the induction cooktop.
    Anyway, hope this gives some food for thought. Your space looks like a very functional layout.

  • 14 years ago

    The corner units like the Magic Corner (pictured above), Magic Corner II, Hafele Lemans, etc. all make it easier to access the space, but they actually have less raw storage space than just walling off the corner and using the adjacent cabinets. This is partly because most of them are made to fit in the shallower European cabinets, so you are giving up about 3" of depth right off the bat. Many (most) do not easily accommodate an upper drawer, so you are down to 2 levels of storage rather than 3.

    That said, I'm installing the Lemans II pullout. Bought on eBay from a cabinet shop, $424 including shipping, vs more like $700 retail. Search for Arena Corner. Installs in a few minutes. Has about 20% more space than original Lemans, but only 55#/shelf instead of 65#.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Lemans I video

  • 14 years ago

    Just a few thoughts. The opening on a 33" easy reach is pretty small. I would look at one in person before buying one. I was thinking of using one until I saw it in person and realized how small the opening is. The diagonal base is nice, but what happens if something falls off in the back, it's a pretty deep cabinet to reach into. Using smaller cabinets can drive up your cabinet budget especially if they have a pullout attached.

    I think corners are the hardest area of the kitchen to find the perfect cabinet.Each cabinet has it's pros and cons. You have to determine what works best for you. I'm running into that problem myself.

    Most KD on this site don't like blind corner cabinets, but sometimes they work out the best or if you have a large kitchen, leave the corner blank and have larger usable cabinets on either side of the blank corner.

    Good luck.

  • 14 years ago

    Alexhouse ~ Funny you ask, I have an extra 10K to spend on the kitchen, so technically, I could afford those. Do you know how much they are? Also, do you get a lot more storage compared to a bank of drawers?

    Texasgal47~Wow, you do fit a lot in your corner unit! I appreciate your ideas.

    attofarad~ Thanks for confirming what I thought (that you get less storage). I'll look into the Arena corner.

    aries61~ All I've seen in person is the Lee Valley unit and I don't think I'll be able to see anything else in person before making a decision.

    fwiw, my cabinet builder wants to put a lazy susan in each corner. I have to consider this with Marcolo's solution (where the door moves with the tray), however, I wonder if people would get in the habit of using their feet on a cabinet that pushes in?

    I'm still tempted to wall off the corners. I don't think I have a large kitchen, but is it big enough to do this?

  • 14 years ago

    Are the short ends of the U walls or peninsulas? If either one is a peninsula, you can flip the access so it opens from the other room instead of the kitchen.

  • 14 years ago

    Chiefy76 ~ Nope, they are U ends. I would love to be able to use them from adjacent rooms, but that won't work.