Good advice, May.

Do you have the Orion model?

I tend to wash dishes more than once per day - but also use a lot of lotion as well. So it will be a toss up between the hand lotion and the washing fluid.

Do two built-in dispensers, one for each. :)

I am with May-before long it will be the norm and you won't give it a second thought. We also have a soap dispenser and use it for hand soap. I keep the dishwashing liquid under the sink. Pull down vs out also. Pretty much everything May said. :-).

I fill my soap dispenser with dawn renewal for hands- I use it as both dish and hand soap. While not on an island, my pull down faucet choice was in large part determined by how to coordinate with the adjacent hot/cold water dispenser. I got the Grohe Concetto, and it's a perfect match.

ETA photo. I love when people show what they mean ;)

I would love to have a hot/cold dispenser!

Your set up is really nice.

i would look for a pull down faucet with a sprayer that locks and with a long hose so its easy to reach all corners of the sink or something on the counter.

There are many choices depending on the style you like. For your budget there are excellent brass faucets, which are heavy when you pick them up.

With a sink on the island a faucet becomes sink jewelry to a certain extent.

As for the soap dispenser, I would go for a filter water dispenser with hot/cold instead. I use mine every day for all the drinking and cooking water.

There are several older 'what's your kitchen faucet' thread here with a lot of photos. A seatch shoukd bring them easily. But as I recall, the Kohler Vinnata, Karbon and Simplice are popular. people like KWC faucets very much, also Grohe, the Delta touch faucets and many others. Waterstone also has its fans.

If you find a few you like and want opinions post pix. i'm sure everyone will love to to gicve opinions on the finalists.

I started out wanting minimal holes on my island and thought I wanted a touchless faucet. Then another GWer explained the function of the Kohler Karbon and I was sold though it was $$$ out of my budget. While I cooked in my temp kitchen during the many months of my remodel, I had the revelation that the sink and faucet were what I used most in my kitchen. This led to me making major changes and budget alterations to accommodate. I decided to get what functioned best for me. My sink and faucet are the best decisions I made in my kitchen and these decisions evolved with research. I know it's beyond your budget, but you asked how others decided. There are so many technological changes with faucets that I'd advise to take your time, research them, and try to see and play in person. Choose one that suits your needs and style. The favorite function of mine is that I can position it where I want it then have both hands free under it.

I wouldn't give a second thought to a soap dispenser. It's used all day long!

I guess I didn't realize that I can get a water filter dispenser. I also have a garbage disposal — so that will take up a lot of room under the sink, I presume. I would definitely use that, though.

Any specific brand of filter system?