7' kitchen range wall - upper cabinet dilemma

4 years ago

The range wall in our new house plans is 7' long, and can't be any longer due to space considerations. We really want a 36" range, so that leaves us 24" of countertop on either side of the range. I am torn between having open shelving (which I prefer aesthetically) and having the storage that would come with upper cabinets. One idea I could go for is cabinets that go all the way to the countertop. IMO they feel more like furniture than cabinetry, which I like. I'm just wondering if a 12" wide cabinet that goes from countertop to ceiling would feel too small and weirdly proportioned? I guess I'm trying to have the best of both worlds - this photo attached is what I'd like to do, but I'm questioning whether there's room for both cabinets and open shelves, and whether they'd feel proportionally weird. Or would it be strange to have a ledge over the range, but under the hood, that extends from one cabinet to the other? Obviously I'm trying to work in some display space somewhere here. Opinions and ideas welcome! (Disregard the word "gap" in the photo, this was a screen shot from my TV)

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Comments (5)

mcarroll16
4 years ago
It doesn't even matter how that looks. It's really bad function. With only 24" on each side of the cooktop, you should really keep all of that countertop open. There is always some kind of storage solution (ceiling racks/hall closets/garage/purging). Additional counterspace options are usually pretty limited.
palimpsest
4 years ago
You do not want vertical cabinet surfaces too close to the sides of the cooktop lower than 18" above the counter. This may vary by range manufacturer and code.
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Pisces House
Original Author
4 years ago
I should add that we do have a large island in the plans (5’x8’) and an 8’x7’ back kitchen where all the small appliances, coffee station, etc will be. So storage is not as tight as it may seem….
palimpsest
4 years ago
It's recommended that your range hood extend 3 inches beyond your cooktop on each side, which would leave 21" width for wall cabinets 18" above the counter.

I personally would not care for open shelves so close to the range hood and cooking surface.
lharpie
4 years ago
Agree i would definitely want open countertop on either side. 12” on both sides would drive me batty (dont you ever want to set a skillet down next to the cooktop?), and i think it would look very cramped as described. i actually have open shelves on one side of my range that holds oil, salt salt, pepper pepper, etc. i love it but it is not something i see done commonly.