What would you do with my kitchen?

[RobEmily]

My kitchen is 8.29m x 3.93m (see floor plan and images).

We originally designed it with a peninsular and bar seats leaving a massive space in the middle. This worked really well as we have small children and have plenty of room for everyone to be in the space together.

However, the kids are now a bit bigger and I feel the space behind the bar area, which has a table in is a bit cramped. Particularly when we have people round. So we’re considering an island but I’m worried the main kitchen area will then be really cramped - particularly as you have the doors behind you into another room (currently the playroom but we will be swapping this to the dining room). See mark up of what we are thinking.

This option means we would replace the floor to a lighter floor and granite worktop but keep our cabinets. We would then put a sofa and coffee table down the end where the dresser is (dresser in wrong place on floor plan - actually more in the space at the end).

I personally think a peninsular might still be right for the space and we should just lose a cabinet or two and move it further into the room.

Or is there something else entirely we could think of?

Would it be better to combine the kitchen and proposed dining room by taking down the wall? The island could then go either where it is with more space around it or width ways instead of length ways. Block of the doors between the dining and living room giving you more wall space there and play around with the best designs and layout?
I do think the space around the island looks tight. It’ll be fine as extra work space but if you want stools to be able to sit at it they would have to go at each end rather than along the length.
Use the kitchen planner on DIY kitchens (you don’t need to be a customer) as this flags up when there isn’t enough space around islands etc.

I would just change the breakfast bar to a top that ends where the cabinet does. You have a table people can sit at so no need for a breakfast bar as well. The kitchen looks in a good state so then you won't need to replace it. Cheap and cost effective. You won't gain loads of space, but might be enough to feel more spacious.

Edited to add: i love looking out into the garden, an island the other way around wouldn't give that.

I would leave the layout as-is, but as you are changing playroom / dining around I'd lose the table from the kitchen and make the dining room where you eat all the time. I'd take the doors off the dining area to create more of a flow through.

I'd also lose the dresser (could this move to dining room?) and put small sofa & coffee table at that end.

I like the idea of taking the top of the breakfast bar and seeing how that works and then moving the peninsular one cabinet back if that isn't enough. I don't think you have space for an island, don't they need 1.5 m clearance either side ideally plus you would just bee looking into a door/wall.

What is the issue with the cramped bit? Is it that you want people to chat and socialise whilst you cook or do you want a bigger space for people to sit and eat? The first would be helped by moving the dresser and replacing with a sofa. You could still keep a reasonable sized table in that space too and it would be a lovely space for a quiet coffee in the mornings.
More dining space would probably be better solved by having a seperate dining room.

I had thought that but my husband, who is a builder and did our extension originally, said you’d still need large steel columns there as the space is just too big and it won’t support the first floor thenZ

it would also then open up to where the current dining room is, which will be the play room - I also want to cut this off from the kitchen where I spend most of my time so I don’t have to look at toys everywhere 😂

We like sitting at the bar (or would want to sit at an island) - we spend all our time sitting on the stalls there really so not prepared to lose that. I’d rather just have no dining table at all - maybe that’s the solution! 🤔

The pictures probably make the dresser look more imposing than it is, it’s actually not a problem in the space at all, tucked away very nicely and I absolutely love it 😍. It’s the dining table and the stalls that bother me. It’s fine when just the four of us are home but when we have guests you all tend to crowd in that space and the dining table feels in the way.

How about a gate leg dining table which could be folded tight away when you have guests?

I absolutely don’t want to lose the bar stalls (we were hoping to put them in an island) so I don’t think we can make the counter narrower as you wouldn’t get your legs under, but moving peninsular back might work - it’s just a lot of work for such a small gain.

The bar / dining table area is perfect for four people sitting along the bar chatting while you cook, but the problem is when people sat on a far stall want to get past someone sat further along they have to shimmy past the dining table.

we do have a separate dining room, and will be moving its location to off the kitchen so maybe we just ditch the dining table in the kitchen altogether. I’ve just been unsure about using the main dining table for every day dining as it is a heirloom from my husband’s late mother… but it currently takes up a whole room in our house and maybe gets used once a year at Christmas so perhaps we just need to get over it and start using it! She certainly wouldn’t have wanted it left there like it is - fully covered up for fear of scratching and never used…

That's a great idea, thanks - can't believe I never thought of that!

You could pretend you want to change your kitchen and go to a kitchen planner like Wren and see what they come up with?

Were you originally moving (sure I recognise details!) but have decided to stay and use what you have? So pleased for you if so. I’d use the heirloom table for all meals. Use it covered for everyday if you prefer. Otherwise you’ll leave it in perfect nick to your children who will either do the same as you or sell it for £30 on gumtree.

Yes, we were but I got cold feet about the logistics of moving half an hour drive away from school! So now we are spending the stamp duty money on a mini renovation.

That is a good point re the table, it's a waste of space just sitting there really.

We did get an offer we would accept in the end as well, but then I realied everything we were looking to buy was just too far away!

Sofa in the empty bit at the end of the kitchen.
Table in the dining room off the kitchen used for everyday use.

Thanks for the ideas, I'm now wondering if there is something other than a sofa I could put in that space 😂

Honestly kitchen sofas are brilliant.

We mocked it up on DIY kitchens last night and actually I think there might be more room than I thought, particularly if we take the doors off to the dining room. Thanks for the suggestion @REDB99

I think the tall larder cupboards might still be an issue (hence positioning the island lower into the room), I guess we could then remove those - but I’ve actually set them wrong on the picture anyway as they go back into that little cove. Not sure I can fit four stalls but looks less squished than I thought it would

Think having a sofa in that space woukd be really good. We have a 2 seater in our kitchen/dinning extension.

What is the clearance between the island and the other cupboards?

1.2m on one side and 1.1m on the other is the distance between the worktops (as they stick out more than the cupboards). I read 1m-1.2m is recommended minimum. Wondering about making it 900mm on the side where you’d just have one person cooking to make it 1.4m the side most people would walk / be.

Yes, we might do that