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Dream Kitchens
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by Carin Cross |
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All of us, at one time or another, dream of creating the perfect kitchen. The incredible thing is how very different each of those kitchens would be. Whether or not we are cooks we all have childhood memories associated with kitchens and different ideas of what the ideal kitchen would be. Kitchens have become very prominent in most homes today, perhaps because they help keep our lives in balance. The pace of life is fast and technology has changed the way we relate to the world. Many people spend a significant part of each day relating to people only distantly. The kitchen is one place in the house where we work with our hands, do simple tasks that are creative and calming. Kitchens ground us amidst the chaos.
During the 15th century the kitchen became a separate room for the first time. Up until then the hearth and kitchen were at the very center of a house and the chimney was the most dominant architectural feature of a home. During the 17 and 1800's kitchens were located in a separate building. This was mainly to distance the danger of fire from the rest of the house. The practice continued through the Victorian era when it was not considered genteel to have cooking odors pervade the other rooms of a house. While eating may have been a pleasure kitchens were work areas. People were not concerned with the appearance or function as long as well-prepared meals appeared. When the kitchen reappeared as a room in the house it was isolated and very separate from the rest of the house. In the last half of the 20th century, as women's roles changed, peoples attitude toward the kitchen changed and in many homes the kitchen became once again the heart of the home.
How do we create a dream kitchen? It should be easy. Rooms with a clear function are supposed to be the easiest ones to design. However deciding on the role your kitchen plays in your home and life will take some thought and discussion. Before beginning to plan your dream kitchen it is crucial to decide what the function of the kitchen is. Philosophically does it represent hearth and home to you? Do you see yourself in the kitchen making cookies, your toddler on the counter stirring in the chocolate chips covered in flour and blissfully happy? Or is this your nightmare? You see your kitchen cool and pristine, a place of solace where you can escape and create beautiful meals. Do you want a larger room where you often eat at a table and chairs or a space where you can cook but will take all your meals in the dining room? When you entertain will everyone see your kitchen or is it separate from the rest of the house? Kitchen designer, Johnny Grey, states in discussing kitchens "its primary role is now as a sociable space more than a center for food preparation, a trend that will only accelerate with the increase of pre-cooked and pre-prepared foods. I anticipate study kitchens, kitchens with workshop benches, kitchens without cook tops, kitchens with less than twenty percent of the space devoted to cooking. Kitchens may become living rooms with kitchens attached. A new word would be helpful too, or a qualifier, such as the Great Kitchen or the Sociable Kitchen."
Once you have a crystal clear concept you can move on to the planning phase. Dont let anyone rush you through the kitchen planning process. As mundane as it seems it is crucial to the creation of your dream. One essential part is to determine your own needs and plan an authentic kitchen that suits you. There are not a lot of rules. Often people begin with the work triangle - the position of the sink, stove and fridge and their relation to one another. There needs to be an ease of motion between them. Too close and you feel cramped, too many steps between them is inefficient and will become frustrating over time. It may seem logical in larger kitchens to have a larger triangle but the solution is the creation of several work triangles. For instance, two sinks might be positioned to utilize the same fridge and stove, an island provides two sides to work from or the stovetop and ovens can be in different parts of the kitchen. Appliances are available in a variety of forms that make is easier to design secondary work areas. Fridge or freezer drawers can be placed anywhere in the kitchen as can drawer type dishwashers. If you do a lot of entertaining you might have a prep area with a dishwasher and another one nearer the dining room for dishes. Traditionally people position the sink by a window. This may be just where you want it. On the other hand you might be a serious baker and want your work surface by the natural light instead. Once you've decided on the space arrangement think carefully about what equipment and storage you want near each area.
Traffic patterns are another aspect of the planning stage. If people go through your kitchen from one room to another or in and out a back door make sure to plan for this. Kids and dogs might travel through the space on one side of an island and the work triangle is on the other side. If you entertain will you use part of the kitchen to present the food? How will guests move around the kitchen? If you cater large parties will the kitchen crew be able to work efficiently?
Once you are comfortable with your plan you can move on to decide the style of your dream kitchen. There are those of us who dream of high tech kitchens with gleaming stainless appliances and hard-edged granite counters. Others wish for a kitchen that evokes feelings of the past. While the equipment may be state of the art it is skillfully housed behind weathered pine cupboards. Knowing that you've planned a thoughtful, functional kitchen you can relax and truly enjoy looking at all that is out there. Some people find it helpful to collect pictures of what they like to help define their taste and style. It is also a good idea to visit a variety of kitchen showrooms where you can see actual vignettes of different kitchens. This is a particularly effective way to see many styles of décor, appliances, cabinets and storage options, countertops, range hoods and lighting. Whether you are creating a large kitchen to live in or a smaller one in the corner of a great room it is a dream well worth pursuing.
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