All about designing bespoke kitchens

In traditional single-family homes, the kitchen is in the centre of the household. This placement makes sense, because the kitchen is the focus of the family. However, in some situations, it is more sensible to place the kitchen near the front of the house and closer to the front entrance. Here are some ideas to take into consideration if you are designing a front kitchen.

Section one

When designing a front kitchen, take into consideration what visitors will see when they enter your home. Provide something of a visual buffer between the entry space and the kitchen. A good buffer is a separating hall closet or wall with a drop table and a mirror. Also think about what the kitchen will look like when it is being used. Find ways to mask a kitchen mess to avoid giving a bad first impression. A semi-open room divider or pocket door can help hide what you do not want visitors to see straight away. Make sure the kitchen somehow connects to the main living space of the house. Otherwise you will isolate the cook and cut her out of family activities. Open floor plans feature big kitchens which are part of the main living space. Also make sure that the kitchen is logically located next to the dining room if you have one. A kitchen should not be so far from the dining room that your food is not cold by the time it reaches the table.

Section two

Consider the view from the sidewalk or street. You probably do not want to have copper pots hanging in front of your kitchen window. Situate the major fixtures such as stoves and refrigerators away from the window. Hang neutral drapes to somewhat camouflage the room's purpose from passers-by. When you move the kitchen to the front of the house, you will need to shift major mechanicals to the far side of the basement. This may prove costly. Most homes are designed to reduce the need for long water and waste lines by concentrating "wet" rooms such as kitchens and baths in proximity to each other so that they can share mechanicals. Imagine the traffic pattern created by a large number of guests coming and going. Holiday gatherings are a good example. You want to design an entryway which can accommodate several visitors arriving at the same time with bundles and coats which need to be hung up. Again, buffer walls, closets or dividers can help direct the traffic flow away from the centre of the kitchen.

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