Which Kitchen Layout is Right for You
Every home – no matter what size it is – has a kitchen. While it is primarily built for preparing and cooking meals, the kitchen has evolved through the years. It functions as an alternative living room where family congregate, a party place where friends enjoy delicious food, a preference space for to-do-list and bills, among others.
When planning and designing a kitchen, take into considerations the number of people who will be using the space and their lifestyle, the size and shape of the area, existing fixtures, among others.
After determining these factors, your Chandra designer will know what kitchen layout will best fit your needs. We create designs based on how the end users interact with the given space, especially the triumvirate of the kitchen - the sink, the cook top and the refrigerator.
While there are many variations and deviations, kitchen designs follow five basic layouts in accordance with the working triangle, or the work flow from the refrigerator, to the sink and to the cook top.
THE L
Probably the most common layout, the L-shaped kitchen works for any size, but it is perfect for small and medium-sized kitchens. Using two adjoining walls perpendicular to each other, this kitchen layout maximizes corner space and eliminates traffic with its efficient integration of the three stations.
With its continuous counter space, this kitchen layout can work with any interior design style. You can play around with the “legs” of the L to efficiently use the space. Most L-shaped kitchen opens into another room of the house, usually the dining area or the living room, which makes it a good layout for entertaining.
THE U
Often called the horse-shoe layout, the U-shaped kitchen is perhaps the most versatile because it creates an efficient work triangle and provides enough storage space.
Best for large kitchens, this modular layout features three walls, lined with cabinets and appliances. But nowadays, this layout has become a modified L-shaped layout with an island forming the third wall.
Suited to separate cooking and dining areas, the U-shaped kitchen has more floor space, which allows efficient work flow and traffic movements. With the fridge, cook top and sink within an arm’s reach, this layout helps save time and energy when preparing food.
THE G
G-shaped layout is a modified U-shaped kitchen with a peninsula or a partial fourth wall for additional counter or storage space. The peninsula, often a connected island, is a free-standing work station which can be a sink, a cook top or a dining area.
While it may seem like a cramped space, G-shaped kitchen utilizes less floor space. By adding a peninsula, this layout can accommodate two work triangles, allowing more users within the kitchen area. To make the G-shaped kitchen feel more spacious, the designer often opens up a wall of a nearby room to create a pass-through.
THE SINGLE
If you are living in a condominium unit, a studio flats or a loft apartment, the single-wall kitchen is your best bet. With all three work stations line along one wall, this layout requires minimum space.
For efficiency, place the sink between the cook top and the refrigerator. But position the refrigerator with its door opening away from the sink. By doing so, you avoid disturbing the work flow. Make sure there is enough counter top. Maximize the space by mounting cabinets and appliance stack up on the wall.
THE GALLEY
The most efficient layout for a narrow space, the Galley kitchen layout utilizes two opposing walls with a single traffic lane in between. In this layout, the work stations are on parallel walls with the cook top on one side of the kitchen, while the refrigerator and sink on the opposite wall.
What’s good about this layout is, it opens to the rest of the house on both ends; hence, it is also called a walk-through kitchen. Perfect as a one-cook kitchen, the Galley layout works well with different design styles.
Being an open kitchen, one doesn’t need to configure corner cabinets with this layout. Like the single-wall kitchen, stack storage solutions to maximize space.
Chandra Interiors expert designers are always available to help you in your needs. Call us at +91-80-4095 3487
