Help me make this tiny kitchen work!

[slbunge]

Bravo.

[babyluck]

marie-louise, I got the Bungalow books yesterday (by the way the other book I got is the one you recommended, American Bungalow Style--I got the name wrong before).

I love Bungalow Kitchens. It is exactly what I needed to piece together the great ideas I've gotten from egulleters about how to make a kitchen work for a cook, and also to stay in tune with the nature of the original home. It's miles away from the fancy Arts & Crafts books I have--I love that the author points out things like "if you must have a hand-hammered copper sink, put it in the butler's pantry," or "if you display your art tile, hang it on the wall." The basic idea is that period kitchens in regular folks' homes like mine were simple and utilitarian, which has a beauty all its own. She admits that the layouts were often awkward, like mine, which she partially attributes to the fact that they were designed by men with little experience actually working in kitchens.

Another indispensable piece of advice has put me off the black & white checkerboard floor idea--"whatever dirt doesn't show on the white will show on the black."

Thanks for the recommendation!

[bavila]

oh... please hang a pot rack from the ceiling! you can free up a ton of cabinet space that way. Good luck!

[marie-louise]

marie-louise, I got the Bungalow books yesterday (by the way the other book I got is the one you recommended, American Bungalow Style--I got the name wrong before).

I love Bungalow Kitchens.  It is exactly what I needed to piece together the great ideas I've gotten from egulleters about how to make a kitchen work for a cook, and also to stay in tune with the nature of the original home.  It's miles away from the fancy Arts & Crafts books I have--I love that the author points out things like "if you must have a hand-hammered copper sink, put it in the butler's pantry," or "if you display your art tile, hang it on the wall."  The basic idea is that period kitchens in regular folks' homes like mine were simple and utilitarian, which has a beauty all its own.  She admits that the layouts were often awkward, like mine, which she partially attributes to the fact that they were designed by men with little experience actually working in kitchens.

Another indispensable piece of advice has put me off the black & white checkerboard floor idea--"whatever dirt doesn't show on the white will show on the black." 

Thanks for the recommendation!

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Glad the book is helpful to you!

Check out the fridges on pages 115 & 120. Also, on page 82 is an example of what I was trying to explain about putting a funny little cabinet around the sink.

[babyluck]

I'm not in love with those fridges (nice examples of cabinet camouflage)--I don't have a problem with the appliances showing. I think it's a frank expression of the utility of the room, sort of a Craftsman idea anyway.

HOWEVER, I am in love with the fridge setup in one of the articles in the current (fall) issue of American Bungalow. It has many individual doors, like an icebox, except they are glass with gorgeous mahogany trim and simple silver-colored latches. If I had the money I'd do something like that.

Sink cabinet--yes, I could picture a cabinet with glass doors there, for glassware.

[Mottmott]

oh... please hang a pot rack from the ceiling!  you can free up a ton of cabinet space that way.  Good luck!

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You are so right! I emptied out a whole cabinet that way. And if you go that way, I suggest you check out the Enclume line. They're designed to minimize the swaying. I got 2 bars, hanging the one in front lower so I could reach it more easily. Works wonderfully.

[babyluck]

Measurements (starting from the LR entrance and going clockwise):

Wall behind stove to molding: 43"

Wall to right of stove, LR wall to fridge recess: 6'

(Behind this area is the chimney and a hall closet. Wainscot area is not painted brick like I thought but incised plaster made to look like brick or subway tile.)

Fridge recess: 25"D 36"W

Space between pantry & rear doorway, including moldings: 40"

Table/shelf unit: 30" wide, extends 4' into the room

(Looked much smaller this time for some reason)

Base cabinet is 60"W, 25"D. Sink is 32" wide (double sink). 2" btw cabinet & radiator.

Wall to R of cabinet from outside wall to LR molding: 32"

(where marie-louise suggested a wall cabinet)

Wainscoting is 4' off the floor.

It was so great to get inside the house again--we can't wait to move in. The inspection went very well.

P.S. Any opinions on Amana fridges?

[ghostrider]

Extending the countertop over the radiator is a good idea. The previous owners of our house did that. The countertop gets kinda warm, so you need something that won't be affected by heat. There's about a 6 inch gap in there, so the heat doesn't build up too much.

Putting a permanent facing over the front of the radiator is NOT a good idea. The previous owners also did that. I can't imagine why. I had to bash out the metal screen a couple weeks ago so the plumber could get at the thing & repair some leaks.

Good luck! I had a MUCH smaller kitchen for 20 years in NYC, you'll do just fine.

[marie-louise]

Would it be much trouble to add these measurements to that floor plan you made before?

I'm thinking you can have a nice L-shaped cabinet around your stove if you rotate it.

30-inches is a pretty shallow table-you will be getting your glasses confused! I think that's a perfect spot for a Hoosier cabinet someday.

I don't know about Amanda fridges, but I have a GE Profile side by side that would fit in there nicely. Be sure to check the height before you buy!!!

Think about a 27-inch Viking stove & a 25-inch wide single bowl stove. Not ideal, but the trade-off will be more counter space. Especially if you keep the table, it will be probably be worth it.

[babyluck]

No problem, here you go!

[forever_young_ca]

Any opinions on Amana fridges?

I have an Amana fridge that I purchased in 1991 and it is still going strong. I had one minor repair a few years ago - I can't remember what it was, but it was not a big deal, I remember that. All racks, trays are in perfect shape - no cracks, chips, dents. The only problem is the handle has cracked a bit on the top - but that is after 13 years of alot of opening and closing !

[babyluck]

30-inches is a pretty shallow table-you will be getting your glasses confused! I think that's a perfect spot for a Hoosier cabinet someday.

...

Think about a 27-inch Viking stove & a 25-inch wide single bowl stove. Not ideal, but the trade-off will be more counter space. Especially if you keep the table, it will be probably be worth it.

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Yeah, now that I realize the stove is about 36" wide, that only leaves 36" to the fridge area when the stove is rotated. My butcherblock and the standard Hoosier cabinets are 41" wide.

In response to your earlier question, yes, I do bake quite a bit and hope to do more after we move in. The stove we have now is probably 27" and it drives me absolutely nuts. I am more interested in your suggestion (or andie's, can't remember) to get a big-ass 6-burner in the future with a cutting board cover. I'm also picturing the Hoosier or one of those baker's tables from the period for the area the table is in now. Maybe with some folding stools for people to sit and chat while I'm cooking.

[snowangel]

We have, at the cabin, a very narrow stove (I do recall it's a 27 incher). I makes me crazy. It's also a "shallow" stove. It's got a back-splash thing (which is part of the stove), which makes it so you can't have two big, wide pots on the two burners on the same side of the stove at the same time.

My current stove is 32" wide, and that's minimum. I couldn't go wider without deep-sixing some of the cabinets, which I couldn't afford to do, space-wise.

[babyluck]

Um, yeah.

I just measured my apartment stove. It's 19" wide.

The only burner that works properly is the left rear, right up against the backsplash thing. I have some big pots that have never even been used because of that.

27" is starting to sound heavenly.

[babyluck]

Update:

Moving day is coming quickly--we close exactly a month from today. I haven't chosen a fridge but I am tending toward the counterdepth Amana Easy Reach. Mr. Babyluck came through with a solution for you pot rack fanatics. I was concerned that a standard pot rack would hang too low over the table. He is going to take some extra 2x8 steel gridwall pieces left over at work and hang them from the ceiling--I was thinking of actually using 3 and having almost the entire ceiling covered with them, at different heights to allow for different size pans.

I think I'll still do the pegboard by the stove but Mr. Babyluck is inexplicably against it. I thought it would be right up his ally but apparently he's over pegboard and into gridwall. I suppose we could put it up there too if he insists. Might look good over a painted wall. Not too vintage, but nice & utilitarian.

Call me crazy, but I offered to have the entire family over for dinner the day after Christmas. So I need to move in and get the place ready for entertaining in about a week. I figured everyone who is coming from out of town would want to see the new place anyway--plus, everyone I know is always saying "we'll have people over when we get the new couch," then it's the curtains in the guest room, and having the floors sanded, and before you know it, it's been a year. I would rather have our family join in on the excitement (and mania) of newness.

P.S. marie-louise, I also bought the book you recommended on the other thread, Kitchens for Cooks. I got it along with Black & Decker Kitchen Remodeling for $9 with shipping on ebay. It's an awesome book and really got me thinking. I was especially impressed by the featured kitchen with no built-in cabinetry (the woman named Annick with the fabulous gardens) and her quote that "kitchen cabinets are a manufacturer's plot to separate women from one another."

[babyluck]

Another update: I bought a fridge yesterday--the GE Profile counterdepth side-by-side. Got it at a scratch & dent place for $999.

[marie-louise]

Another update: I bought a fridge yesterday--the GE Profile counterdepth side-by-side.  Got it at a scratch & dent place for $999.

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What a deal! Good luck on the move, and I'm glad you liked the book.

[babyluck]

Well!

We moved in last Thursday. It's been a whirlwind. We walked into the kitchen during the walkthrough and I saw the space for the fridge empty for the first time. All of a sudden it looked rather short.

Sure enough, it measured 65" and the fridge is 68 3/4" high. I was loathe to cut into the cabinet above but there was little choice, and our contractor friend who was helping us move assured us that it was just pine and could be replaced easily. So my dad got to work reframing the space and hooking up the water & electric. Our contractor friend goes "what's the depth?" "25 inches!" I say. Nope. I got a bad measurement when the previous owner's fridge was in the space. It's 21".

The old fridge that was there was a counterdepth too! Mine sticks out just as much.

Sometimes you just have to laugh.

We so need more storage space right now. I can't wait for pegboard and pot racks. The previous owners even took the 3 puny hooks out of the wainscoting by the stove.

There is one electrical outlet in the kitchen, on the floor near the stove (now there's also one in the fridge recess) and one in the pantry just inside the door. Both are 2-prong. We are making coffee out in the living room because the coffeemaker won't fit vertically between the counter and the upper cabinets in the pantry. Neither will any of my other appliances, for that matter.

Don't get me wrong--we're very happy and I love the house. Everywhere you look is another neat little detail or piece of hardware.

Will post embarrassing pictures soon of our jury-rigged partially moved-in little kitchen.

[mjr_inthegardens]

oops. just saw original fridge is sunken in...

-MJR

Edited December 20, 2004 by mjr_inthegardens (log)

[Safran]

babyluck, what's happening with the kitchen??

[babyluck]

I feel very, very guilty for not taking pictures yet. I guess we are too busy living to document the process.

The biggest development is--yes--the pegboard. I can't tell you how much I love it. The pegboard is a little ratty because the selection was sparse the day we went to buy it, but I plan to paint over it as soon as I choose a color scheme. I'm thinking of a nice vintage-y pale yellow and aqua.

We also retrieved the original swinging door from the basement and put it up between the dining room & kitchen. I love the look and the ability to shut out the mess in the kitchen while having a nice dinner. Whoever the door was measured for must have been short, too, because the diamond-shaped safety window is exactly the right height for me! I take it as another good sign that the house and I were meant for each other.

The pantry is an absolute disaster area. When I get the time, making sense of it will be my next weekend project.

I'm still trying to find places for pot lids, cookbooks, mixing bowls, and the ever-infuriating Tupperware! I'm about ready to order that set from TV.

Happy to report, though, that I am almost up to speed and giving the take-out menus a break (though there are lots of interesting choices nearby: Jamaican, Costa Rican, Portuguese, soul food...).

The GE Profile fridge is awesome. I don't know why I was ever against a side-by-side--I love having many shelves and pockets in the freezer. My favorite part is that the pull-out drawers in the fridge have a little give in the frame, so if the drawer is a little too full the top edge just gently moves up and then drops down again when the drawer closes.

Stay tuned for pictures!

[Safran]

I'm still trying to find places for pot lids, cookbooks, mixing bowls, and the ever-infuriating Tupperware!  I'm about ready to order that set from TV.

Happy to hear that you and your kitchen are connecting! Looking forward to seeing pics. Regarding Tupperware, had you thought of nice sturdy wicker baskets to house them. You could then have a system where the baskets are tucked by the ceiling of your pantry and could be brought down by a simple pulley system, like one of those bamboo shades. That way, your Tupperware is devided by group: freezer, fridge and lunch but hidden in these funky baskets. Just a thought. Tupperware is something we all need yet it's so frustrating to try to store the stuff. Maybe Fifi or andie have thoughts on the subject.

Good luck!

[babyluck]

Regarding Tupperware, had you thought of nice sturdy wicker baskets to house them.

If there's one thing Mr. babyluck hates more than Tupperware, it's wicker baskets. Really, it borders on a phobia. The only basket he allows in the house is the one my mother made as a housewarming gift (filled with grains, spices, dish towels, and the Metropolitan Bakery cookbook). And my mother is not a basket-making type person so he knows that if he touches it, retribution will be swift and merciless.

However, he did get quite excited looking at the ceiling storage bins at Home Depot, so that is a great avenue to explore. I'm trying to picture your pulley system. Please elaborate.

Seriously, has anyone tried SmartSpin? It just seems too perfect.

[Anna N]

Regarding Tupperware, had you thought of nice sturdy wicker baskets to house them.

Seriously, has anyone tried SmartSpin? It just seems too perfect.

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I would love to know if anyone has purchased this. It just looks too good to be true!

[babyluck]

At the in-laws' for the Super Bowl last night and I spot it on the kitchen counter--"You have the SmartSpin!!!"

They haven't really used it yet but the containers do seem to be good quality and the lids, while a little tricky to get on, do form a nice seal and they are much easier to get off because of the 4 finger-grab channels down the sides of the container--no broken fingernails. They did advise getting the extra set of containers in case some get lost or ruined.

I'm pretty well sold.