New kitchen floor plan… (thinking about forgoing upper cabinets.)
Seeing as how I’m going to have an L-shape kitchen, I’d like to be on record that I’m AGAINST IT.
L is arguably the most boring letter.
In both the categories of upper AND lower case.
But I guess that’s what we are doing now: boring things we hate.
DEATH TO PIZZAZZ.
In case you are thinking I forgot about upper cabinets… I didn’t. I just hate all of them.
They fill me with antipathy.
And gout.
So unpleasant.
These images are blindingly hideous and I apologize for searing your eyeballs with the FUNDAMENTAL AND OBVIOUS KITCHEN-NESS.
No magic.
No orphaned forest creatures.
No items of delicate antiquity and bejeweled human remains.
I AM AN UTTER FAILURE AT LIFE.
Our kitchen island is a repurposed antique grand piano… but my skills at “photoshopping” it into these mockups is literally cut and paste; so my additions of windows, mirror, piano are just eyeball, not to scale!
Here is the antique mirror, shown above.
Here is THE FINISHED PIANO!
Here are the theoretical DIY slate countertops.
Now: important details.
When looking at these 3D layouts, you have to remember that our kitchen doorway is actually on an angle– the above floorplans don’t make that obvious.
The cabinets meet the wall, not the doorway.
So when you enter the kitchen, the interior wall of cabinetry will be sort of behind you/to your left.
Next.
For the entire century of my kitchen non-remodel, I have been working in some basic parameters; including the assumption that we’d do glass-front upper cabinets.
A light/bright base— white cabinets, glass uppers, LOTS of chunky white molding.
As kitchens go, I don’t hate this… and for a long time, it’s what I had in mind.
Groundbreaking, I know.
The detail that most makes this a good “inspiration” picture for me is the window they have in the corner.
The above photo is our exact layout option: L-shape perimeter, with an island… centering either the range (or the sink) on either wall… (but not with a gas range— we’re doing an induction cooktop and wall oven.)
BUT… from our existing kitchen, we have slowly removed upper cabinet after upper cabinet after upper cabinet… until I’ve been living with nothing but open shelving for the last year and a half…and…
… BRACE YOURSELVES…
I think it’s fantastic.
AND I LIKE IT WAY BETTER THAN CABINETS.
And I don’t think I want to go back.
NOT frou-frou open shelving with pitchers and cake plates and fake succulents… REAL open shelving that I actually use.
The sight of lentils does not offend me.
This is a new development for me… so I’m not sure what the shelf-amalgamation looks like yet.
Also!! don’t worry! I fully understand that lots of people REALLY HATE open shelving… and please! feel free to foam at the mouth and leave comments about HOW OPEN SHELVING IS A VIOLATION OF HUMAN DECENCY GERMS FILTH GREMLINS!
You should also know that I will not have a window over my kitchen sink.
I understand and certify here, on this day of April, in the year of endtimes, that I am making a giant, crushing, mistake-of-hideous-proportions, and I should go and throw myself directly into the river.
I proceed otherwise at my own risk.
Hereby signed, VEB
ps- several of you endorsed microfiber drying mats as an alternative to my bulky wire dish rack with mungy-grungy plastic tray WHICH DOES NOT FIT IN THE DISHWASHER EVEN THOUGH I HAVE TRIED 500 WAYS.
You have revolutionized my countertop. MY SHREDS OF SANITY THANK YOU.
pps- some of you put the dishrack into the sink, which does make sense! Maybe if we were doing a bigger sink? Our sink is only 30″… and I already bought it, so getting a bigger/different sink is not an option for us.
April 18, 2018 @ 10:01 pm
I do not know if you read all these comments BUT I just have to ask…are you cooking in this kitchen now? With it not finished for all these weeks, if not years, lol. Where do you cook? Or have you secretly figured out how not to cook daily meals? In which case you are a genius AND MY HERO!
April 19, 2018 @ 10:43 am
I think you might need to know about this: http://rasmuscatalog.com/cgi-bin/mmlist.cgi?rasmus1734/category/ALL.
April 19, 2018 @ 11:00 am
I think you should do your kitchen, your way. I like the look of open shelves but am way too much of a “piler”, a little pile here, a little pile there, to ever have open shelving. Too.Much.Temptation. Plus, I live with a huge pile here and a huge pile there, “piler”. My complaint is with that tiled range hood, just wonky looking!! ANDDDD, I have no window above my sink and love it. You could actually put some open shelving over it, if you desired. I have had a mirror, in another place, another time ago and really hated looking at myself while I washed dishes. To each his own. I just cannot imagine not having a kitchen for months on end, you go girl!
April 19, 2018 @ 2:32 pm
Apparently my shelves are froufrou. I had no idea. I have two cake stands and a piece of pottery from my grandmother (a bit like a pitcher) that I put cut rosemary from my garden in for cooking. I also have lentils on my shelves but honestly use the cake stands far more often than any of my legumes, which says a lot about my diet.
April 19, 2018 @ 3:00 pm
I am not a fan of open shelving because I don’t like wiping grimy grease ever. I understand you’re not doing a range hood so probably you’ll have more greasy dust than normal on a wall of open shelving. I am, however, a fan of the look of no cabinets or shelves at all if you can get away with it. not sure if your kitchen has enough lower storage space to forgo all upper storage, but I’d be all for that. Anyway, the design is really shaping up!
April 19, 2018 @ 3:02 pm
Can I add that I recently visited the Evergreen Mansion here in Baltimore which has a wonderful, intact Victorian/Belle Epoque kitchen which can be actually gone into and experienced in real life. The rest of the house is super fun as well. Next time you’re down this way, it’s a fun afternoon or morning. http://museums.jhu.edu/evergreen.php
April 21, 2018 @ 5:42 am
No upper cabinets YES! – I’m designing my 3rd kitchen without uppers – love it . . .
BUT
BUT
no to shelves – unless you love cleaning . . . which I don’t.
Art . . .
put everything away in the lower cabinets . . . and hang art on the walls !
If you like a kitchen to look like a R-O-O-M, which I do – and I know you do . . .
and instead of a wall oven, pop it under your hob.
April 21, 2018 @ 6:00 am
Without wall cabinets, make sure every inch of the lower cabinets work by having pull-out drawers or pull-out wire baskets behind the cabinets fronts. I’m a big fan of Ikea and they do all these innerds . . . you can actually see everything inside ! And they do lighting for inside drawers and cabinets . . . especially useful when you’re over 55 and your eyes start to go 😮
April 22, 2018 @ 12:51 pm
If you’re doing open shelving and don’t mind looking at dishes, pans, etc., then I would suggest putting a shelf/rack with drainage above the sink. Then you can use that as a dishdrainer. If you search, you can find lots of pictures of people doing this — usually it’s between two cabinets, but there’s no reason you couldn’t incorporate it into a wall of open shelving.
April 22, 2018 @ 4:20 pm
With all the money, time and effort you are putting into this kitchen, I do not understand why you don’t just bite the bullet and redo the wall with the windows. Those two windows are making it impossible. If you are getting rid of upper cabinets anyway, you could have three big windows centered on that wall, put your sink there and it would be beautiful. Since Paul can put them in for you, it would not be that expensive in the grand scheme of things.
April 24, 2018 @ 8:47 am
Late to the party, but since you are considering open shelving, have you thought about creating a drying rack shelf over the sink? Would omit the need for a counter rack or microfiber mat, as pans/dishes would drip dry into the sink. They’re very popular in Europe and I can’t believe we don’t see these more often over here! https://i.pinimg.com/236x/7e/a3/77/7ea37733aeed2d5fd84de52c845a0acb–plate-storage-plate-racks.jpg
April 28, 2018 @ 10:34 pm
Yes, Yes, Yes! Don’t let self or anybody else talk you out of it!
April 30, 2018 @ 4:12 pm
I have open metal shelves in half my kitchen. I keep most of my dishes and glasswear on them so it looks purposeful rather than messy. I LOVE THEM. It’s so easy to find things and unload the dishwasher. I keep pantry items in actual cabinets. Also seconding the drawer recommendation above. I love mine – they are under the open shelves.