Kitchen: corner cabinets and storage.
Before I opine on the eternal question of the Lazy Susan:
Convenience? Or the visual presence of Satan?
First, we must address the elephant in the room:
Your lack of trust in me.
I expected some surprise over The Kingdom Mirror’s eviction… But I did not realize that some of you (apparently?) believe that I might divorce my trophy… to replace it… with something from Homegoods?
That WOULD be CONCERNING.
But that is not what is happening.
To bolster your confidence, would it help to know that coming-behemoth’s blog post includes the phrase: The Nuclear War Of Fanciness?
Also, *please note* that because I write too many words, I confuse people… I am NOT selling The Kingdom Mirror for a chandelier… the chandelier was something I mentioned at the end BECAUSE I HAVE ALL OF THE WORDS.
THE BEST WORDS.
WORDS WORDS WORDS.
words.
words.
Moving on to kitchen corner cabinets and storage.
Our choices for the door/drawer combo dictates what we have inside.
Ugly?
Or.
Ugly?
Bins of ugly.
Racks of ugly.
Ugly things that rotate.
Or Paul’s favorite: unadorned ugly.
For me, because the face of a full-door-corner-cabinet deviates from visual symmetry– by forgoing the drawer above the cupboard door… it is unacceptable.
And once something is unacceptable, it is not permitted, NO MATTER HOW SENSIBLE.
Paul’s opinion is that we should still do the lazy susan anyway… despite the PROCLAMATION AGAINST IT.
Which (obviously) is not how proclamations work.
But I am a reasonable person; so I recognize that compromise is important… so I said we could have the INSIDE of a Lazy Susan, but the FACE of a NOT Lazy Susan.
Paul’s face underwent like three expressions… before he said simply– no. that is not convenient.
So, that’s confusing– with whom has HE been living?
The other option is a blind cabinet… meaning that it extends far back into the corner, but your point of access is restricted to the cabinet door opening.
So getting IN there is not compatible with full-size humans.
Cabinet manufacturers offer pullouts and “solutions”… but we are not allowed to have them because they offend Paul’s sensibilities.
Paul’s sensibilities are MOST outraged when he perceives failure to adhere to the number one principle: economy.
Paul loves economy.
Of anything! Space! Design! Money!
He is soothed by that which is most economical.
Enraged by that which violates his principles.
OFTEN, I AM THE VIOLATION.
He thinks the pullouts take up more space than they create and they are wasteful and thus prohibited.
So obviously, also we cannot have drawers; Paul gets rigor mortis thinking about all of the wasted space.
Literally, the cabinet guy didn’t even finish the sentence and Paul had died of OBJECTION.
So we are doing a blind cabinet in the corner, with no bells or whistles.
Paul will cut out the sides where the wall cabinet meets the blind cabinet at the turn… So we can pretend that space will be accessible.
Unless you have some suggestion I’ve overlooked, I’m not going to pretend to care further about any of this.
Professionalism… it’s what I have to offer.
ps– this question: HOW are you living without a kitchen?
We’re not! But I see how it appears this way!
We have a working sink, garbage disposal, dishwasher, stove, and a place to prep food. This IS a kitchen. It’s not pretty, but it’s completely usable… I have restrained myself from telling Paul how fast I would make decisions if I were reduced to making sauerkraut in the bathtub.
pps– I finally watched “Advanced Style” which so many of you recommended… and you were SO RIGHT. I totally loved it; thank you for sharing it with me!!
ppps– it’s spring! go read some of my garden posts!
April 23, 2018 @ 2:26 pm
Ok, so listening to the tutorial on making plant blocks or whatever they are called.. my God how far you have come….I was waiting for uninsightful musings on your part…but you were serious throughout!! I so prefer the newer version…the sarcastic take me as I am cat loving, fancy loving, Elvis loving person. I might say the garden girl was a bit boring! Love your posts!
April 23, 2018 @ 2:28 pm
I have two 2-tiered lazy susan cabinets in my kitchen (one on either end of the sink wall) and they are wonderful! My vote would be to fight for the lazy susan option, but to do the one with the wedge cut out of it so that you still get a nice neat corner on your countertop, rather than the angled long edge necessary to accommodate a full lazy susan inside the cabinet. The issue I have with the angled front countertop is that it’s surprisingly inconvenient/uncomfortable to reach the back corner of said countertop to clean it, etc. Plus, I think straight runs of countertop are prettier. One final note: there are wedge-shaped bins made especially for lazy susans, which will help solve the problem some people have with items falling off (I’ve never had that happen, but I’m not putting bottles/spices on mine). Good luck– keep fighting the good fight!
April 23, 2018 @ 3:09 pm
What about a cabinet accessing that space that opens fron the outside. For your future bbqing needs.
April 23, 2018 @ 3:20 pm
I know it might throw off Self’s need for symmetry but I feel a “corner oven installation” could bring some awesome fanciness to this area. It seems that the space will be mostly unused anyway unless the highly practical, obviously man-designed jenga shelving option is found to be appealing.
April 23, 2018 @ 3:29 pm
Okay Compromise!! I know this goes against the proclamation but work with me here for a minute I have 2 large corner cabinets in my kitchen. I put in large pull outs that are called the Half Moon/peanut shelfs. Yes they must match the rest of the run of cabinets, so one has a false drawer front attached to a larger boot panel. No can tell. I’ll try to send you photos.
April 23, 2018 @ 4:07 pm
Look at all the comments on this post! We’re just beginning our kitchen remodel planning, and I have been wringing my hands about losing the cabinet space on the wall we plan to remove. But after reading this post, I realize how much of my current cabinet space is taken up by deep empty corners – on the order of 16 square feet! Seems I need some storage solutions from someone with more of an eye for practicality than myself.
April 23, 2018 @ 4:09 pm
correction: make that 16 CUBIC feet!
April 23, 2018 @ 4:11 pm
Now really – the cabinet people can’t put a blank drawer front AND door front on the door to lazy Susan? Seems doable since they’re usually affixed to ‘working’ front anyway? BTW we have the triple bin option you show and quite like it best – Karen in Santa Fe.
April 23, 2018 @ 4:26 pm
If top drawers would put a lazy Sue cabinet back in contention, you could consider a faux drawer on top which is formed simply by sawing partially (about 1/4″) through the panel. We’ve done this several times now, most recently on the bath vanities my husband is now constructing. Can’t tell it’s not real. Which is fun when people try to open them. 🙂
April 23, 2018 @ 4:53 pm
That last photo is the absolute WORST!!!! Why have drawers that only hold a tiny amount, yet take up so much space? I too had this same dilemma designing our kitchen. I wanted the design you show with the steel rims, only in wood. Well, we needed 6 more inches of wall for that, which we couldn’t spare. It would have caused us to eliminate a vital cabinet down the line. So, I chose the fixed shelves like photo #1, but with the hinged doors. Hate it too, but I despise lazy susans because things get stuck no matter what, and I had the blind cabinet last time. It had a half shelf in the middle, and I constantly knocked things off that shelf (glass things!) then had to pull out all the stuff so I could clean up glass with a flashlight!!! Never again. I’d rather just put in a fake door and block off the inside! To me, the dreaded corner cabinets have no good solution, and should be banned!
April 23, 2018 @ 5:01 pm
What about designing the door to have a false top drawer front so it matches the other cabinets?? I’ve done this on other cabinets because I cannot stand not having uniformity.
K
April 23, 2018 @ 5:24 pm
Um, I must start by pointing out that the politically correct term is “Smart Susan.” There’s nothing lazy about it. Also acceptable is “Sensible Susan” which is the term the last cabinet person I spoke with used. I particularly liked that one. Revolving shelf is also another term I’ve heard bandied about.
Just so you know…
Susan
April 23, 2018 @ 5:40 pm
We have a blind cabinet and I despise, loathe, hate, abhor, and cannot stand it. BUT! I am not married to A Paul. my Mike says we can’t cut the side of the wall cabinet or in any other way make that damn cabinet functional. So, my hatred continues.
April 23, 2018 @ 6:02 pm
30+ years in the design business I have never seen a truly good solution for that corner space, other than not having a corner to begin with. I got talked into a blind corner cabinet and I hate it. Not as much as I hate the lazy susan BS, but the shelves sag and I cannot get anything in or out of it easily. So now I have a huge cabinet that is less useful than a smaller one would be. Much better would have been to have a regular cabinet with a drawer at the top, pull out shelf on the the lower level, and just not worry about the useless corner.
However, my parents, who had a brilliant designer, left that back corner blank, but it was finished and accessed from a door on the exterior of the house. The garden hose and other useful items were stored there.
April 23, 2018 @ 6:38 pm
I have the corner drawers and I love them. In fact, all my lower cabinets are drawers and it is the best decision I made. Easy to use and easier on the back and knees.
April 23, 2018 @ 7:01 pm
as long as there is a shelf below the lazy susan, it’s less of a problem AND less of a space waster. My Mom even stores stuff on the shelf around the lazy susan.
We have a blind corner now (and will unless we do some SERIOUS remodeling) and I hate it. Well… I hate it LESS now that the door to it is bigger and almost human size (the previous cabinet had – no joke – a 6″ opening for you to get into the cabinet), but I still hate it.
April 23, 2018 @ 7:06 pm
Victoria, I hope you get your blind cabinet and call it done (ie. ignore everyone’s comments) I think it’s a really good, aesthetically pleasing and economical choice. I do this for a living. I have a blind corner cabinet in my kitchen and my world did not come to an end. I can even put things in there and access them. Shocking.
Few things in design completely offend me, diagonal anything is one of those things. It is unacceptable, a waste of space, DATED (The 1990’s called and even it doesn’t want it’s diagonal fireplace, sink, and closets back…).
Toe-kick drawers? Seriously? I can’t even.
The mass hysteria over cupboard space never fails to amaze me (I mean if you really need that extra few sq feet for items that maybe get used once a year, put them in a Rubbermaid tote in the basement and move along). I would NEVER EVER sacrifice the design for that.
I think your kitchen is coming along very nicely, you are going to love it (no upper cabinets? Yay!) I also think it will be amazing and super fancy!!!
April 23, 2018 @ 7:06 pm
I hate my lazy susans. HATE them. Stuff gets behind and under them, or topples off when they are spun.
I have pullouts behind cabinet doors. They don’t hold as much as standard cupboard shelves, but who needs all that crap anyway?
April 23, 2018 @ 7:25 pm
When we re-did the kitchen in the 20 year old townhouse we bought we went with a white Ikea kitchen and the lazy susan options they have were so much less money than any other kitchen cabinet company we looked at. A big plus for me was they don’t use formaldehyde based glue like many manufacturers. We went with the UTRUSTA Corner Base 2 Tier pull-out fitting which sells for $139 USD and the kidney shaped shelves literally pull right out of the cabinet! I read that you can adapt the fittings to work in almost any corner cabinet, so they don’t need to be Ikea. I wish I could post a photo to show you how fabulous they are for the price! Paul can’t object to $139.00 to have so much more space!
April 23, 2018 @ 7:26 pm
The real trick to making either the lazy susan or the notched shelf work for the corner is the width of the opening. Or, a wide diagonal opening, with a diagonal door below a drawer or blind panel could provide super storage for bulky items, bins etc. and not lose all that cubic storage.
April 23, 2018 @ 7:38 pm
Based on your floor plan, I have a question: WHY?
Why would you put a drawer over cabinets on either side of your sink and dishwasher? You are young and flexible now, but some day you may move the wrong way, and you could find yourself unable to squat or kneel. It happens to good people who never expect it to! My drawers are life-savers!! Even below my Whitehaven apron front sink I have a drawer and a modied drawer. Lower cabinets were banished. And forget the pullout behind the drawers: why open a door before you can pull out your drawer??
Then I have another question: did you get the short-apron or tall-apron Whitehaven? If you got the tall, then you should change your sketch of the layout.
Now a comment based on experience cleaning them in empty apartments: DO NOT get a blind corner cabinet. OMG they trap so much dust, grunge, and stuff you never realized you were missing until you move out and the cleaning person finds it. And that poor cleaning person, who cannot squat or kneel, has to slide into that nasty blind corner on their stomach. Just don’t do it!
Finally, here are TWO possible solutions to the lazy susan aesthetic problem:
1) Also based on kitchens I clean, the door or the lazy susan can be built to simulate drawers over cabinet doors, it that’s what your aesthetic dictates. All one piece, but built to look like 2…..or actually, 2 pieces, built and/or hinged to look like 4.
2) The solution in my kitchen is that the lazy susan corner cabinet has the tall door (sans drawer) but abuts our refrigerator on one side, and on the other has a skinny-but-tall-door pullout (that holds rolls of foil, parchment, paper towels, extra micro-fiber drying pad (also stores rolled), etc. You also see this kind of tall-skinny pull-out for spices. So the doors on the 2 look alike. On the other side of the tall-skinny is the Whitehaven sink (with low cabinet “doors” below) then comes the dishwasher, then a narrow stack of 5 drawers. After the stack of 5 drawers it turns a corner, to a 3-drawer cabinet, stove/cooktop, 3 drawer cabinet. Visually removed from the tall-door lazy susan and skinny pull-out, so no visual issues. An impossible-to-move window, chimney, and back door dictated certain things relative to placement. Overall look and function are beautiful.