Kitchen Types

L Shape Kitchen

A L-shaped kitchen layout is a natural work triangle, created from continuous counter space and work stations on two adjacent walls. L-Shape Kitchen is best suited to narrow rooms, long rooms or nopen-plan living areas. This is a very popular kitchen layout- ideal for a family kitchen, or for entertaining guests. The cooktop, fridge and sink should ideally be seperated by areas of bench top to provide adequate preparation space. The benefit of this kitchen floor plan is that it not only provides the cook with an efficient work area, but it typically opens to a nearby room, making it easy for the cook to talk with guests.

Advantages

• Easily acomodates a dining table and chairs in the same room
• Lack of through-traffic; corners can incorporate
• A corner carousel can be installed
• Design minimises walking distances between main working areas

Disadvantage

• One disadvantage is the use of the space under the bench top of the ‘L’, but this can be resolved with cleaver storage solutions, such as pull-out units

U Shape Kitchen

U-Shaped kitchens are an extremely effective design solution, utilising three full walls of a kitchen. The layout offers continuous countertops and ample storage that surround the cook on three sides. In larger kitchens, this floor plan is spacious enough to be divided into multiple work stations for cooks to easily prepare a meal together without getting in each other’s way. To maximise storage and keep countertops clutter free, conceal the microwave in a base wall cabinet.

Advantages

• Fridge, cooker and sink can be spaced out for maximum effciency
• Provides the best work flows with shortest distances
• Allows for large amounts of bench top and storage space
• Design suits both large and small kitchens
• Kitchen also benefits from the lack of through-traffic

Disadvantage

• If used in a small space, the U-Shape design may leave you cramped and feeling closed in. You should also ensure there is at least 1.2 meters between the arms of the 'U'.

Parallel Kitchen

The corridor layout has a workspace large enough for one cook. In this kitchen floor plan, the work stations face each other on parallel walls, creating a small work triangle. Similar to the single-wall kitchen floor plan, you may opt to stack storage solutions to maximize space. Add linkable light strips under the cabinets for task lighting and brighten the room with glass inserts and interior cabinet lighting. If possible, add a pass-through to open up the kitchen, but keep the lower wall for base cabinetry.

Straight Kitchen

It is a smart and simple solution for narrow rooms, ideally with one wall over 3 meters long, without windows or doors. All in all, it’s a layout where all kitchen work zones are arrayed along one wall is how we see it. If space is a big constraint, then go for this kitchen. Keep one wall of the kitchen open and the entire kitchen can e set upon that.

Advantages

• Simplest of layouts
• Works well in small spaces
• Best planned with the sink in the middle of the line
• Use built in aplliances to make the most of valuable space

Disadvantage

• This layout causes the longest journey distances since you often have to walk from one end of the room to the other.
• You may also be restricted with the amount of storage space.

Island Kitchen

Kitchen Island is a stand-alone kitchen compartment, island separate from the main construction area. It is normally used as an additional space or an additional workstation and storage cabinets. It is a free standing piece of cabinetry that is placed in a kitchen to supplement the counter top space. To make the room feel more spacious, open up the wall in a nearby room and create a pass-through or breakfast bar for the family. This is ideal for getting an island unit which can be used for storage, as a breakfast bar, or an extra worktop. This is the ideal kitchen layout for entertaining, meaning you can be sociable whilst cooking.

Advantages

• Allows the cook(s) to socialise while preparing meals
• Can provide the optimum arrangement in a working triangle
• A cooktop with a canopy over the island can form a focal point

Disadvantage

• This layout can attract unwanted traffic through the kitchen, which can get annoying. This design is suited best to a larger room.