Most important thing to consider when designing a kitchen!
If you’ve been following along on my Instagram, you know I recently announced I’m starting my blog back up after about a 10 years hiatus! To be completely transparent I’m not a religious blog reader by any means but I’m really just looking for a place to share and archive some things I’ve learned throughout the years of being an interior designer. The goal is to try and post once a week but not making any promises because my free time is more limited with our new puppy, Peggie:) But the more I engage with you the more likely I will continue to set the time aside to post!
Instagram is great for sharing this knowledge as well but this will be a great way to reference things in the future. For instance maybe you're not in the process of planning for a new kitchen until next year, and if you're like me you read something new and will retain ½ the info at best come next year….if you can relate then this is for you!
And honestly if you can retain more than ½ in a year, especially considering all the information we are constantly being fed… I’m very impressed!
As I was brainstorming on what I wanted my first post to be, I was actually designing a new kitchen so I decided to go back to basics and discuss the Kitchen Work Triangle! It’s the most basic rule of thumb[s] when designing a kitchen. The kitchen work triangle was developed in the 1940’s so it is debatably dated since we use our kitchens so differently than we did back then, but I try to follow these principles whenever possible.
THE RULES
The sum of the three sides of the triangle should not exceed 26 feet.
Each leg should measure between 4 and 9 feet.
No side of the triangle should cut through a kitchen island or peninsula by more than 12 inches.
No major traffic patterns should cross through the triangle.
Here’s a visual below of what that looks like in an overhead view [known in the industry as “plan view”]. If you're curious if your current kitchen follows these rules, grab your tape measurer!
Write down each of the following measurements [doesn’t have to be crazy exact]:
Center of your sink to the center of your refrigerator
Then from the sink center to the stove top [or range] center
Finally measure the distance from your stove top to your refrigerator
Does this measurement add up to 26 ft or less? For an efficient design you don’t want things too far apart, but it’s important that they also aren't too close together as well. Ideally each of those measurements are between 4-9ft.
ALSO, you don’t want any of those three important items to be obstructed in any way as well. For instance, let’s say you have a boiling pot of water that needs to be drained in the sink…you want a straight shot to the sink and for it to not be too far away!
Ok, those are the kitchen work triangle rules now let talk about breaking the rules!
Often times when designing there are existing site conditions we have to work around, for instance doors and windows. If your doing a remodel and cant move a window in a kitchen, I find it more important the sink is centered under a window than placing the sink where it follows strict kitchen triangle rules.
Since kitchens are considerably larger now [especially if you live in the states] and tend to be the heart of the home where people gather when entertaining or cooking. [whether you like it or not!] It's important to understand some times the rules get broken due to the size of the kitchen. But its still important to try and get as close as possible. This is when an additional prep/bar sink is often incorporated into a kitchen design.
Speaking of entertaining and work flow, one thing I also find very important to consider is the trash and fridge placement. The last thing you want is people in your triangle when you are in workflow mode!
There are of course several other factors I like to consider when designing a kitchen however I’ll keep it simple to start with just focusing on the work triangle, but please let me know if you have any additional questions below!
I’m excited about starting this back up so give me any and all feedback on things you would like to learn more about because your feedback really fuels me!
Much Love + Big Hugs!