Design a Kitchen that’s Perfect for the Whole Family
The kitchen truly is the heart of the home where everyone comes together for mealtimes, entertaining guests, working from home and so much more. It’s no longer just a place for preparing meals, but a multi-functional room that meets the needs of busy family life.
There are many key features to look at and consider when designing your family kitchen and we look at these below.
Multi-functional
Before the planning stage of your new kitchen, you need to ask yourself a few questions, this will help you determine the true use of the room and be able to start planning exactly what you need. Who will be using the space? What will it be used for? Will you use the space to work from home, or the children do their homework? Do you need to keep watch on younger children when cooking? Will you eat together as a family? Are you looking to design an open-plan space that will double up as a living space?
When it comes to creating a space that will be used for various purposes by different family members it’s important to get the layout right. Create an open-plan space with a natural flow, restricting passage through certain areas for safety.
A handmade kitchen designed and built by Nicholas Bridger will give the best overall function of the room. They will fill your heart of the home with love and style and create an all-important multi-functional room that’s perfect for the whole family.
The ‘kitchen triangle’ is often seen as one of the main functions of a multi-functional kitchen with the three fundamental tasks (sink, fridge, and hob) connecting in a triangular shape. This was first developed in the 1940s.
Seating arrangments
Family life is busy from day to day so it can be difficult to have the whole family together for mealtimes. Having a few seating options (if your space allows it) can make you have something for every occasion. Seating on a breakfast bar or kitchen island is the perfect spot to grab a quick bite to eat or keep an eye on the children while preparing a meal.
If you want the whole family to sit together, having a more formal dining table is an ideal option. It doubles up as a place to host dinner parties and entertaining family and friends in comfort.
Although, if you do have limited space, a smaller informal dining space such as banquette seating is a fantastic space-saving solution.
Surface heights
When it comes down to the work surfaces, vary the height of them in different zones to create a kitchen that is designed around the whole family and that everyone can use. Consider the height of the person who will be doing most of the cooking and set a suitable height for the worktops. Lower worktops can make it easier for budding young chefs to get involved, or raise the height of floor cabinetry and work surfaces for that taller person.
A key point to think about is that an island worktop might be too low to tuck a baby’s highchair underneath, so opting for a higher breakfast bar could be a better option.
Storage
The kitchen is seen to be the hub of the home and there is no such thing as too much storage. When the whole family is home, you will soon learn that you need more space for extra food and to store the clutter of everyday life.
Throughout the last year, more people have started working from home, so there has been a rise in the need for extra storage to store items such as office stationery, paperwork, and laptops.
It is very important to get the balance right when it comes to designing the kitchen and the storage. If there are too many floor or wall cupboards it can make the kitchen look smaller. Floor-to-ceiling cabinetry has been a popular choice amongst our projects making the most of the available space. Breakfast and day pantries have become increasingly popular over recent years, adding function and appeal to the space. Open-plan shelving has also been popular amongst our clients, adding stylish baskets and boxes to hide any clutter.
Appliances
It’s always a good idea to size up on appliances when it comes down to catering for a big family. That means everything from ovens, hobs, fridge freezers to dishwashers and washing machines. We are a premier dealer of Sub-Zero Wolf, whose appliances are robust and award-winning.
Children don’t tend to eat a lot in their younger years but as they get older they will become hungry teenagers, so plan for what might be your family’s needs in the future and not just for now.
If you are ready to start planning that multi-functional kitchen perfect for you and your family contact us today – we look forward to hearing from you.
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