Turn Your Kitchen Into An Island Paradise

Turn Your Kitchen Into An Island Paradise

Just as holiday-goers dream of the perfect tropical island in the sun, those of us who are obsessed with kitchens dream about the perfect kitchen island in a stylish and well designed kitchen.

An island is essentially a cabinet with a worktop surface on it which is located in the centre of your kitchen. If you have enough floor space to add one, they can increase your counter and cabinet space by more than 25% as well as giving you more electrical outlets and more sink options. You can design a kitchen with an island or it can be added later after the fact.

If you feel like your kitchen could benefit from a well-placed island, here are some tips from My Beautiful Kitchen to keep in mind:

 

 

How much space do you have?

Before jumping on to the island trend, first of all make sure that there is enough room in your kitchen to accommodate one. If your kitchen is too small then there will not be enough room to manoeuvre around the island and it will overwhelm the kitchen.

As a general rule, your kitchen island should never take up over 10% of the overall square footage of your kitchen. However, it can be smaller or larger than that if you like. You can test out how well the island will fit by placing a table which is roughly the same size in the space for a while and see how it feels.

Increase your storage space:

Having a kitchen island doesn’t just increase your counter space, it also improves the amount of storage space you have in your kitchen as well.

There is enough room to add quite a few drawers and cabinets underneath the counters in your island so that you can store pots, pans, dishes, small appliances and other kitchen items.

 

Should you include a cooker?

One option that you might consider is adding your stove to your kitchen island. This can have a few advantages, as it allows for increased working space and it makes for a more social atmosphere when you have guests over, especially when you add bar stools around the island.
In order to do this, you will need to bring up your electrical or gas lines through the floor, so it might be slightly more difficult to install an island with a stove.

 

Consider a portable island:

Another option to consider when adding an island to your kitchen is to add one which is on wheels and can be moved around the kitchen. These types of islands are usually smaller but they still offer the advantage of creating more space. They can be wheeled out of the way when you have company over and you need more space to fit everyone in your kitchen.

Could your kitchen benefit from the addition of a kitchen island into its design? These are just a few things to consider while you are planning your next kitchen renovation. Give us a call at My Beautiful Kitchen on 0141 771 3640 to discuss your ideas.