Getting Started 2

This is a sequel to the first part of the post "Getting Started".The arrangement and the form the kitchen takes is govern by the kitchen work triangle, or the work / activities zoning.

The space available for the kitchen is a very important factor upon which every other factors and characteristics are dependent. If you cannot do anything about the space, with respect to making it much bigger, not to worry, with proper planning and use of the most appropriate components, you can still have a functional kitchen for your home.

As discussed above, the work triangle or work / activity zoning is very vital when planning a kitchen. With this, the three most important work-points (cooking, cleaning & cold storage), are put at different points to form a triangle. The walking distance from one point to the other should not be more than 4 feet, making it possible to have these three vital points not too far apart. It actually allows for easy and convenient movement from one point to the other. Though it is called a work triangle, it’s only a rule of thumb, wherever the space can allow it. In some cases, where your space may not allow for these three points to form a triangle, make the appropriate points the most suitable; they may all be on a straight line, as in a single gallery kitchen.

With activities in the kitchen going way beyond the traditional three to include others mentioned above, the work triangle as discussed earlier cannot effectively take care of these other activities. This brings us the concept of zoning work / activities within the kitchen. It follows the same principle as in the work triangle, only that we have more work / activities to allocate to different parts of the kitchen.

In fairly large kitchens, zoning of work / activities in the kitchen makes live very easy for the user. The stress of having to cover some distance within your kitchen is removed. With zoning, activities can take place in different parts of the kitchen, with some being duplicated to allow for two or more people to work in there at the same time. For instance, after having your three vital points at the traditional places, you can still have all three points on your island or peninsula, this allows you to work on the island while entertaining some guests, some other person do dishes in the cleaning zone, and your kids can be having fun in the children’s play area you have created.

In an average size kitchen, where there is room for a kitchen island or peninsula, in addition to the three vital points, dining, home office, entertainment and even children’s play area can be zoned to the island, serving as a multi – functional zone. With these at back our mind, we can now proceed to the characteristics and form the kitchen takes (kitchen layouts) depending on the available space.

Stay tuned for the more...