Let's Have a Look at Kitchen Layouts

WHICH KITCHEN LAYOUT SUITS YOU?

Maybe you are working with a space you already have, maybe you have a empty plot of land and a builder’s deposit - here’s how to work out the basics of kitchen layouts and also what’s trending.

ONE WALL KITCHENS

The most basic style of kitchen, one wall kitchens are a compact space and work best if treated as an element of joinery. They may serve as the main kitchen in an apartment or holiday home or a supplementary kitchenette in larger homes or studio living. A good design will strike a balance of openness with sufficient storage to make it functional and there’s no need to skimp on style! The tiny but mighty kitchen by Pluck Kitchens pictured above hits above it’s weight with two tones of peach and original art

L SHAPED KITCHEN

An L shaped kitchen island is good for small spaces as it can include a dining table to add socialising to the kitchen space. But owners of larger homes can opt for an L shaped design if they want the feel of an open kitchen with a dining table for socialising, instead of the space being closed off with an island. The table can be a lovely place to sit for kitchen prep, not possible with a normal counter height.

CORNER KITCHEN

alissa johnson design / ryan macdonald photo

Kitchens with corners can make for an efficient work triangle but need creative solutions for the cabinetry so you don’t have wasted space. After the pandemic some people are wanting more closed off kitchens so this design may become more popular again, after the streamlined kitchens of the past decade.

In this beautiful kitchen by Alissa Johnson Design, the ox blood marble shelf runs right into the corner.

GALLEY KITCHEN

Galley kitchens are probably the most functional layout of all. Do allow for a generous walkway through the middle of the kitchen, it will be a popular space! They can be simple affairs or as luxury as this chalet kitchen by Commune Design with aged brass doors, green slate benchtop and a raised timber block breakfast bar.

ISLAND KITCHEN

Island benches have become the new hub of our homes and the most popular style of kitchen. Often an older style U SHAPED kitchen will be redesigned with a break in the cabinetry to form an island. One side of the island serves as a prep area and the other side has bar stools pulled up for socialising with the cook or quick meals.

In this homely kitchen by Loopea Design and Simone Haag, Japanese mosaic tiles from Nagoya Mosaic tile company are used on the benchtops as well as the splashback.

DOUBLE ISLAND

Double Islands have developed in large homes where entertaining is mainly in the kitchen, they can also be designed for clients with different preparation needs, such as Kosher or Vegan diets than require food preparation zones to be separated.

M Elle design uses a double island, keeping the work triangle intact by placing the fridge, sink and cooking zones at the rear and using the front island for eating and socialising.

BUTLER’S PANTRY

This winner of a butler’s pantry by Liberty Interiors uses open shelving to keep cabinetry costs down AND has a view

Really an addition to a kitchen, these rooms a one step from the main kitchen and are where the ‘messy’ prep areas can be hidden away. While they originate from a time where butlers would serve food to a formal dining table away from the kitchen, they are now used as a response to open plan living, with the main kitchen being so open to the living area that it’s not desirable to have all the works of the kitchen on display.

A balance needs to be made so that the home owner doesn’t spend more time in a windowless room cooking a meal away from the family, the view or the guests. Butler’s pantries can also extend the cost of the kitchen renovation or build. An economical solution is to put the laundry next to the kitchen, with an extra dishwasher and generous bench space combined with the washing machines and laundry cupboards.

UNFITTED KITCHEN

Unfitted kitchens, where modules can be taken out, added too or moved around have been common in Europe for years where renting for life is more common. Owners take their kitchens with them and high end brands such as Bulthaup specialise in beautiful examples of this.

In Australia, it might mean having an upright cooker and stand alone pantry as a cupboard such as the sky blue example in this kitchen by Meta Coleman. Having ‘pieces of furniture’ in the kitchen as opposed to everything being fitted, gives a ‘lived'-in look which is becoming very desirable.

COLOUR DRENCHING

Are you ready to say goodbye to crisp white cornices and skirtings?

Light Rice Half by Dulux is painted on the walls, beams and ceilings, wrapping the room with an aura of comfort without being overwhelming

The Dulux colour forecast for 2024 includes many rooms treated to ‘colour drenching’ - where the walls, ceilings, skirtings cornices and door trims are all painted one colour and the floor is made to tone in. While this technique is not new, it is being seen increasingly in the tastemaker magazines of Vogue Living, Belle and Architectural Digest among others. Why are Designers using it?

a heritage detailed bedroom given a contemporary colour washed treatment in sage green with an abstract pale pink artwork and mauve and crystal glass vintage chandelier

This bedroom in a Heritage listed home in Sydney has the same colour applied to the walls and skirtings, giving a more intense and saturated look. Design by Hugh Jones Mackintosh. Photo Prue Ruscoe.

Patrick O’Donnell, from Farrow and Ball, says one of the biggest benefits is to make a room look bigger, calmer and tidier. Intricate cornices, high skirtings and bulky radiators can all be painted in the same colour to create a seamless look, or for a dual tone effect, the finishes can be changed, for example, a flat finish on the walls and high gloss on trims.

Hauvette and Madani paint an intricately detailed niche bookcase in the same colour as the walls , making the grand room more cosy. Photo Francois Coquerel

A wonderfully cocooning bedroom by Cristina Celestino uses wallpaper, carpet and paint in the same shade. Photo by Pasquale Maffini

Colour drenching can be applied across different materials in the room, adding drama as the hue is varied across the different surfaces. Think stone fireplaces and kitchen islands that tone with the walls and floors, curtains, wallpaper and window trims that while the same colour, vary interestingly in tone.

The bathrooms by Studio Doherty, completed in 2022, may just have been the start of the Colour Drenching trend in Australia. Photo by Anson Smart

What are the best rooms for colour washing? In smaller rooms such as power rooms and bedrooms, this painting technique can give a ‘jewel box affect’ while pass through spaces such as entries and home offices can acquire a ‘sense of arrival’. The public areas of the home are more busy and choosing one colour to use is more difficult. I suggest here choosing a half strength of the colour you love. If you are brave enough, colour washing your living spaces is a wonderful way to make your neutral furniture ‘pop’.

Tan Wagon by Dulux on the walls and ceiling of this living room, making the white sofa and nuetral decor POP.

5 Ways to cosy up for Winter

5 Ways to Cosy up your Home for Winter

a road running to a snow capped mountain in the distance, with scrubby hills running alongside. The photo has chalky pastel tones

Wow, it’s been cold here in Perth. 2.5 degrees at 7 am this morning, to be precise. Let’s stop pretending we live in endless Summer - here’s 5 ways we can cosy up our homes.

WOOL BLANKETS

Natural wool blankets are back, but not the scratchy old fashioned kind. Light and colourful, the new wool blankets are throws for our couches and armchairs as well as an extra layer on top of our doonas at night. Made of alpaca or sheep’s wool, they are warm but breathable so they allow airflow while also trapping heat.

an outdoor woodburning fireplace with a cosy chair and checked rug, velvet cushion and tea cups ready on the coffee table. A hedge surrounds the garden, providing a shelter from the wind

FLUFFY DOONAS

How long is it since you had a new doona? I like a polyester quilt, as it’s not too heavy but I buy one size up to fully fill out the doona cover and make it nice and puffy. Fold your doona over when making the bed, to allow your sheet colour to show through and make room for double stacked pillows.

Kingsize bed with light blue and tan coloured bedding and a fluffy alpaca tug in cream, tan and light blue with tassels

BLOCK OUT CURTAINS

The single most effective way to keep your home warm is to hang block out curtains. Keep them neutral and hang them high. Not only will curtains trap in the warmth from the day, their textured folds add softness to your room and muffle the sound of whistling wind and lashing rain.

light grey sofa cream and grey diamond pattern rug pale grey @ wave curtains with pops of colour in a pink vase and tan coloured cushions

RECHARGEABLE LAMPS

The pools of light from table lamps add so much atmosphere but a power point is not always convenient nearby to use.

The new generation of lamps are rechargeable and can be carried around like gorgeous large (but much safer) candles to light a way through a darkened bedroom or create an inviting spot to sit.

HOUSEPLANTS

When there’s not much happening in the garden outside, houseplants give an inviting link to nature in the Winter months. Take your plants to a sunny spot during the day and water only minimally - gently prod the soil to test for dryness before adding water. Larger leaves will love a wipe with a damp cloth periodically, air conditioning and closed windows mean dust accumulates on their surface.

houseplants for winter need to be next to a sunny window

Is Your New Home in Your Backyard?

Do you love where you live but not what you live in, anymore?

Maybe you have thought about developing your backyard to finance a renovation to your home. With the funds available, your home can be beautifully redesigned to be even better than when you had ‘more space’

Or what about selling your home and moving INTO your backyard! This is becoming popular as government policies encourage urban infill as a way to stop our cities encroaching on ever more precious green space.

Brodecky House by Atlas Architects is a new house built in the backyard of the owner’s original home which she was able to sell instead of demolishing. The new house has an emphasis on accessible design, considering for the future.

Architect Michelle Blakeley cautions against trying to fit ‘as much house on the block’ as possible when subdividing. Michelle reminds us of the sleepouts encased in louvres and the eat-in kitchens of post war built houses and advocates for more compact homes that will still provide quality, comfort and joyful living, with a more sustainable impact.

Jimmy’s House, by MJA Studio is in urban infill development that makes use of the neighboring park, internal courtyards and a rooftop terrace for outdoor spaces to relax in. As a result, the ‘house behind a house’ has more garden spaces than the original footprint.

Kane Hutchinson from Result Developments helps people considering developing their house sites. As a building broker with extensive experience, he recommends a quick phone call to his company to check the position of your local council on your block’s suitability. He advises that there can be differences in zoning even between opposite sides of the same street. If suitable, Kane can organise all the documentation needed to put your project right through to council approval.

To accomodate visitors outside your home, you may consider building a self contained apartment, such as Studio Drifter in Byron Bay. May councils now have special approval processes for buildings such as these. They have become popular for adult children and relatives outside the immediate family. Paying guests are an option if allowed in your area and an increasingly design savvy clientele will appreciate the thought that goes into a beautiful but compact dwelling.