Kitchens with family rooms or dining rooms off to one end, work well with islands. An eating area on one end of this island helps to integrate the two rooms and also helps to de-isolate the person(s) preparing the food.
Eating areas can be as simple as an extended 36 inch wide bartop on a peninsula or as complicated as a multi-level granite island. Check out the magazines or design books, look around the kitchen showrooms in your area but also make sure to check out the granite and Corian showrooms in your area too. These last two spots will almost certainly be able to provide you with a wealth of ideas on how to arrange your island.
Corian and granite are heavy, obviously, and you will require some form of support for them. A kneewall is a relatively quick and easy solution on one side of the island, ending at about 41 1/4 inches above the floor. The granite I sell is 3/4s of an inch so this would make the finished height a comfortable 42 inches. You can finish the kneewall in the same material as your kitchen or just paint it to match the room on the side it is on.
Alternatively you could use upper cabinets placed on the floor as a base for the top. I prefer a 36 inch upper which, with a 4 inch base made to toe kick material, will have a finished height of almost 41 inches. The cabinets will be twelve inches deep and can be the full width of the island or perhaps set apart with one to each end and one or two in the middle, depending on the length of the island. Normally the cabinets are left without doors but this is up to you. Just don’t bonk your head when you are setting your knick-knacks up!
Other solutions are as simple as a leg. Corian will make up a solid Corian leg for you, if you
Go To Page: 1 2
