Kitchen Island On Wheels With Stools Tags

Although the surface of the kitchen island is suitable for cutting and chopping, appliances add value by fully utilizing the middle-of-the-kitchen space. To truly maximize the use of your island, consider installing a stove top directly into your kitchen island or purchasing a mobile cooktop.

Interior designer Abbe Fenimore knew that adding a kitchen island was one of the most important decisions she’d make in remodeling her 1940s-era home in Dallas. A well-designed kitchen island can offer storage space, a work surface, comfortable seating — even a cooktop or spare sink.

“It shouldn’t literally be an island off by itself,” Burnham says, “but it shouldn’t be too close to perimeter countertops either.” Other important questions: How many people do you want to seat? Leave plenty of depth for people’s legs when they sit on bar stools or seats at your island....

In the end, that island “has become the literal hub in our home for socializing,” Fenimore says. We’ve asked Fenimore, founder of the design firm Studio Ten25, and two other interior designers — Los Angeles-based Betsy Burnham and New York-based Jenny Kirschner — for their thoughts on great kitchen-island design...

A dishwasher can also be built into an island, saving space in other areas of the kitchen for additional storage. Please bear in mind that you may need access to gas, plumbing or electricity to power these appliances....

A dishwasher can also be built into an island, saving space in other areas of the kitchen for additional storage. Please bear in mind that you may need access to gas, plumbing or electricity to power these appliances....

If you aren’t looking to spend too much, you could add a microwave into the side of the island (within a cutout) or a retractable surface used as a simple baking station. Another clever idea is to install a small refrigerator or drinks cooler into the side of the kitchen...

Fenimore has a trash can built into her island, with a stainless steel opening in the island’s surface where unwanted items can easily be swept during cooking. It’s a detail that didn’t add much to the cost but makes life exponentially easier....

Some of Fenimore’s favorite elements are deep, pull-out drawers for pots and pans, and drawers with mechanisms that lift a mixer or other small appliance up and out for easy use. Also: drawers designed to hold containers of spices, and deep drawers holding metal containers for serving utensils....

With so much use, it’s important that you install a quality countertop which can take a battering while retaining its solid form and appealing design....