How To Design Your Kitchen (part 1)

The plan of the kitchen at The Hub, my coworking space (design by Monsieur Rault Cuisines Schmidt, Chaville)

Kitchen design is really an art. And I really mean that. To design a space in which there are so many technical constraints already requires expertise and experience. And to make it comfortable and beautiful is another big ask.

You know what I’m talking about! Those holiday rentals with kitchens which just don’t work! Where you can’t open the dishwasher with the cutlery drawer open first as the dishwasher front hits the drawer handle. The oven over the other side of the room so you have to cross the whole space to be able to put down a hot dish… and then you remember that you need a mat under it as otherwise it’ll leave a mark on the counter top. The cupboard doors that don’t close flush to the others. The soft-close drawers which need that extra push. The faucet which doesn’t extend out to wash the corners of the sink properly….. 

So what are my tips for designing a functional kitchen? As usual, I really recommend knowing what you want before you start designing. Watch out, here come the questions! What will the kitchen be used for? Are you an amateur chef who whips up a soufflé au gruyère in no time at all? So do you need an amazing range and want to make a feature of it? Or do you prefer to bake rather than cook? So you might need a marble countertop for rolling pastry and counter space for your food processor.

Or will your kitchen be used for quickly heating up rather than actual cooking? No snobbery intended here, please, we all do what we can with what we’ve got. The idea is just that the room be designed en adéquation (in accordance) with how it will actually be used, in order to respect the overall budget and make it comfortable for those who use it. 

Who will be using the kitchen to cook? Just you, or others too? Will your cat be stalking around and how careful is it about knocking things over? Or does your dog steal the tea towels and recipe books to chew? (Karen!). If you’re designing for more than one cook, you probably ought to consult the other cooks about their needs before you start the designing. I know it’s tedious, and you might want to do it just for you! But, believe me, otherwise you’ll regret it when you find your spouse’s yogurt maker in the space you had planned for your casserole dishes…! 

What white goods do you need? And the extras you’ve always wanted, like a wine fridge, is this the moment to include them? When you entertain, do you like to have your guests come and talk to you in the kitchen?  So maybe you’d like a high island with stools for them to sip cocktails while you’re aux manettes (at the helm - loose translation). Or do you need to be in full concentration mode and hate distractions while cooking? So you certainly don’t want anyone talking to you, thus no table nor high stools in your kitchen!

You get the message! Observe how you use your current kitchen in different situations. And then add what you would like to be able to do in your kitchen. The quality of your kitchen design depends on the analysis of your needs - just like any good software!

Credit where it’s due, my next stop when designing a kitchen are the specialists. A good kitchen designer is worth his / her weight in gold, every year, for the duration of the kitchen (which should, in my opinion, last a good 10 if not 15 years).

So if you’re designing a kitchen, get recommendations from friends and neighbors about local kitchen suppliers, and go and see a couple of them. Tell each what you want and listen carefully to what they recommend. Then choose the one you like and trust best. It’s worth it. I have a very good (design) relationship with a local kitchen designer here, Monsieur Rault (of Cuisines Schmidt in Chaville). And I totally trust his advice. He designed and installed the kitchen at The Hub (my coworking space), which gets used constantly by 8-10 people a day (and more on special occasions!). And, four years later, it still works perfectly and looks almost like new.

Also, presumably, you’ve already done an Ikea-type kitchen in the past, and your memories aren’t necessarily the best (and if they are, fair dues to you!). Certainly a specialist kitchen supplier will be more expensive, but consider the extra as insurance and stress relief! You’re paying someone to take away your headache, and again I definitely think this is worth it.

The kitchen designer will include all their best practices for designing the technical aspects of the kitchen. You need them to be opinionated and to push back on some of your ideas. For example, I’m currently designing the kitchen for my new apartment (so very exciting, I can’t tell you!). And Monsieur Rault patiently explained why he doesn’t recommend having a double tub sink - I had one previously and liked being able to put the sponges, washing up liquid and soap in the smaller adjacent tub. Apparently they’ve become unpopular as they are under-used, often not cleaned out properly and take up useful space. So now I’m looking at a 70cm (28”) wide sink with a suspended colander. 

He has also suggested an induction hob (immediate heat and so much easier to keep clean than gas hobs as they are flat glass-like surfaces!) which includes the ventilation hood in its surface. He showed me a video which shows steam sucked sideways and down. This is so that I can have the upper cabinets go right up to the ceiling for aesthetic and storage space reasons. The kitchen designers know the latest technological innovations. And I’m definitely in favor of anything that hides the functional aspects to improve the aesthetics.

Some other quick kitchen design tips:

• Leave space to the left and right of the cooking surface and the sink - for pot handles, wooden spoons, washing up liquid, brushes and sponges.

• Make sure that the sink is big enough to wash big things! For example your biggest casserole dish or oven tray.

• I always specify a faucet with an integrated, extendable shower function. Really helps keep the sink clean!

• Talking of sinks, be careful about choosing how to block the plug hole. The mechanisms you turn to plug or unplug the sink often break, so the best solution is to do it manually (thanks Monsieur Rault for that one!).

• Don’t forget to include trash and recycling bins in your design, they can be pretty unsightly, so best to plan to hide them in some cabinets if possible.

So remember, think lots about function before aesthetics. And yes, a professional kitchen designer should make sure that your kitchen looks amazing. A-MAZ-ING! Yes it’s very possible and desirable! And once again I’m going to leave you on a cliff-hanger as I’m seeing my kitchen designer this evening to finalize the design of my kitchen and the finishes. So more about aesthetics and lighting next time!

If you’d like a hand designing your kitchen in Paris, let’s organize a Zoom call to talk about how I can help!