Design Tricks for a Family-friendly Kitchen
Did you know, a new, family-friendly kitchen costs as much as £10,000? Even if you’re being careful with your budget by shopping around for deals and reusing items, realistically, it still costs around £2,500 to remodel a kitchen. That’s why getting the design right in your family home is so important. To help you make these crucial decisions, take a read of these design tricks for a family-friendly kitchen.
Keep your little ones in view
One of the things that’s a real bugbear with kitchens is the inability to keep an eye on the little ones while you cook. And that feeling of being separated from your family. If your kitchen looks out onto a rear garden, then you really want to maximise your view as much as possible, and a company such as https://mattbakercontracting.com/kitchen-remodeling/ can help you when it comes to planning the layout and design of your kitchen. You might be able to put in French or bi-fold doors. But in smaller kitchens, this can take up space that’s needed for cabinets. Instead, it’s worth trying to widen your kitchen window and lower the sill, giving you a better view of your kids playing outside.
If you’re constantly separated from the rest of the family, you may find an island with seating is a good design option. Placing your prep or cooking area on the work side of the island means you can face the rest of the family as they’re seated on the other side. It’s easy to watch and help the kids do their homework or chat with visiting family while you cook.
Create a comfy eating space
This leads nicely to one of the most important considerations in family kitchens – eating spaces. Although there are lots of different styles you can choose from, the size of your kitchen will dictate the amount of dining space you have. But there’s one style that’s almost guaranteed to improve how your kitchen works.
Tucking your seating area into a corner is good for creating a breakfast nook. Most importantly, though, it takes up much less space than a table and chairs placed in the centre of your kitchen. Using a combination of built-in bench seating and a round or fold-down table, you can create a compact and comfy eating area. Plus, the bench seating can be made with storage underneath, making it incredibly practical.
Keep everyone safe and sound
Hot electricals, sharp utensils and hard surfaces can make a family-friendly kitchen a hazardous place when you’ve got little ones running around. Separating the cooking and prep area of a kitchen from the dining side with clever zoning helps. As we’ve already seen, a kitchen island is good for this. But even so, there are still dangers within touching distance.
This is why appliances need to be chosen carefully. An induction hob is probably safer than a gas hob, for example. But it’s worth checking out which appliances come with safety features such as cool-touch doors and built-in child locks. You may also want to avoid positioning your oven underneath the hob and have it at chest height instead. This keeps a hot oven out of reach of toddlers.
When remodelling a kitchen, it’s a good idea to make sure you have plenty of electrical sockets exactly where you need them. This avoids running the risk of trailing cables being pulled or snagged. You may fancy having small appliances such as toasters and coffee machines tucked out of the way. A breakfast station inside a fully openable cupboard is a fun way to do this. You’ll also want to factor in high-up storage or lockable cupboards to keep cleaning chemicals, knives and other hazards out of harm’s reach.
Hard and glossy floors, as well as sharp corners on worktops, are common hazards in kitchens. But by adding curves to your island, counter edges and tables, you’ll not only have a safe, family-friendly kitchen but a stylish one too. In terms of flooring, non-slip luxury vinyl with a good level of cushioning may be a more child-friendly option than traditional tiles.
Build in practicality
Finally, no family-friendly kitchen design is any good without building plenty of storage. A mix of large drawers and cupboards is all very well, but you also need to make them practical in terms of accessibility and organisation.
Customise cupboards and drawers with useful segments and pull-out or rotating shelves. That way, you can be sure everything can be easily put away in a dedicated space. After all, family kitchens are busy spaces that can get very messy very quickly.
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