Improve Your Kitchen Cabinet Layout with a Kitchen Remodeling Plan

by Jane Smallman
Face Your Kitchen Columnist

Is your kitchen difficult to work in? Does it feel small and cramped? Are appliances hard to get at, or do you lack storage space? If so, why not consider a remodeling project and plan a new kitchen cabinet layout that could solve these problems? Kitchen remodeling does not mean having to invest in a completely new kitchen. It is possible to create a new look and solve lots of practical problems by reorganizing what you already have. To do this successfully however, you must think carefully about what you want to achieve and draw up a detailed plan for your new kitchen cabinet layout.



These useful tips for drawing up a kitchen remodeling plan will ensure that all your hard work results in a cabinet layout that gives you what you want.

Critical Factors in Your Kitchen Remodeling Plan

• The Work Triangle. This is the triangle that is formed by the kitchen's three most important workstations: the sink, the refrigerator and the cooktop. A compact work triangle makes your kitchen a much more efficient place to work because the distance you have to travel between the different workstations is relatively short.
• Work Centers. While drawing up your kitchen remodeling plan think about the sort of tasks you carry out in the kitchen and try to group similar tasks together with the equipment you will need stored nearby (e.g. if you do a lot of baking make sure that in your new kitchen cabinet layout, the ingredients and utensils you use are kept near each other - ideally, close to the oven).
• Pathways. Think about the way people move in and around your kitchen and make sure that your kitchen remodeling plan takes account of traffic flow. Your new kitchen cabinet layout should enable you to move around efficiently while you are cooking without people getting in your way.

Sources:

• http://www.about.com
• http://www.bhg.com

About the Author
Jane Smallman runs a mountain guiding business with her husband. Her early training was in hotel management and she has worked in the hotel industry in France, Holland, the US and the UK. Following this she worked in an administrative capacity for a number of not-for-profit organizations in the UK, including the International Planned Parenthood Federation and the Refugee Legal Centre. While doing this she earned a degree in Social Sciences through distance learning with the Open University. After graduation she progressed to the University of Sussex as a full-time student where she was awarded a Masters Degree in Social and Political Thought.