The Modern Kitchen: What’s Important In Making it the Heart of the Home
Gone are the days when the kitchen was merely used as a utilitarian room in the home, serving only for food preparations. The kitchen of today is a room where the family gets together, shares quality time over meals enjoying each other’s company over chats about the day that’s passed. The kitchen of today serves as the place for entertaining guests and even doing one’s school and work projects.
In other words, it’s meant to be family oriented, nourish the body and soul as the heart of the home – doesn’t matter if it’s small or big. Unlike in the past when it was separated from the dining area, hiding the cooking mess away the way we see in the popular series Downton Abbey, the modern kitchen has evolved considerably. The layouts have started shifting towards the main areas of the home, getting to what we now have with the open floor concept where the kitchen, dining room and sometimes even the living room are merged.
If you want to make the most of your kitchen and turn it into the heart of the home, you have to mind the layout and the furniture and appliances you fill it up with, to ensure there’s enough space for everything. Here are some things to consider:
The Seating
As mentioned, the kitchen of today is the space where people congregate and socialise so the area meant for gatherings, the seating specifically, is more than important. Comfort is essential, however you have to think of using the room in the best way you can. To prevent cramming it you ought to consider the variety of kitchen stools available on the market.
Though manufacturers and retailers have plenty to offer in terms of both style and support, aside from taking these two aspects in consideration, one should also have the seat width and the height of the design in mind. As well as what you intend to use them for (e.g. are they meant for family meals, parties, homework or all of them together) to get the perfect ones for your space in the needed quantity.
What makes the kitchen stools the ideal seating is the fact they don’t take up much floor space. They are fit for a kitchen island and bar, and can be used outdoors too as in the case with sturdy contemporary models made from materials such as concrete, forged iron and reclaimed wood. Even if you don’t have an island or bar, there are the type of stools that are the match for certain dining tables.
The Kitchen Island
In the kitchen of today as an important room where people enjoy making food just as much as they enjoy eating it, one needs to mind the space design distances between furniture and appliances. This is so the work flow would go uninterrupted and more of the family members can have their share in food prep and spend quality time together in the era of busy lifestyles.
People with small kitchens where there isn’t much luxury in terms of space find it difficult to fit a countertop as big as needed out of fear there won’t be room for all of the kitchen electric appliances. In such case, they could use the help of an island as a nice solution. Other than providing enough space for cooking and eating, it’s a piece that can serve as a barrier between work and socialising, diverting the traffic from cooktops, refrigerator and sink, i.e. the so-called kitchen work triangle, without actually separating the area.
The Storage
Kitchens can easily turn into messy rooms if storage isn’t taken seriously, more so if there’s more than one cook. To avoid any slipping accidents, hazards, and headaches from the sight of clutter, it’s important to acquire all the needed storage furniture with the right number of drawers and compartments, shelving and racks for each and every ingredient and utensil.
If you need more storage than space allows it, why not look for items that double as storage, as in the case with kitchen stools that resemble boxes as you have plenty of room under the seat for hiding away essentials. This being said, along with getting enough compartments and drawers, it’s crucial to remember clutter has no place in the modern kitchen and organisation is key!
In other words, if you want to put the storage to good use, you must get rid of everything that no longer serves you and plan where you’d keep all of the utensils and ingredients. Separating them by tasks so you’d have everything you need at hand – no more wasting time trying to find the spatula, and no more trouble reaching out for the pots and spices you use on a daily basis.
The Hygiene
You know what’s said, the family that eats together stays together, but I would add cleaning to this too. Hygiene is essential for the kitchen since germs and pests can easily make their way in unless cleanliness is taken care of after every meal. This explains why cleaning habits must be set, and every member of the household should participate in it.
