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Kitchen Renovation and Planning – Countertops and Island Configuration

Renovating a kitchen can be lots of hard work and here I will show you all my plans for my kitchen and the countertops and island configuration.

Kitchen Planning and Renovation  Countertops and Island Configuration - So Much Better With Age

I’m sharing with you today how I planned and designed my big, beautiful kitchen renovation.

It took a lot of time to come up with the perfect design layout of my French inspired kitchen. If two walls were coming down, then this was going to be done right! Also, I had to wait for permits so I had time to think everything through.

I had the help of a designer, who works with my contractor, so we both had a few sleepless nights coming up with a kitchen renovation plan. There were things that made this area challenging but in the end was a beautiful space that seemed like it should have been there all along.

I’m hoping these renovation tips will help you design and plan for your kitchen of your dreams.

A before picture of a 80's dining room.

Last week I shared all the before and after photos of my kitchen. Here you can see the main floor get gutted!

That wall between the main living space and the kitchen came down.

Taking down the wall between the kitchen and dining room.
The walls ripped out to the insulation being exposed.
The lumber in a pile in the center of the room.

You can see where that post is, half of that wall came down as well.

All the construction materials in the kitchen.
Construction materials in the kitchen.

Now we have an open area/blank slate ready for designing!

Tearing down the roof to the beams.
A construction worker is on his knees drilling and a ladder is in the center of the room.
The insulation in the walls being removed.

Here’s that half wall that went down.

The corner to the left of the room became the post in the island.

A before picture showing the wall that was removed.
Configuring the kitchen counter and island.

Kitchen Cabinet Layout

Because the post needed to stay (you can read more about why in this post) I knew it needed to be incorporated into the kitchen island but not in the middle of it.

First, you need to measure from the wall the depth of the cabinets, then how many feet you’d like between the cabinets and island (mine is 4 feet).

Then you measure the maximum space for an island without being too cramped (my island is 5 x 6 feet).

I will say that I’ve been to many houses where the island is SO big that it encroaches on the open space between the cabinets and island. You feel cramped walking through the kitchen. I’d rather have more space in between the cabinets and the island than a massive island and a tight space to walk through. My kitchen feels incredibly large because I allowed 4 feet between.

The hand drawings of the kitchen.

Next, you want to make sure things just make sense, like putting the garbage and dishwasher close to the sink, baking sheets and spice drawer close to the stove, and banks of cabinets symmetric as possible.

For the baking centre under the large window, I have a cabinet then two banks of drawers than another cabinet. It’s great storage but also symmetrical. Then the dishwasher, sink and a pull-out garbage/recycling bin and then it’s the stove wall.

I’ll show more details about what I store in those cabinets later this week.

The designer hand drawings.
The building stage of the kitchen.
Installing the kitchen cabinets and drawers.
Installing the countertops.

Countertops

Here are the countertops I picked:  Quartz Vicostone BQ8220 Carrarra

Ogee edge on island / eased edge everywhere else

The day the countertops went in was so exciting!

The kitchen slab was huge! We made sure it came in one piece with only a little piece that needed to be notched in on one side of the post.

A truck carrying the countertops.

I was soooo nervous when this baby went on but those guys know what they’re doing.

Construction workers installing the countertops.

I love that ogee edge.

The kitchen island.

You can see the eased edge on the rest of the countertops.

The edges of the counters.

The countertop butted right up to the window and underneath the trim for an amazing fit.

A large window to the back yard in the kitchen.

One hole was for the faucet and another for the garburator.

The kitchen sink and garburator installation.
Roughing in the cabinets.
The unfinished cabinets in the kitchen.
The kitchen island.
Quartz counters in the kitchen.
Up close shot of the cabinets in the kitchen.
The exposed air vent and a ladder underneath it.
A stainless steel fridge.

Kitchen Island

Okay, back to the cabinets. The kitchen island was a challenge.

Below is one rough drawing. We made sure stools could be slipped in on the left side of the island (not shown in drawing) and also facing the main living area for a total of four stools. There was also room for lots of storage and  electrical outlets.

The island is 5 x 6 feet with 4 feet in between the kitchen cabinets and island.

Hand drawings of the kitchen island.

There are two banks of drawers, three drawers high facing the windows.

There is where I keep my flatware, dishes, pots and pans.

I’ll show you exactly what I store in these drawers later this week.

The white kitchen island.

I love this Sharp microwave drawer. You press a button and it just opens so smoothly. The drawer underneath is perfect for a toaster and blender. The electrical outlet beside the microwave makes it convenient to use those appliances.

The microwave drawer in the kitchen.
Stainless steel microwave.
Kitchen Planning and Renovation - Countertops and Island Configuration / drawer under the microwave - So Much Better With Age

The small island cabinet is where I store some recipe books and there’s a larger cabinet (in front of the left stool) where I keep larger cook books and kids stuff like Play-Doh and art supplies.

Wooden stools under the kitchen island.
Glass knobs on the cabinets.
Recipe books in the kitchen island.

I wanted the stools to be able to be ‘tucked’ in under the counter so the countertop is much larger than the island itself and looks more luxurious.

The stools tucked into the kitchen island.

Here is a view from the new dining room (former family room).

Glass and brass lights above the white kitchen island.
A wooden tool box filled with plants on the island.

An electrical outlet complete with USB outlets were a must for the island.

I often work on my laptop on the island while the kids are playing.

The electrical outlet in the island.
Wood floors in the kitchen.

The cabinets are painted Benjamin Moore Simply White and the island is Benjamin Moore Gray Owl.

Cabinet door paint colour.

Here is the main floor hardwood:

The wood floors sample and carpet.

I hope these tips were helpful for your kitchen planning. There will be more in another post this week so stay tuned!

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Source List:

Shop the Kitchen

Click in Case You missed:

My Big, Beautiful Kitchen Renovation

My Big, Beautiful Kitchen Renovation - So Much Better With Age

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8 Comments

  1. Thanks for the in-depth post. Do you remember what sheen of paints you used on cabinetry and also on the walls? I hope you are enjoying your new space. 🙂

    1. HI Sandee,
      Then sheen on the walls is all flat. I think flat or eggshell (satin) is nice depending on how marked up your walls are. Flat hides a lot! The sheen on the cabinets and trim is semi-gloss. I used all the same color throughout my house (BM Simply White except the kitchen island) but the sheens set them apart.
      Hope this helps!
      Hugs, Jamie

  2. I came across this post while trying to find sources for your 2014 kitchen renovation. I noticed you went with white grout this time, is there a reason you didn;t go with the grayish grout you used back in 2014? I am wanting a light colored grey grout for my backsplash but wondering if I will grow tired of it. Also do you have a source post from your 2014 reno? I would love to find those pulls and knobs!

  3. Hi Christie,
    Can you tell me what the added amt you added for the island countertop where the stools go? I have room for the same size but need to see how much more for the overhang is for the stools. Mine will have to be a peninsula because I don’t want to give up my walk-in pantry.

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