You like to entertain family and friends.

Whether your entertaining style is a casual potluck, a martini mixer, or a formal dinner party, you’ll want your guests to feel at home without feeling in the way.

• Think holistically: If you can, consider the design of your whole home and maintain a great room effect between the kitchen and the living room so that nothing is closed off.
• Don’t forget the music: Install a whole-house stereo system with speakers hidden in your kitchen cabinets.
• Ease of access is key: Keep serving utensils near the serving area for easy access
• Make the most of an island or peninsula:
  • Place electrical outlets toward the back to keep cords from crock-pots and warming trays out of the way
  • Install a sink located out of the cook’s way
  • Install a separate ice-maker under the island counter for preparing beverages
• Add some seats:
  • Use swivel bar stools without backs so guests can visit in various directions during meal prep
  • Tuck the stools under and out of the way for serving
  • You could also have a raised bar area for standing

Accessibility is critical for your family.

It’s possible to have kitchen that is convenient, wheelchair-accessible and beautiful. All it takes is a little planning.

• Floor space: To accommodate a wheelchair in your kitchen cabinet design, make sure your kitchen has adequate floor space. 48 to 60 inches between counter tops is recommended. 
• Consider cabinet heights:
  • Have multiple counter heights or pull out bread boards for work space.
  • Look for base cabinets with a higher, deeper toe kick. 
• The kitchen sink:
  • Install a lowered sink with open space underneath, but make sure exposed pipes are insulated to prevent injury.
  • Look for sinks that can be raised and lowered for multiple person use, and install dishwashers at an elevated height. 
• Adjust the appliances:
  • Lower the height of your cooktop, and have a separate oven. Both should have handles and knobs that are accessible from the front. 
  • Place the microwave on a low counter top or under the counter. 
  • The refrigerator should either be side-by-side or have the freezer on the bottom. 
• Keep it organized:
  • Store dinnerware, tableware, and glassware on open shelves or roll out trays in base cabinets. 
  • Use roll out trays and revolving shelves for smaller items.
  • Glass front wall cabinets make it easy to see what’s behind the doors.

There are lots of cooks in your kitchen.

If multiple members of your household like to spend time in the kitchen, consider yourself lucky! And consider some of these kitchen design ideas to make meal prep run smoothly.

• Understand your patterns: Think about your work triangle, or your patterns of movement. For one cook it is from the sink to the range to the refrigerator. For a second cook it is from the second sink to the cook top to the refrigerator.
  • These two triangles shouldn’t interfere with one another.
  • Each leg of the triangle should be a minimum of 4’ and a maximum of 9’.
  • Plan appropriate cabinetry between each appliance.
• Strategically place the appliances:
  • Separating the oven from the cook top, which can be located on the island, aids traffic flow.
  • A second dishwasher makes clean-up a lot easier.
• Make sure there is plenty of elbow room:
  • A kitchen island is a must in a two-person kitchen, and preferred over a peninsula, which can box one person in.
  • Your kitchen cabinet design will need to have two sinks, one of them on the island, positioned so that the cooks aren’t back-to-back and can easily converse.
  • You won’t want to be cooking cheek-to-cheek either, so make sure you leave 48 to 60 inches of space between your counter tops and island.

You have little helpers (or one on the way).

It’s inevitable: Your kids will be in the kitchen with you and using this busy room themselves. That means you’ll need to keep safety, convenience, and efficiency in mind when creating kitchen cabinet designs.

Babies and Toddlers

• Safe spaces:
  • If you are thinking of starting a family soon, or if you have a baby now, consider leaving space in your kitchen for a bassinet or playpen, making sure it is away from stoves where hot food might be spilled.
  • You may also want to include a large counter space for a bouncy seat, where baby can watch you in action.
  • Be sure your counter stools have high backs and arm rests to keep toddlers from slipping off.
• Toddler-proofing: Young toddlers are crawling, walking, and exploring their world.
  • Avoid low display areas, unless you fill them with baby-safe items
  • Avoid glass inserts on base cabinet doors, use plexiglass instead
  • Have plenty of counter space around microwaves and stove tops to avoid spills
  • Keep appliances and cords neatly hidden
  • Keep knives and cleaning products out of reach.
• Strategic storage and organization:
  • To make your life a little easier, store all of baby’s foods and serving utensils in one cabinet close to the microwave for quick meal prep.
  • Use roll out trays in base kitchen cabinets to store everyday, non-breakable dishes and cups, cereal boxes, and snack items. 
• Part of the action:
  • You will want to have a 36-inch high counter on your island or peninsula for budding artists to color or sculpt clay while you prepare dinner or for serving snacks. 
  • Toddlers love to help. Let them! Keep your recycling center accessible so they can help clean up.
  • Even toddlers are using the computer, so consider locating a computer desk away from kitchen traffic, but where you can easily monitor its use.

Grade School Kids

• Help them learning to cook:
  • Microwave location is critical for grade schoolers. It should not be above the cooking surface—kids might climb up onto the stove top to use the microwave. Place it on a low counter top, in a base cabinet, or in a wall cabinet where the bottom of the microwave is no more than 48 inches from the floor.
  • Place counter space in front or to the sides of the microwave so hot dishes can quickly be put down.
  • Use roll out trays in base kitchen cabinets to store everyday, non-breakable dishes and cups, cereal boxes, and snack items.
• Consider heights:
  • You will want to have a 36-inch high counter on your island or peninsula for budding artists to color or sculpt clay while you prepare dinner, for doing homework, or for serving snacks.
  • Be sure your counter stools have high backs and arm rests to keep kids from slipping off.
• Increase their involvement:
  • Kids this age love to help. Let them! Keep your recycling center accessible so they can help clean up.
  • Have them help load and unload the dishwasher by locating it close to the sink and storage space for dishes.
  • Have a lower counter that is 30 inches from the floor for kids to stand and help with meal prep.
• Keeping and eye on them: Consider locating a computer desk away from kitchen traffic, but where you can easily monitor its use.

You have hungry tweens and teens.

• Make life easier… for everyone:
  • Locate your pantry out of the flow of traffic, and store quick-fix meals towards the front to avoid congestion.
  • Have a side-by-side refrigerator with ice and water in the door. Since these don’t have a lot of freezer space, keep another freezer elsewhere.
  • Keep drinking cups next to the fridge.
  • Install a warming drawer in a base cabinet to keep meals ready for kids eating in shifts.
• Consider adding a second, smaller kitchen:
  • You can use it as a wet bar later or as a prep kitchen for those big holiday dinners with the grandkids much later.
  • This kitchen cabinet design could have a sink, a small refrigerator, a microwave, a pizza oven, a small dishwasher, and an ice maker. 
  • It should also have pantry space for quick-fix meals and snacks.