Kitchen islands now the centre of attention
Kitchen islands are growing in size as they become centres of attention in the room and multifunctional hubs of activity beyond cooking
Countertops equipped with embedded elements that charge phones and tablets on one side, and feature a yakitori grill on the other, are among innovations taking place in kitchen islands. Designers are being asked to create these stand-alone fixtures as focal points and communal hubs. And, generally, the bigger, the better.
"An island could truly be 6 metres long if the overall space allowed for it," said Joe Human, a designer in New York and founder of Designs by Human.
Human said most functional islands ran about 0.9 metre wide and between 1.8 and 2.4 metres long for a good rectangular proportion. And because there should be at least four feet of space between the island and any other counters, a kitchen would need to be at least 18 square metres in size to hold an island at all.
In any event, the notion that kitchen islands could be gathering points for dining, drinking and socialising was crossing over from West to East, said Andrew Bell, a designer who works in Hong Kong and Bangkok.
"In the West … islands are often described as the control deck of the family home," he said, "whereas in Hong Kong, with a preference among locals to confine cooking fumes to a closed kitchen, it is taking a lot longer to catch on. But as the preparation of a meal becomes more a part of guest entertainment and family life, it is now more common to demand an open kitchen."
They are also becoming increasingly multifunctional. Karl Champley, a Los Angeles-based home improvement expert and television host, and author of Same Place, More Space, has designed electrical outlets and cables into benchtops to accommodate televisions and computers. "I think of maximising every bit of space," he said.