Mon 1 Oct 2007
Space invaders
With many kitchens now doubling as living spaces and littered with countless must-have appliances, it is often storage space that is sacrificed. Gail Purvis looks at how designers and developers are trying to give consumers everything they need.
Having cooked my way through 30 kitchens, the most memorable was a primitive affair combined dining room in a C16th house abutting castle tower and bottle dungeon; the most efficient, but lonely, was a tiny cockpit galley that even the cat disdained, while the most sociable combined kitchen and living room. In all 30 however, space and storage (or more often the lack of it) was the critical feature.
Which makes it intriguing to discover what kitchens on the market carry the biggest spatial capacity to accommodate the clutter of modern life? What are the best storage solutions on offer? Do kitchen designs meet the Parker Morris standards of 1962, outlining that a dwelling for three or more people should offer 2.3 cubic metres of storage space? What sort of units are Housing Associations favouring, and how much kitchen space do they offer residents?
"It's a case of making the most of the space available, organising the items stored to make use of every inch of space inside a unit, and access to those items. Storage solutions abound, from magic corners to corner carousels, internal storage dividing systems and tambour units," says Terry Ball, managing director of the Essex fitted furniture manufacturers, William Ball.
"Drawers, particularly wide pan drawers are now commonly considered more spatially advantageous than cupboards and we are seeing more and more base units replaced by wide pan drawers, allowing you to see everything inside at first glance."
But Ball adds the caveat to look for stability of hinges and fixings as well as durable materials and he cautions over quality. "If you want to supply drawers that last more than 12 months, makes sure they have been tested to British standards and are capable of storing the weight inside. A badly made carcase filled with heavy crockery for a long period may begin to bow and runners become less smooth."
Most design kitchens do meet Parker Morris standards, says Ball, who notes that the continuing popularity of open-plan living is "a causal factor of today's diminutive kitchens, because sofas, dining tables and office space are all staking claims within the kitchen's domain. We are seeing a greater demand for storage in the same style and finish as the kitchen for use in the living area, taking pressure off the kitchen and allowing greater harmony between kitchen and living spaces."
However, according to designer Victoria Scaldwell of Manchester-based Johnson & Johnson Furniture, in an age surrounded by countless, fancy storage mechanisms, among the most effective in terms of spatial capacity is the pantry. "Design out of the box and you could be surprised how much storage space can be achieved for little expense, using a pantry concept," she advises. "All that is need is a space between 800 and 900 millimetres wide by 600 millimetres deep by 2,750 millimetres high and full shelved. This produces a huge storage capacity of between 1.32 cubic metres and 1.49 cubic metres. Even an area as small as 1.2 metres is enough to encompass the total storage area of a butler-style pantry.
"A pantry provides excellent, additional hidden storage running from floor to ceiling and, if desired, the inclusion of a motion light sensor is both clever and practical. Shelves in the pantry can be configured to suit a variety of storage needs, making products easily visible and accessible. Add an air brick and a marble top and you could even have an early model fridge for no extra cost."
Stuart Frazer Contracts' director Belinda Sewell is all too aware of the rising expectations of today's homeowner when it comes to space in the kitchen. She cites research showing that 66 per cent of occupiers begin to find their kitchen too small after just two years. "Furthermore, with the increasing popularity of apartment developments, the physical space the kitchen occupies is shrinking as the role that it plays in people's lifestyles grows.
"This paradox of less room, more space poses significant challenges for designers. In a market in which the kitchen increasingly plays a significant role in determining the commercial value of a property, optimising the use of space is vital to create a successful scheme."
With apartment living literally on the rise, as droves of young, free singles flock to cities to combine work, rest and play, she notes that research also shows this traditionally rebellious demographic are now displaying a home-bird tendencies, spending more time entertaining friends in the kitchen than out on the town.
Open-plan living and often the dominance of the minimalist aesthetic has brought with it the need for clutter-free kitchens and whispering appliances. A lifestyle media saturated with property development and interior design content has also created a breed of design-conscious homeowners with "expectations many times the size of their kitchens," says Sewell.
And Sewell adds pragmatically, "What is breathtaking in the showroom, when subject to the flotsam and jetsam of the working kitchen can lose its purist aesthetic. As such, the role of the kitchen designer is increasingly focused on developing ever ingenious ways to ensure that there is enough storage space to keep the working area clutter-free."
Working with SieMatic, Stuart Frazer Contracts' MultiMatic system plays a key role especially in smaller properties and apartments. It discretely incorporates storage space into wall or base units and tall cabinets, as well as being modular and expandable for future modification, resulting in average of 35 per cent more storage space than a cabinet without the system. The SieMatic ranges stand up to 2.3 metres high, and combined in one section of the room makes for lighter, more open space, especially when complemented with a central island.
The SL range is the company's essential tool in its design arsenal as the trend of open-plan living grows. External, slick, handleless design gives the appearance of furniture, rather than kitchen cabinets, while an internal tracking system allows 16 millimetres internal shelf adjustment for flexible space optimisation.
At Symphony's Building division, marketing manager Kathleen Lyon joins the general consensus that Housing Association refurbishments and new builds are adopting the same high design standards as the private sector. "RIBA's recent call for minimum space standards highlighted again the importance of good design in adding value and prestige to a new development." Lyon agrees with the consensus view that "designers are utilising hidden storage that makes use of all the nocks and crannies in the room, including in-plinth deep pan drawers, even layers of these, to house crockery, pans and kitchen gadgets," adding that "built in compact appliances such as ovens, in-column dishwashers and microwaves housed in three quarter units also open up the possibilities for increased storage and ensure that all the mod cons sits side by side with runs of flexible storage."
"Suppliers are often working within defined layouts and stringent space restrictions in a social housing refurbishment. Good design is key to success," she says. "Kitchen designs which offer a range of flexible fitted furniture combinations and factor in the tenants existing freestanding appliances help make best use of available space and provide all essential storage needed to keep kitchens clutter-free.
"Pale colours such as white and cream are proving popular helping create an illusion of space, while natural timber effects also do well, providing a neutral, hardworking kitchen design."
"All kitchens must meet the Housing Associations guidelines - which can be quite strict on what can and cannot be ruled as useable storage space" says Bob Ruler, managing director of BK Kitchens Ltd. "Guidelines vary from one housing association to the next, but as a minimum, I would say meet the Parker Morris standards."
"All housing association kitchens are designed with the storage aspect primarily in mind, tall broom and larder units, tall wall units and plinth drawers; however, features such as soft-close, pull-outs and glazed units are also an integral part of the design brief."
Sales and marketing director Karen Ferguson adds: "Developers are specifying an ever-increasing number of appliances within the kitchen including: oven, hob, hood, dishwasher, washer-dryer, fridge, freezer, microwave and one- or two-bowl inset sink top as standard, plus there's an increased trend for incorporating steam ovens, coffee machines, wine coolers and American style fridge-freezers, leaving little room for storage."
BK Kitchens says its Nolte range offers different heights of base, wall and tall units to maximise storage to suit the room dimension and uses the plinth for storage drawers and large capacity pullouts. "By using Nolte's 750-millimetre-deep base units, storage capacity can increase by 32 per cent and all pull-outs are fully extendable, with high side frames and high rear panels guaranteeing optimum use of storage space," says Ferguson.
"Thanks to Nolte also offering a range of low units suited for the 'living and dining" areas, these prove popular with clients when designing for open plan areas," she adds.
Moores' brand manager, James Craig is of the opinion that the way units are configured has a major impact on usability of space in a kitchen. "One of our most recent designs features six wall units positioned together to create a bank of storage, while keeping the floor free - a good way to give the illusion of a bigger room," he says."Another trend is to incorporate mid-height units with a design. Although technically they provide less storage than a floor to ceiling larder unit, every inch of the available storage is accessible. Furthermore the shelf space provided atop a mid-height unit presents the perfect location for a TV or essential kitchen items and keeping this area free from cabinetry helps prevent a small kitchen becoming too cramped and enclosed."
"Our Le Mans corner unit is really the best we have ever used and is preferable to corner carousel units because it really does use every inch of space. It also brings every item stored out into view at once, so there is no endless turning of a carousel."
London-based, but German-manufactured, Hacker kitchen styles range from cosy country house, rustic Mediterranean to clean Scandinavian lines and slick Zen black or white minimalism. According to the company "smaller design details include clever storage and creative lighting."
A major boast from its handleless kitchens is the Silent-Move system featuring 12-centimetre thick granite worktops "that seem to float into an elegant space-saving dining feature." Dining table and bench groups come in a variety of sizes and veneers.
Individual Hacker features include those ergonomic cooking islands with extra storage; tall larder units with easy-move, tandem system pullouts with wire or glass sided baskets; freestanding dressers; integrated lighting; concealed extractor hoods; Magic Corners and Le Mans corner units; glass-sided telescopic pullouts and organiser drawers for everything from cutlery to storage jars.
And the quietly impressive feature is the provision of storage for the recycling of differentiated waste, an automatic feature for mainland Europe's kitchens.
Finally, anyone who reacts to the defining motto: 'Freedom of choice: over 2,000 options' by grinding to a dazed halt, should now relax, turn to the internet, don their avatar and go visit Second Life.
Earlier this year, IBM introduced the catalogue retailer Sears to this environment, with the aim of allowing a customer to import their own kitchen design into the virtual space, fit it out with Sears products, and be able to move around in it as they would a real kitchen, in order to get a feel for how the products would work in their kitchen at home.
An amusing weblog on the net recounts how a couple refurbishing their kitchen tried the Ikea and MFI design route, only to be routed when the design tools would not allow any standing features or fixtures, that were not part of the new product range.
In Second Life however, the couple had a scale model of their current kitchen within an hour and only required another to model their new design. Second Life tools are reportedly much easier to use and model with, and Second Life's added attraction is that friends and family can also visit to take a look and have their say.
For those to whom a 'mix and match' hybrid kitchen might have appeal, whether it be an island kitchen in a sea of living, or even two island units located in the kitchen, simulating space and storage simply has to be an interesting virtual option.
First published in Show House Magazine October 2007.
The greatest care has been taken to ensure accuracy but some information contained within this article may have changed since it was first published.
Posted by Gail Purvis
in B K Kitchens, Features, Hacker, Inside Out, Johnson & Johnson Furniture, Moores, RIBA, SieMatic, Stuart Frazer Contracts, Symphony, William Ball on Mon 1 Oct 2007
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