West central Ohio.
I’ve got to recommend the hot tub. We use ours ALL the time, because you can just hop in for a bit, without feeling like you have to fill it and all that. Plus, the husband and I can hang out in there every night, have a drink, and chat. It’s been much more awesome than expected, and you can get good used ones on Craigslist for cheap.
You can get a range with a double oven, which is a nice compromise if you have space issues.
On the sink, we recently changed ours out for a silgranite, and it’s amazing. Also, the faucet is one of the pullout sprayer ones, which is the best faucet I’ve ever used. Love, love, love.
Favorite features of my charming kitchen;
Cutting board counters. Yes, I know stone is all the rage, but I have very little counter space and want to be able to cut, and put hot pots, anywhere at all. In addition, when they first went in it was too pristine, somehow. Much better now that it’s had some use put on it and looks more lived in.
Stainless steel backsplash, also behind stove and dishwasher. Cost about $400, cut to measure, with holes and screws, easy to install and a snap to keep clean, I love it.
Walk in pantry. It’s the bomb. I had to defend it with my life, from the contractor during renovations, and my hubby, who now agrees I was right to do so. It’s brilliant. I actually use all my small appliances because they are right there where I can see them, no need to wrangle them out of some back cupboard. Everything I want, when baking, is right there in sight. Inventory, prior to shopping, is a snap! And it’s a cold room, during winter, no need to put pop in the fridge, and brilliant for storing large prepared trays when entertaining. Also great spot to put the turkey carcass, behind a closed door, while we eat our dinner, well out of the dog’s reach. I truly adore it, it’s brilliant.
My kitchen is small (which I like!) and not filled with cupboards, which I find very pleasing.
Not actually in the kitchen, but my BBQ is immediately outside the side door off the kitchen. As God intended, in my opinion.
Also; large bulletin board and large blackboard. I know where that phone number went, and what to get at the market!
I have a retro kitchen with the pine cabinets. All refinished. The only thing I don’t like is that I have a wall oven and a cooking top. I would like to have a traditional oven/cooktop together where the current cooktop is located. I’d lose the storage underneath, but I’d gain space for a very nice pantry. I also have an old-fashioned, tin-lined breadbox 
Lots of counter space.
UT
We redid our kitchen last year. Stuff I like:
- Drawers. Lots of drawers. We have zero under cabinets with doors*. Doors suck.
- Trash and recycling ( I think someone already mentioned this). Slide out, slide in. But the thing I would change is to make a bit of an overhang at the foot so you can open it with your feet (if you have good balance) I do this anyway now, but a bit more of an overhang would give my foot more pull. better yet, if your contractor can do some sort of pedal that opens the slider with your foot that would be divine. I hate having dirty hands with garbage and trying to open the garbage.
- Our pantry is a big cabinet with pull out shelves. We went NUTS with pull out trays. We even ordered more after the kitchen was done. Adjustable shelves mean you can eliminate a lot of wasted space. We have a small kitchen so this was KEY.
- Tile. I love my tile. Both the backsplash and the floor tile. Love them to bits. Make sure you love your tile too.
- heated flooring. Maybe you need this and maybe you don’t. I love mine.
- Think about the space above your refrigerator. How can that be useful to you? Our cabinet maker suggested vertical slats to make spaces for cutting boards, cookie sheets and stuff like that. LOVE IT! It’s the perfect spot since cutting boards and cookie sheets are not particularly heavy, so up higher isn’t a problem. Also, the refrigerator cabinet is deeper than the other upper cabinets, so there is room for big cutting boards and cookie sheets.
*Okay, the lazy susan and the sink has a door, but we didn’t have much choice there.
My kitchen is the least awesome room in my totally un-awesome house.
Yeah..my hesitance is because I live in South Florida, and it’s HOT half the year. I’m not sure if I can just not heat it and use it almost as a wading pool during the summer..or something like that. Also, I’m single..live alone..although having a hot tub might get some company. 
Oohh..some good things to think about there. How to open the trash area.
I definitely want the pull out shelves in lots of places. It just makes so much sense!
Heated floors, probably not needed here..see “hot tub” above. 
But I love the thought about the space above the fridge. That’s a great idea..slots for cutting boards. Have to discuss that and see
what we can do there.
Aww. You can still play along!
Thanks all. My plan the next two days is to sit down with the links from upthread, and do lots of reading.
-D/a
Our kitchen basically sucks. Our house is >250 years old and the kitchen, while not that old, desperately needs remodeling. Unfortunately it’s a really small space and has a weird layout, which complicates decision making, so we’re hung up on details. For example, will having a pull-out half-fridge (and a full fridge in an adjacent room) hurt resale, and even if so should we care? What about reducing the size of the window (that looks onto trees and the neighbor’s house) to add cabinet space?
Etc.
We have 36 acres out in the middle of nowhere in NE AZ. We bought a repo mobile home and placed it in the perfect spot on those 36 acres. I chose the home because when you walk into the kitchen, there are four windows together that need to face an incredible view. When we put the house where I wanted it, the windows were PERFECT.
The kitchen has has an island, which contains the sink and the dishwasher. When you stand at the sink, you can gaze to your heart’s content out of those four windows at the view. sigh
Unfortunately, our house is the BOTTOM-of-the-line in manufactured housing. Everything in it is the absolute cheapest selection. I tell people that the company built our place so salesmen could take folks inside and say, “Now, for a little bit more money, you can have…”
The layout of the kitchen is good, I love the island. The cabinets are awful. There are only three drawers in the entire kitchen. There’s dead space in the base cabinet corner. The place screams, “Cheap! Cheap! Cheap!”
One day I hope to be able to remodel. The house is cathedral-style ceiling, so I would choose to have cabinets go clear up to the sky. I have a tall husband for fetching out of the way things. But it would be nice to store stuff IN a cabinet, because top of cabinet storage tends to get dusty and greasy in a kitchen. I want drawers! I want outlets! I want undercabinet lights!
Most of all, I want a built-in oven. Maybe even a double oven.
But…
We’re equipped with solar electricity (out in the middle of nowhere does that). And my major appliances need to be gas.
Did you know they don’t MAKE full size built-in gas ranges any more? 24-inch wide, max. The big honkers are electric, and my electrician would have to mastermind a switch that would power up the propane generator should I make the jump to an electric oven.
OR…ever watch “Cupcake Wars”? Seen those snazzy baker ovens they use, with the “barn-doors” that open with one hand? Those are gas. I can drool just thinking about those.
And then I can throw up at the $4000-$6000 price tag on them.
I love all the ideas I’m reading in this thread! One day…
~VOW
This is a tiny option in a sea of whale options, but I have those tiny flip-open drawers in front of the sink for scrubbers and I never remember to use them. In seven+ years here, I can’t remember they’re there. After we’d been here about a year, I opened it to find the scrubbers the previous owner left behind. (They were clean.) It sounds awesome and makes sense, but I can’t for the life of me remember their existence.
I have high ceilings and I wish my cabinets went all the way up. I have to use a ladder to get to the top shelf anyway (and I’m 5-9); another shelf up there could be storing my crock pots and bigass casserole dishes. Now it’s a receptacle for a spectacular layer of dust. :smack:
I absolutely agree with the cabinets to the ceiling notion. Kitchens have a lot of airborne grease. It mixes with the dust and you end up with a gluey mix that’s a bitch to clean (come on, how many of you routinely clean up there?). Putting knickknacks, wine bottles and the like up there just makes for more PITA cleaning chores and fire hazard. And besides, the shorter ones just seem to be hanging in space and look. . .bizarre. The same is true of cabinet doors with fancy curlicues and ogee work, although to a lesser extent. I really hate those molding pieces that some folks put around the bottom of cabinets, also. They perform no function and just get in the way of changing those under-cab lights, which are also a stellar idea.
Make sure you have a good exhaust fan; perhaps even one that vents directly from the kitchen through the wall, along with the standard hood vent. They make them with louvers to help keep cold air out.
Double deep sink, if you have room underneath. Double ovens. Six burner gas cooktop.
I like the magnetic spice tins that come with a magnetic piece that you cut to fit on the inside of your cabinet door. Leaves room inside the cab for other things.
Yeah..I have them in my current kitchen, and NEVER use them. I always wonder about putting sponges and stuff in there..they’re WET when I’m done with them. Won’t they grow mold in a closed space?
Definitely! I need storage. Lots of it. I want on cabinets that go all the way up..if not higher. Even if the top shelves are just for
little used items..I have plenty of those! I need to put those lollipop molds somewhere, and the kitchen seems like the right place.
Sadly, I’m on a zero lot line, and have no windows on the side of the house with the kitchen. I should put in a close circuit TV, with a camera facing out over my lake on the other side. It would be like a window, right?
I’ve been talking about remodeling for so long..I’m excited to actually be doing it. But it helps to have thought about it. It lets you figure out what problems you really have in your current space, so you can solve them.
Gas isn’t an option for me. The closest gas line is several miles away. I’d have to spend tons of money to get it. At least that takes away one thing to consider.
Yeah..it’s overwhelming when you’re the one actually doing the remodel, though. But I sooo appreciate the advice here.
Plus, looking at my kitchen right now, I have exactly ONE thing above one of the cabinets. And it’s not even a display item. It’s just wasted space right now. I know I can do better.
Definitely want the deep sink. And a good faucet. I’m still debating about the double oven. As I mentioned above, gas cooktop isn’t really an option. Any thoughts on induction cooktops? Actually, I think I may start an appliance version of this thread to discuss features and toys there.
I’m not sure I understand..do you have a link to a picture?
-D/a
Googling “magnetic spice tins” turned up this among many others: http://www.aarondunlap.com/images/spicerack/IMG_0795.JPG
I put these in when I did my kitchen (2 one for dish soap, one for hand soap) and after ten years or so the pumps died. The replacement versions I bought came with plastic tubing and a cork, so they can draw soap directly from a large bottle under the sink. Way, way better than the small bottle the old ones had.
The cool things in my Kitchen:
[ul]
[li]Water filter and insta hot. Hot or cool filtered water at the touch of a button. Want to make tea? 190F water available right now.[/li][li]pull out garbage can right next to sink (Doing it over I would add one for recycling)[/li][li]An air switch for garbage disposal (push button on counter top)[/li][li]A very expensive and powerful garbage disposal. Worth every cent, quiet and does not jam or clog pipes[/li][li]My Miele dishwasher, it is so quiet I have opened the door in midcycle by mistake.[/li][/ul]
I’ve cooked on electric, and I’ve cooked on gas, and I’d never willingly choose an electric cooktop. I’d cook on the BBQ first!
If a gas line weren’t available, I’d bring the gas to me. I’d put Hubster to work, schlepping 5 gal gas tanks if I couldn’t get something set up by an LP provider.
As for induction cooktops, I want to do canning. The canning pressure cookers are VERBOTEN on those induction jobbies.
~VOW
Um..that’s all kinds of awesome. To be discussed with my contractor.
Instant hot is a great idea. And the better garbage disposal..I replaced mine a few years ago and kept the same strength..and I regret it. I want one that will CONSISTENTLY take care of my apple cores.
Is your husband available for refills in South Florida? I’ll provide beer if he brings the gas. Local companies would be happy to run a line, if I pay many thousands of dollars. Home Owners Association won’t let me have an above ground tank. County won’t let me bury one - my yard is too close to the other houses and a lake. So I think I’m SOL on gas..unless I wanted to keep the 5 gal tanks you mention. <google..google..> Apparently, natural gas doesn’t compress well, so you can’t store much in the small tanks. So that probably isn’t a real option either.
-D/a
I did the magnetic spice tin thing myself - bought one of those magnetic white boards, took the frame off, took the actual whiteboard surface off the particleboard underneath, Command Adhesived the thing to the cabinet door. AWESOME. That and cup hooks on the side of a cabinet by the sink for my measuring cups (instead of a drawer) are the absolute best things I’ve done for myself as a cook. When I put the new cabinets in I’ll do it neater but I’m not giving up my magnetic spice rack.
I didn’t really have time during my first post of this thread to do it justice.
My husband and I have dealt with some bad kitchens in our time. I won’t even count the apartments. Our first house had a kitchen with a ton of foot space but no storage space. Our second, the one we just tore up, had the opposite problem–tons of cabinets and drawers, but an awkward footprint that made it nearly impossible for two cooks to work together. And we love doing that! We got this house for a cut rate, and knew going in that we’d live in the kitchen for a year or two and then remodel.
Our first step was getting more space. We are moving the laundry room off the current kitchen to go upstairs off our guest bedroom, and redesigned our garage entry to create a mud room across from an existing half bath that’s just inside of the door to the garage. That allowed us to knock down one wall. We’re also knocking down another wall (this one load-bearing) and expanding into the next room. This allowed us to get 50% more cabinets and at least twice the counter space of our former kitchen.
The design is essentially a U shape with a center island. One side of the U is for cleaning, with the dishwasher and main single-bowl undermount sink. The island is for prep, with butcher-block countertop and another undermount sink. The other side of the U has most of the cooking appliances. The range top and double ovens are there. The microwave is on the other side, above the dishwasher. The bottom of the U has the fridge and pantry. This creates a cleaning zone and a cooking zone, with prep on either side.
We also have a drop zone between the mud room and kitchen–a small area of countertop, drawers and shelving where we can put our wallets and receipts and loose change and junk when we get home. The mud room itself has cabinets, hooks, a bench, and shelving. It’s going to be great for dropping off coats right when we get in the house.
Some features we have in the new kitchen:
–Full extension drawers with soft-close. We also got soft-close on the glass cabinets as well.
–Pull-out shelving in the pantry. Nothing languishing in the back anymore!
–Deep base drawers instead of base cabinets for cookware.
–A built-in banquette.
–Quartz countertops (except on the island). Can’t be beat for durability and ease of care.
–A full tile backsplash.
If you want, PM me. I’m in the throes of it right now (demolition started 12/15). I’ve been documenting the whole thing on Flickr and I’d be glad to send you a link to the gallery.
I totally forgot about the Sweepeze. If you have a bad back it’s awesome. I’m a messy cook and end up sweeping the floor a lot, as a result. This little machine installs behind the kickplate (under sink or cabinet). It’s motion sensitive, so when you sweep the floor, you just sweep up to it, and it comes on, and vacuums up the sweepings, plus the broom (dog hair!), no bending over with dustpan. Shuts itself off after a few seconds. I adore mine. It’s small, easily installed, and not very expensive. Think about it, one day you could be old!
Re: the faucet. Do NOT fall for the hype about Moen and other high-priced fixtures. Moen has some particularly bad problems with parts breaking inside and parts are not easy to come by. They do have a lifetime warranty, but so do the Price-Pfister faucets for a much lower price. I went to a place here where the guys actually know the products inside out, thinking that I wanted a Grohe. The price quickly disabused me of that notion. Then I was talking to one of the guys behind the counter about Moen vs other brands and he said that Moen was overrated and had the aforementioned problem. The outsides are solid, but the insides are cheap. He recommended the cheaper Price fixture because it’s solid brass inside. I didn’t care for the plastic wand on it, but it works very well and has a lifetime warranty.
I don’t have a double oven, but there have been times when it would have been very handy. If you do a lot of baking, it comes in handy. I am completely unfamiliar with induction, but I really prefer the established technology of gas and electric. I had a glass top electric which was attractive and worked quite well, but they do scratch easily and can be broken if you’re not careful. We also had a Jenn-Air grill built into our counter right next to the stove, which we got some use out of, but I wouldn’t spend the money for another one.
Spice tins: This is where I ordered mine from. You order the magnetic sheet separately, then cut it to fit inside your cabinet door. There is a strong adhesive on the back, and once it’s up, it’s staying there.
I store new sponges in those little useless flip-out holders at the sink. Otherwise, they’re useless.
We inherited granite tile countertops when we bought this house. I’d rather have a solid sheet. When we remodeled in our last place, I had a beautiful composite top made by Staron put in. Scratches easier than granite, of course.