Kitchen Design Archives - Martina Hayes

Open Plan Kitchen Design

Lifestyle of Open Plan Living

An open plan kitchen design is on top of many homeowners’ list to have. This is because open plan living is the new way of life, everyday living that brings your family congregating together.

What is Open Plan Kitchen Design?

Open plan kitchen design is being referred to when the kitchen is combined with the dining and living area creating one large space. The opposite is a kitchen that is tucked away in a separate room.

Why is Open Plan Kitchen Design so popular?

Even being on kitchen duties, an open plan kitchen includes you into the family life. Allowing you to keep an eye on your kids while preparing meals makes this design very popular with families.

If entertaining is your favourite weekend activity, an open plan kitchen is a must. You can finalise the food preparation while chatting with your guests. More often than not the kitchen island bench becomes the centrepoint of the party where everyone congregates.

White-kitchen — White open plan kitchen with industrial touch in Mosman

How to achieve an Open Plan Kitchen Design?

Lucky you when your house has already a large kitchen-dining-living area. If not, you might wish to consider removing or relocating an existing wall to open up the space.

Open Plan Kitchen in Willoughby: Case Study

Grey-Open-plan-kitchen-design — A warm and welcoming open plan kitchen in Willoughby

Our clients in Willoughby wanted to create an inviting atmosphere in their home. So we developed an open concept kitchen in their desired style of simple, modern and sleek. The end result is a kitchen that promotes a warm and welcoming atmosphere while being functional and practical.

What makes an Open Plan Kitchen Design?

Kitchen Island Bench

In this kitchen design we made the island bench act as the focal point of the space. The space in which the eye is naturally most drawn to. The island bench is not only a feature to be looked at but very practical for everyday use. It acts as a preparation area, breakfast bar as well as creating space for additional storage underneath which comes in handy in this mid-sized kitchen.

Benchtop and Cabinetry

The benchtops in this particular kitchen design are made from Caesarstone. Caesarstone is a man-made manufactured quartz stone that is durable providing its surface with exceptional properties of heat, stain, scratch and chip resistance.

The cabinetry has a Polyurethane finish (also called two-pack) in a light grey and a charcoal tone for the island bench.

Practicality

As well as creating a beautiful kitchen design practicality must also be implemented. In an open concept kitchen, the elevated dishwasher goes easy on the back while packing and unpacking the dishes. Therefore creating a beautiful looking kitchen while also making an everyday task very simple.

Lighting

Kitchens can sometimes come across as hard and harsh due to the abundance of hard surfaces. All this means is that you need to create more atmosphere. In this design we added texture in the shape of Abaca pendant lights to hang above the striking island bench. They are a beautiful texture adding lots of warmth to the space. The light globe adds a soft glow as well as the organic shape of the pendants creating character in the form of free flowing art.

These are all great elements that go into creating a great kitchen design.

If you have any questions about your open plan kitchen design, please call me on 0434 498 450 or email to martina@martinahayes.com.au. If you prefer, you can also this contact form.

Standard dimensions for Australian kitchen design

When you intend to renovate your kitchen, you wish to work towards the standard dimensions for Australian kitchen for optimum ergonomics and functionality. In addition, don’t forget to grab some kitchen design inspirations in passing.

Please find your expert guide for optimal kitchen design measurements below.

Kitchen Design Lower North Shore Sydney — Standard kitchen dimensions ensure functionality and sophisticated looks

Benchtop

Height

Standard benchtop height is 900mm. However, depending on your stature it can range from 850mm to 1000mm.

Depth

Standard depth of a benchtop is 600mm. But have a look at your fridge’s depth first. If you don’t want the fridge to protrude out of your kitchen row, adjust the depth of your benchtop accordingly. See standard fridge dimensions below.

Thickness

The most popular benchtops in Australia are made of engineered stones (e.g. Caesarstone, Quantum Quartz, Essastone, Smartstone) and laminate finishes. The average thickness of the latter one is around 33mm, whereas engineered stone usually comes in 20mm or a multiple thereof. If you wish to choose an engineered stone, our recommendation was to go with a thickness of 40mm as this looks well-proportioned and classy.

Island Bench

Distance

Galley kitchens with an island bench are still going strong in 2021. For its installation allow for approx 1200mm between the kitchen row and the island bench. If this space is too narrow, it becomes awkward when more than one person is working in the kitchen or the kids are running around your legs. Installed too far apart from each other, the kitchen becomes less efficient to work in.

Width and depth

The size of your kitchen island bench can be as large as your space allows. The only restriction is the width of the slab, if you opt for an engineered stone. A standard slab size is 3060mm by 1440mm, but some suppliers offer oversized jumbo slabs which eliminate the need of an unsightly joint between two slabs.

A good island width to work with is 1200mm, especially if you plan to place some barstools on the other side. In this case you wish to accommodate for the necessary leg room.

Leg room

An island bench is a great place to sit on bar stools while having your breakfast or a snack. Allow for 300mm of leg room underneath the benchtop to sit comfortably. You need to check with your kitchen manufacturer how big an unsupported benchtop overhang can be based on your chosen material.

Walkway

Plan for 1000mm walkway either side of the island bench. This will allow enough space for people to move around without having to turn sideways.

Fridge

The sizes of fridges vary significantly. For a single door fridge allow around 800mm width and 780mm depth. A double door fridge is around 1200mm wide and 850mm deep. If you have selected a fridge, check its required ventilation space in the manual to incorporate this space into your planning.

Oven

Whether you go for a wall or under bench oven, the standard width is 600mm. For large families and for entertainment standard options include 700mm and 900mm.

Overhead cupboards

Clearance between benchtop and overhead cupboards to be a minimum of 600mm. However, if you wish to install a gas cooktop, you need to allow for at least 650mm. Read the manual of the cooktop and rangehood manufacturers and follow their requirements. If uncertain, please check with a licensed electrician for the safety of your family.

Dishwasher

Dishwashers and dish drawers are usually 600mm wide, but they also come in 450mm suitable for an apartment or studio.

Sink

Sinks come in all shapes and sizes. For a double sink allow for a length of around 800mm and a width of 480mm plus drainage area on the benchtop. The depth of the sink is around 200mm.

If you wish to plan your kitchen sink with a single bowl allow for a length of 550mm and a width of around 500mm.

Kickboards

Kickboards height is usually between 90mm and 150mm and set back from the cabinet’s carcass by around 50mm.

We hope this information helps you with the design of your new kitchen. In addition, here are some kitchen design ideas up for grabs.

You can get a pdf version of the Standard Dimensions for Australian Kitchen emailed for you to print out. Please type in your name and email address below:

If you have a question or need help with your kitchen makeover, please send an email to martina@martinahayes.com.au or call 0434 498 450. Alternatively, you can use this contact form.

Kitchen finishes for your home

The kitchen is the heart and hub of the home and choosing the right kitchen finishes will make all the difference of how the space functions and looks. The kitchen is the place for family and friends to gather together for meals, conversations and great entertainment. A kitchen is what makes a house a home.

We worked alongside our clients, a young couple from North Ryde to create a stunning classic white kitchen in the contemporary interior design style.

Contemporary interior design: refers to interior styles developed in the latter half of the 20th century. It’s colour palette consisting of browns, taupe, cream, and pure white.

The classic white kitchen design is popular but can be differentiated and varied. The main goal is to be timeless, smooth and fresh. White cabinetry, fair stone tops, and sleek flooring help to bring the design to life.

The Kitchen Finishes selected

The Benchtop

In this kitchen we selected a Caesarstone quartz stone that emulates the look of marble Calacatta. This is the main feature of the entire kitchen. The waterfall, which is the continued stone down the sides of the island, adds a huge sense of luxury to the entire room.

Splashback and Tiles

Our clients chose a glass splashback as one of their kitchen finishes. It reflects the beautiful and rich cappuccino colour that lays beneath the glass. In this kitchen design for the tiled areas, we favored the gloss look. Therefore both the splashback and floor tiles gleam. Additionally, the large scale floor tiles measuring 600 x 600mm create the illusion of a larger space.

Contemporary white kitchen with island bench — Read how your new kitchen will function around your family’s needs

Cabinetry

The cabinetry kitchen finishes are very sleek, modern and contemporary in design and layout. The polyurethane cupboards, shelves and drawers are finished in the Dulux colour “ghosting”. No handles are included in this design as to cohesively stay in touch with the minimalist contemporary style.

A bulkhead is a great kitchen finish that is both functional and aesthetic. Hence, no dust, dirt or grime will be collected in the spare space, leaving your kitchen beautiful and clean. A bulkhead enhances the scale of the kitchen visually as it goes right to the ceiling filling all the space drawing the eye up to the ceiling.

Our clients chose a canopy rangehood for this kitchen design, as well as an inbuilt wall oven.

Tapware

When it was about choosing the taps, our clients preferred a classic chrome tapware. They look modern and sleek as well as being easy to clean so your kitchen always looks polished and luxurious. On the island bench, a zip tap provides instant boiling water; this was selected in matching chrome.

All these finishes are complimentary and cohesive with the rest of the home. We assisted our clients in selecting finishes for multiple rooms including kitchen and bathrooms. See their bathroom here.

If you find it overwhelming choosing finishes in a new built or home renovation, we’re happy to help. Please call me on 0434 498 450 or email to martina@martinahayes.com.au.

If you prefer, you can also use this contact form.

White Kitchen Designs

White kitchen designs are clever and classic that never go out of trend. White benchtops combined with white cabinets are on the top of many homeowners’ wish list when it comes to designing a new kitchen.

A classic white kitchen design is always on trend

What makes up white kitchen designs?

White kitchen designs with an industrial touch

My clients, a couple in Mosman, wanted to go for the white-on-white look but they were worried that this neutral colour scheme might look cold and bland. This is why for this design we incorporated an industrial touch in the design.

The Marble Look

I recommended choosing a benchtop that has the marble look. Including the traditional broad grey veins through the stone, Statuario Maximus by Caesarstone breaks up the otherwise solid white kitchen in this design.

Open shelving for cups and plates

Another feature that adds interest is the open timber shelving integrated into the overhead cupboards mirroring the dark colour from the timber floor boards.

Splashback in herringbone pattern

Underneath and highlighted by LED light strips is the splashback with a herringbone pattern. For the grout I selected a light grey to strike a balance between showing off the herringbone tile without becoming overpowering.

White kitchen splashback — Splashback in a herringbone pattern adds interest

Black kitchen sink and tapware

A black sink and black tapware provide contrasting accents to the white kitchen. They correspond well with the industrial bar stools with their black leather pads and wired back rests.

Pendant lights over island bench

Continuing this theme, we installed minimalist pendant lights on top of the island bench for additional lighting and to create interest.

Plenty of storage in white kitchen design

The tall floor to ceiling cabinetry on the left offers plenty of storage in this contemporary kitchen. It includes a pantry and appliance cupboard where the toaster, kettle and coffee machine are hidden away but still easy to access. If you’re looking for a few nifty kitchen ideas check out this link.

No handles for a seamless kitchen

The push/pull mechanism of the cabinet doors allows for not having to include handles at all in this kitchen design. Therefore making this kitchen easy to clean while achieving a sleek seamless look.

LED light strips let the island bench float

LED lighting on the bottom of the island bench give the impression of a weightless island that seems to hover effortlessly over the kitchen floor.

If you wish to have a new kitchen and need help with layout and finishes, please call me on 0434 498 450 or email to martina@martinahayes.com.au. Alternatively, you can also use this contact form.

Kitchen ideas for you

Are you need of some inspiring kitchen ideas?

Watch this short and sweet video to learn about our nifty kitchen ideas that you may easily incorporate in your new kitchen design.

Kitchen idea #1: A rack for pot lids

There is, for instance, a rack that accommodates all your pot lids. Properly stored this way, grab and access the lids easily when you need them.

Kitchen ideas create superb aesthetics

Inside the kitchen cabinet door, install the rack out of sight, keeping your kitchen clutter free. Deciding on this concept for your design will add style and create a superb aesthetics in your kitchen.

Kitchen idea #2: A pull-out bin

The second nifty idea is to implement a pull-out bin to the kitchen design.

You may install a pull-out bin underneath the kitchen’s benchtop. This allows you to simply slide all your food scraps easily over the edge of the bench right into the bin. It’s a great use of the space that is under your kitchen’s benchtop.

Kitchen ideas around waste management

The pull-out bin may also be divided into separate compartments, making it easy to separate your food scraps from your recyclable items. Doing this helps you to live more sustainably without creating extra work or effort for yourself and your home.

After its use, push it back and your kitchen is tidy again. In other words, the bin is hidden, but still easy to access.

Have a look at different waste management options.

Kitchen idea #3: A cargo pantry

A cargo pantry (also called pull-out pantry). This cabinet is your best friend when space is at a premium

Pull-out pantry also known as cargo pantry — In a cargo/pull-out pantry, stocks are of easy access

It holds all your food that doesn’t need refridgeration from Avocado to Ziti Pasta. Just pull on the handle and all your supplies are clearly arranged for you to grab.

What a great space saver.

These are just 3 of many nifty kitchen ideas you may incorporate into your own kitchen design.

If you have a question about kitchen design, please email to martina@martinahayes.com.au or call on 0434 498 450. Alternatively use this contact form.