The chances are, you're spending a lot of time in the kitchen.
If you like cooking, that's sort of understandable, but is it still true if you prefer take-out?
I don't know about you, but I can recall a lot of conversations, coffees with friends and family time spent in the kitchen. Maybe it's about the proximity to cookies - why would you move to the living room if you could stay close to all the goodies?
A lot of people work in the kitchen too - dining table seems to have a multi-purpose feature built right in it.
Coming from that place, how do we make sure that the kitchen encourages all those great relationships, becoming more than just a place to chop and boil?
The main mistake that I see people make is to plan their kitchen around the edges and forgetting to use "the middle." Putting everything around the walls is usually not the most efficient use of space.
Now, let me explain what I mean on an example.
The kitchen layout above includes a wall full of cabinets, the fridge, the oven and all the other necessities around the counter space. For the purpose of this point it's not really important "what goes where." (If you want to go deeper into that, click here.)
Anyway, as I was about to say, the energy in this room "doesn't flow." If you think of your kids eating their breakfast while you're packing lunches, you can't really see what they're doing, because you're not facing each other. This can lead to a hell lot of stress...
To avoid that, try to include an island or a peninsula, which encourages facing each other and gives more opportunity for talking and feeling like you're spending time together.
Do you see what I mean? This solution uses the space much more effectively, while making it work for you and not against you.
Now, a task for you. Ask yourself: is there anything you can do, move or rearrange to make your kitchen space more inviting, friendly and open for communication?
As always, let me know your insights by commenting under the blog post here.
I love hearing from you.
Until next time,
Kat xx
Kat Bern
Kat Bern is an interior designer and a Dream Home Creator. She studied in London at the University of Arts and gained experience working for the best interior design company in Europe, designing for big brands such as Sheraton or Hilton.
She's an advocate for deep human relationships, open communication and empowerment of women from a young age.
As an entrepreneur she teaches how to use practical design and open attitude to transform your house into a Dream Home. On her weekly blog she shares secrets and inspiration for changing your home in small steps that will eventually change your life.
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