Amy Canary We built I-shape cabinetry for a client in Westchester, NY.

bubblyjock Pro: no annoying and wasteful corner cupboards (even the swing-out ones are a pita).

Con: if you're party people, you canNOT cook or move safely and quickly with a multitude of guests hanging out in the kitchen, which guests are wont to do....

Lanefab Design/Build We've used galley kitchens on a number of projects. They're great for small spaces because they don't require dedicated circulation, and the kitchen/dining/living can be flexible. Euro sized appliances (24"wide) allow for more countertop and storage. Cabinets doors can be run full height to the ceiling to add extra storage space.

Julie Cooke at Fletcher Bright Homes Would love to more of these designs installed into 1920-1950 homes in North Chattanooga. So many surbanites would move closer to work downtown, IF homes for sale had these design elements. Showings last week had too many orginal appliances and cabinets. Sink $15,000 into a kitchen and watch it sell.

Jubi Arriola_Headley Thanks SO much for this article. I have been SERIOUSLY considering this option - I have a 21-foot long, enclosed kitchen - galley style on one side, tiny breakfast area on the other - and the most cost-effective way to lose the wall between the kitchen and family room (and the backyard and pool beyond) would be to do an I-shaped kitchen. My home has a slab foundation so putting in a fixed island with electric will either require a column or digging into the slab - the former I don't want and the latter would be very costly. I imagine then running a long farmhouse-style table perpendicular to the wall o' kitchen, as in kitchens 1 and 2, which would double as counter space and could seat 8-10 for more formal meals.

Julie, I really appreciate your comments. I live in Houston, in an average 3BR, 2BA, 2,000 square foot ranch, in average neighborhood (depending on size and condition home prices range anywhere from $170k - $300k on average). I've worried that this type of layout would be to forward thinking, so to speak, for the typical buyer (I anticipate selling in about five years). Good to hear a real estate professional's take on this.

compact Quick question on the 3rd photo, has the microwave over the Oven got an extractor van built in?
Or if not, does it not get too hot or gunked up?

ploefff @Jubi Arriola_Headley: You don't write how wide the room is but since you're considering an I shape it's probably modest. In my ever waging war on the USELESS breakfast nooks people cram into small kitchens I give you a much better solution: Put a lower cabinet on casters so you can move it out and to the side and sit at the counter with lots of leg room. Built in breakfast nook ready for when you need it - gone when you don't.

Amy Renea Breakfast nooks are SO the opposite of useless when you have children. They are invaluable as breakfast nooks, lunch nooks, homework nooks, puzzle nooks and reading nooks where kids can chill while mom is in the kitchen.

Lanefab Design/Build One of our projects in the design stage uses a galley kitchen, and what we're calling a flex-island. The island is countertop height and has drawer units on casters (similar to the comment above) which can be rolled aside to create a large dining table as needed. The house is ~800sf.

ploefff @Amy Renea: I think this is a classic European/US difference in sizes miscommunications. If your nook can seat 4 then it's not the kind I'm talking about.
No these ones are that small plank of wood that's stuck on a little too high, are too shallow to fit your knees under so you have to sit sideways and only seats 2 people in theory. To reach the table you have to balance on a barstool halfway up the wall. Those are the one I wage my war on because the moveable cabinet is such an excellent and easy fix.

I would imagine that urban dweller in US tiny (European normal) apartments might have come across this type of solution. I solved it close to my suggestion in my apartment with an extension of my countertop.

Howells Architecture + Design, LLC The Jason Arnold kitchen/dining has a lovely tone and texture. Nice work.

Paul D'Amico - Period Design I'm glad you brought this one up Lisa. The I kitchen is for someone that analyse what they really need in terms of storage. Someone that likes space in their kitchen. Someone that would rather fit a table rather than have double the storage full of not essential stuff. Someone like me. Probably more for a bachelor or a couple than a family. The examples you show by Jason Arnold and Sandrin Leung are particularly interesting because there is space to add more storage but they chose not to. Its refreshening for me to see this. I thought everyone was obsessed with making cabinet makers as rich as possible. The I solution reduces the cost of cabinetry. The money saved can be diverted to other things like taking your partner out to dinner.

Chris Great article bout something that doesn't get much press. The one-wall kitchen with a parallel island is the kitchen design for my future pre-fab empty nest house, and I am struggling with idea. The island means I won't lack for counter top space, but I'm not thrilled about littering it with life-essentials like my coffee maker, either.
Comments on the order of appliances? As designed, and starting from the end closest to the dining area, the order is Fridge - dishwasher - sink - small counter -cooktop over oven - small counter.

Siobhan Roth We are planning a renovation of our tiny I-shaped kitchen. Currently the kitchen ends at the sink. We plan to extend the counter and lower cabinetry beyond the sink (knocking out the brick wall) so that they run the entire length of one dining room wall, about 200". We're desperate for storage.
Any ideas for corralling the backsplash in the cooking area? We're leaning toward true subway tiles.
Thoughts on countertop surfaces that won't look too kitchen-y in the dining room are also welcome.
The floors will be black-stained hardwood.
Many thanks for any advice!

devo6655 Do you think an "I" shaped kitchen will work best for this kitchen? Or a 2 wall galley kitchen with the sink/ dw along the staircase is better? Kitchen is at the back of the house. Entrance to the house is through the front door next to the LR. There is no DR, only an eat-in kitchen. Room is 22 x 12 including the staircase which has an 8' run.

Chris I think the L-shape you have now is a better alternative than a galley or an I shape.
* The galley would put a traffic pattern right through the kitchen workflow, which is never a good thing.
*The I shape (assuming this would be lengthwise along the current sink wall) gives you plenty of length, but I don't think the room is wide enough to make it work: 12 feet minus 2 for the counter and 3 for the staircase means you're wedging a table into just 7 or 8 feet. You'd be restricted to a really narrow table running parallel to the counter, with chairs on just one side.
Have thought about building in your dining room seating? Sarah Susanka does this in many of her designs, like http://www.notsobigshowhouse.com/2011/shared/images/NSB-Showhouse-First-FloorHiRes.jpg or http://www.rosschapin.com/Plans/Houses/Robinsong/Robinsong.html ). That might let you pick up a few more inches along the long sink wall of the kitchen.
Then, I'd suggest considering the following:
*Make the counter along the long wall 30" deep. Conversely, I'd be tempted to make the peninsula narrower so it could be a couple of inches closer to the seating area, again maximizing the long wall of the kitchen.
*Put the sink on the peninsula, with the dishwasher on the left. Put the range to the right of the window. I would want to maximize the counter area between the sink and the range.
*If you have the money for cabinetry, see if you can sink narrow pantries between the studs on the stair case wall. If you can go 4" into the wall, and 4" into the walkway, you can get a fair amount of shallow cabinet space.

devo6655 cris9 - thank you for your suggestions. The "I" shape was recommended on another forum but never sat well with me, so I posted this question. I played a lot with layouts yesterday and am likely going with a double galley; 14' on the outside wall and 7' along the 8' run of stairs, leaving the 1' gap at the entrance to the kitchen from the LR (pinchpoint). Removing window and placing the stove and fan there. That window offers little light as the house next door is only 10' away. Sink & DW by the stairs. Simple move of plumbing across the floor from where it is now, no cutting of floor joists. This will give me a 8x12 dining area at the back of the house, allowing for a rectangular table that will seat 6-8 and up to 10 in a pinch.

I measured the work triangle and it comes up at 18 feet. The space between the galleys will be 5' unless we go with deeper cabinets as you suggested.

I especially dislike the peninsula we currently have. At large parties we have, friends have told us they could see the food on the table (at the back of the kitchen) but couldn't get there because of the bottle neck of the peninsula. Storage is a huge issue, and I find corner cabinets are terrible for storage, even with all the newfangled racks, etc. I just want drawers, upper cabinets on one side, and built in sliding pantry shelving. I hope that will work!

Thanks again and please feel free to add any comments you may have.

Jubi Arriola_Headley Devo - what if you considered an L-shaped kitchen? That's what you have now essentially - I guess I am suggesting flipping the short end of the L. You could get rid of the peninsula and move the range along the back of the fireplace wall. The fridge could go to the left of the sink perhaps. Any storage you lost on that end would be made up along the fireplace wall. I think you would have enough room for a not-too-huge, not-too-wide movable island table in front of the sink, just to give you a little extra counterspace and direct traffic past the work triangle. Just a thought....

devo6655 Jubi, thanks for your suggestion. If you look closely at the floorplan you will see that the entrance to the kitchen is at the chimney wall with a major pinch-point. When we bought the house, the fridge stood against that wall, about 2 feet over from the doorway and made entering the room tight. I have photos posted on a thread in the 'design discussion" forum called "what new design would you suggest for this kitchen" or something like that, posted this past Sunday. I like that look in other kitchens, but it won't work in the layout of this kitchen. None-the-less, thanks again...

joanbllt I have an I shaped kitchen in a small condo - converted by taking out the wall of the previous galley 8' X 8' kitchen. The before and after below.

Chris So, Joanbllt --how do you like it? In particular, is having the dishwasher next to the fridge the way you would lay it out if you had to do it all over again? And how long did your new kitchen run end up being?

My retirement home will have a 10' 10" I kitchen (all the appliances have to be on that one wall for transport of the pre-fab house). That working wall will face a 7' long by 3.5' wide island, and there is a good size pantry around the corner (4' wide by 2' deep). Overall I'll have plenty of counter space and I think I'll be okay on storage, but I worry about congestion (and where to put the microwave!).

joanbllt The cabinets plus refrigerator are 17' 4". I have no problems with the location of the dishwasher. If I were to change anything, I would have created a slightly larger space between stove and sink. The electricity had to be rerouted for the stove and we weren't sure that the existing wiring was adequate.

There is a counter height oval table to the right and just out of the second picture that has a black glass top. It serves as my de facto island and the main dining table. I deliberately did not put the microwave high - needed easy access. The pantry cupboards are the end cupboards - top is regular shelving - bottom two are pull out drawers behind doors.

I did make an error - when I planned this - there was a door from the front hall to the kitchen - I closed the door and created an interior window. (there is another door into the space about 4' away) the refrigerator has rounded door and requires more space to open than I allowed. It is only mildly annoying so will have to live with it.

I am in a small condo and tried to keep this fix within my means and needs. If I had lots of money, time and permission from the homeowners association, I would have totally relocated the kitchen, moved walls and turned things topsy turvy.

nagla soliman Hi, i have a 3.5 m*2.5 m kitchen which will include a washing mashine and a dish washer.
I would like to have a small table with 4 chairs.Do you think the I shape kitchen will be a solution?

joanbllt the kitchen is narrow - the windows and doors will be a factor in being able to add that to your kitchen.

Paul D'Amico - Period Design Nagia Soliman, I have posted a kitchen which is 2642X2663 mm. The table is 600x1200mmm and the worktop is 600mm wide. Hope it helps.

Michelle Friedman Has anyone seen an I shaped kitchen with an island or peninsula running perpendicular to the counters? I have a 6 foot wall with a doorway on each side running parallel to my counters (kitchen is basically 12X12) and I was thinking of doing a 4X6 peninsula off that wall. I think it would look odd to have one that is parallel to my counters and right in the middle of my kitchen, so doing one in the other direction seemed like the best soution. But, I can not seem to find a picture of an I shaped kitchen done that way. Any ideas?

mysmallhome Joanbilt, I too, live in a small condo and your old kitchen is nearly identical to mine. My husband and I are planning to remodel the kitchen. On the back side of the kitchen is an unused wood fireplace. Our plan is to knock out the fireplace and open the kitchen to the living area. Our HOA has given us permission to remove the fireplace. We have a contractor drawing up plans for us. So, right now, I'm perusing Houzz for ideas and inspiration. Can't wait!

joanbllt There may be load bearing points - There is one post that is somewhat awkward - comments here have given me the idea to build the post out a bit to correct a seeming off center location. If you have a fireplace there may be one above if you have a one floor condo. If so, there is weight that may require posts and a loadbearing beam.

I didn't move the sink just replaced it - as a plumbing move was more than I wanted to deal with. The stove wiring was long enough to reach a junction box on the remaining wall - now concealed inside a cabinet. from that box wiring was added to the new stove location.

The most annoying problem - the ceiling was very unlevel. The contractor had to scribe an insert between the tops of the cabinets and the ceiling that looked like soft waves. Good luck on your remodel.

llswink You have no idea how timely this is! We are trying to buy a house that is 175 years old. (you read that correctly) The kitchen is about the size of some people's walk-in closets! I do not want to loose the charm of the original cabinets that were made using wood from the property, about 100 years ago when the two room cabin was added on to, but I do need a more workable plan for this kitchen! Thanks to everyone for all your input! It gives me plenty of ideas and options. That is, of course, if our bid is accepted!

Lanefab Design/Build Our most recent project, a 600sf lane house + garage, with an I kitchen built in to the low height area of the upper floor.

niembro Great article!

I've recently made an I kitchen by taking out the wall dividing kitchen and living room. The space is not easy to work with, but I've managed to narrow it down to a couple of layouts... I think this might help someone! Any thoughts on the alternatives??? Any other idea that comes to mind?

I'm also including a view from the other side so you can get a better idea. Entry door is the one next to the kitchen.