Building your island of desire

Work surface and storage are two major ingredients in any kitchen. Having a central area in our kitchen or an area separate from the flow of cupboards is what an island is all about.

Create an attractive central feature: the island can be eye-catching with a stainless steel or brass finish central cooker hood and a hob underneath. An eye-level gas oven can be positioned within your wall cupboard scheme.

A focus of social interaction: extend the island to create a breakfast bar and you have a place to chat with the person who’s cooking. Relax on the bar stool with a glass of wine – or lend a helping hand.

Size does not matter: your island does not need to be big. In small kitchens your island can even be mobile. Buy a butcher’s block and mount it on wheels – not only will you gain a practical work top but you can wheel it out of the way when it is not needed.

Equipment: your island can be equipped to your specifications. You can have a couple of attractive, space-saving vegetable basket drawers or an integrated wine rack.

Food separation: when preparing meat or fish, best use a different surface. An island creates distance from your main cupboards and helps you avoid cross-contamination.

Integrate a chopping board with discreet refuse disposal: the dustbin may be the top loading type so that all you do when you have prepared your vegetables is slide away the lid and push the unwanted scraps into the bin.

Wired productivity: ensure you have thought about all the wiring and other service trunking you will need in advance. Since an island allows accessibility from all around, several people can be involved in the cooking process at the same time without getting in each other’s way.

Break the uniformity: in a large kitchen, the island is an ideal way to use wasted space. Integrate it with your seating layout in a kitchen-breakfast room and ensure the interplay of working space enables you to maximise the surface area available.

Create more space in your main cupboard area: locate the sink on the island. This creates an uninterrupted work surface, giving you more space for appliances and general food preparation.

Vary your shape: an island does not have to be square, rectangular or boring. Introduce curves – an oval or a crescent – to enable your island to stand out, providing style focus apart from its fundamental utility.

Advice brought to you by Domestica.