Kitchens Through History

Kitchen design has moved on in recent years, focusing more on efficiency and ease of use, and created to appeal to a more eco-conscious audience.

The design of the kitchen working area is best designed as triangular. The range, refrigerator, sink and other ingredient storage space should be within that triangle, or other preferred working area shaped space.

Historically kitchens have been large rooms when food is prepared but also consumed, usually around a large dominant table. Dining rooms were seldom used except on special occasions such as birthdays, Christmas and other family celebrations.

In more modern contemporary homes there are ‘breakfast nooks,’ where meals other than breakfast are often served, depending on the number of individuals living there.

In the days before modern plumbing and free flowing taps, many farmhouse kitchens would often feature a large sink with a hand pump on each end. One pump brought water from a nearby well and the other would pump water from a cistern. The well water was cleaner and therefore used for drinking and cooking, whereas the cistern water would be used for cleaning and washing laundry. The cistern was usually a rudimentary hole in the ground designed to collect rain water.

Today, green kitchens tend to be popular. What is a green kitchen? A green kitchen is not always a kitchen that is painted green, but it is an eco-friendly kitchen where the countertops are made of durable materials that look just as good as traditional countertops made of granite or quartz. In this instance, making a green choice will not impair the resale value of your home.

Free standing kitchen islands, inspired by the Shaker movement, are a popular feature in many modern kitchens. Of course the size of your kitchen floorspace will dictate the feasibility of such a feature but for larger kitchens they are certainly a useful addition, both in terms of food preparation and storage space.

Technology has inevitably played its part in the evolution of kitchen design. Microwave ovens are now commonplace and additional appliances such as wine coolers, ice machines, waste disposal units and dishwashers, once reserved for commercial kitchens only, can be found in many modern domestic kitchens.
Underfloor heating is another addition that it on the increase in modern kitchens but this feature is seen as more a luxury than a necessity.