Kitchen sink not under window. Is is weird?

[heliocentric]

We are planning a total reno of our kitchen. Our layout is a challenge. We've spoken to several kitchen designer and after exploring multiple layout options, it seems the best one is basically our current layout, but move the sink from under the window and into the corner. Doing this frees up more counter space and allows us to have more functional lower cabinets.

The other catch is that there will be an upper cabinet in the corner. It will only stick out over the sink a little bit--the majority of the sink will have nothing over it. It will basically look like this. (Ignore appliance placement, etc. Just look at the sink and upper cabinet.)

www.houzz.com/photos/51096/Shoshana-Gosselin-contemporary-kitchen-other-metro

Is it weird to have the sink away from the window? We don't ever open the blinds on our window because we are super close to the neighbors, so lack of view is not an issue.

We plan to have under cabinet lighting and will also have a light above the sink (along with ceiling lights), so I think we'll be able to see just fine.

If you saw this, would you think it's super weird? Would you give up cabinet and counter space to have a sink centered under the window?

[simpsongal]

Hmm, I'm having trouble picturing the alternative and why you would lose so much counter space * cabinetry.

I'm more against a corner sink than I am having a sink that's not under a window.

[heliocentric]

Well, we technically wouldn't be losing counter space, but moving the sink to the corner gives us a lot more counter space next to the stove which is where the fridge is in the linked photo. If we center the sink under the window, there is only a tiny piece of counter between the sink and stove.

For the cabinets, if the sink is under the window there is not enough room between the sink & the corner for a cabinet door. That means we'd end up with a blind corner cabinet. Even if we add pullout shelves, it's still not a great use of space. By moving the sink we can fully ulitize the corner cabinet under the sink for cleaning stuff and have room for drawers/cabinets on both sides of the corner. (There will be a cabinet between the DW and the corner so we aren't trapped by the DW door when it's open.)

I know it might be hard to visualize since the photo isn't out exact layout.

Functionally the corner sink it definitely the best. I just don't want people to walk into the kitchen and think it looks really odd.

[bearkatjen]

If the stove is where the fridge is in the picture, then I would definitely go with the corner sink. Having so little counter space next to the stove is impractical, and I don't think the corner placement is odd.

[auntie]

I'm OK with the corner sink and the sink not centered on a window, but the corner cabinet over the corner sink would feel claustrophobic to me.

I've had a couple apratments where there was no kitchen window, but the sink didn't have a standard height cabinet mounted over it. In one case there was a space and in the other a short cabinet with a small shelf under it at about the height of an over the range cabinet.

[msmerymac]

Have you thought about moving the window?

It's no odd per se, and I'd rather have a functional space than the "right" window placement, but I don't know if it would be my choice.

[renna]

Our house is 90 years old. The kitchen sink isn't under a window. It faces a wall. It doesn't bother me at all.

Neighbors on each side of us have their kitchen sinks over windows that face our house. It bugs me to see the neighbors doing their dishes. Neither set of neighbors has blinds or curtains they pull (??!) so you can see whatever is going on in their kitchen through that window, at least to some extent.

[wawa]

I hate my corner sink A LOT. so there's that.
But with setup you're describing it does sound like the best choice and I don't think it will look odd. and I think the cabinet above would be fine. Corner sinks have a ton of dead space behind them. might as well use it.

[simpsongal]

I see. Hmmm, that's a pickle. I guess the corner sink would be the best choice. You'r not going to have an island are you? (that would be my first choice for a sink under the circumstances).

I agree with auntie about a corner sink and upper cabinet feeling claustrophobic. Even though they're not my favorite, I would probably go with open shelves or a hanging basket in the corner, rather than a cabinet.  ETA: From a design perspective, I think a break in cabinetry or somethign different above the corner sink would help frame it.  I think that's the main drawback of not having a window - the sink isn't "framed" the way it normally is.

[munkii]

If this really is the best option, I'd skip the upper cab, or, at least, go shorter. Do you mind sharing the layout of your current kitchen?

[heliocentric]

I don't think the window can realistically be moved. The window is in an 85 year old stone façade. Besides, that's the only exterior wall, so there's no other spot unless we move the stove and make a new window. That seems crazy expensive. We could close it off entirely, but the only other windows are in the eating nook.

I am also worried about the upper cabinet feeling too tight, but when you plot it out, it really is mostly out of the way. We could make it so it's not as low, but I'm not sure how that would look. Obviously, cabinet space is at a premium or I wouldn't be considering this weird layout. Another option is to have the upper cabinet in a L shape instead of the angle. That would feel a little more open, but we'd lose some room. This option is a very strong contender if I can convince DH.

Ugh. Why is our kitchen so challenging? To anyone considering an old house, seriously consider layout. Our kitchen probably worked great when the only appliance was a stove and a small icebox, but it's challenging today.

[darkling_glory]

Could you do something like this with the raised cab by the sink:



ETA: one more: 

[heliocentric]

Thanks everyone. I don't have a drawing of the layout that I can easily upload, but I'll try to describe using this kitchen:


www.houzz.com/photos/344051/Murray-Kitchen-1-contemporary-kitchen-dc-metro
www.houzz.com/photos/344062/Murray-Kitchen-3-contemporary-kitchen-dc-metro

We have to two doors like this kitchen (into DR & into hall).
Door to basement is in the lower right where the panty is in the 1st photo.
Our stove is where the fridge is.
Fridge is on the right wall where the cabinets are in the 1st photo.
Our kitchen is smaller. The sink & window are closer to the corner (where the cabinet to the right of the window is).
Our DW is to the left of the sink and would touch the fridge/stove.
There is no room for an island. We tried.

That probably makes no sense at all!

[heliocentric]

Dec 6, 2013 16:08:20 GMT -5 darkling_glory said:

Could you do something like this with the raised cab by the sink:



ETA: one more: 

Would a raised cabinet look stupid with nothing to the left of it? The corner cabinet is the end cabinet.

The 2nd photo is pretty, but we'd have a cabinet on the right where the sconce is.

[Susie]

Now that I think about it, we have friends whose sink/window/cabinet setup is like this:

www.houzz.com/photos/51096/Shoshana-Gosselin-contemporary-kitchen-other-metro

and I have never thought it looked weird.  I even lived with them for a brief while and didn't think the flow was weird.

[heliocentric]

Thanks for all the help ladies. If I can figure out how to upload an actual photo or sketch of our space, I will. I have to run now, though.

[darkling_glory]

Dec 6, 2013 16:18:29 GMT -5 heliocentric said:

Dec 6, 2013 16:08:20 GMT -5 darkling_glory said:

Could you do something like this with the raised cab by the sink:



ETA: one more: 

Would a raised cabinet look stupid with nothing to the left of it? The corner cabinet is the end cabinet.

The 2nd photo is pretty, but we'd have a cabinet on the right where the sconce is.

I think it would look nice! Especially, if the window was to the left. I think that's what you said?

[TBM]

What I learned from our kitchen reno is that the space has to work for us, and my decisions may not have made sense to everyone else in the planning, but in the (nearly) finished space, it all makes sense to everyone because it makes the small space function really well.  We have a small space with quirks
     
I don't think there is any reason to go shorter on a cabinet over the sink....our sink faces a wall and we had cabinets the same height as the others that were put in. It is better than staring at a wall, like we did before. It was such a waste of space, and just made it look like something (a window)was missing.

We have an upper cabinet that turns the corner (not over the sink) and has a weird hinged door that opens to one side. I wasn't sure that I would like it, but I do. To me, it is more functional (and makes me feel less claustrophobic) than a true corner cabinet that is across the corner and is deep. We had that before and I thought it was too hard to get to things from the back of the cabinet and didn't seem efficient to me.

Sorry in advance for the bad phone pics.  I went in and took them even though the electrician was still working in there and I had to shoot fast to work around him.  I meant to post this earlier, but got sidetracked.

 

[kaylie]

We have a corner sink and a set up similar to what you're considering (pic below). If I had a choice, I wouldn't set it up that way but it was like that when we moved in and I didn't want to pay to move it. I will say that having the cabinet above it is fine - it doesn't get in the way of anything and ours is only 15'' over the sink instead of the recommended 18''. I would prefer to have one of those fancy carousel style cabinets in the bottom corner instead of the dumb sink.

Pros:
-I guess we get more counter space overall, but we added a kitchen island anyway so we have plenty.

Cons:
-The size of the sink is VERY restricted. You can't have a large basin unless you carve out the sides of the cabinet. We were limited to the smallest standard option.
-The sink has to be set back further than a typical sink - we have 4.5 inches between counter edge and sink edge which isn't as comfortable as the 3'' space in a linear sink placement.
-When you're doing dishes it makes the cabinets to the sides of the sink (upper and lower) fairly inaccessible to anyone else in the kitchen, because you're blocking them.

[treedimensional]

If you're talking about having a corner sink on the bottom with the upper cabinets NOT LINING UP, like the way it is in the picture, I hate that. I don't care that the sink is not in front of the window (but I'd have to see the whole kitchen to come up with an alternate suggestion), but I really HATE that the top and bottom cabinets do not align.