Thinking about remodeling your kitchen? Not sure whether to go with the open or closed kitchen concept? There are benefits for both, but lets dig into the pros and cons of both options!
Closed Kitchen- A closed kitchen is a kitchen space that is closed off, or isolated, from the rest of the house with one to two doorways.
Benefits of a Closed Kitchen:
Personalize your Space- Since the closed kitchen concept is separate from the rest of the home, you have more freedom to play with colors, and designs. Add in special details and styles in your space that you wont see anywhere else throughout the home.
More Storage Space- Since you have more floor to ceiling wall space to play with in a closed kitchen, it allows more cabinet space, compared to an open kitchen. If you have a lot of kitchen ware, this is important to consider before opening up your room.
Privacy- if you prefer privacy while cooking and whipping up masterpieces, a closed kitchen would be more ideal, as you don’t have as much distraction. You don’t have to focus on the entertainment aspect, while creating your favorite dinners for family and friends.
No Visible Mess- Once you are done hosting a meal, you can bring the dirty dishes to the closed off kitchen. No one sees the mess that is behind the wall.
Downfall of a Closed Kitchen:
Lack of Space to Sit and Eat- With a closed kitchen, they are typically built without any dining area in the kitchen, since the dining area has its own separate space. You can work around this by adding a breakfast nook, or floating island where someone can sit and eat.
Lack of Air Flow- When cooking in a closed kitchen, it can get hot and stuffy real quick. The small confined space doesn’t allow much flow for the heat to circulate throughout the home, compared to the open kitchen concept.
Rooms Feel Smaller- When closing off the kitchen space from the dining area, you can throw off the natural flow of light and air, compared to the open kitchen. Rooms now feel very closed off and narrow, making the space feel much smaller than they actually are.
Open Kitchen- An open kitchen refers to the lack of barriers in the kitchen and surrounding areas. Typically, there is no dividing walls between the kitchen, dining and living space.
Benefits of an Open Kitchen:
Efficient Use of Space- Without walls dividing the rooms, you have the ability to use the space based on your specific needs, and move things around accordingly. By incorporating a kitchen island, you can utilize this as an informal dining space, or use the island to prepare food.
Extended Flow of Space and Design- When you remove the walls, the overall space will feel larger, allowing more natural light and air flow through the kitchen and dining area. From one room to the next, you can keep consistent paint colors and flooring throughout. With the open kitchen, you have the ability to incorporate accent lights, to complement the space- chandeliers or pendant lights.
Downfall of an Open Kitchen:
Loss of Storage Space- When doing a kitchen remodel on an existing home, removing a wall will take away from existing cupboard and storage space. If necessary, we will look at the overall floorplan to see if/where we can incorporate more space. However, with new build, we can plan accordingly, by adding in a walk in pantry in the design.
Putting Together the Design- If you don’t have your design thoroughly put together from floor to ceiling, your space may not flow as well as you expected it to. Having the right cupboards, flooring, paint colors, appliances, lighting, countertops, etc. At Crew Construction and Restoration, our Interior Design team will help put together the design you have in mind, and make sure if flows with the rest of your home.
Keeping it Clean- With an open kitchen, anything you put on your counters (dirty dishes, coffee pots, and other cookware) will be visible from all other areas of your home. When your kitchen looks messy or cluttered, it will make the rest of the open space feel messy and cluttered, as well. If you don’t want to worry about the stress of keeping it tidy, a closed kitchen might be a better route.
If you are ready to give your space a kitchen makeover, Crew Construction and Restoration is ready for the call. Now sure where to start? You can create a Pinterest Board of your favorite styles and designs. Our team will work with you from start to finish, leaving you with a beautiful masterpiece that you will love! Call Crew today for an estimate!
