The kitchen is the home's main axis, where we cook, spend time with our loved ones and are constantly on the move. As a result, this space requires very well thought-out solutions. Even the slightest mistakes in the kitchen can quickly become noticeable and distracting - awkwardly placed furniture, poorly planned aisles or non-functional solutions can cause discomfort every day. Not only is it annoying, but it also makes you feel less inclined to turn around and makes you feel uncomfortable.

As the kitchen is the most heavily used area of the home, it's important to make sure that every solution is practical, safe and sustainable. So, we would like to highlight the most common kitchen planning mistakes.

Hasty planning, often too late

One of the most common mistakes is planning too late. Often, the layout of the kitchen furniture is not thought about until after the wiring points have been installed. This severely limits the design options: for example, some appliances cannot be placed in front of electrical or water points, and sometimes these points are located too far from the intended location of the appliance. In this case, the kitchen solutions have to be adapted to the existing situation, rather than being designed according to the actual needs. This results in a loss of flexibility, ergonomics and the desired kitchen layout. To avoid this, it is a good idea to start planning the furniture and appliances before or at least in parallel with the installation work.

Inadequate lighting for zones, distances

Lighting in the kitchen should also be planned according to the furniture layout. If lights are installed too early, i.e. before the kitchen layout is designed, they can interfere with the opening of cabinet doors or create shadows in the working area. Adequate lighting is only achieved when it is combined with the furniture plan.

In the photo below, the kitchen cabinets are installed up to the ceiling, leaving minimal space for opening the doors. In this case, it is therefore IMPERATIVE to choose both recessed lighting and lighting that has a low edge above the ceiling. If the cabinets are to be made with a larger gap from the ceiling, then the choice of luminaires is wider. Also, the correct spacing and positioning of lighting points from furniture is important. Do not install luminaires in the ceiling right next to the cabinets, as this can lead to lines of light on the cabinets and leave the work area unlit. The exact location of the dining table or breakfast area must be determined, as these areas are often planned with pendant luminaires, so the centre of the area is important, as is the length of the luminaire cord to optimise the illumination.

Unused space, height and lack of functionality

When designing kitchen furniture, it's important to consider in advance how you'll use every inch of space practically.

The most important rule in the kitchen is the KITCHEN CORNER. It's SINK-STOVE-REFRIGERATOR.

The smaller the triangle, the more ergonomic and usable the kitchen is, but remember that there are necessary distances between these points because of the buffer zones.

For corner deep cupboards, it is worth providing convenient internal mechanisms for easy access. It is also recommended to choose as many drawers as possible, as they allow a clear view and easy access to all the contents and are therefore much more convenient than deep shelves. Under the sink cabinet is often a place for rubbish bins, so we recommend assessing whether there is a tendency to sort. For sorting, you can choose from one, two up to 4 bins.

Small kitchen space is a major problem in apartments. Trying to fit a large work area, a fridge, other appliances and cupboards into just a few square metres. Usually, this leaves the height of the room unused. If you want to save space and make the most of every centimetre, we recommend tall, ceiling-high furniture. Then there will be plenty of space to store products and kitchen tools.

Colour - pretty but impractical

When choosing a kitchen façade, the cleaning and maintenance of the surface is often overlooked. You should pay attention to whether there are any fingerprints on the surface of the kitchen you want to use, or whether there are any moisture streaks after cleaning. For this reason, white, glossy colours, which used to be very popular, are now losing their clientele. Today, imitation wood, neutral, grey and matt tones are the dominant colours, which are much easier to maintain.

The use of knobs has regained popularity due to their practicality. In the past, it was common to choose kitchen furniture with built-in knobs, or with click handles, because it was perceived to be easier to clean the cabinets. However, time has shown that it is easier to hook a knob with dirty hands than to hook the cabinet itself, and therefore the surfaces are less dirty.

Cabinet doors and drawers that hinder movement

Both small and large kitchen furniture must not interfere with movement. When planning a kitchen, it is worth remembering that the most common movement in this room is in a triangle: fridge - sink - cooker. Side-by-side installation of the main kitchen appliances and the cupboards underneath them will interfere with working comfort. The most common hinged cupboards and drawers should be located somewhere between or to the side of these appliances so that they do not get in the way when moving from one appliance to the other. It is also worth paying attention to cabinets, drawers or ovens that are close to the walls. They must not get in the way of the wall, other appliances or, if they are near a door, the door frame when they are opened.

Small working surface area

To maximise the functionality of small kitchen furniture and to make the food preparation process as simple as possible, it is important to ensure that there is enough work surface area. When working in a small, narrow space, the cooking area should be longer, so that it is convenient not only for stacking products but also for processing them.

The lack of transport areas on the worktop makes it difficult to cook, as there is insufficient space to temporarily stack food. Leave areas on the worktop free to use as buffer zones. This will allow you to move food and ingredients without cluttering up the work space and will make the cooking process more convenient.

Poorly designed sink space

We've saved one of the most common, if not the most memorable, mistakes in kitchen design for last. It's choosing the wrong place, or not having the right place for the sink and mixer. This problem arises when the sink is to be placed in front of a window and the worktop is to be built into a window sill. This option is, of course, very beautiful and popular, and it is much easier to maintain the window sill, as the walls of the room are not obstructed.

However, when it comes to installing a mixer tap, where and how the kitchen window opens is very important. The height of the mixer tap is considerable and so is the angle of the window sash, so it is important that the mixer tap does not interfere with the window opening fully. There are now faucets that solve this problem - the body of the faucet squeezes and retracts below the installation point , but at a considerable cost compared to standard faucets.