Design and convenience describes my ideal kitchen. Here are my top 5 dream kitchen must have features!
It’s true what they say – kitchens sell homes, as evidenced by the fact that the second we entered the kitchen of our current home while touring it in 2013, I turned to Ben and said, “I MUST HAVE THIS.” I was also 8 months pregnant with Lincoln at the time and we’d already sold our house, so we literally needed to have this, but coming from a once-orange kitchen with bathroom tiles for countertops, the tall cabinets, sleek appliances, and stone countertops of the new place gave me immediate goo-goo eyes.
While I do love our current kitchen, the thought of designing my dream kitchen from the ground up sends me into an emotional tailspin. Oh, the possibilities! Truly I couldn’t care less about having the biggest house with the fanciest finishes – but a tricked out kitchen? Yes, please!
When I think about my dream kitchen, I think design and convenience. Beautiful cabinetry, a big island, wide-plank wood floors, white stone, and fabulous hardware – plus functional features like the 5 must-haves I’m sharing below. This “Just 5 Things” post idea came from a reader and it was a blast to curate. I’ve already pitched 10 kitchen upgrade ideas to Ben as a result of my “research”, which will all undoubtedly be knocked into the atmosphere (?,) but ah, a girl can dream. ?
Tell me – have you ever had the chance to design your dream kitchen? What did you include? If not (hi! ??) what would you include in yours?
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1. Appliance Garage
Clutter in any area of the house drives me nuts, but clutter in the kitchen makes me insane. Probably because I spend so much time in there for my job – and who doesn’t like a zen, organized work space?
That said, I would adore cupboards at counter height set up as an appliance garage to hide any of the cough FIVE appliances currently residing on our counter: toaster, KitchenAid Mixer, Keurig, Nespresso, plus the air fryer Ben got me for our anniversary earlier this week (can’t wait to try that bad boy out.)
Isn’t this solution just so sleek?
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Here’s another fun option with a top sliding door. Must have for my dream kitchen – totally obsessed.
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2. Walk-In/Butler’s Pantry
Forget walk-in closets, I’m ALL about the walk-in/butler’s pantry. CAN YOU EVEN with this space?!
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My dream kitchen would have a separate, walk-in pantry loaded with shelves, pull out shelves, and counter space for ALL THE STORAGE. I’ve seen some really cool pantries a couple stairs away from the main kitchen space, but have always liked the idea of tucking it behind a kitchen wall like the photo below.
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The only pantry we have in our kitchen is a skinny pull out shelf next to the fridge, so I use the cupboards in the laundry room for overflow and it’s really inconvenient. Our current kitchen layout would lend itself well to installing the kind of pantry in the photo above and below, so who knows, maybe someday my dream pantry could become a reality!
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3. Sliding Pull Out Drawers and Shelves
One thing I love about our current kitchen is that it’s loaded with pull out shelves making it really convenient to store and retrieve items in deep cabinets. Our garbage/recycling is even on a track and I don’t think I could ever go back.
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Another feature I’ve always wanted to include in my dream kitchen is drawers under the sink. How many bottles of cleaner, plastic bags, and dishwasher detergent boxes have you lost in the dark recesses of your under-sink cabinet?! Hate that space!
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4. Command Center
A command center is something we lack in our current kitchen and I’m desperate for a space like this. Probably because I have to use up a big corner of the kitchen to organize bills, etc, and it’s really unsightly (again, hate clutter!) We could use the office/guest room upstairs for that stuff but for me, if it’s out of sight, it’s out of mind. I have the memory of a goldfish.
I love the space in this dream kitchen below. From the traditional desk design that matches the rest of the kitchen cabinetry, to the cork board backsplash and shelving above (which I’d cover with doors in my dream kitchen,) it’s the perfect size and design.
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This command center is dreamy too. The chalk board backsplash + under cabinet lighting is a fun touch.
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5. Built-In Wine Refrigerator
No explanation needed for why I’d want to include a built-in wine refrigerator in my dream kitchen! That said, I love the location of this wine fridge – tucked into the end of the island vs taking up cabinet space in the main kitchen area.
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Just like the microwave, I am also obsessed with the idea of stashing the wine fridge in a walk in pantry. I don’t care if people SEE my wine, I just don’t want to have to go down to my spider-infested basement – where we currently keep our wine fridge – every time I want a glass.
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5 More Features I’d Love!
- Cabinet lighting. We currently have under and over cabinet lighting and the ambience it creates at night is totally dreamy.
- Farmhouse sink. Timeless and functional – got to have it in my dream kitchen!
- Hands free faucet. A must!
- Pot filler. Would love to hear from people who have one – love it or hate it? I would love the convenience but what if there’s an issue with the pipes? Do you have to bust open the wall?
- Waterfall edge. Adore this look.
What are your must-haves for your dream kitchen?
Kristin, I loved your insights on dream kitchen must-haves! Your suggestion of an appliance garage hit home for me—I’m constantly battling counter clutter in my kitchen. A walk-in pantry sounds like a dream too; I can only imagine how nice it would be to have all that extra storage space.
Kristin, I enjoyed your take on dream kitchen features! Your mention of the appliance garage hit home for me; I can’t stand clutter either, and that would make a huge difference in keeping the counters clear. I also love the idea of a walk-in pantry—it would definitely solve my storage woes. Thanks for sharing your insights!
I loved reading about your dream kitchen must-haves! Your enthusiasm and passion for creating a functional yet beautiful space really shine through. The appliance garage and walk-in pantry ideas are brilliant for maintaining a clutter-free environment. Also, the command center is such a practical addition for staying organized. Thanks for sharing your inspiring vision!
On the subject of a pot filler, I couldn’t wait to get mine, until a plumber told me it was stupid. He said, “you pay $10k to 15k for a professional stove and oven, and then the pot filler leaks and ruins it. You also have to lug the pot to the sink to empty it, so why have a pot filler.” In actuality I have had 2 pot fillers and neither have leaked, but they are sitting above my $15k stove, so I quit using them.
I love your beautiful kitchen and especially long for the idea of an appliance tuck away. Right now I move everything around a gazillion times in order to prep or mix or whatever. Aaaagh! I don’t long for the walk in pantry unless it is very close to my work triangle. Why? Because my daughter has one and it is too far and too much to keep up. For me anyway. (85 year old granny here.lol) No, I will keep my slim adorable primitive era pantry right next to my sink. Periodically I rearrange or eliminate so that it is always handy for finding just what I need at the moment. But the appliance tuck away? Oh I wish!!!! Btw I. I found you when you only had one and I thought your family the cutest. Love you and your blog. can’t believe your oldest is 8
I love the drawers under the sink but I can’t figure out how they would work around pipes and disposal. How do you get to them if you have a plumbing problem?
We’ve lived through 4 kitchen redesigns, including 2 remodels and 2 new builds.
Our favorite was kitchen #3, which included plenty of counters and a huge single bowl farmhouse sink, and was open to the great room. But the winning feature was the huge 8×8 walkin pantry full of adjustable shelves holding just about everything (including pots/pans/lids), small appliances, canned/boxed goods, even the microwave oven. As the primary cook, I appreciated having everything I used where I could see it, and my wife (the baker) felt the same way about it.
where can i purchase this stuff
Love these ideas! My husband and I are looking at getting our kitchen redone and are in the process of deciding what we want to do. I’m definitely stealing some of these ideas! Thanks for sharing!
I love these ideas! My husband and I are in the process of looking into remodeling our kitchen and hadn’t thought about an appliance garage before. Great idea! We were thinking about replacing our wood floors but we found out that we can make our wood floors last longer with a wood floor cleaning. We’re going to save some money there to spend it on things like this! Thanks again for the great post!
First time pot-filler ????♀️In the 4+ years we’ve been in our new build, I can count on both hands how many times I’ve used it. At the time of design, I was obsessed with Joanna Gaines and she did them ALL THE TIME. The one thing I would not ever ever ever not have in my kitchen again is a pull out utensil drawer. Similar to the pull out trash but on a much slimmer scale, this handy dandy honey houses 4 utensil canisters and 2 foam knife cases. If I had your appliance garage over my utensil drawer, I’d literally have zero clutter in my kitchen. My hubs is a kitchen designer so this might be a thought for our next build ????. Loved your ideas!
Just finished a complete gut renovation of our “new to us” home last year…a walk-in pantry was top on my list for the kitchen. We made sure it was constructed wide enough to fit our chest freezer, which is super convenient! Also a pull- out stand mixer shelf, farmhouse sink, white quartz and cabinetry with tons of drawers for storage, and a few open shelves flanking the large south-facing window overlooking my garden. It’s definitely my dream kitchen!
omggggggg – I wish there was a way to share photos in the comments bc I would LOVE to see this setup!! It sounds so dreamy!!!