Kitchen is where the soul of home is.
‘Modular Kitchen’ as the name suggests, is derived from modules, meaning different sections. The area that needs to be most functional and at the same time aesthetically pleasing with lots and lots of storage. Modular Kitchen enables some really smart space saving solutions, starting from not keeping your microwave on Counter top to making sure that all your spices and sauces can be stored properly in a dedicated unit. Dividing your kitchen into different functional zones: perp, cleaning, storages etc, modular kitchens are more functional, hygiene friendly, and create an illusion of a bigger space due to its very sleek properties. If you are confused between getting a modular kitchen or a carpenter made one, do read our take and difference between both on Modular vs Carpenter made kitchen
We at MillarQ Design, use various materials for core of the kitchen depending upon the site conditions and technical aspects, using a varied range of finishes, starting from Laminates to Membrane, Acrylic, P.U., Duco etc. Providing the warranties on the woodwork and even the hardware used. Whatever be your style, preference, or even budget, we have a different customised options for your modular kitchen. The cherry on top is that apart from all these things, our kitchen will not be made at site, but at our production house (all modules are machine pressed, cold/hot depending upon the finishes chosen and sealed with moisture lock technology in edge banding matching the shutter profile in finish and texture) , which saves a lot of time as Woodwork and civil work like electrical, plumbing in kitchen can happen side by side at deferent places and we would need 45 days of production time including our multiple screening and quality checks and merely 4-5 working days at site for installation of your kitchen.
Basically, a functional kitchen is divided into five broad zones:
Consumables Zone: This most essentially is the storage space for groceries, has a refrigerator for perishable food items and storage space for non-perishable food items. This is basically the space from where you get a fair amount of idea about your monthly or weekly grocery requirements as once we divide the zones properly, everything starts to look more organised.
Non- Consumables Zone: As the name suggests, this zone is for the storage containers, crockery, empty containers, Trays, glasses, etc. This is the space which should ideally be stored in base cabinets, and can be organised by different kind of drawer organisers (orca tray etc), or can use various accessories if this space is in the corner of your kitchen. Best space for non consumables is the Blind Corner unit with pull out accessory or a leeman’s accessory, even a Dee tray works wonders for non consumables zone,
Cleaning Zone: This area is reserved for all the recycling items, cleaning utilities and the area for waste. This space can be best inside a sink unit, as that area cannot be used for any other kind of storage, if you have a double shutter sink unit then its a bonus, one shutter can have a cleaning utility tray attached to it and the other can either have a single dustbin with cover or a pull out double dustbin for wet and dry waste. The most practical solution for cleaning up after your meals and all those weekly get togethers.
Preparation Zone: This is a specified area in kitchen for food preparation. This area usually houses a lot of cooking utensils, spoons, serving spoons, stirrer, knives etc. You have a selection of Knife blocks and Orga trays to make sure that these things are organised and user friendly as in accessibility. Pro Tip: Storing your mixing bowls in the drawers or units in preparation zone, so you don’t actually have to turn back or reach out to a distant cabinet for the same.
Cooking Zone: This is the zone where the prime activities of your kitchen actually happen: cooking. Deep drawers in and around this area actually helps a lot as these units can store a lot of pots and pans, casserole dishes and cooking utensils. These items can be stored in drawers side by side as well and make your cooking tools easy to find and more accessible.
HOW TO PLAN A FUNCTIONAL KITCHEN?
The more thought we put in before starting our kitchen, the more time we invest in planning, the more fruitful the overall experience in the finished kitchen will be.
Full extension drawers (100% drawer openings instead of 80% available easily in markets) and also using superior drawer systems ( Hettich soft Close Innotech drawers/ Hafele/ Blum/ Kessebohmer), will create more convenience and user friendly experience along with easy access to the stuff stored in the drawer.
Designing your kitchen ergonomically, less bending, stretching. More drawers may increase your kitchen cost by 15-20% but will definitely be more easy to use and also will be easy on your back, try using more pull-outs that converts itself to a chopping board as well in case we have a space crunch and less countertop space is available.
Never forget the spices: Soul of your food, spices, are the things that are usually skipped while planning a kitchen, whereas there should be a specific pull out 3or 2 tier Bottle pull out, which can house all your masalas and spices.
Grain trolley is the thing which is missed after Spice storage, this is the pain point for most of the home owners as this segment usually impacts the user’s back, having a grain trolley that you can just pull out to get rice or flour, and the cabinet that can easily take 50kgs of load, which means, you can store 25kgs of rice and 25kgs of flour at the same place side by side.
So now, before starting to plan your kitchen with your designer, do keep these points in mind along with some issues that you are facing in your present kitchen and what is working for you and what is not, as if these things are discussed with designer initially then the designer will be able to cater to your requirements and solve your problems in a better way.
Happy designing..
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