Islands serve two main purposes
in the kitchen: They give the cook
added workspace and they give the
kitchen a focal point. Depending
on the layout, an island might also
provide extra eating space or
additional storage. If it is located
at the edge of an adjoining room,
an island may serve as a border
between rooms or as a screen to
hide everyday kitchen mess.
An island must be properly
proportioned. I've seen large ones
crammed into tight kitchens and
undersized islands cast adrift in
enormous spaces. Passageways and
work areas need to be wide enough
to allow the cook room to move,
but compact enough to prevent
the work triangle from becoming
too big (see Figure 1). The