As the income level of the middle and high income group
is increasing with better education and global employment market, the desire to
own more spacious and elegant looking houses/ flat is increasing. The first
thing a middle class person thinks of is to own a house when all other
priorities like health, children's education and insurance have been taken care
of. Owning a house gives a place in the society. During the last two decades,
lavish design has moved, initially from drawing room to bath cum lavatories and
now to kitchen. No longer are the kitchens soot covered black dingy places.
Neither are they forbidden to everyone except the lady of the house (LOH) or to
the “maharaj – the cook-adgeya brahmana”.
First let us take up what the Vastu has to say. Many of
us even though in public say we do not believe in Vastu heart in heart we are
superstitious and would like to follow it lest something bad happens.
Exceptions are there.
The best
location for the kitchen is South East Corner.
The entry
to kitchen should be in North, East or North east but never in the corner.
All
electrical gadgets should be at South East and South.
Kitchen
should not face bath or toilet.
Exhaust fan
should be in the east or North side.
Windows
should be provided in East, North or West walls.
Storage
shelves and loft should be on South and west wall/ below the ceiling.
All cooking
items such as rice, pulses and spices should be south side.
While there
is no bar in the use of any durable wood for interiors, wood derived from trees
like rubber wood which gives out milk like fluid are not recommended.
Water should be available on North or North east
but not at corner.
These are important points which if someone wants to
incorporate in the design can consider.
The criteria for a good kitchen is that it should be
comfortable, accessible, safe, hygienic, convenient, elegant yet functional
which require great skill and imagination to arrive at praise worthy layout.
The minimum size of the kitchen in our opinion is 8 by
8. But research has found a house hold kitchen should have a L shaped
arrangement in terms of reach and ease of movement and hence a 8 by 10 size
seems to be more appropriate. This size is when the cooking is done by a single
person, usually the LOH. If the kitchen work is done by more than one person
then the width should be increased. If the number of gadgets are more than 3 in
a row it may have to be extended length wise also. Some people like to have
small dining place also where husband and wife can have an informal meal. A
good kitchen should accommodate users of varying heights, age, mobility,
dexterity and to a certain extent changes which inevitably comes with time and
age. In this fast changing age it is difficult to design a kitchen interior
with a life more than 10 years. In a L shaped working area activities which
take most of time, must be clustered together at one end. Cooking in standing
posture has become practice. It may lead to varicose veins problem in some. It
is better to have a chair with castors so that one can rest once in a while.
The ruling deity of kitchen is fire. Fire can be useful
and dangerous. It is always better to use materials which are fire resistant.
Gas leakage can be dangerous. The recommendation for use of LPG is that the
cylinders should kept outside and only pipe leading from it to stove should be
in working area. But, that is not possible in a flat or even in a standalone
house. A feasible solution is that gas should be in an enclosure with RCC
curtain walls towards the working and other two sides of the gas cylinder and a
weak and blow away section on the fourth (a part of cooking which is mostly for
baking and boiling has not been very much utilitarian with us. Our cooking has
a large content of frying and seasoning. Also with the unreliable public
utility supplying the energy, one may have to go hungry many a times. A handy
fire extinguisher which can take on electrical fire is a must.
Before we embark on interiors it is better to decide a
colour scheme for the kitchen. Vastu recommends Orange as the colour for
kitchen. Orange is associated with Agni
the ruling deity. It is also associated with good appetite, liking for food and
also a colour of hope. Yellow is the next colour of choice which is supposed to
help our stomach problems, digestive disorders. It is soothing and relieves
stress. From hygiene considerations, one would prefer white or any light colour
in shades of red and yellow. How light or dark these colours is one's personal
choice of materials and shades available in that colour.
When we design interiors; we should first start with
floor. Floor is what strikes to us first when we enter the space. Floor is
where hygiene and safety also have to be considered. Floor should be safe and
not slippery. With the present habit of men entering the kitchen with foot wear
often and children running in from school in to kitchen for food after long
hours in school, any dirt on the floor should show up and should lend itself to
quick cleaning. Flooring colour should match the other areas, walls, shelves
etc. The ceramic tile flooring is contemporary, durable and easily
maintainable. Granite is alright provided it is not polished to a high degree.
Tandoor and Shahbad are the next choice. Marble is attacked by acid and does
not show water spills and could become slippery. Wooden floor may wear of
quickly, wrap, crack and hide dirt and moisture. Wood requires high degree of
maintenance. Mosaic can also be considered. NITCO has brought out aqua
collection with jagged edges. The designs are attractive. For kitchen top
granite is the best. It takes rough handling very nicely. But, now modular
kitchen units come with their own tops. One can try them also. Stainless stinks
are very popular and they are available in several designs, one two and
separate vegetable pouches, with more than enough. The sinks are available in
many colours to suit your interiors. What type of taps, while many
revolutionary designs have come to market for the bathrooms (cubic design is
the current fashion) Kitchen taps are not in the same rant and rave. However,
kitchen taps should protrude longer in to the sink and should have ease of
movement. Their knobs should be non slippery.
When buying appliances, try to opt for those which can
be stacked one above the other. If a refrigerator can find a place outside
kitchen, it is so much the better. If the refrigerator has to be accommodated
in the kitchen, a medium size refrigerator this could take a mixer grinder on
it will do. If you tend to buy whole sale large quantities of pulses and grains
may it is wise to have small store adjacent to the kitchen. A few houses of Neo
rich IT executives and NRI's have dish washers also. If a dishwasher is a must,
it should have both hot and cold water connections. A water purifier is a must
as our municipal water supply does not guarantee same purity as in the west.
There are UC and the reverse osmosis. The latter is preferred even though it is
costly. Should the kitchen have the door or it should not? The trend is for an
opening. Closing a kitchen with a door is a legacy of olden days when kitchens
were using firewood and tended to be smoke coated, dark and dingy. Shutters eat
into space whether they open outwards or inwards.
Good choices for selecting cabinet are natural and dark
cherry finishes can be easily coordinated with wall paint, title, and flooring.
Kitchen storage space has gone for modular system. Imports from abroad have set
the trend. Just get the walls and floor ready. Call the modular kitchen
designer in. He will suggest you the appliance locations, counter tops,
appliances, accessories, hardware and front finishes.
The kitchen shelves should contain only small
quantities, not more than a weeks requirement. Maximize counter spaces by
having pull out table. We have pullout, Double pull out, multiple purpose pull
out, bottle plate pull out, Carousel unit, Dee tray, Glass/plate rack, rack and
basket pull. My choice is imported if not factory made. Two problems are there
if one decides to get kitchen shelves made at site. Firstly, the design and
quality of accessories like hinges, magnetic, seals, etc.
The second and bigger problem is the managing of the
Carpenter. Most of them are untrained and unreliable. They would not be able to
give proper estimate of materials. They will hammer at the screws, try to plane
the edges. In almost all shelves, I have found one door hanging out of plumb
with the next one.
The shelves that are fitted below the table top should
not be fixed to the wall and some clearance at the floor level if provided will
help cleaning. Our floors are rarely level as no floor laying artisan uses
spirit level. For shelves above window one should keep in mind the height of
reach of the person who uses it. Different types of Chimney are available.
Lighting should not be bright and glare free. General
lighting should be soft and spread uniformly without any unlit parts. Task
lighting, recessed mood lighting could be individuals choice. An emergency
light connected to UPS could prove handy. Some persons who use cooks can also
think of having a call bell. Self closing sockets are recommended. Modular
switches are good and capable of replacement in modules. A switch on the
outside will help to light the kitchen prior to entry.
In conclusion, the fashion in building design has now
moved to kitchen. So are the electrical, electronic and robotic gadgets. If you
have the money to splurge make yourself and your LOH happy. A recent research
book published in the west has coined a word “Edifice Complex”. It says more we
spend on our house and more we make it distinct, more our ego swells. Didn't we
know that all the time right from the dawn of the civilization?
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