New kitchens were designed with class, elegance, and function—right in the heart of the home—transforming the kitchen island from something that was associated with “dirty work” into something that is beautiful and inviting.”
K itchens are the gathering place of the home. It’s no wonder, then, that kitchen islands have become the “must have” for most homebuyers. Although kitchens are still a place where work takes place, they have become the “social hub” of the house, a place where homeowners want to enjoy time with family and friends. Kitchen islands undoubtedly provide more workspace and storage at the same time they function as an extra serving area. Not all kitchens can accommodate a full- size kitchen island, but there are at least a dozen island styles in various sizes that enhance the way kitchen space is used. A HISTORY LESSSON Before we delve into the styles available, let’s step back for a moment and consider how kitchens were 100 years ago. They were hidden in the back of the house, away from the parlor and dining room
where guests entered the home. Kitchens back then had firewood stoves that also doubled as a furnace for heating. They were dark, loud, and smelly rooms. The countertops were covered with dirty pots, pans, and dishes because that’s where all the preparation work was performed. You ask, “Did they have kitchen islands back then?”
The answer is yes!
A hundred years ago, kitchen islands were just long wooden tables where mostly servants worked while preparing food. People back then were not just hanging around the kitchen with a glass of wine in their hand, as they do today. There were no gas stoves, no dishwashers, no modern appliances. Help, or servants, did most of the cooking, at least in the bigger homes. That is until about the 1930s when a gentleman by the name of Frank Lloyd Wright came along.
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