I've started a remodeling project that includes a number of areas, but here I'll talk about the sink side of the kitchen. This is just preliminary because the cabinetmaker I'm working with no sooner got started than he was called away to take care of a family member. But, turning lemons into lemonade, we are making "functional mockups" (vs. the original cardboard ones) some I will be able to use and test before we resume work later on, and some, like this sink one which are just planning ahead. Although that said, this particular mockup will "go away" so I will be back to the normal functioning sink/counter in the meantime.
As those with a Concourse know, the cool, "panoramic" window on the driver's side means that the sill in the kitchen area is low. This is as opposed to the Premier which has a separate, smaller kitchen window. The negative to this is that the countertops in the Concourse are rather low. Mine are 31-7/8" as opposed to the normal house standard of 36". Although there was no particular reason to, they also made the stove counter the same height.
So, we started by mocking up a sink counter that is 34" high (making the stove that height too, but that's another thread). This seems like a good balance between too low and too high (36" seems really high and also "pinches" the distance to the upper cabinets). We also (after a series of experiments) have moved the countertop out to the shower corner trim (around 1-1/2"). Not sure if the cabinet will be moved out the same amount or whether we will go for more overhang. Having widened the aisle (another thread
), this seems to be no problem. The reason for this is to allow for an 18" or even 19" deep sink (front to back). The stock sink is just over 15" and there is not much selection in that size. I despise the small drain baskets (because they are always low quality and get gunky), so that is another reason it will be nice to go to a larger sink with standard 3-1/2" drain basket.
I did want to keep the "niche" of the L-shaped kitchen, so we retained that as stock.
Here is a photo of the mockup before I go on. 34" high counter, moved ~1-1/2" into room, with ~18-1/2" x 24-1/2" sink taped off. (This would be the type of sink that would either have a small drainboard, or a draining "tray" that would sit on the rim of the sink.)
A note:. I think I'm going to remove that "spice cabinet." I like the function a lot, but it's kind of "in my face" when working at the L counter. I took some inspiration from photos of older Concourses and think I'll go back in with a shallow cabinet running from the base of the upper cabinet down to (or near) the counter.
Something along these lines perhaps, although maybe not all the way down to the counter. This is a (remodelled, I believe) 1978 Concourse:
Back to the mockup, here is a detail near the window. This is with a 1-1/2" backsplash (in the main mockup you can see I have a 1" backsplash along the shower wall - mockups are good for experimenting.
This will be removable (like once-every-five-years removable, not on a regular basis) so that the window trim ring can be removed/accessed. Haven't quite decided how to handle window covering yet. If I were keeping the day night shades, I would simply move the backsplash inboard a touch; but I plan to have curtains. Also I don't want to lose any counter depth (for sink purposes). I haven't quite worked that out totally yet, but one idea is to put a short piece of something like 1/8" black ABS over the bottom inch or so of the window, and thus be able to have a shorter curtain that doesn't drape over the counter. That's a detail yet to be decided though (probably until I have a new sink in hand - maybe I can just move the backsplash in and run the curtain behind).
