Questions About Designer Home

[CalcTeacher]

My husband and I bought an Ivy and will be coming in September for our design meeting. Wanted to know if any one out there bought an Ivy and opted to NOT have the kitchen island put in! It seems awkward and in the way.

Many of the houses in the Designer Series have very similar kitchen/living/dining layouts (Ivy, Lantana, Lily, Lilac) and there is a choice to have the kitchen completely open or to have a mostly decorative wall with an arched entrance to the kitchen. This wall pretty much serves to hide some of the mess/activity in the kitchen and it gives you an extra cabinet on the kitchen side. Has anyone gotten this wall and later wished they hadn't (or vice-versa).

I would appreciate anybody's input/opinion/advice on the island and wall questions!

By the way...we are Village of Gilchrist!

[eweissenbach]

We have stayed the last two winters in rentals with open kitchens. Last year we stayed in an Iris (which we have rented for next winter), and loved it. We will be building a smaller home in missouri, and buying a home in TV when we sell our current home. Both of these homes will have an open kitchen. We like everyone being included when entertaining, or just when one or both of us are working in the kitchen. We have had open and closed kitchens, and far prefer the open design. An open kitchen does require that you keep the kitchen relatively clean, which is, in my opinion, an excellent motivator. We have looked at dozens of homes in TV, and a closed in kitchen is a deal killer for us. Having said that, everyone has their own preferences, which is why they offer both.

[hotrodgirl]

I also am coming for my design meeting in Sept and am either building a Lantana or Ivy. Not certain as of yet, but am leaning towards the Lantana currently. Anyways, I believe you can opt out of the island and I am planning to have the partial wall put in. The reason being that with the wall oven option, and wine rack option instead of the pantry, it allows for an extra cabinet. I don't believe it really deters from the open concept as you are still completely open from dishwasher past the sink. It would partially obscure the dining room but shouldn't close off the living area. Just my opinion..... FYI, I am also in Gilchrist! Unit 209!

[CalcTeacher]

hotrodgirl: where are you in 209? We are 209.32! We were in Fernandina but just switched this past weekend! We just moved my parent's into a Lantana this past Sunday (which is why we were there)...both floor plans are so similar...we just think we need the extra bedroom. We like the architectural detail the partial wall adds...and the extra cabinet...but I am nervous that even though it is partial, it will still detract from the openess of the house. You are very brave to give up that pantry! That wine rack must mean a lot to you...which means we will probably meet one of these days! Hahahahaha!

[CalcTeacher]

hotrodgirl: we are 209 also! You must really need that wine rack if you're willing to give up your pantry to get it! Hahaha! Love it!

[bdabob]

My wife and I returned yesterday from meeting with the Design Team and finalizing our Ivy in Fernandina. We have opted for the open kitchen.
We spent quite some time debating the island and concluded it will be an asset and will not be in the way. We also have the wall oven option which moves the cooktop down a bit.
I would be happy to share other thoughts/and decisions we made if you wish to PM.
Best of luck.

[applesoffh]

Many of the houses in the Designer Series have very similar kitchen/living/dining layouts (Ivy, Lantana, Lily, Lilac) and there is a choice to have the kitchen completely open or to have a mostly decorative wall with an arched entrance to the kitchen. This wall pretty much serves to hide some of the mess/activity in the kitchen and it gives you an extra cabinet on the kitchen side. Has anyone gotten this wall and later wished they hadn't (or vice-versa).

Have a Lilac and decided against the wall, which seemed to us to close off the kitchen. Coming from a small, closed off apartment in NYC, I wanted something open and bright so we decided against the wall and the option gave us a pantry with an upper and lower cabinet and counter next to it. The upper cabinet also had a wine rack, and we had the lattice removed at a later date and used the shelf for cookbooks. No regret about the open look. I just have to make sure to clean up after myself! I use my kitchen, and make no excuses! LOL!

[hotrodgirl]

hotrodgirl: where are you in 209? We are 209.32! We were in Fernandina but just switched this past weekend! We just moved my parent's into a Lantana this past Sunday (which is why we were there)...both floor plans are so similar...we just think we need the extra bedroom. We like the architectural detail the partial wall adds...and the extra cabinet...but I am nervous that even though it is partial, it will still detract from the openess of the house. You are very brave to give up that pantry! That wine rack must mean a lot to you...which means we will probably meet one of these days! Hahahahaha!

That is so funny! I originally had a lot in Fernandina that was just a tad larger, but my view of the golf course was partially blocked by the CYV wall. So when Gilchrist opened, my agent was on it like glue! I am lot 25 just down the block a bit. Yes, the wine rack is a priority and I am trying to figure out if I can remove the lower cabinet there and have a built in wine fridge installed! I am getting the wall ovens and therefore think I will need that extra cabinet on the small wall. I had my LSV in a kitchen with the wall, our friends were next door in a unit without it. None of the living area is blocked, but the dining area was somewhat obscured. I actually found that I liked the wall better than not as it provided a bit of a nook area under the cabinet to put a small appliance or "stuff". It just comes down to personal preference! My design team meeting is Sept. You?

[CalcTeacher]

hotrodgirl: our meeting is September 14/15. I'm a math teacher (as you can tell from my online name) so I have a tendency to be super analytical about everything (yes, my husband is a patient man...) and overthink every decision. So it's almost guaranteed that I will noodle every detail 50 times before that meeting!

[784caroline]

We have a Lantana and we use the center island "alot"....plus it provides us cabinet storage for pots an pans. Our house was stretched 2 ft on the kitchen side which gives us 2 extra cabinets (base and wall). If you eliminate the one wall, you do create a different "open" effect, but you will be giving up valuable cabinet space. We also have a pantry but we opted to build out out laundry room space to add on one side base cabinets with wall cabinets/wine rack and on the other side we put in some coat pegs and custom built narrow shelves for everyday needs. We have found placing food/drink items in the garage was not best for us for we found the garage area very hot during the summer months.

BOTTOM LINE:For us we found you will never have too much storage space in any designer home.

[hotrodgirl]

We have a Lantana and we use the center island "alot"....plus it provides us cabinet storage for pots an pans. Our house was stretched 2 ft on the kitchen side which gives us 2 extra cabinets (base and wall). If you eliminate the one wall, you do create a different "open" effect, but you will be giving up valuable cabinet space. We also have a pantry but we opted to build out out laundry room space to add on one side base cabinets with wall cabinets/wine rack and on the other side we put in some coat pegs and custom built narrow shelves for everyday needs. We have found placing food/drink items in the garage was not best for us for we found the garage area very hot during the summer months.

BOTTOM LINE:For us we found you will never have too much storage space in any designer home.

Thanks! That is awesome info as one of my desires is to see if I can indeed stretch 2 feet on that same side. Hopefully I have the width! It would just make things so much easier... Was anticipating trying to get extra storage in the laundry nook so you have answered that question for me!

CalcTeacher, we will be building simultaneously! My meeting is the 6th! Can't wait to compare homes once we are finished! Party on the lanai!!!

[twiceis]

So did u get the cabinet under the wine rack approved at design? That's what we want in our Iris