Two Tier Kitchen Island Update

There are a few very distinctive design choices that date a home built in the late 1990’s- early 2000’s. One of them is the two-tier kitchen island.

I know what the designers and builders were probably thinking…”Let’s build a higher bar around the kitchen island so it will hide any mess that is going on in the kitchen and all the dirty dishes.” Not a bad idea- but you give up major functionality and serving space.

Two-Tier-Island Inefficiency

I love the way Houzz.com commenter Paula7658 phrased the problem with the two-tier island: “Two tier reduces the space efficiency on both sides, narrow eating area and narrow food prep area. Two tier also divides the room unnecessarily as opposed to allowing the eye to easily take in the expanse. I prefer one level, it’s also more comfortable unless everyone is very tall and likes high bar stools.”

A flat countertop offers much more useable space. You can roll out dough, spread out all your ingredients for meal prep, serve a buffet, or help the cook all without the awkward work around of a two-tier counter. 

Updating Your Two-Tier Island

The perfect time to update your two-tier island is right before you install new countertops. It’s easier than you might think. We had our carpenter remove the current top level counter and cut out the supports. This left us with a level surface.

An electrician relocated the outlets. Then, when the countertop company came out to template the counters, they extended the counters an additional 12 inches. When they came back to install the new countertops, they installed a couple of support braces underneath to hold the additional weight and that’s it! Goodbye 2000-ish two-tiered kitchen counter and HELLO 2017 updated flat counter. 

Kitchen Redesign

We actually helped this client by managing their whole kitchen redesign from the new countertops, to the updated lighting, tile selection and installation, hardware selections, new farmhouse sink, and kitchen cabinet painting and glazing. Here’s where we started:

And here’s where we ended up.

The client wanted to lighten and brighten the space. Here is a photo of our countertop, tile, and cabinet selections. 

We went with Taj Royale Caesarstone countertops, Italian Calacatta Gold tile and Cream painted cabinets with a taupe glaze. 

I love the way it all looks together. 

We also removed the pot rack and added this beautiful linear lantern from Ballard Designs. 

Did you know that there is a farmhouse sink that fits perfectly into the space of your old sink and the two fake drawers underneath? No major cabinet modification needed. 

And one more before and after. 

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We would love to help you with your kitchen re-design project. After transforming 100’s of kitchens in the Nashville area we have honed amazing, beautiful, money saving ideas to get the biggest impact for your budget. From stand alone kitchen cabinet painting to full service project management and design- we’d love to help. Just fill out the form below to get started with a free on-line estimate.