Frameless
Banded 3/4 in panel edges and no front frame. About 8 to 10 percent more usable volume across a run, and a drawer box that runs nearly the full internal width.
Portland, Oregon
One room.
Measured
properly.
We design and build kitchens, and nothing else. Every plan leaves this studio with its aisle widths and work-triangle totals written on it.
Layout archetypes
Four plans. Real dimensions.
Almost every kitchen is one of four shapes. The shape is not the interesting part. The clearances each one demands, and what each one costs you in blind corners, is what decides whether the room works.
Two facing runs with a single walkway between them. The most efficient plan per square foot and the standard answer in Portland's pre-1940 houses, where the kitchen is a 8 ft by 11 ft box with a door at each end.
- Footprint
- Typically 7 ft to 10 ft wide, 9 ft to 14 ft long
- Aisle
- 42 in minimum between opposing fronts, 48 in if two cooks pass
- Work triangle
- Legs 4 ft to 7 ft. Total 13 ft to 20 ft, which is comfortably inside the 26 ft ceiling
- Appliance placement
- Sink and dishwasher on one run, range and refrigerator on the other
Suits
- Pre-war bungalows and foursquares
- Pass-through kitchens with two doorways
- Households that cook alone
Watch for
- Opposing appliance doors. A 24 in dishwasher door plus a 30 in oven door will collide in a 36 in aisle.
- Corner-free is a feature. There are no blind corners to lose, which is why galleys store more than their size suggests.
- Through-traffic ruins it. If the galley is the route to the back door, the cook is interrupted every trip.
Two perpendicular runs meeting at one corner. The most forgiving plan when the kitchen opens to a dining room, because the open two sides absorb traffic without crossing the work zone.
- Footprint
- Runs of 8 ft to 12 ft and 6 ft to 10 ft
- Aisle
- Open on two sides, so 36 in of clear floor in front of each run is enough
- Work triangle
- Legs 4 ft to 8 ft. Total 15 ft to 22 ft
- Appliance placement
- Sink near the window on the long run, range on the short run, refrigerator at the open end
Suits
- Kitchens opened to a dining room
- Plans that may gain an island later
- Two-cook households with room to spread
Watch for
- The corner. A blind base corner swallows about 6 cu ft. Budget for a 33 in or 36 in corner unit with a swing-out or a diagonal sink base.
- Long legs. Push the runs past 12 ft and the triangle stretches past 26 ft, which is when the plan starts to feel like walking.
- Upper cabinets ending in mid-air. Plan a finished end panel or a tall unit to terminate the run.
Three runs on three walls, giving the most continuous counter and the tightest work core. It wants a room at least 10 ft wide, otherwise the two opposing runs close in on each other.
- Footprint
- Minimum 10 ft by 10 ft, comfortable at 12 ft by 12 ft
- Aisle
- 60 in between opposing runs so the base of the U stays usable
- Work triangle
- Legs 4 ft to 7 ft. Total 13 ft to 19 ft, the shortest of the four
- Appliance placement
- One appliance per leg: sink in the base, range on one arm, refrigerator on the other
Suits
- Cooks who want maximum continuous counter
- Rooms with one doorway
- Kitchens that need a baking zone
Watch for
- Two blind corners, not one. Plan both before you price the cabinetry.
- Upper cabinets on three walls read heavy. We usually open one arm to shelving or a window.
- Under 10 ft wide, a U becomes a very tight galley with a dead end. An L plus an island is usually the better plan.
An L or U perimeter with a free-standing block that carries prep, seating, or the second sink. The island is what most Portland clients ask for, and it is the layout most often defeated by the room being 18 in too narrow.
- Footprint
- Room at least 13 ft wide before an island is worth drawing
- Aisle
- 42 in on the working sides, 36 in on a no-work side, 44 in where seating backs onto a walkway
- Work triangle
- Legs 4 ft to 8 ft. Total 16 ft to 24 ft when the sink moves to the island
- Appliance placement
- Prep sink or cooktop in the island, primary sink on the perimeter, refrigerator at the end of a run
Suits
- Open-plan great rooms
- Households that want seating in the kitchen
- Two or more cooks at once
Watch for
- Seating overhang. Counter-height stools need 15 in of knee depth, bar-height 12 in. That depth is added to the island, not taken from it.
- A cooktop island needs a hood, a make-up air path and a 36 in clearance to combustibles at the ends.
- Islands under 4 ft long are furniture, not work surface. If the room cannot hold 4 ft plus two aisles, a peninsula does the same job.
Work triangle and clearances
Move the three points. Watch the numbers.
Sink, range and refrigerator. Each leg wants to be 4 ft to 9 ft, and the three together 13 ft to 26 ft. Under that and the appliances crowd; over it and cooking becomes walking.
S sink · R range or cooktop · F refrigerator
Total 16.5 ft
- OK Every leg is between 4 ft and 9 ft.
- OK Total is inside the 13 ft to 26 ft range.
- OK The three lengths form a usable triangle.
- OK 42 in suits one cook and clears a dishwasher door.
Planning guidance based on common NKBA figures. A measured survey supersedes any of this.
Cabinet construction
The box, not the door
Clients arrive with a door style in mind and almost never with a box in mind. The carcass decides your storage volume, your reveal, your hinge, and whether inset doors are possible at all.
Face frame
A hardwood frame glued to the case front. Costs interior volume, resists racking, scribes to a crooked pre-war wall, and is the only route to a true inset door.
2 in
The difference in clear opening on a 24 in base cabinet. Over an eight-cabinet run, that is a stock pot that fits or does not.
Side by side
- Opening width on a 24 in base
- Frameless About 22-1/2 in of clear opening
- Face frame About 20-1/2 in of clear opening after the stiles
- Usable interior gain
- Frameless Roughly 8 to 10 percent more volume per run
- Face frame Frame costs volume but adds racking resistance
- Drawer box width
- Frameless Wider box, full-extension undermount slides run to the case side
- Face frame Narrower box, or slides packed out to clear the frame
- Hinge
- Frameless Concealed cup hinge, 6-way adjustable, bores in the case side
- Face frame Concealed hinge on a mounting plate, or a traditional exposed hinge
- Door overlay
- Frameless Full overlay only. 3 mm reveal between doors.
- Face frame Full overlay, partial overlay or inset, each with a different reveal
Countertop behaviour
How each surface actually behaves
Heat, staining and seams, not colour. Seven materials we specify, and the one thing about each that people find out too late.
Engineered quartz
Ground quartz in polymer resin
- Heat
- Poor. Resin scorches and can yellow above about 300 F
- Stain
- Excellent. Non-porous, no sealing
- Seams
- Seams take colour well and disappear in a movement-free pattern
- Thickness
- 2 cm or 3 cm slab, 1-1/2 in mitred edge available
- Upkeep
- Soap and water. No sealer, ever.
The default choice for a working family kitchen. Always use a trivet.
Granite
Igneous natural stone
- Heat
- Excellent. A hot pan will not mark it
- Stain
- Good once sealed. Oil will darken an unsealed slab
- Seams
- Busy patterns hide seams well
- Thickness
- 3 cm standard, 2 cm with a laminated edge
- Upkeep
- Impregnating sealer every 12 to 24 months
Ask to see the actual slab. Granite varies more between blocks than any other material here.
Marble
Metamorphic natural stone
- Heat
- Good. It will not scorch, but thermal shock can craze a polished face
- Stain
- Poor. Etches on contact with lemon, wine and vinegar
- Seams
- Veining must be matched across the seam, which limits where the seam can go
- Thickness
- 3 cm, honed finish hides etching better than polished
- Upkeep
- Sealer plus acceptance that it will patina
Beautiful on a baking counter, punishing next to a cooktop. We often mix it in as one run.
Quartzite
Metamorphic natural stone
- Heat
- Excellent
- Stain
- Good once sealed. Harder than granite on the Mohs scale
- Seams
- Directional veining, so seam placement is drawn before fabrication
- Thickness
- 3 cm, occasionally 2 cm on a mitre
- Upkeep
- Sealer every 12 to 24 months
Marble looks with granite behaviour. Confirm it is true quartzite, not a soft dolomite sold as one.
Porcelain slab
Sintered ceramic
- Heat
- Excellent. Genuinely unbothered
- Stain
- Excellent. Zero porosity
- Seams
- Thin body, so the mitred edge and the seam need a skilled fabricator
- Thickness
- 6 mm to 12 mm with a built-up mitred edge
- Upkeep
- None
The right answer for a waterfall island that also takes the cooktop. Chipping at the edge is the risk.
Butcher block
Laminated hardwood
- Heat
- Poor. Scorches and can split
- Stain
- Fair. Oil finish absorbs, but it sands out
- Seams
- Joins are visible and part of the look
- Thickness
- 1-1/2 in typical, 3 in for an island top
- Upkeep
- Mineral oil monthly for the first year, then quarterly
Excellent as one prep run in an otherwise stone kitchen. Do not wrap it around a sink unless it is finished hard.
Soapstone
Talc-rich metamorphic stone
- Heat
- Excellent. Traditionally used for lab benches and wood stoves
- Stain
- Excellent. Non-porous and acid-proof
- Seams
- Seams can be tightened and oiled almost invisible
- Thickness
- 3 cm
- Upkeep
- Mineral oil to even the darkening, or leave it to patina
Soft enough to scratch and soft enough to sand the scratch out with 220 grit.
Ventilation
CFM is arithmetic, not taste
Total burner BTU divided by one hundred, rounded up, then matched to a duct that can carry it. Above 400 CFM, Oregon wants a make-up air path, and that has to be planned during framing.
Electric or induction, 30 in
250 - 350 CFM
- Duct
- 6 in round
- Hood width
- 30 in, 36 in preferred
- Mounting
- Mount 24 in - 30 in above
Induction boils fast and throws a lot of steam. Do not under-size it because there is no flame.
Gas, 30 in, up to 40,000 BTU
350 - 450 CFM
- Duct
- 6 in or 7 in round
- Hood width
- 36 in
- Mounting
- Mount 27 in - 30 in above
Rule of thumb: 1 CFM for every 100 BTU of burner rating, then round up.
Gas, 36 in, 45,000 - 60,000 BTU
450 - 600 CFM
- Duct
- 8 in round
- Hood width
- 42 in
- Mounting
- Mount 30 in above
At 400 CFM and above, Oregon requires a make-up air path. Plan it during framing, not at inspection.
Pro range, 48 in, 60,000+ BTU
600 - 1,200 CFM
- Duct
- 8 in or 10 in round
- Hood width
- 54 in
- Mounting
- Mount 30 in - 36 in above
A powered make-up air damper interlocked with the hood is effectively mandatory.
Island cooktop, any fuel
+100 - 200 CFM
- Duct
- Straight vertical run through the roof
- Hood width
- 6 in wider than the cooktop on each side
- Mounting
- Mount 30 in - 36 in above
Added on top of the equivalent wall figure. No wall to help capture, and cross-draught from the room works against the hood.
Downdraft, any fuel
500 - 600 CFM
- Duct
- Under-floor or toe-kick run to an exterior wall
- Hood width
- Matches the cooktop
- Mounting
- Rises 8 in - 10 in behind the burners
Fights physics. We specify it only when a hood is genuinely impossible.
Figures reflect common North American practice. Always follow the appliance data plate and your local code official.
Recent work
Six Portland kitchens, drawn before they were built
Each case study carries the layout it started as, the layout it became, the footprint, the schedule and a sample budget band. No before-and-after slider, just the numbers and the plan.
See all six
How a kitchen gets built
Five stages, one lead carpenter
01
Survey
Two to three hours in your kitchen. We measure to the sixteenth, find the stack, the panel and the joist direction, open the electrical panel and photograph everything that will be hidden later.
Week 1
02
Layouts
Two or three scale plans, each solving the room differently. Aisle widths and work-triangle totals are written on the drawing so you can compare them like for like.
Weeks 2-3
03
Specification
Cabinetry, stone, tile, hardware, appliances, lighting and flooring fixed in one document with model numbers, finishes and lead times. This is what the fixed price is built from.
Weeks 4-5
04
Order and permit
Cabinetry goes on order the day drawings are signed, because it is the longest lead item. Permit drawings are submitted in the same week.
Week 6
05
Build
Demolition, rough-in, inspection, cabinetry set and levelled, stone template and install, tile, paint, floor and fit-off. One lead carpenter throughout.
Weeks 7-17
Ways to start
Three engagements
The survey and drawings stand on their own. If you take them elsewhere, they are yours. If you build with us, the fee comes off the price.
$1,450
Measure and plan
A measured survey and two scale layout options, whether or not we ever build it.
- Two to three hour measured survey with services plan
- Two scale layouts with triangle and clearance figures
- Elevations for the chosen layout
- A written outline specification and budget band
Sample price. Credited in full against a build with us.
Book a consultationFrom $24,000
Cabinetry refit
New cabinetry and stone in the layout you already have, with no services moved.
- Survey, drawings and full specification
- Cabinetry, internal fittings and hardware
- Countertop template, fabrication and install
- Splashback set-out and tiling
- Four to six weeks on site
Sample band. Assumes sink, range and refrigerator stay put.
Book a consultationFrom $68,000
Full studio remodel
The layout is on the table. Services move, walls can come out, everything is drawn first.
- Everything in the cabinetry refit
- Layout change with plumbing and electrical
- Permit drawings and inspection coordination
- Lighting design and circuit schedule
- Flooring and transitions
- Sixty-day return visit to adjust doors and drawers
Sample band. Our most common engagement.
Book a consultation“The baking counter is two inches lower than everything else and it has changed how I work. Nobody else offered that.”
- Rating
- 4.9 / 5
- Reviews
- 168
- Licence
- Oregon CCB #000000
Sample figure across Google, Houzz and Angi. Sample figures.
What clients said
After the dust settled
4.9 out of 5 across 168 reviews (sample). Including the one about a cabinet lead time slipping by ten days, because that happened.
They did not move a single wall and the room is twice the kitchen it was. The drawings told us that before we spent anything.
Ingrid Halvorsen · Sellwood-Moreland
Moving the back door was their idea and it was the whole answer. We would never have thought of it.
Dave Marchetti · Hawthorne
Two firms told us a slab floor meant no island. Nordhaus drew one with the cooktop in it and it works perfectly.
Priya Raghunathan · Multnomah Village
They told us our boxes were good and talked us out of a full remodel. Four days of work and we saved a serious amount.
Colin Whitfield · Alberta Arts
The scullery was their suggestion. The main kitchen stays clean now and the old glazed cabinets were kept.
Mei-Lin Zhou · Irvington
We saw the seam plan on paper before anything was cut. The seam is over a cabinet edge and I genuinely cannot find it.
Andres Villalobos · Hawthorne
Cabinet lead time slipped by ten days and they told us straight away. Everything else landed exactly as drawn.
Hannah Brekke · Sellwood-Moreland
Four lighting layers at the same colour temperature. I did not know that was the thing that had always bothered me.
Thomas Okafor · Laurelhurst
Where we stand
A kitchen is a room you use four times a day for twenty years. It deserves to be drawn before it is bought.
We take one room type, three jobs at a time, and we put the aisle widths on the drawing where you can argue with them. If that sounds slow, it is. It is also why nobody has asked us to come back and move something.