Kitchen Islands & Trolleys

The beauty of a kitchen island is that it provides an additional area of surface space, often located in the centre of your kitchen, which can be accessed from all sides. With cabinets, drawers, shelving and even built-in wine racks adorning its four edges, kitchen islands are solid structures which can come as part of a kitchen unit set or can be purchased individually as a new addition.

Kitchen trolleys, meanwhile, offer the same versatility but for those with smaller kitchens and not enough space to hand over to a large island. Popular for storing vegetables, drinks and even for serving cream teas or plates of sandwiches, kitchen trolleys are great thanks to their portable nature and the fact that they can easily be stashed away after use or celebrated as a permanent feature in the kitchen.

When might I need a kitchen island or a trolley?

Buyers often start their search for a kitchen island when they are running low on space and would like a space in which to do their food preparation without completely overrunning the worktops. Of course, investing in more surface space does also mean losing out on crucial floor space, and so our key suggestion is to measure and really familiarise yourself with the space you have to play with – and what an island would mean for the surrounding space and freedom of movement around your kitchen.

This also means testing out all the drawers and cabinets both built into the island and already in place in the surrounding surfaces. Ideally, your island needs to leave enough space for you to comfortably walk around it and pull open drawers and cupboards without the risk of knocking into the surface opposite.

TOP TIP: When you’re buying a kitchen island, make sure that the final maximum measurement of the island is the full countertop size and not just the structure beneath. We often see in our homeware and kitchen designer retailers that the surface overhangs the structure a little as a design feature – and this only adds to the space it takes up!

If in doubt, consider a kitchen trolley – offering its own solution to more storage space and service space, but with the added benefit that it can be moved around with ease, and can double up as an indoor or an outdoor feature.

What are the best styles of island and trolley?

Rectangular shapes seem to be the most popular when it comes to both an island or a trolley, as it helps them to blend into the straight lines of your kitchen surfaces and corners, and also creates easy to use and access drawers and cupboards.

In terms of the materials, you will find that while most islands and trolleys are made with hardwood structures, the surface worktops tend to be made from slightly different materials – primarily because a soft wood is subject to scratches and so should be protected where possible.

Some of the most popular and attractive materials include granite, marble and metal – though it is worth noting that many metal structure and tops can result in a very industrial kitchen look, and so may not be the most welcoming solution for a home kitchen. If you do decide to opt for metal, consider some accessories and countertop plants and decorative appliances which counteract the coldness of the metal. Granite and marble are both equally effective for food preparation and creating an aesthetically pleasing finish, though both also come with a price tag to match.