This is a very interesting question and one that comes up quite often. The standard height for benchtops is 900mm from finished floor level. this has been the standard height for near on 100 years. Now, the issue is that over the last 100 years, the human race as a whole has increased in height. Even a small increase in bench height can have a huge impact on the usability of the kitchen. Have you ever stood at a sink and your back starts to ache after 5 minutes? Most of our kitchens are installed at 920mm, but some will go in higher "IF" the owners are taller

Hi Barry, I personally don't think the large blank space lends itself to a piece of art. It's up too high and contrary to your thoughts, it wouldn't be the feature you'd hope for it to be. Besides, the money you spend on a piece large enough, would be better spent on a smaller, higher quality piece mounted at the correct height (eye-level) that would compliment another part of your home. Getting back to the blank space, have you considered using a timber veneer for the wall cabinets? Something that would work with your bench, and then you could use the same veneer as wall panels to continue above the blank space over the cupboards. Perhaps you could even incorporate led strip lighting to give it a little more wow factor. Timber is great because it adds a layer of warmth to the polished concrete and dark cabinets. Good luck, and keep us posted! Would love to see which way you go. Cheers, and have a great weekend. Steve

i'm glad you're planning to reroute access to the garage: clumsy traffic pattern change a generous room into a big hallway and can't stop thinking about your kitchen..1. where you have narrow cabinets/shelves in the pantry...it's possible to have built in shelves inside the dividing wall (think about the size of what you want to store: cans, bottles, skinny packets? and put 60cm base cabinets on the other side, next to the freezer 2. i can't see the yellow highlights for stools 3. width of pantry is subject to you wanting to keep the door to the formal living room...if so, measure 150mm past the door opening and that's the minimum width of the pantry but 1500mm allows space to comfortably walk past your freezer and have full size base cabinets with pantry drawers (cleaner than open shelves) 4. space between the b'fast bar and 'fridge should be at least 90cm but if you choose a wide b'fast bar and a big 'fridge a bigger space is preferable (stand a couple of chairs 90cm in front of your current fridge for a few days and see how it feels) direction of fridge door opening is also critical, first for the cooks and then everyone else: if the size of the b'fast bar can be enlarged or reduced with overhanging counter then a change of walkway is not so difficult 5. as suggested by girlguide, the cooktop and rangehood might be better on the outside wall for ventilation 6. there seems to be a lot of small cabinets and drawers in your plan and there could be some better (and cheaper) combinations but when i tried to access IKEA kitchen planner to confirm available sizes it's not responding today 7. i've attached my suggested approximate base cabinet sizes: starting with corners and work outwards, aiming for the biggest standard carcases and then add drawers to suit purpose ..

Agree with bigreader, three small pendants. One either end of bench and one in the middle. Only one or two if they are large pendants. Also when getting the electrician to install, ensure they are at the correct height. Nothing worse than trying to chat to people with the pendants right in eye line sight.