What do you mean by an apron?

I think this is what you mean. You've probably seen my dark kitchen, but we did the same in the craft room island (white cabs under for storage). Most use a false door for decorative purpose, but I had room for storage and have under island cabinets. Either way I think it looks MUCH nicer to have false doors or some sort of finished look with molding etc. My dark cabs under are finished in the same slab door as rest of kitchen so it is not very detailed under there. A different look altogether. Previous to this remodel I had sheetrock wall under my island and I had to paint it every 3 months from all the dings and scuff marks. So far (4 years) not a single scratch on my wood doors. An occasional white scuff from a sneaker is easily wiped away.

Hope this is what you had in mind when you asked about "aprons"!

Here are views from the short side and the eating side. We don't have an apron but you can see the board (same wood and finish as cabinets) that runs under the counter. So when sitting at the stools if you touch the bottom of the counter, there is a short span of granite and then the smooth wood.

{{!gwi}}

{{!gwi}}

It's kind of hard to see in the second pic, but the board runs the length of the overhang.

Breezy-

We are planning to do an apron for our countertop overhang, but we're a ways away. Here are a couple images of with and without that might help you visually compare. Two are from Houzz, two are Pinterest finds.

With:

With my favorite apron style:

Without (Actually does have it on the side):
{{!gwi}}

Without:
{{!gwi}}

Here is a picture of our island with apron. The granite isn't installed and some molding is yet to be done on the posts, but I think it will give you the idea.

The following picture shows the island with barstools

Apron = knee bumpers.

Just a thought. Any way some of you
could resize those huge pics?
Would make it much nicer for everyone
else to read threads without
the need to scroll.

Houseful--That's the funniest apron I've ever seen! :)

Coastal--So you don't have aprons on yours. Your kitchen quartz is so thick that you certainly don't need it, nor does it go with your modern look. I love the stainless legs. Thanks.

Dilly--I'm not talking about the panel that goes on the back of the base cabinets supporting counter. Bead board will look nice!

Chicagoans--Thanks. It's always nice to see your kitchen. Love the drawers on the end of the island.

Brickton--I have those first two pics saved in Houzz for an apron inspiration. The first one is particularly me. Do you worry about the loss of leg room for a person sitting at the island? The pics without the legs look nice too. Those help a lot!

Bren--I have to admit that I saved your island photo as a perfect example of an apron. It's so visible without the top on. In fact, I posted in the other day when I was asking about aprons on overhangs. So glad I can give you credit now. Thanks!

Natal--That's exactly what I'm afraid of. But the apron just somehow "finishes" the counter in my eye.

We do worry about it, but the major users of the peninsula will be our children. And I'm surprisingly okay with inflicting pain or discomfort on my offspring for aesthetic reasons. If it becomes less useful as they grow up, we might just have to do something about it (make them eat in the basement? on the floor?).

Seriously though, I'm thinking of maybe 3.5" thick on the end, coming up to about 2" thick in the center. A 24" high seat would still have 8.5" in the center and 7" on the side... which is admittedly not much. Hrmn... Now I need to talk to my cabinet guy... and my wife.

Here is a picture of our island with apron. The granite isn't installed and some molding is yet to be done on the posts, but I think it will give you the idea.

The following picture shows the island with barstools

Here is ours....

Hey Breezy -- this is *exactly* the thread I was coming on to request! Well, sort of ... it's actually the seats and seating I'm worried about. Will it hijack your thread to ask for clarification about this particular? Brickton just mentioned it: how much acreage have you wound up with between your seat and overhang? I have 37"h countertops; when I measure my desk there's You've seen mine I think, without apron. This may not be a great picture

- sorry it being too large, natal. I'm not quite sure how to shrink it. Breezy, there may be more better pics on my photobucket. But I'm guessing you don't need to see it better; I think what I've got is quite different from yours, probably. But functionally I'd want to maximize access to the storage I've crammed in underneath. Plus to me, the form of the empty apron is just silly; that's why I selected frameless cabinets. Edges just hanging emptily into space kinda mystify me. Sort of like a scaled-down upside down version of false-fronts on western towns: why? It's not as if there's a prairie underneath your counter you need to hide! Or is there.

For that matter, when it's small laps your working with, adding an extraneous drop in the form of the apron will just make it all the harder for them to come up to the counter where they need "clocking" (thanks, Mtn). I'd be worried about sufficiently boosting them, not artificially, and extraneously, dropping them downward. The little laps (of kids) I mean.

Gosh, this picture looks so "yesterday" to me. The fridge is in now and it looks so much better around here!!!

OK, apron front. Got it now! Learn something new every day, and I don't have one, but love the look of it! I guess your right breezy that it wouldn't go on my island, but I say go for it! Harder for those dirty little fingers to take a wipe on the bottom of the counter overhang if there is an apron in the way. Not that my kids ever do anything so icky! My favorite style would be like MDBmom above, nice detail!

I understand now, too! I posted the pic with everyone sitting because I thought it had something to do with clearance. Anyway, I love the look of the apron, especially on the traditional style islands with legs.

sorry it being too large, natal.
I'm not quite sure how to shrink it

Photobucket gives you options for
sizes to post. Maybe another PB
member can be more specific.

OK, Natal - I see that when you go into photobucket there's an option to "edit" the photo and then "resize" it and you can opt for predetermined sizes of sm, med and lg - maybe there was another - and also you can specify the pixels or whatever it is more precisely.

Does anyone happen to have a target ideal for posting size?

Another way to force an image smaller would be to add "height=480 width=640" to the portion of the HTML tag.

Re: height of stools: generally counter height stools are 26" and bar height are 30"
I really like the apron, but agree about the knee knocking. To me though if you are going to do legs it does look nice.

Aliris, your picture size is fine - at least on my laptop. It
is BrensProjects pictures that are super wide. The problem is
that when a large picture is posted, this site uses that as
the page width and it gets to a point where the lines of text
are wider than my (and most people's screens) so that it is
necessary to scroll back and forth to read the paragraphs.
I've put extra paragraph marks in to keep my text narrow.

Here is my island - no apron, but we were going for
transitional/contemporary in our MCM house. Not quite as
stark as the original slab, handle-less cabinets but still
keeping the lines very simple with Shaker:

I'm new posting in GW, so don't know if I'm too late to add to this post. My kitchen is ready for countertops. The cabinet maker made me an apron that was 3 1/2". I was worried about leg room, so I had him cut it down to a 2" apron. I think it finishes the look of any stone (a wood counter can stand alone)...although I have 4 large columns at the corners and like the way they look by themselves. I figure that I could have him cut the apron out if I feel like it's in the way, or looks closed in.

I LOVE the large photos, but I admit that I don't like when I have to scroll across to read the script, but it's worth it to see all the nice, big pictures, ..."a picture is worth a thousand words". The details show better in the large pics. and, I can't open the pictures out of photo bucket. Small pictures don't help too much to see all the details.

MDBmom, can you tell me what kind of soapstone you have. It's gorgeous. I have barroca tagged now for my perimeter cabinet area, and wonder if it will look as nice as yours.

Thanks, honey333, for calling this thread back to my attention. I got busy and forgot to come back and thank the other posters for their comments.

Brickton--I can't wait to see how your kitchen turns out.

MDBMom, Aliris and Cloud--I appreciate you sharing your photos.

Houseful--I thought you were posting the pic on purpose as a joke because the way the kids are covering the front of your island makes them look like an apron. Hope I didn't insult you up there!

Honey--Welcome to GW. Good theory for your apron, and I hope your counter install goes well. Here's a thread from MDBmom where she mentions her soapstone. If that's not enough info, you could post on there and ask her.

I didn't post my decision on the apron issue. I chose to forgo that lovely feature. My island has enough going on already and I was worried about the loss of sitting leg room underneath.

Here is a link that might be useful: MDBMom's island

LOL, not insulted in the least. I'm looking forward to your final kitchen pics!

fwiw we had choice to gussy up the front of our peninsula or go plain and I'm so glad we went plain. Seen from next room, our brick red painted MDF front on the peninsula gives enough background to make stools show up in contrast and the repeat of the paint color gives the room an integrity it wouldn't have had if done with wood, since the room actually has only a little paint in it otherwise. It was a way to build on a theme and to cut down on the mass of wood at the same time. Our only wood on the front of the peninsula is a functional cab door into the blind corner plus the wooden supports that run under the countertop. Cabinetmaker was not sure about it but we kept saying, no wood across the balance of the peninsula front.

So often a wood front, esp a decorated one with lots of rectangles or moldings on an island or peninsula can actually reinforce a feeling of "too much."

Honey I'm with you . . . I LOVE the large photos, you can see so much more detail.

The overhang at our bar doesn't have an apron. We have cabinets underneath the overhang and I want them to be full height and not be restricted. I also get claustrophobic easily, lol, and like open spaces.

Sorry, I forgot to add the photo . . . here it is showing the full height cabinets underneath. Notice how the installers notched the window sill so the soapstone could be supported on that end by the sill.

Hi Honey,

It is Barroca and I LOVE it! It definitely dings and scratches easily but it oils right out and the dings sand out pretty easily. Let me know if you have any other questions. The pic I posted before is with it being just oiled. Here is one without recent oiling. (Sorry Breezy for answering this on your thread:o)).

Here's ours without an apron. Didn't even know it was an option- I'm glad, it was less thing to decide. They do look quite good I must admit especially if you are using posts.

Honey and Judydel, if you need to see closeups
simply take a closer shot.

It's much more courteous to take the time
to resize your pics if you're
using a hosting site like Photobucket.

{{!gwi}}

Here's our overhang with no apron.

Sorry for a slight hijack, but MDBmom, what are your lovely backsplashes?

Cindaintx---- it is honed Carrara marble 3 x 6. I got it at algard tile in southhampton pa (Lisa). Not sure where she ordered it from. Hope this helps.

MDBmom ~ You kitchen has a BEAUTIFUL Soft look! ..just love it! ..and glad to hear your SS is Barroca too. Mine will be installed hopefully soon. Please tell me how many inches your counter overhangs are over your lower perimeter cabinets, and on the cabinet part of your island (how many inches out from cabinet faces)?

PPS ~Your island columns are gorgeous! They look good on their own. (You wrote that you like aprons, but didn't have the choice.) - You probably could still have a cabinetmaker add an apron, if you wanted. I don't believe they hold anything up. ~ Please can you tell me how many inches your counter overhangs are over your perimeter cabinets, and also around the sides of your island?

Judydel ~ I love your crystal knobs. Mine have been waiting in a box for 3 months now. Progress has been slow, and reading GardenWeb has helped me make all of the decisions that seemed impossible to make! Are you also putting crystal knobs on the long cabinet to the right of your fridge?

Natal~ I know the scrolling isn't fun, but it is the beautiful large photos that attracted me to GardenWeb. You said to take closer shots, but that would just be a small area of the room. I have such a long list of other aspect of the kitchen I like to check out in everyone's different kitchens. Doonie posted a small picture..but I can't see any details...and when I clicked on the picture, trying to enlarge it, I got an advertisement for something called "tinypic" (of course). I can't open photobucket pics most of the time. And I like reading older threads, in which all the photobuckets say that the pictures are no longer available?

please don't stop the big pics. They help a lot ..and I like seeing all the beautiful kitchens, lifesize.

Gee I'm not sure why I'm being singled out and chastised for posting full size photos. I'm not the only one on this thread or other threads to do so. I enjoy seeing full size photos and thought I was returning the favor. Maybe it's just because I'm having a really bad day . . . but I'm pretty insulted and downhearted now by natal's comment. I apologize if I haven't been courteous. Maybe it's time to move on.

Judy--no, no, no!! You did nothing wrong. I think the problem with the pics being big started above you, then pics afterward may look toobig to some people. I have no problems with yours or anyone else's. Dont let one person's comments effect your participation here. I, and many others, have learned much from your posts and photos of your beautiful kitchen!

Judy, yes, Natal complained about all the big beautiful photos BEFORE yours went in. He just used you as an example. I saved your picture in my kitchen file, and wanted to ask to see another angle of your Glass cabinets, but I didn't want to upset Natal,... but what the heck.

I, too like the big photos. I'm lucky enough to have fast internet service; I imagine life is miserable for those on remote dialups. It's probably tough to please everyone. But it doesn't seem immediately obvious to me that it's a "discourtesy" to post one way or another. Rather, I imagine it is discourteous to some one way, and others the other way! Tough to negotiate that one.

Personally, I *much* prefer the big pictures; I'm too lazy to click on the smaller unless I'm really intrigued. There's value in having something that doesn't immediately catch your eye, really large and in-your-face. That's my 0.02.

But it is interesting to learn more about the GW ins and outs; seems that it automatically sends text out to the largest common denominator-width; a pain for sure.

Maybe instead of changing pic-size posting habits we should just swamp GW admin with complaints about their antiquated software?

In the meantime, Judy - that's some nifty notching. Who could see that without it being big, and if you didn't show it, who would have thought of that terrific idea? Someone will benefit from it for sure. Thanks!

Judydel, Don't you worry one bit the picture size. I made mine tiny and look what happened! We love seeing pictures of your beautiful kitchen and you remain one of my inspirations here. Please don't leave.

Here's a close up of our overhang. Hope that helps.

honey333--it is a 2" overhang on the cab side of island and perimeter on the sides with the drawers. Ours are not inset so we needed extra so that if food...falls of counters it will hit floor and not go in drawers. On the non cab sides the overhang is 1 1/4". Hope this helps and thanks for the compliments. I am loving it so far! Now on to paint colors.....

MDBmom, Thanks so much for measuring! This part of the counter decision is driving me crazy. After the fabricator left, we put pieces of wood on the counter, to make sure about how it looks. Every l/4" makes a difference. Our drawers start up at the very top of the cabinet base. They aren't inset, but the edges of all the drawers and doors all meet perfectly, so that you can't see any of the cabinet base through them.

Your overhang amount looks good to me, and looks smaller to me in the picture than 2"! Can you tell me if the 2" you measured is from the cabinet base? and, if so, what is the exact thickness of your drawer fronts? ~ thanks again!

MDBmom & Judydel:

I haven't been here for a while so forgive me if I've overlooked your threads. Are your beautiful kitchens on the FKB? Your dimensions and floor plan are similar to mine and I would like to view them for inspiration.

Thanks!

Didn't see this thread when it was first posted. Love seeing everyone's overhangs with and without aprons, large and small.

Because I wanted a clean, non-traditional look, I went without an apron. Here is our set up. Our overhang has a slight curve in it.

Jodi-

nellie820
Thanks! I am still working on my kitchen so I haven't posted yet. We still need to paint (any suggestions on colors is very welcome--I have 10 different swatches hanging in my kitchen right now!), change outlets (they are almond now so need to change to white), counter stools, accessories, new kitchen table and chairs and a banquette. I have posted a few pics lately asking for help with paint... but I still have a few months left before I post the finished project. If there area any other areas or angles you want to see just let me know:o).

honey333--
I measured from the cabinet bases. From the cab base to the end of the drawer is just shy of 7/8". From the end of the cab base to the end of the drawer pull is: 1 5/8". It really doesn't seem like it is too much of an overhang I think because of the cab pulls. The only thing I may have done differently--but I am really nitpicking here--is on the island. On the cab side as I told you the overhang is 2". On the counter stool side, there is only a 1 1/4" overhang from the end of the apron. I don't notice it at all when in the kitchen but when I look at pics I notice the difference. I might have done a 2" OH on the counter stool side too just for symmetry sake (now my geeky science and math side is coming out:o)). Hope this helps and let me know if you have any other questions.

Just for clarification ...

Honey, I addressed you along with Judy because of both of your comments ...

I LOVE the large photos, but I admit that I don't like when I have to scroll across to read the script

and

Honey I'm with you . . . I LOVE the large photos, you can see so much more detail.

I can't tell because this thread is so stretched out, but I think pps7's pic is a size that won't stretch out the text and you can still see plenty of detail.

If you think bigger is better then carry on. Resizing is done as a courtesy, but if it doesn't bother all of you then continue with the huge pics and the stretching text.

Finally, I'm a she, not a he.

I hope I can revive this old thread as you have been discussing my design flaw. Hopefully some of you are still around. We just had our soapstone counters installed on my island with 4 1/4 inch apron and bought 26 inch high stools (standard). We have only 4 inches of clearance. Yikes! How did cabinet maker miss this one! If we go down to 24 inch chair I'll have 6 inches. I could have the apron made 2 inches smaller (expensive, not easy). What is standard apron size on island? How much is typical clearance?

I'm a little unclear on meaning - what is the apron you mention. I am sitting at my island right now. The stools are 26" and the bottom of the counter is 35", which means there is 9" of clearance.