Key Takeaways
- The best custom kitchen layouts are designed around how a family actually cooks, gathers, and moves through daily life, not just around aesthetics.
- Hjellming Construction drafts every custom floor plan in-house, so kitchen layout details like island seating, pantry placement, and sightlines are built into the design from the start.
- Hjellming Construction is a family-owned Sioux Falls home builder with over 60 years of experience and twenty Sioux Empire Home Builders Association Parade of Homes awards for home design.
Kitchen Layouts for the Way Families Actually Gather
The kitchen has always been the heart of the home, but the way families use that space has changed. It’s no longer just a place to cook — it’s where homework gets done, where guests naturally end up during a party, and where three generations can be in the same room without being in each other’s way.
At Hjellming Construction, designing kitchens that support real, everyday life has been part of our approach since Orlie Hjellming founded the company in 1962, and it’s a philosophy that’s only grown more refined over three generations of hands-on building experience.
Why Layout Matters More Than Trends
It’s easy to get caught up in finishes — cabinet colors, hardware, countertop materials — but layout is what determines whether a kitchen actually works for your family. A beautiful kitchen with a poor layout still feels frustrating to live in, while a well-planned layout can make even a modest footprint feel spacious and effortless.
Before any material or finish decision is made, we start with the fundamentals: where people enter the kitchen, how they move between the fridge, stove, and sink, and where they naturally want to linger. That foundation is what makes a kitchen feel right years after the excitement of a new remodel or new build has settled in.
The Working Triangle, Reimagined
Traditional kitchen design has long relied on the “working triangle” — the relationship between the refrigerator, stove, and sink. It’s still a useful starting point, but modern kitchens have to account for more than just cooking efficiency.
Today’s kitchens often need to support multiple cooks at once, a steady stream of foot traffic from kids and guests, and secondary work zones like coffee bars or baking stations. Rather than treating the working triangle as a rigid rule, we use it as a foundation and then build additional zones around it based on how your household actually functions.
Designing for How You Actually Gather
A great kitchen layout starts with a simple question: how does your family actually move through a day? Our team at Hjellming Construction, works directly with homeowners to translate those everyday habits into a floor plan — where the coffee station needs to be for a 6 a.m. routine, how close the pantry should sit to the garage entrance, and whether the island needs seating for two or six.
Every custom floor plan is drafted in-house, which means these details are built into the design from day one rather than adjusted after the fact.
Some of the layout choices we’re seeing homeowners request most often include:
- Oversized islands with built-in seating — a natural gathering point for casual meals, homework, or entertaining guests while you cook. Many homeowners are also asking for integrated features like hidden charging drawers or a second sink built into the island itself, keeping prep work and socializing in the same space without them competing.
- Clear sightlines to living and dining spaces — so whoever is in the kitchen never feels cut off from the rest of the house. This is especially important for families who host holidays or regularly have guests over, since it keeps the cook part of the conversation instead of isolated behind a wall.
- Dedicated prep and clean-up zones — keeping the mess out of view while guests are over. A layout that separates the “show” kitchen from the working kitchen — sometimes with a walk-through butler’s pantry or a secondary prep sink — lets you entertain without worrying about dirty dishes in plain sight.
- Walk-in pantries positioned for real workflow — close enough to the kitchen to be useful, out of the way of daily foot traffic. We often design pantries with enough depth for small appliance storage, so countertops stay clear for everyday cooking.
- Flexible secondary zones — a coffee bar, a baking station, or a homework nook tucked along a wall gives family members a reason to be in the kitchen without crowding the main workspace, which matters most for larger households or families with kids at different ages.
Layout Considerations for Remodels vs. New Builds
The approach to kitchen layout looks a little different depending on whether you’re remodeling an existing home or designing a new one from the ground up.
In a remodel, we’re often working within existing plumbing, electrical, and structural walls, so part of the design process is identifying which walls can move and which layout goals are realistic within that footprint.
In a new build, there’s far more freedom — the kitchen can be positioned and sized around the rest of the home’s flow from the start, rather than adapted to fit around it.
Either way, the same core question guides the design: how will your family actually use this space every single day?
For more on choosing finishes, see our guide to luxury kitchen countertop materials.
A Family Business Designing for Families
There’s something fitting about a family-owned company designing the spaces where other families come together.
Hjellming Construction is still run the way it always has been — by family, for families. Scott Hjellming, who purchased the business from his father Orlie in 1988, leads the company as President. His sons Cory and Bryan Hjellming now lead alongside him as Vice President and Treasurer/HR, representing the third generation to shape how Hjellming Construction designs and builds homes across the Sioux Falls area.
That generational perspective shows up in the kitchens we design. We’ve watched families’ needs evolve for over 60 years, and we bring that experience into every conversation about how your kitchen should function — not just how it should look.
Recognized for Design Excellence
Hjellming Construction has been honored with twenty Sioux Empire Home Builders Association Parade of Homes awards for our home designs, and Cory was named the 2019 Builder of the Year by the Home Builders Association of the Sioux Empire before going on to serve as the association’s president in 2025. That recognition reflects a simple standard we hold ourselves to: every home we design should be as functional as it is beautiful.
If you’d like to see that standard in action, take a look through our project portfolio to browse completed kitchen remodels and new custom homes across Sioux Falls, or visit our FAQ page for answers to common questions about the design and build process.
Let’s Talk
Ready to design a kitchen built around the way your family actually lives?
Contact Hjellming Construction to schedule a consultation and start planning your custom kitchen today! We’re excited to hear your vision.