Designing a kitchen to feng shui principles carries more than spiritual meaning — the rules coincide remarkably well with sound function and cooking safety. The kitchen is the “hearth keeper” of the family, so arranging it correctly makes the space neat and convenient while creating a sense of harmony for the whole home. Below are five core guidelines for designing and laying out the kitchen.

1. Plan storage for kitchen tools

A cabinet system with enough room for knives, scissors, baking equipment and cookware keeps the kitchen permanently tidy — the foundation of both function and feng shui. A few suggestions:

  • Divided drawer trays for knives and utensils: easy to reach, safe, and they clear the worktop.
  • Combined upper and lower cabinets to separate dry and wet zones and limit damp and mould.
  • Easy-wipe surfaces (laminate, acrylic, engineered stone) keep the kitchen cleaner for longer.

Kitchen cabinet system storing tools neatly and tidily

2. Positioning the stove

By feng shui, the stove should “sit on an inauspicious spot and face an auspicious direction”, and should never directly face the main entrance — seeing straight into the stove the moment the door opens is best avoided. Practically, the same rule prevents draughts that make the flame flicker and blow dust into the cooking zone. If the floor plan cannot change, use a partition, a screen or an island counter to shield it. Do not place the stove hard against a window, and keep sharp objects from pointing straight at the cooking area.

3. Sink placement and the kitchen triangle

The stove belongs to Fire, the sink to Water — two conflicting elements that need sensible separation:

  • Stove and sink in one line: keep a minimum of around 60 cm between them.
  • Larger kitchens: set the stove and sink at right angles in an L-shape to separate Water and Fire and streamline the workflow.
  • The working triangle of stove, sink and refrigerator: keep them moderately close so movements stay short and cooking flows naturally.

Stove and sink sensibly separated within the working triangle

4. Positioning the dining table

Place the dining table at least about 1.5 m from the cooking zone so it does not catch odours and cooking fumes. Avoid pointing a sharp table corner straight at the stove. Depending on the floor area, choose a round table, a rectangular one, or an island doubling as a dining table for a small apartment.

5. Light and colour

The kitchen needs to be bright and well ventilated. Prioritise a large window for natural light and odour extraction; without one, use glass- or aluminium-fronted cabinets and under-cabinet LED strips to lift the sense of brightness. As for colour, since the kitchen carries a lot of heat, choose light, soft tones such as white, beige and pale grey — they feel clean and make stains easy to spot. Detailed lighting strategies are covered in lighting in interior design.

Beauty and good feng shui start with the right drawing

Most kitchen feng shui rules are, at heart, functional rules: separate Water and Fire, ventilate, light well, stay tidy. They only pay off when calculated from the drawing stage and built precisely across the electrical, plumbing, extraction and cabinet packages. Browse our insights hub for more on residential feng shui and kitchen floor tile selection.

AIC works to a single-point design-build model, merging design and construction into one unit so the drawing and the built result match. The company has over 10 years in the trade (since 2016 under the predecessor Nhan Viet; AIC was founded in 2019) and two in-house factories (1,200 m² and 600 m²) — fabricating kitchen cabinets to the actual site dimensions. From a floor plan, AIC can produce a BOQ estimate within roughly 4 working hours so the owner can size the budget; projects are handed over with a warranty of up to 24 months. See our apartment interior design and build service.

Frequently asked questions

Where should a stove not be placed?

Avoid placing the stove directly facing the main entrance or a bathroom door, hard against a window, or with sharp objects pointing straight at it. If the floor plan forces such a position, use a partition, island counter or screen to shield it and redirect the airflow.

What is the minimum distance between the stove and the sink?

If they sit in one line, leave at least about 60 cm between the stove and the sink to separate Water and Fire and provide enough working surface. In a larger kitchen, an L-shaped right-angle arrangement is the better option.

Which colours suit a kitchen?

Favour light, soft tones such as white, beige and pale grey — they make the kitchen look clean and bright and reveal stains early. Add wood or darker accents at the island or base cabinets for depth while keeping the whole harmonious.