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A kitchen island is a wonderfully versatile piece of kitchen furniture. Families like to gather around it and it can even become a great perching spot for a small, informal party. You can have one that’s designed just as a workspace or you can have one designed to be a place for conversation by adding some kitchen stools. You can even have one built-in with cook tops and sinks, if you wish.

But small kitchens might simply become crowded if one is added. The larger the room, the better, but there are some simple things you can check to make sure that your room can really benefit from a kitchen island rather than suddenly feel cluttered and full.

Measure and mark off the area where the Island will be taking up space. Use masking tape or some type of marking that won’t damage your floor. Now go about your daily business in your kitchen. How many times you find yourself stepping into that area? When you open your dishwasher, stove or refrigerator does it go into your marked off area? Do you find yourself standing there when you’re pulling out the recycling or your garbage can?

You’re naturally going to walk across it several times, but the point is to make sure that your daily activities don’t require some of that space to be convenient. If you plan to have kitchen stools around your island, give yourself enough room to account for those when considering things like a refrigerator or dishwasher door. You might find you need a smaller island or even one that’s portable so you can roll it out of the way if needed.

A kitchen island can be a great addition if there’s plenty of room for it, so be sure there is before you trade off floor space for counter space.