KITCHEN DESIGN TIPS – THE RENOVATION SUCCESS IS IN PLANNING

Kitchen renovation is one of the major projects when it comes to your house makeover. It is also a major inconvenience in the process of renovation. Unlike most of the rooms – in modern house layouts – a kitchen is an open concept space. It probably was the reason why you have bought this house in the first place!

Possibly, one of the most used spaces in your home,  kitchen is the place where the whole family gets together and the best place to multitask: cook and watch TV or check your social media, help kids with homework and endless school projects, or pay the bills.

As our clients come to us to order stone countertops and backsplashes at different stages of a kitchen renovation, here are the common challenges that can be avoided with careful planning:

  • Think through the flooring and flooring transitions. That is one of the major decisions in kitchen planning – the question that you want to answer first. Do you want to have the same flooring for the entire floor, or single out your kitchen as a separate space? Many years before this decision was easy and based on the materials’ qualities available at the time. You did not want to spill water on hardwood, and did not want to walk on tiles in cold winter days. So the hardwood was reserved for the rooms while tiles or natural stone were used for the high traffic areas. Now with waterproof engineered wood, or porcelain tiles almost indistinguishable from hardwood – the decision is mostly inspired by design, feel and color of the materials. But deciding on suitable flooring is really the first step as it affects the logistics and budget of the entire project.
  • Kitchen cabinet layout and appliance placement. We are a countertop manufacturer and installer, but we do depend on the cabinet layout. How many times our clients had to call in with last-minute alterations, after some changes to the cabinets were done, and sadly, sometimes, it was too late to change. It happens more often when you plan the kitchen yourself. Thinking that the dishwasher can be installed where it is impossible technically, or planning an island when there is not enough room to open the fridge door afterward…
  • Maximize on built-ins to get more usable countertop space. No matter how big your kitchen is – there seems to be never enough countertops. The efficient solution is to maximize built-ins and hide the clutter.
  • Kitchen Countertop Color and Material. Kitchen countertops are not only the largest functional surface in the kitchen but also an important design component. Choosing the right color and material can literally make or break your kitchen. And here we often see client suffering from the extremes – either making the kitchen all monochromatic or going for contrast, just to break it up a bit”. Luckily now there is a lot of inspiration on the web and you can easily see whether black countertop with white cabinets is too much of a contrast or just the right thing for you.

Thinking the entire process of kitchen renovation from selecting materials, to appliances, to building cabinets, and making alternative eating arrangements while you do not have access to the stove through will save you a aggravation, and, quite possibly, money.

Whatever stage of kitchen planning you are at if you are planning to use marble, granite or quartz countertops – give us a call if you have questions, or book an appointment to learn about the available countertop materials and their qualities.