Ideas that Electrify Your Cooking Space
You have decided to try something new in home renovation, and your target is the kitchen. Kitchen renovation ideas are swirling around in your head fast enough to make anyone dizzy. And you have been looking at so many books with kitchen renovation trends, you can taste the ink through your fingers.
But maybe you haven’t settled on a theme, or perhaps you don’t know where to start. And that is where a kitchen renovation planning tool can help. You can chart everything from your kitchen renovation options to the best kitchen gadgets to put in your newly minted space with the right plan.
Redoing your kitchen has to start somewhere, and the only logical place is with the scope of the project. Are you gutting it and starting from scratch, or is it just a simple cabinetry overhaul? Will you change the fixtures or keep them? What about the hardware?
Knowing how much is to be done gives you a springboard to get the process going. Then comes picking your kitchen renovation design. What do you like, and what do you want to see five or even ten years from now? Does a quaint French countryside kitchen appeal to you, or maybe kitchen renovations modern homes have these days?
The best way to establish continuity is to begin with the lowest areas and work upward. That means it’s time for the kitchen renovation flooring conversation. Clearly, this room gets some traffic, but it also gets some spills, some stains, and some dropped items.
Picking the right floor is as much about design aesthetics as it is functionality. You want a floor that can handle the load. A few great flooring choices are:
The three primary hardwood styles are light, medium, and dark. Each has its positive and negative aspects.
Light
Pros:
Cons:
Medium
Pros:
Cons:
Dark
Pros:
Cons:
Tile comes in a cadre of materials, each with its own luster and unique quality. The traditional porcelain tile is very popular because it can be fired in many colors, and it is relatively inexpensive compared to marble or travertine. Some tile options are:
Just to name a few
Then there are the other lesser-known possibilities like bamboo, cork, concrete, and painted wood. Of course, if you are intending to splurge more on cabinetry and countertops or kitchen renovation gadgets, something simple like a laminate will work just fine. The only significant drawback is it cannot be sanded down if scuffs appear.
Your combination of countertops and cabinets makes a statement. There are so many woods to choose from for cabinets, and plenty of natural stone options for counters, it is enough to make your head spin. So, instead of concentrating on things like materials, let us talk about color schemes.
If you want to upgrade your kitchen with a dark mystique, any cabinet can be stained to match what you see in your mind. Even a wood as light as maple can be turned ink black with the right stain. But countertops are a little trickier unless you go cheap and do it with Formica, which can also come in many darker shades.
For a lighter touch, white is a great way to go. White cabinets and white marble or concrete countertops look great together. But they will show stains if not tended to quickly. And with the white, backsplashes, your hardware, and even your appliances need to be consistent with the theme. Upside, they are the easier items to match.
Lighting makes the room. Without appropriate lighting, you cannot see the wonder of your new space. And the best lights are 4K. They are white, versus the standard yellow of most bulbs. They are LED, so they burn cool and last a long time. And they are not expensive, so use a few.
Can lights are still the heavy favorite, but hanging lights in specific spaces can be useful, too, if looking to accent a particular area. And installing lights in places like a pantry or inside your cabinets will definitely give your kitchen the modern feel you want.
You want some tips? We have the kitchen renovation tips you seek. And these will definitely help you punch up your modern kitchen to levels you might have previously overlooked.
To adopt a trend is one thing, but to make a trendy kitchen is another, and always a terrible plan. Trends fade into obscurity so fast, most people don’t even realize they disappeared. And if your kitchen is trendy, now you are stuck with a dated space that is barely broken in.
Instead, look to some long-term trends. For decades, linoleum was the flooring of choice for kitchens. Now hardwoods have taken over. They are more attractive, add value to the home, and never go out of style. That is a long-term trend. Attach to those and leave the trendy stuff to the hipsters.
What is your favorite color? How long has that been? Many modern cooking spaces have incorporated color in new and exciting ways into their themes. Vibrant colors that grab the attention. Significant transitions that capture the imagination.
If you want to add a wow factor to your cooking area, spin the color wheel. If you don’t like the outcome, spin it again. The biggest mistake many people make is not being bold enough.
Fixtures, hardware, and other simple things can enhance the room with subtlety. So, why not go a little nuts with them. A top-notch faucet system that matches the knobs and drawer pulls on your cabinets can give the room a continuity that is almost too low-key to recognize, but the mind will remember it.
One of the kitchen renovation mistakes many people make is forgetting about the ceiling. It is still part of the room, and as such, should be addressed. For instance, if you have exposed rafters, maybe they can match the rest of the wood, especially if you have a butcher block countertop or island.
They can be used to accent the lighting system or a hanging point for a pot rack that fits into the aesthetic. With so many possibilities, it is not to be overlooked.
Most modern homes use decorative devices like steel, glass, and black tones to create a theme. With stainless appliances and a dark marble countertop, black cabinet underlay will give the standard sensation of modern design. The only problem is everyone is doing it.
If you want a modern look but also have some individuality, change it up. Keep the black backdrop but do it with white cabinets for a more monochrome look. Add some checked tiles and keep the stainless appliances, and you still get the modern style, minus the stigma of copying the status quo.
You know that tile is excellent for floors and sufficient for backsplashes, but have you ever considered a modern mosaic. Using tiles that go with your theme, you can punch up your wall behind the stove or sink in a simple yet decorative way in a variety of styles and sizes.
Conclusion: Creating your perfect, modern cooking space is not the trial by fire many people fear, but it is also not the simple slap-together notion some folks have either. It takes as much time and dedication as any other renovation. The real work comes into making it signature and significant, modern and stylish. To make it your own. Remember that, and you will be in good shape going into it. Have you had any experience in your own kitchen renovation adventure?
Author’s Bio:
Kevin is a content writer for about 3 years. He studied Design and Arts at College in Pennsylvania. A fan of home interior design and, he has taken it upon himself to spread his love for decorating homes by informing people on some of his ideas through his articles.