Courtesy of Curbed
Kitchens are more than just a place where we do our cooking. They’re increasingly becoming centralized social hubs where we entertain guests and family. As such, creating a kitchen space that’s warm and inviting is essential. The goal here is to balance the practical needs of appliances and prep space with the potential to entertain when the opportunity arises. Form and function need to be in sync. If you’re looking to build a new kitchen or redesign your existing space, here are the critical cornerstones on which you need to focus.
Making Doors and Storage Unobtrusive
Courtesy of Reader’s Digest
There’s only so much space you can devote to your kitchen, so it’s important to minimize unnecessary usage as much as possible. While a kitchen filled with drawers and cabinet doors may look good when they’re closed, opening them closes off your space in a significant way, and that’s important when you’re trying to cook a big meal. Make sure that any pantry doors are out of the way of your cook and prep spaces as much as possible, and consider the use of vertical storage so that you can more efficiently make use of the space available to you. Open kitchen designs are popular for a reason, as they can serve as a great way to let your room breathe.
The Importance of Counter Space
Courtesy of HGTV
There’s a vast array of materials available to you when it comes time to picking out your countertops, but finding the one that’s right for you means weighing your options. Each comes with its own distinct advantages and disadvantages. Granite is the most popular choice available in modern kitchens, as it is sturdy, highly affordable, and available in a wide range of colors. Other natural stone surfaces can lend a unique look, but care needs to be taken, as they tend to be softer and less sturdy. If durability is what you’re looking for, you may want to consider engineered rather than traditional stonework. But the most aesthetic variety comes in solid surface countertops, which are incredibly easy to clean and available in a nearly limitless variety of colors and patterns. Rounding out the options is laminate which may not be as sturdy or aesthetically pleasing as the alternatives but makes up for that by being highly affordable. You also want to keep in mind how much counter space you can manage to fit in the square footage. Counters may reduce the maneuverability of your space, but more is generally better when you consider all the prep work it takes to put together a large meal.
Investing in the Right Appliances
Courtesy of Southern Living
You’re going to want to take the time to think ahead about what you’ll need in terms of appliances. While later renovations can help you add in appliances you didn’t know that you needed, this makes things significantly more complicated. With limited space, you can’t just slip a new appliance in where there wasn’t one before, and the addition of a new, bulky appliance can totally throw off the zen of your room. That’s why you’ll want to consider what suits the demands of your life. Consider what you’ll need for the biggest group of guests you’ll entertain. Designers looking to market a house to tenants can significantly improve the cache of the space with more modern options like flat surface cooktop and convection ovens. While the overhead may be a little more, little flourishes like this can serve as a valuable asset when you have a potential renter or buyer weighing their options. You’ll also want to weigh the options of putting in hidden appliances to improve the general look and feel of the space. In more practical terms, you’re going to want to make sure you have the power to fuel all of your appliances and that important components like electrical sockets are ideally positioned. The position of appliances is something you’ll want to consider before putting in the infrastructure of gas lines and electrical wiring.
Considering the Existing Space
Courtesy of Modern Digs
The kitchen doesn’t exist in a vacuum, and it’s important that it makes sense within the context of your larger house. This is especially true in open kitchens where the transition from one room to another is seamless, and any irregularities are likely to stand out immediately. That doesn’t mean that the kitchen has to be formulaic. You should draw from the design sensibilities that interest you, but consider the greater space it’s occupying when you consider materials for your countertops, shelving, trim, and paint.
Ultimately, the kitchen design you decide on is going to be a compromise between your stylistic sensibilities, the natural limitations of the space available to you, and the parameters of your budget. But it’s possible to craft a stylish kitchen even with strict fiscal limitations, and the cornerstones above can serve as essential guideposts when settling on the right design for your home.
If you’re looking to remodel or renovate your home, keep us in mind! We’d love to help you in whatever project you think would turn your house into a true home you love spending time in!
