Guest Blogger: Creative Ideas for your Kitchen Renovation

Guest Blogger #683, Entry #1616, September 20, 2012

Kitchens are truly the epicenter of our homes. Even when we throw parties, the kitchen is always the room everyone ends up socializing in.  With the popularity of this room comes some downfalls, the number one pitfall being design of the space. If your kitchen is poorly designed then it makes cooking, entertaining, and even washing dishes a real inconvenience.

What type of kitchen renovation are you considering?

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Here are some tips to spruce up your kitchen design and make it more user-friendly:

Kitchen layout:

If you are lucky enough to be starting from scratch then you have the opportunity to design a truly functional kitchen that meets all your individual needs. Make a list of everything you plan to use your kitchen for. Are you an avid entertainer? If so, you will want a kitchen with lots of cooking space, an island for displaying food, and extra room for standing and seating guests – to name a few. Maybe you consider yourself a connoisseur of cooking and fine wine? Then why not set up your kitchen with double ovens, room for a large fridge and freezer, lots of pantry space, and maybe even a built-in wine rack?

Overall, whatever your needs, design your kitchen to be functional for YOU!  Also remember the triangle rule: it is best for the layout of your stove, dishwasher/sink, and fridge to form a triangle for utmost ease and functionality.

Give your existing kitchen a facelift:

Most of us are not lucky enough to design our kitchens from scratch, we feel stuck with the kitchen we have – especially when kitchen renovations can become so labor intensive and expensive. Rest assured, with a few inexpensive design tips, you can still create the kitchen of your dreams! Your first step should be to look through as many home design magazines and books as possible, cutting out pictures of the kitchens you love. Ask yourself: What is it that appeals to me about this particular picture? Is it the color of the cabinets? The appliances? The soft features like draperies and paint color?  The good news is that all of these features can be created in your current kitchen! By painting your old wood cabinets a bold color, adding pretty draperies over the kitchen window, painting the walls, switching to stainless steel appliances, and changing the kitchen faucet – you can really add a lot of new modern details to your old kitchen. Don’t forget about lighting. Whether you add  hanging pendants over your kitchen bar, under cabinet lighting or directional lighting www.brightlightz.co.uk has ideas for your kitchen. Lighting is functional, and sets the tone for your room.

Kitchen renovations should be planned out

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Maybe you want to delve deeper into your kitchen overhaul. There are some other tips that may cost a bit more, and take a bit more time but are definitely worth it ̶ such as adding granite countertops. Maybe you cannot afford whole slabs of granite, but most home hardware stores sell granite tiles for a much lower price, and when installed still give the same effect as whole granite slabs. Another idea that is really trending right now is floating shelving. A lot of homeowners are going for a more open approach by tearing out a lot of their upper cabinets and replacing them with open shelves. This can result in a very appealing aesthetic once organized with your collections of dishes or bake ware.

Whatever your dream kitchen – be bold and take a few steps today towards creating it.

For more kitchen & bath ideas on Stagetecture, click here.