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Creating the Perfect Kitchen

by | Dec 3, 2020 | Kitchen, Remodel, Renovation, Tips and Tricks

Modern kitchen

It Starts with the Ideal Kitchen

You can’t deny that the kitchen is one of the most important rooms in your home. Whether it’s the social hub where family and friends get together or a work center where homework and other projects get done, the kitchen is the center of the modern family’s home. Because it’s such an important area of the home, kitchens can be a key focus of home renovations and new home construction.

Playing such an important role in everyday living, the kitchen should be designed with care and precision. Knowing where to start, though, can be scary. Where does the kitchen design process begin? It begins with you.

The kitchen should show your personality and lifestyle. In order to accomplish this, let’s take a closer look at three important areas: style, functionality, and planning.

Kitchen Styles

Flip through any custom home magazine and you’ll see a variety of styles: Art Deco, Asian, Classical, Contemporary, Country, French Colonial, Lodge, Mission, Modern, Rustic, Shaker, Traditional, Transitional, Tudor, Tuscan, and Victorian—just to name a few.

Some are more classic, and others are more traditional. Some will grab your attention and make you want to spend time there, but others will do absolutely nothing for you. Because there are so many different styles, it’s important to narrow your choices so that you can choose a design that fits your preferences and lifestyle.

So how do you know what style is the best for you? The “Kitchen Style Guide” on this page can help get you moving in the right direction. Write down the answers to these questions to see what style of kitchen is best for you.

Having a kitchen that looks great is nice, but your kitchen also needs to function well. That means it needs to be designed to fit your personality and lifestyle.

Kitchen Functionality: Ask Yourself

What are some things about my current kitchen that drive me crazy? (Think organization, lighting, usability.)

How does my family use the kitchen? Is it a place for cooking? Is it a gathering place? Maybe a homework spot? Do we do laundry here? Do bills get paid here? Maybe we need a computer here? Will we sometimes be eating in the kitchen?

How much storage space will we need? What about an in-kitchen pantry? What appliances do we want?

Do we need any of these: range, oven, cook-top, freezer, dishwasher, trash compactor, washer/dryer? How do these appliances tie-in to style?

What kind of flooring do we want? What kind of traffic do we have in the kitchen? Are there pets or young children to think about?

What kind of cooking do we usually do? Do we need to think about “gourmet” style preparation? Do we entertain a lot? Will we need to make sure we allow room for “observers” in the kitchen?

Planning & Schedules

Believe it or not, the actual plan— creating the blueprint— is actually easy once you know what you want. That’s not to discount the importance of having a good blueprint. But figuring out the exact dimensions and how everything fits together really can’t happen until you’ve defined the overall vision of what you want to see in your new kitchen.

Once you have the general concept in place, you should sit down with your kitchen designer and begin talking about your plans. Make sure they understand exactly what you want. They’ll be able to advise you and steer you away from both structural and financial problems. The professionals can take these ideas and turn them into a workable design and accurate drawings.

Once you’ve seen a draft of your blueprint, you’ll likely ask what every homeowner wants to know (after “How much is this going to cost?” of course): “How long will this take?” The answer? “It all depends.” No kitchen designer and project is exactly the same. Your home remodeling contractor will be able to provide you with an outline and specific expectations so that you’ll have an accurate idea of how long your projects will take.

Creating the kitchen of your dreams can be a daunting but exciting process. We hope this information helps as you start this process. We understand that information like this can raise as many questions as it answers. If you have more questions about kitchen design, we’re happy to go over them with you. You can schedule a free design session with one of our designers by calling 941-780-7800 or by sending us your project details here.