The kitchen is arguably the centerpiece of the modern house, and as such, it must reflect the needs and personality of the people who use it. If you are remodeling your kitchen, it’s important to first take some time to consider your household dynamics and culinary aspirations. What do YOU want out of a kitchen?
Are you a cooking enthusiast?
Cooking is the most basic purpose of a kitchen, but the culinary arts do not come naturally to all of us. Is cooking something you are passionate about? If so, then what you need from your kitchen will differ from the average person. You need to have the space to work quickly and efficiently, while storing your collection of cookware.
Is this you? Then you might be interested in these ideas from Wide Plank Flooring.
Do you entertain guests often?
If you’re a social butterfly and enjoy hosting guests from time to time, you will want your kitchen to be able to facilitate gatherings. This means that you will likely not want your kitchen to be closed off; your kitchen has to be part of an open communal space that accommodates social interaction while preparing food. The floor plan of your house may not lend itself to these principals, but that doesn’t mean that you can’t take steps to make your kitchen feel more communal.
To kick-start your brainstorming, take a look through these examples of kitchen designs from HGTV.
Are you raising a family?
Perhaps you have children in the house. You need to make your kitchen feel like home, not only for yourself, but for them as well. As you consider your new kitchen, you will probably want to think about ways to make that space warm, colorful, welcoming, and interactive. Perhaps you will want to hang a chalkboard, or something similar, in your kitchen so that your whole family can contribute to grocery lists and “to-do” lists. You might even buy miniature furniture if you have young children. Above all though, remember that your kitchen doesn’t have to be pristine and spotless to be perfect! Raising a family can be messy; the important thing is that everybody feels at home.
You can see examples of what other families have done with their kitchens here from House Beautiful.
SPACE CONSTRAINTS
Just like people, kitchens come in a wide variety of different shapes and sizes. As you prepare to remodel your kitchen, space will probably be your biggest constraint.
Small Kitchens
If you have a small kitchen, you need to leverage your space wisely, so that result of your remodeling is a “cozy” kitchen rather than a “cramped” kitchen. There are lots of ways that you can do this while staying true to your budget.
Here is some food for thought from Elle Décor to get you started:
Spacious Kitchens
Having lots of space can be a real blessing, but only if you are smart in the way you allocate your space. You want to enjoy your surplus of space, but you also want to avoid having a kitchen that feels empty.
Houzz has a beautiful collection of examples of spacious kitchens that are both homey and tasteful.
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