Good Kitchen Home Design is a critical element when building, remodeling or choosing your next home! The first step is to consider the function that best suits your family. Are you empty-nesters that don't spend much time in the kitchen? Is there more than one cook in your family? Do you have an active family with young children? Perhaps you are grandparents with children and grandchildren who frequently visit? Do you love to entertain? These are just a few of the questions you should ask yourself when planning a new kitchen.
Traffic flow is another consideration. Installing an island can direct traffic to keep family and friends out of the cooks' work area and can also expand your work space. But remember that you will need a minimum of at least 3 feet on all sides of an island or it will be too crowded. An island can be used in many various ways. It can function as a built-in breakfast bar. Installing a grill in an island is a great way to have an indoor cookout.
Many kitchen designers tell us that we need to have a work triangle, with the stove, refrigerator and sink at each point. That is ideal, but don't be overly concerned. The goal is to have a kitchen that works for you and your family.
Here are a few points to think about for good kitchen home design:
- Do you have enough countertop workspace?
- Is the lighting adequate? A cheerful, sunny kitchen window is a wonderful asset to have. Do you want to utilize under cabinet lighting to illuminate your countertops? Is the lighting over the sink area functional?
- Do you have enough food preparation space?
- Is there a space nearby for an additional refrigerator? Or perhaps the garage has a good place? A second refrigerator comes in handy when you're preparing food for a large crowd.....or just to store cold drinks.
- What about a pantry? A walk-in pantry is very functional, and the extra storage space is ideal.
- If you're building new cabinets, make sure the drawers have a little extra depth for those bulky utensils.
- Think about where you're going to keep your spices and baking equipment. If you have the space, a built-in bake center is awesome.
- It will save a lot of bending if you can position the dishwasher a bit higher than normal. I've done this before and loved it. Also, the new two-drawer dishwashers are great if you don't have a large family. It's easy to run a small load and they only use about a gallon of water.
- Visit home design specialty centers for ideas on cabinet and countertop color and finish combinations.
- Use your favorite colors and don't be afraid of reds in the kitchen. They provide such a warm feeling in addition to being beautiful kitchen colors. But remember that this is your space, so use your favorite colors. Not only in wall colors, but also in cabinets, countertops and flooring.
Always let your kitchen reflect your personality and lifestyle. Kitchen home design will always be the "heartbeat of the home". Please
contact us with any questions.
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