HOME IS WHERE THE KITCHEN IS: DESIGNING YOUR KITCHEN
Today’s Modern Kitchens are a far cry from our Grandmother’s Kitchen
today’s modern kitchen
Today’s Modern Kitchens are a far cry from our grandmother’s times when the kitchen did not need to be so many other things than just for making food, preparing breakfast for the family & lunches, dinners & more. It was a room where cooked food came out from to feed the rest of the family and where soiled dishes went and no one saw them again!
Now Kitchens have become the center of our household. Here is where the whole family hangs out, guests stand around talking, wine glass in hand, where we run our home office out from, where homework is done, birthday parties held, herb gardens grown, business ideas created; the list is endless! It has become the hub of all activities and we create our daily stories and memories surrounding the Kitchen Island or the Kitchen Sink!!
ENTERTAIN YOUR GUESTS AT THE BAR
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ADORN YOUR KITCHEN COUNTER WITH WOOD TONES
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Our Kitchen now has become the center of our home & our Household
With the increasing demand on our current kitchens and dwindling sharing time among family members, better designed kitchens can enhance our lives. It can continue telling the stories, experiences at work & at school as well as bonding between family members and the luncheons with friends. Surrounding all that vital relationships & landmark is the need for a functional, appealing-to-the-senses kitchen that is enhanced with a beautiful layout, style & colors
SHOP THE LOOK ABOVE
From Backsplash to Appliance to Lighting get them all in to build a complete picture for your new or upgraded look!
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Designing Your Kitchen: Few Basic Guidelines
People use their kitchen in various ways depending on their lifestyle, composition of their family and the amount of space they have. Proper planning is the key to make it work.
1. Begin by separating into Zones for cooking & prep. Cooking zone includes cook-top or range, exhaust, wall oven and microwave, if you use one. Clearance around this zone is absolutely crucial for safety and function including enough counter space on either side. Prepping zone includes refrigerator, sink, dishwasher & waste/compost bins. Bunching these next to each other help in efficient work pattern and avoid spillage.
2. Choosing the Right Layout depends on the space you have in your kitchen and its orientation. U-shape is the most efficient layout and can be done in a small compact space, with maximized storage & counter space. An L-shaped kitchen is mostly in an open plan with an adjoining island. One-Wall kitchen & Galley kitchen are single & two walls facing each other. Long narrow homes, one room dens commonly have this kitchen layout and many times they can be quite efficient! A One Wall kitchen can be paired with an island to have an apartment style Open kitchen.
The picture on left below shows an L-shaped Kitchen with a center Island. These are the most versatile and most open kitchen layouts. The picture in the middle shows a Galley Kitchen. Such kitchens are for small spaces or long spaces. One wall of this would essentially be a One-Wall Kitchen. The picture on the right shows an apartment style One-Wall kitchen with an island - again an example of an open layout kitchen. These layouts are all very simple and can easily be created with some planning.
Galley Kitchen with a long corridor
Apartment Style One-Wall Kitchen
L-Shaped Kitchen with Island
3. Creating Your Kitchen Style is the most exciting part of the design where you get to introduce your personality and taste on the color & finishes of the space. If you like Contemporary or Transitional Style, which are the most versatile, then their simplicity and clean lines can go in any space. Pleasant colors, lighter shades, simple shapes can enhance the backsplash tiles, cabinet doors, drawers, counters, hardware, plumbing fixtures, lighting, not forgetting paint color for walls.
4. Including enough Storage will help in making your kitchen most efficient and useful. Making a list of all the things you have and devising a plan where the best location is for each item will help in planning the cabinets. Cabinet planning and organizing your kitchen is the crucial factors for “Storage Satisfaction”. Later as you use your kichen you may find that you may have to move objects around but having a plan for it and working towards that will ensure sure success for your storage locations, quantity and convenience.
KITCHEN STORAGE YOU CANNOT MISS
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5. Creating a Focal Point in your Kitchen gives it a special meaning and makes a statement to your Design Style. Focal Points are meant to draw the eye and become the center of attraction or conversation. That is one are where you can give special attention and highlight it in few different ways. It can be a special shade or color of paint, can be a special pattern of wallpaper, tiles or an artwork. Anything can create a focal point as long as it is creatively done and composed with some special elements in mind.
I say “Home is where the Kitchen is”. Look at your home today specially at your kitchen in a new way and think about how you can make your kitchen a 2020 kitchen.
CABINET HARDWARE OPTIONS THAT CATCHES THE EYE!
A Kitchen Design Discovery helps in discovering all the facts of your kitchen that even you never thought about. Kitchen Design is the Science of Living a life at home with the details we never think about but makes a house a home. With so many options available the mind can be always in a confusion state with plenty of overwhelm. After discovering where you are going with your Kitchen Planning, you can start clearing out all the unwanted items one at a time until you can see the space in some perspective. It helps you question yourself - why did not I think of that?