You might spend more of your free time at home in your kitchen than any other room of the house, so it should be a space that is warm, inviting, and equipped for entertaining. If your home was built before the year 2000, there’s a strong chance that your kitchen is starting to feel outdated and less than fully functional. Kitchen remodeling can offer a fresh, new look in your kitchen so that you can stay in the home you love while enjoying the kitchen you’ve always dreamed of. A kitchen remodel is a big project, but it will be well worth the time and resources when you are enjoying the comfort of a custom-designed kitchen. The following guide will help you get started on your kitchen remodel with all the elements you need to think about before your Southern Arizona kitchen contractors begin working.
Benefits of Remodeling Your Kitchen
Though kitchen remodeling is a significant investment, it can have strong returns when you consider the added function you will have in the kitchen as well as the additional value that will be put into your home.
- Added home value – One of the first things buyers look at when purchasing a home is the kitchen. With a dark, outdated, or crowded kitchen, it might be harder to attract buyers to your home when you’re ready to sell. Even if you plan to stay put for many years to come, you will still be putting equity into your home that can pay off in the future.
- More functional design – A kitchen remodel is much more involved than choosing a new coat of paint and refacing cabinets. During a full remodel, your contractors can completely change the layout of your kitchen, increase the footprint of the room, and make improvements to your pantry and other storage spaces. These changes will make it easier to do your daily cooking, weekend entertaining, and holiday meal prep, so you might find yourself cooking at home more often rather than dining out or heating up premade meals.
Design Themes to Consider
Once you’ve made the decision to remodel your kitchen, you’ll begin the most exciting part of the process: Choosing a new design and layout for the space. With the right kitchen remodeling company, your design choices are virtually endless, so you should think about what you really want and what will work best for your family. A busy family with kids may not feel at home in a sleek, modern kitchen. Alternatively, a large, open kitchen might not be the right choice for retirees seeking smaller, more manageable living spaces. Here’s a quick look at how to land on the right theme:
- Find inspiration in magazines, real estate blogs, and other visual resources. Look to functional kitchen trends over design trends. Sustainable kitchen design and multifunctional additions may stand the test of time, but color trends may not.
- Think about what you use your kitchen for most. Is it a gathering space for family? A hub for entertainment? A space to bring your creative culinary visions to life?
- Visualize the design flow from your kitchen to the rest of your home. Open kitchen designs are favored in modern homes, so it’s important to tie the visual aesthetic into the overall design of the house.
Features to Include in Your New Kitchen
Your budget will be a determining factor in what you can include in your new kitchen, but there are budget-friendly choices for each of the following features to help you get everything that you want in your space.
- Cabinets – If you are happy with the current layout of your cabinetry, you might opt for cabinet refacing to simply change the look of your existing space. More often, however, homeowners will opt for completely new cabinetry, which offers the opportunity to add more storage and custom design features—including pull-out shelving and oversized drawers for pots and pans.
- Countertops – Your new countertops should complement your cabinetry in color and texture and provide a workspace that fits your cooking style. Natural stone countertops and engineered quartz are timeless options that will stand up to daily use, though it’s worth exploring a wide range of materials to find the right fit. Some homeowners prefer more unique choices like metal, ceramic tile, or wooden butcher block counters.
- Lighting – You need to see what you’re doing in the kitchen, so lighting will be a critical element of your remodel. In addition to task lighting and recessed lighting to brighten up the space at night, you should also consider how natural light will enter and reflect in your kitchen.
- Flooring – Kitchen floors need to be able to stand up to heavy traffic, moisture, heat, and spills. Tile, engineered hardwoods, laminate, and vinyl flooring can all work well in the kitchen, and they offer a wide range of color and texture choices to fit your design aesthetic.
Modern Kitchen Technologies
Though the features discussed above are the most essential for a well-designed kitchen, you should not overlook new appliances and technologies when drafting your project budget. Along with upgraded versions of staple appliances like the oven, dishwasher, and refrigerator, you might think about add-ons including warming drawers, steam ovens, ice makers, and wine fridges. Other technologies that are improving modern kitchen remodels are French door ovens, induction cooktops, and touchscreen controls. In general, appliances have become more tuned to the way people actually cook, so you might find that your culinary talents improve following your remodel.
Southwest Kitchen and Bath can allow you to create your dream kitchen on-time and on-budget. Our design experts will sit down with you to discuss all the features you want, and then we will schedule an in-home consultation to determine how we can bring your vision to life. Our team will work efficiently within your project timeline, staying in communication with you through every step of the remodel. If you’re ready to request a complimentary kitchen consultation to discuss your design ideas in Tucson, give us a call at (520) 531-9187.