Janet Cook
Want a new kitchen for Thanksgiving? Now is a great time to start! Why let another holiday season go by if you know the kitchen needs to be updated and is insufficient for your needs? Here are some tips to make it easy:
Define what you want changed.
A traditional Thanksgiving celebration with a large gathering can be the ultimate test of a kitchen. Common problems with kitchens are: too small of space, outdated design, a lack of storage, and inefficient appliances. Think about when you host a gathering. Do you have the counter space to prepare? Can you interact with guests while working in the kitchen? Can you serve varied dishes piping hot? Now think of the typical day-to-day use of your kitchen. Is your counter cluttered? Does the layout work within the kitchen and with the rest of the home? Do you want a walk-in pantry so it is easy to find what you need and easy to make a shopping list? Would you like a breakfast bar or nook?
Gather pictures of the looks you want.
A picture says a thousand words. It is a great way to communicate how you want your kitchen to look. There are many styles, color choices, and combinations. Cabinets are the largest surface of a kitchen — do you want a wood stain, dark or light or combination, or painted? There is a trend to make homes open concept and a kitchen larger in size, with an island. If you know what you want your cabinets to look like, the next predominant visual surfaces are the countertops and flooring. Those are general ideas to keep in mind while looking at pictures and saving what you like. Your professional designer will help you make the final selections. You can do searches for photos on Houzz and save them to your own Ideabooks.
Determine your budget.
In your developing what you want for your new kitchen, think in terms of a list of wants and wishes. Unless you have an unlimited budget, there will need to be prioritizing. Your professional designer can help you stay within and stretch your budget with creative ideas and solutions to get the most value for your money. Their experience can guide you where to save and where to go for the wow factor.
Make an appointment.
It takes time to develop the layout design and make all the selections. After the selections have been made and materials are ordered, it can take four to six weeks for cabinets to be delivered. It can take eight to ten weeks on average for the construction phase of a full kitchen remodel, longer if more complex, e.g., walls and plumbing are moved. So, get started now and book an appointment. We can make the process easier.
Happy Home Remodeling!
Janet Cook, Certified Aging in Place Specialist, President of Cook Remodeling (celebrating their 40th year), invites you to visit their Facebook page for links to articles featuring photo galleries of different styles and trends in home design.