As we all spend more time at home, whether in quarantine or due to the chilly temps outside, many of us are starting to think about the different spaces of our home and how we could improve upon them, especially high traffic areas like the kitchen! We have thoughts along the lines of, “If only my kitchen had new cabinets, an updated backsplash, more usable space,” the list goes on and on. However, considering a kitchen remodel can be quite daunting. Where do you begin? Do you start by setting a budget? Hiring a designer? Checking out a cabinet shop? Pursuing home improvement stores? Scouring Pinterest for inspiration? Or bing watching your favorite HGTV shows? While all of these will provide you with various bits of valuable information, your first step should actually be right where your train of thought began, in the kitchen!
Being designers, we often get asked, “Should I do a full kitchen remodel, or should I just refresh what I currently have?” Though we may have some opinions in mind, YOU are ultimately the one to determine the answer. Everybody utilizes their kitchens differently, even your neighbor who may have the same floor plan as you likely has different concerns about their own kitchen in comparison to what’s on your list.
To really determine how big or small of a project you’re after, there are some things you’ll need to consider to make any major moves forward. The most guiding questions to ask include:
HOW COULD MY CURRENT KITCHEN IMPROVE?
Of course, it probably doesn’t cook and clean itself, which would really be a game changer in this industry! But you might find yourself answering that question with a resounding “drastically changing everything,” or you may also find yourself answering with “it just doesn’t look the way I want it to”. Herein lies the north arrow for you in deciding which route to take, refreshing or remodeling.
HOW DO YOU ENTERTAIN?
Is the kitchen the center of your gatherings? Are you hosting a party but isolated to the kitchen while others are in the living room? How you entertain, the size of your family and how many cooks in the kitchen makes a huge impact on the kitchen’s overall design.
For example: You may only have four members in your immediate family, but if you host dinner every Sunday for your in-laws, now you might need space for ten people! And do those in-laws cook with you in your small kitchen, or do they stand around your tiny island and watch you race around the kitchen? And do those in-laws have children who love to make cookies with you for the holidays?
A refresh or remodel could both improve the situation depending on your overall needs. However, entertainment is only a small piece of the puzzle. Your everyday use of the kitchen is what you will notice the most. Here are more things to consider:
HOW DO YOU STORE KITCHEN ITEMS & APPLIANCES?
Kitchen storage is often something most homes are lacking. So, consider this answer within reason. Your great-grandmother’s coffee percolator that you use once every five years maybe isn’t something to base your remodel needs after, but your cookie sheets or crockpot likely get more use and should have a home within reach in your kitchen. Older cabinetry often wasn’t built to utilize the valuable inches of the kitchen. A remodel can expand the usable square footage of your cabinetry by smart organization inserts or simply by making door sizes more accessible. This is hard to accomplish in a refresh, a remodel would be desirable in this situation.
ARE USEFUL ITEMS INCONVENIENTLY LOCATED?
Perhaps you love baking, but all of your baking sheets and stand mixer are in the deep dark corners of the cabinetry and would be a pain to access. Smart storage and organization in your kitchen including pull-out blind corner cabinets, roll-out drawers and spice trays, can make a huge difference in the amount of items you can store in your cabinetry, all with easy access. There are some parts that can be purchased and inserted into older cabinetry, but for best utilization and functionality, a remodel may be the best route.
DO YOU HAVE ADEQUATE USABLE COUNTERTOP SPACE?
Maybe your kids or spouse like to cook with you, but you stumble over each other because you’re all trying to use the same two feet of countertop space. Depending on your existing layout, a refresh with new countertops can sometimes extend the usable area, but you may want to consider a new island shape or enlarging a peninsula to allow for stools.
IS KITCHEN FUNCTIONALITY IDEAL WHEN IN USE?
When you pull a hot pan out of the oven, do you have somewhere safe to place it without the chance of tripping or burning your fingers through the oven mitt? Your oven or stove should have countertop space within arms’ reach to place a hot pan. The same thing goes for counter accessibility from the fridge, or storage nearby the dishwasher for clean dishes. You are able to add solutions for this with a refresh, but first you need to determine if the appliances need to be moved altogether, if so, you’d be better off remodeling the space.
DOES THE OVERALL LAYOUT WORK FOR YOUR NEEDS?
Perhaps the dishwasher door being open blocks off your access to the cabinets the clean dishes belong, so you have to unload onto the countertop, close the dishwasher, then put away the dishes from there. Or, maybe if somebody is standing at the sink, it means that nobody can get by to the fridge. This is often one of the biggest reasons people call us – the layout just simply doesn’t work. A refresh will not be able to fix this problem, it’s probably time to start talking with a designer about remodeling the space.
IS THE COLOR OF YOUR KITCHEN THE BIGGEST FAULT?
Maybe you don’t like the color of the cabinetry, or the hardware, or the countertops, or the backsplash, but the size of the appliances and shape of the layout works fine for you. It may be hard to imagine how much the look can change with some new colors and fixtures! However, some cabinetry paints up much nicer than others, be sure to do some a sample on the back side of your doors or the inside of the cabinet before attempting the whole thing. Designers are able to pull a whole palette together that can work with some of your existing finishes, while adding new elements that give your kitchen a new and beautiful refresh, without breaking the bank.
These questions, among many more, should eventually guide you to whether your kitchen needs a refresh or a complete remodel. As always, it never hurts to speak to your designer about your wants and needs to help guide your decision to refresh or remodel. Your designer will be your advisor and help you determine the value of making certain changes, or guide you in some of the other items on your decision list: budget, desired start or completion date, material selections, etc. The most important tip: have a complete plan before you begin to ensure your kitchen is up and running in the shortest amount of time possible!
If you want more information on updating your home, or if you’d like to speak to a designer to get the design process started, we would love to hear from you!
