kitchen

Choosing the Right Appliances for Your Kitchen

August 17, 2020

Kitchen appliances can make or break a kitchen remodel. There are so many styles, features, and technology options available it’s easy to become overwhelmed. Then, there are always budgetary concerns—picking the right appliances would be easy if money were no object. Even so, it is possible to design the perfect kitchen with a little forethought and your priorities firm in mind.

Here are some things to consider when choosing kitchen appliances to ensure you fall in love with the heart of your home.

Ovens & Cooktops

A high-performing, quality oven is crucial. Because ovens can have many features, it is best to focus on those you’ll actually use and the food you want to cook. A good oven will have a fan to cook food faster and more evenly. You’ll also want an oven with bake, roast, and broil features for all your baking needs.

Picking a suitable cooktop is important for both the practical purposes of remodeling your kitchen as well as aesthetic purposes. Just like your oven, you need a cooktop that gets the job done, but it certainly doesn’t hurt if it looks good, too. Try to pick a cooktop that takes up appropriate space and fits your overall color scheme.

Most cooktops have four burners, which is pretty standard for home cooking. However, if you like to entertain guests and large crowds, you may want to pick a cooktop with more burners. Then, you have to consider how easy it is to maintain. Whether you’re a clean-as-you-cook or cook-at-the-end type, you’ll most likely want clean-up to be easy.

Refrigerators

There are three fridge installation types:

Built-in
Freestanding
Fully integrated

These three options all come in a range of sizes and styles to suit your needs. You will also want to consider performance and configuration. Performance-wise, you need to choose between a single-compressor or a double-compressor unit. A single-compressor unit works twice as hard to maintain both the fridge and freezer. While double-compressor refrigerators cost more, they allow you to keep food fresher for longer.

One of the most popular refrigerator configurations is the French-door style with a side-by-side fridge and freezer. Make sure you don’t go too small when you’re choosing kitchen appliances. When you buy your fridge, you want to have enough room for your typical food storage. For two people, consider a fridge size of 12 cubic feet.

Sinks & Dishwashers

Your sink tends to be the focal point of your kitchen. Some popular sink configurations include:

Single, rectangular basin
50/50 double-bowl
60/40 double-bowl
Three-bowl

Once you know your ideal configuration, the next step is to compare materials. The material you choose affects whether your sink is resistant to scratches and stains, how you’ll clean the sink, and your kitchen’s overall look.

As for your dishwasher, you want to choose something that is efficient and fits into your kitchen seamlessly. If you use a dishwasher often, choose one that has deep-cleaning features and a variety of options. Running volume is one of the most important factors. Find a dishwasher with a low decibel rating so it won’t keep you and your family up all night.

General Tips for Choosing Kitchen Appliances

No matter what appliance you’re shopping for, there are a few general tried-and-tested tips that can help:

Don’t be afraid to mix-and-match. You don’t have to buy all your appliances from the same collection or brand.
Tailor your budget allocation to your lifestyle. It doesn’t make sense to spend a big chunk of your budget on a double oven, for example, if you rarely bake. Forget what a traditional kitchen “should” have and get what you’ll use.
Time your remodel. Many appliance retailers hold annual sales around the same time every year, such as Memorial Day or Black Friday. Time your remodel to line up with these sales to save more. Buying your appliances as a package from a single retailer also often comes with a discount.
Know your space. As appliances of all types come in standard sizes, measure your space, and note any size restrictions. It can help to draft your kitchen on graph paper. Also, note any ventilation or power requirements and where they are in your kitchen.
Stay neutral. That bright blue retro fridge may look amazing right now, but will you still love it in 10 years? With big-ticket items like appliances keep to neutral colors—silver, black, or white—so that if you choose to redecorate in the future, you’re not choosing kitchen appliances all over again. Paint colors and cabinet handles are much easier to change!

Area Rug Do’s And Don’ts

July 10, 2019

The area rug is a helpful design tool. They soften hardwood floors, warm a room up, add color or pattern and they anchor whole living areas in open floor plans. Shopping for area rugs, however, can be a bigger challenge than you think. Questions like, “what size rug should I get?” or “is this pattern too bold?” can send you walking quickly in the other direction, putting area rug purchases on hold indefinitely.

What’s an Area Rug For, Anyway?

There’s no need to panic. A simple review of what area rugs are for, and how to implement them in your living spaces, will be enough to get you back online – or out to the stores – to buy rugs that enhance your interiors.

Let’s review the main purposes of an area rug:

To protect your flooring. In addition to providing a softer, warmer floor surface (so much nicer to get out bed and have bare feet meet a nice, plush rug!), area rugs are often used to protect the floor surfaces below. This is especially true for high-traffic areas, like hallways, entryways and stairs. In these cases, you will want to look for more durable rug materials, and rugs that can be easily cleaned, so you aren’t having to replace them on a regular basis.

The trend towards indoor/outdoor living has caused many rug designers to expand their indoor/outdoor rug lines. It’s hard to tell the difference these days and indoor/outdoor rugs make great area rugs for families with small children, pets, or for those aforementioned high-traffic areas.

To anchor a living space. In the world of design, area rugs are used most often to anchor a living room space. This can be your living room, a conversation area or your dining area. It might even be the anchor for the play space in your home’s family room. It tells guests, “this area has a designated purpose” and keeps the furniture from “floating” in the space.

To enhance your decor. Finally, your area rugs should enhance the decor. They provide a finished touch and, in a mostly monochromatic design, they may be the only pop of color or pattern. Area rugs also offer a wonderful way for conservative designers to add a wild pattern without overpowering the space.

Do’s and Don’ts of Using Area Rugs

The wrong area rug can have a negative effect on your overall design, and you certainly don’t want that. Hence, here are a few Do’s and Don’ts to keep in mind when you’re purchasing your rug(s).

DO splurge on high-quality rugs. There is a visible difference between high-quality rugs and their cheaper counterparts. Spend extra for a well-made product and you’ll have an area rug that last a lifetime, or until you’ve tired of it.

DON’T buy a rug that’s too small. Referred to as postage-stamp rugs, these rugs look disproportional to the space. Instead, buy rugs that fit all of your furniture, or at least the front legs of the furniture. If it’s in a dining room, make sure all of the chairs fit on the rug when they are pushed up to the table. In a master bedroom, it’s better to have one large area rug spanning two-thirds of the bed, perpendicular to the foot, than two smaller area rugs that look like bath mats on either side.

DO mix patterns. Don’t be afraid to mix patterns. Just keep the color wheel in mind and choose patterns that are in different proportion to one another to keep things balanced.

Budget Friendly Tips For Re-Decorating Your Kitchen

December 25, 2017

While a full kitchen remodel might sound nice, the current budget may not accommodate your vision. Does that sound familiar? If so, you’ll appreciate these 10 easy and budget-friendly tips for redecorating your kitchen.

10 Tips to Redecorate Your Kitchen on a Dime (or two…)

Consult with an interior designer. Interior designers are just as happy to be paid for a few hours of design consultation as they are to orchestrate a full remodel. This can be a great tool for running your ideas by a professional as well as gleaning a few ideas and tips.
Switch out your light fixtures. Do you have an outdated suspended light fixture over your dining nook or island? Switch these out for contemporary replacements. You can get stunning light fixtures for pretty cheap and they will update your kitchen in a matter of minutes. It may even be worth it to get a quote from an electrician for wiring pendants, if you don’t already have them. That type of work is typically pretty affordable.
Make-Your-Own island. Rather than paying for a more costly built-in island, you can easily convert an old dresser or table into an island instead. In some ways, this is an even better idea because its position is flexible and it can be moved out when/if needed.
Consider cabinet refacing. Refacing your cabinets is typically half the price of building new ones. Your cabinet boxes will be reinforced and will look brand new when complete.
Pick one thing. Which thing needs to be updated the most? Spend the bulk of your budget on that and use thrifty fixes for everything else. For example, replace your countertops and then repaint your cabinetry and replace the hardware over time. In most cases, the results will be just as good as a full remodel.
Just add paint. A new coat of paint, especially if you select a new and improved color, will go a long way. Typically, a single can will be enough to do the trick since your cabinetry covers the bulk of the wall space. Speaking of cabinets, repainting your cabinets is another way to get a new leash on one of the most significant features in your kitchen. Consider using a two-tone approach for a designer-worthy finish. Try using a darker paint on lower cabinets and a lighter one on the uppers. Or, paint your kitchen island a different color than the perimeter cabinetry.
Do an accessory overhaul. Look around on your counters. Are your accessories in the “20+ Years Old” category? Replace them with high-quality updated versions and donate anything that can be used or repurposed by someone else.
Add open shelving. Contemporary and modern kitchen designs typically incorporate some type of open shelving. It is a clean look and gives you the opportunity to add a splash of color or interest based on what you choose to store there. Have an unused section of blank wall in your kitchen? Give it that fresh coat of paint and then install an open shelf or two.
Remove upper cabinet doors. Like the idea of open shelving? You can remove the cabinet doors on some or all of your upper cabinetry for a completely different style. Fill any screw holes, repaint the boxes, and you’ll have an updated look for a very affordable price.
DIY Fridge integration. Integrated refrigerators are all the rage but involve expensive new cabinet materials. If you’re at all handy, you can do-it-yourself. Check out the instructions (Q. #12) at theoldpaintedcottage.com.