Planning a kitchen renovation? Here are 5 great planning ideas

In many respects, the kitchen is the hub of the home. It’s a place where fond memories are forged in taste and flavour. Not surprisingly, the kitchen is the most used location in the house.

Perhaps this is why, whenever you have a party or social gathering, you will always find that friends and family migrate to the kitchen for its welcoming warmth, pleasant aromas, and great company.

Kitchens are also one of the most renovated locations in the home. As trends change, paint peels, tiles become worn looking and tired, and appliances get safer and more advanced with each generation, there comes a time when your kitchen is in dire need of an upgrade.

The first thought for many homeowners is to visit all the kitchen companies in an area, but in a lot of cases, these are unable to provide all the services necessary for such an in-depth project and may not be the best way to go about creating new kitchen designs.

1. The first step is a detailed brief and concept kitchen design

Having something to cost is the first step in a kitchen design project. It doesn’t have to be a highly detailed plan, but you do at least need a concept design that is sufficiently detailed to cover everything you want in your new kitchen, as this is the best way to get an accurate cost estimate.

2. Butler’s kitchens are a growing trend on the Northern Beaches

More kitchen designs are incorporating a butler’s kitchen (or butler’s pantry), which is a storage unit adjacent to the main kitchen to hold pantry items, open shelving, and all your appliances.

You can think of your butler’s kitchen as a walk-in pantry that also serves as a kitchenette. If you have frequent dinner parties and tire of the work you need to do to keep the kitchen spotless, a butler’s kitchen is the perfect solution. In there you can prepare the food and appetizers while keeping the mess safely contained out of sight.

3. How to decide on the kitchen materials to use?

When asked about materials used in a kitchen’s design, “the materials for your kitchen are a very personal choice. There are plenty of showrooms out there where you are able to view finishes. Make decisions on the look and the match materials you can afford.”

4. Make sensible appliance choices

When choosing appliances for the kitchen, buying all your appliances from the same company is a great idea and can help manage the budget.

With such a large purchase in appliances, it may also be possible to negotiate a discount from the supplier to help manage the budget for the kitchen renovation.

5. Make sensible kitchen design choices

When it comes to kitchen designs but considers the worst offense is situating benches too close to each other. A good rule of thumb is to ensure all benches are at least 1.1 meters apart.

Benchtops that are too high are also another bad design choice. Create benches that are around 900mm in height, as this will create a comfortable food preparation environment that works for most people.

On a final design note, the ubiquitous Microwave is not as popular as it once was with more people preferring to install specialty ovens, with steam ovens being a common choice.

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