THE CAPITOL DESIGN BLOG

What Are the Top Five Kitchen Renovation and Remodeling Mistakes?

It’s easy to ahead of yourself when it comes to kitchen renovations. Many homeowners rush their kitchen remodeling plans when it’s far from a small undertaking. This results in many kitchen remodeling mistakes that can lead to a lot of regrets and additional costly kitchen renovations down the line. Here are the top five mistakes that homeowners tend to make with their kitchen remodeling project.

Mistake #1: Not Considering Space

Many homeowners rush in to their kitchen renovations with all the additions that they can make. For example, a common addition to many kitchen remodeling projects is adding one or two islands. While this is a great upgrade, you really have to consider the spacing in your kitchen. Not all kitchens are equal when it comes to space. So putting an island too close to the sink in a smaller kitchen can really create a cramped feeling. It also hurts functionality, so it’s important to consider spacing during the whole process.

Mistake #2: Focusing on Being Too Trendy

Going with kitchen renovations that align with the latest trends can be exciting and bring a fresh new look to your home. However, you still have to be aware that kitchen remodeling trends last three to five years. This means that your kitchen renovations won’t have a long shelf life and you’ll end up wanting to switch back to a more timeless design later on. It’s a better idea to focus on a timeless look and add trendy accents that can easily swapped out. Accent pieces like cushions, accessories, wallpapers, and lighting are all good examples of designs that are easily replaceable.

Mistake #3: Not Considering the Lighting

Speaking of lighting, it’s one of most overlooked aspects of a kitchen renovations project. The lighting makes a big difference to the presentation, feel and function of the kitchen. You want to think about the kind of mood and feel you want to express in your kitchen environment. Function is also important in kitchen remodeling, so you’ll want to set the lighting to help illuminate the cooking and dining areas.

Mistake #4: Focusing Form over Functionality

The look of your kitchen is the first thing you think about when you start your kitchen remodeling project. But at the end of the day, you want to ensure that your kitchen is comfortable to work and spend time in. You want to think about things like storage space, materials that have long lifespans, a balanced work triangle (stove, sink, refrigerator), and accessibility. Both form and functionality is important, so you want to put in your best effort to ensure that your kitchen remodeling has a good balance of both.

Mistake #5: Spending Too Much or Too Little Money

The big mistake always comes down to the budget. Homeowners often underestimate how much their kitchen renovations will come out to and always end up surprised by the fact that they’ve gone over budget. On the flip side, being too tight with money for your kitchen renovations can lead to many of the mistakes mentioned earlier. This include focusing too much on form or function, relying on cheap trendy looks over timeless designs that can be modified, and not making the most out of the space. So make sure that the budget for your kitchen remodeling project is healthy and accurate.

Kitchen Remodeling and Renovations – Do I Need a Kitchen Designer?

A common question that homeowners often ask is if they need a kitchen designer for their kitchen remodeling project. The short answer is that it really depends. For small kitchen remodeling projects like installing kitchen fixtures, adding new furniture, or changing the layout, you’ll be more than able to handle it yourself. This is particularly the case if you have at least a little experience with kitchen remodeling and have a good eye for how things should be designed.

However, if you don’t know where to start with your kitchen renovations and know that your kitchen remodeling project will be a big one, you should strongly consider a kitchen designer. A kitchen designer will present you with various concepts and ideas so that you get a strong feeling about what your kitchen should look like. Many also work with contractors so that they have know what kind of kitchen renovations are feasible as well as what can work with your particular budget.

What Exactly Can a Kitchen Designer or Design Firm Help You With?

The first thing that you’ll be able to get help with is creating a vision. You’ll be able to take inspirational ideas, concepts, themes, and styles to ultimately create a final product you’ll be satisfied with. You’ll get expert guidance on how to turn all the design elements you like and combine them into a cohesive vision that can be realized. An expert will also show you actual projects so that you can model your design after beautiful kitchen renovations.

It’s important to understand that contractors are not designers. You can’t expect a contractor to design your kitchen remodeling project. Professional designers understand that their role with kitchen renovations is to guide the contractor. They understand complex design concepts and work with contractors to bring them to life. Using a professional designer can help you avoid expensive mistakes in extensive kitchen renovations.

Professional Designers Also Focus on Practicality

Designers know that a kitchen remodeling project isn’t just about creating a new look. At the end of the day, kitchen renovations need to be practical. You need to know where certain appliances, lighting fixtures, and kitchen furniture need to be placed. They understand things like how much space should be between various parts of the kitchen for maximum comfort, how to create a balanced “triangle” to make working in the kitchen efficient, and other important design principles.

So if you have a decent sized budget to work with, then hiring a kitchen designer for your next kitchen remodeling project is a good idea. A professional designer will help you design your dream kitchen so that you can avoid all the stress, excess construction time, and lackluster design.

It’s a New Year… Time for a Kitchen Remodel or Renovation?

Looking for a fresh start to the New Year? If you’re reflecting on the past and trying to figure out how to make this one better, start with your home. As you know, most people spend the most time in their kitchen. That’s why a kitchen remodel may be a good place to make a change. But you’ll want some kitchen remodel ideas to help you start your kitchen renovation project in the right direction. Here are some solid kitchen remodel considerations.

1. Create More Space

One of the best things you can do is to create more space. This is a common kitchen remodel go to because many homeowners work in small kitchens. Some great ideas to create more room is to install pull out cabinets, add wall shelving and add fixtures to hang things like pans and other equipment. If you do have more room, a good kitchen remodel addition is an island. You’ll create more space for dining and cooking. Kitchen islands are also a great kitchen remodel addition because many of them come with hidden compartments to help create more storage space.

2. Create a Different Feel with Lighting

Another great and affordable kitchen remodel idea is to change or add more lighting. Many kitchen tend to feel dull because of lighting that hsn’t been changed for a very long time. Considering a kitchen remodel where you add more fixtures, add brighter lights, or even add colors to accentuate the lighting. You may also want to think about purchasing green lighting options to help save on your energy bill and be more friendly to the environment.

3. Add Some Style

The easiest kitchen remodel project to go about is changing up the style. Consider going with a theme like a country kitchen, cottage charm, Mediterranean, or even contemporary. This kitchen renovation idea can have the most impact on the look of our kitchen while being the least costly. Adding colorful tiling, a new coat of paint, different style furniture are all different ways to launch your new kitchen remodel style.

4. Change Your Cabinets

If you have a bigger budget and your kitchen is a little worn, changing cabinets is a good kitchen remodel idea. Custom cabinets should be considered because you’ll also be able to add some space saving installations. Remember that changing cabinets are a big kitchen renovation commitment. You are going to be looking at these cabinets for a long time. So make sure that you put a lot of thought into this kitchen remodel. You want cabinets that can go with many styles if you plan on changing up your kitchen in the future.

5. Function is Just as Important

While many kitchen remodel projects start out with a focus on function, it can often get sidetracked in lieu to aesthetics. Think about you how actually operate in the kitchen and come up with ideas that can enhance your experience working and entertaining in the kitchen area. You want your kitchen remodel to provide you enough space for comfort while also making sure it’s easy to access everything. Don’t make the mistake of limiting space like adding your island to close to the counter top.

Those are just some of the things you should consider for a kitchen remodel or kitchen renovation. Hopefully, these kitchen renovation considerations have helped inspire new ideas for the New Year.