Kitchen Remodeling- Planning

The kitchen is one of the most popular rooms in the home. It is also one of the most popular rooms to remodel, because of it's high ROI (return on investment). When you make the decision to remodel your kitchen, it is best to be prepared before you begin. Without proper preparation, a kitchen remodel can turn into a disaster. If you are thinking about remodeling your kitchen, contact us for our free, Kitchen and Bath Remodel  Survival Guide. 
Below are questions you should ask yourself before remodeling, it will help you and your contractor (if you're using a contractor-which we strongly recommend for kitchen remodeling!) get an idea of where to start. 

1. Assess your current kitchen and the wants and needs of your family.
a. What do you like about your current kitchen?
b. What would you most like to change about your kitchen?
c. What would your dream kitchen look like?
d. What colors do you like?
e. How would you describe your home decorating style?
f. What feeling would you like your new kitchen to have?
g. Do you want/need multiple work stations in your kitchen?
h. How many people are living in your home?
i. How many 'chefs' are in your home? What are their ages?
j. Does anyone in your family have physical limitations? If so what are they? 
k. How many times a month do you entertain?
l. When you entertain, do you have large events with a lot of people or small gatherings? 
m. Do you want an 'open-concept' kitchen? 

2. What activities will take place in your kitchen?
a. Cooking- does your family generally do fast easy meals or large family meals from scratch? Do you do gourmet cooking? Do you do a lot of baking? Do you do a lot of cooking for guests/entertainment?
b. Dining- Will you have a dine-in kitchen? If so what type of dining does your family do? Formal? Informal? How many people generally dine with you?
c. What other activities will take place in your kitchen? laundry, tv, school or office work, computer time, crafts, house work, etc.
3. What items will you store in your kitchen? 
a. Food/Beverages-canned goods, fruits, veggies, spices, oils, coffee, milk, etc. 
b. Cookware/Dishes- pots, pans, plates, cups, silverware, measuring cups, cookbooks, etc. 
c. Other items- paper plates & cups, food storage containers, baggies, foil, pet food and supplies, and cleaning products.
4. What type of cabinet storage will you need?
a.  Base Cabinets- full-extension sliding shelves, hinged swing-out wire shelf units, Lazy Susans, door-mount racks, slide out racks for storage bins and trash cans, etc.
b. Wall Cabinets- pull-down overhead shelf units, flip-down shelf, etc.
c. Other- storage cabinet for TV, ceiling-mount pot rack
5. What features will you choose for your kitchen?
a. Will you be doing any structural changes? Adding/removing walls? adding or removing a door or window? Building an addition to extend kitchen space?
b. Cabinets- What style will you choose? Traditional, contemporary, transitional, cottage, modern, etc.
What type of surface will you choose? Wood? If so, what species and finish. Laminate or vinyl overlay. Metal? 
What door style will you choose? Full overlay (shows very little of the cabinet frame giving it a modern, seamless appearance or a half inch overlay (leaves 2 inches of the cabinet frame exposed between the doors giving a more traditional look)
Will you have other options- Such as multiple surfaces, cabinet hardware, an island, matching range hood, matching appliance panels, etc.
c. What type of surfaces will you use for your backsplash and/or countertop? ceramic tile, concrete, laminate, quartz, solid surface, stainless steel, stone (such as granite), wood, etc.
d. What options will you choose for your sink? Material- acrylic, cast iron, composite, enameled steel, solid-surface, stone. What configuration will you choose? Single, double, or triple basin? Apron front? Prep sink?
What fixtures will you choose? Faucet-Single-handle, bridge, high arc, pull-out, pot-filler, or wall mount? Will you choose a built-in water filtration system? Will you select a built-in soap or lotion dispenser? Will you have a garbage disposal? 
e. What type of flooring will you choose? Bamboo, ceramic tile, concrete, cork, laminate, linoleum, sheet vinyl, vinyl tile, wood, engineered wood, stone, etc. 
f. What type of ventilation will you have? chimney hood, custom insert, down-draft, island hood, microwave-hood combo, under-cabinet hood, etc. 
g. What type of lighting will you have? under-cabinet lighting, accent lighting, sky light, task light, recessed lighting, or pendant lights.
h. What large appliances will you have? Conventional oven, convection oven, microwave, steam oven, cook top stove, free standing range, slide-in range, warming drawer, refrigerator, freezer, built-in refrigerator, built-in dish washer, regular dishwasher, washer, dryer, washer/dryer combo, etc. 
i. What small appliances do you/will you have? toaster, toaster oven, rice cooker, slow cooker, blender, bread maker, deep fryer, food processor, coffee maker, espresso or cappuccino machine, juicer, etc. 


With this list completed, you are one step closer to having the kitchen of your dreams! Call us today at 240-398-9003 and we can help you with this process or if you are interested in our free Kitchen and Bath Remodel  Survival Guide, contact us and we will email it to you! or if you are on your smartphone...click here to call:<a href="tel:2403989003">Click HERE to Call: 240-398-9003</a>