26 April 2022

A new, light and bright kitchen


The kitchen is, for many families and households, the heart of the home. In many dwellings the kitchen doubles as a dining space. That means it's not only the area where you prepare meals, but it's also the area where you entertain, catch up with family, and entertain. It's important that you invest in your kitchen and make it a light, bright, friendly space for you and everyone else in your household to enjoy. If you want to know how to remodel your kitchen to make it light and bright, keep reading for some great tips.

Consult a professionals to lay out your kitchen.

Trust me, you cannot do this alone. While I don't doubt for a second that someone can take on installing the components of a new kitchen (within reason). Unless you know what you're doing, please leave the layout work to a professional kitchen designer. Deciding what goes where is as much a science as it is an art and there are all kinds of building and construction codes that have to be accounted for. Never mind the electrical, HVAC and ventilation requirements. There's too much to know that you'll never learn from YouTube how-to videos.

Choose finishes that will lighten up your kitchen space.

Work with a kitchen designer to select kitchen cabinets that are in a color that will lighten up your whole space, such as a light pine or birch, or even a wood treated with a white finish. The designer will also walk you through choosing a countertop material that will give your kitchen renovation a bright, sleek feel. Choose finishes that will reflect the natural daylight in your kitchen, or even consider adding a mirror or two to create even more of that reflection. You can even break up a dark wood floor with a brightly-colored kitchen island that doubles as additional prep space or an area for a small group to dine together.

Use natural light to your advantage.

Throughout your kitchen, taking advantage of your existing natural light will help make your kitchen into your dream kitchen. When harnessed effectively, sunlight can make your kitchen look larger and brighter, and thus, more welcoming for both you and your guests. Even if you only have one window, you can complement the natural light with mirrors and with sheer or no curtains that allow the maximum amount of light into your kitchen remodel project.

Make sure key areas are well-lit.

Sunlight, and light in general, is vitally important in the kitchen, not only because it helps your kitchen appear lighter and larger, but also because it helps illuminate key areas in your kitchen for safety. If you have children or live with someone with a disability, this is especially important. Kitchens in particular, benefit from the inclusion of under cabinet lighting. Being able to illuminate the hands of a cook as he or she is working makes for a more pleasant, and safer, place to prepare meals.

Think about lighting control systems

Lighting control systems that may or may not be automated are a kitchen innovation well worth investigating. Sometimes they're connected wirelessly in their own network, sometimes they use the whole house Wi-Fi and sometimes they can use other ways to network themselves. However, they're set up, lighting control systems will allow you to tune the light levels in your new kitchen with precision. It's better to have a brightly-lit kitchen during meal prep and cooking, but it's more enjoyable to eat with lower light levels.

Lighting control systems allow for differing lighting levels in a room depending on its use. In our house, we use smart bulbs connected via Amazon Echo Dots and I have it set up to lower the lights when I say "Alexa, lower the lights." Our admittedly low-budget approach is terrific and it's a look into what's available. If we were renovating again, I'd no doubt consider one of these systems.

So when you're ready to add some life to your kitchen or whole home, it's the lighting that will set the tone and make or break your project.

08 April 2022

3 Effective Techniques To Update Your Kitchen Style

Photo by Sidekix Media on Unsplash

Your kitchen is one of the most important rooms of your home. It’s not just the place where food is prepared. In most cases, it is also the spot where the family meet, passing each other as they go about their day. That’s the reason it is still generally referred to as the heart of the home.

However, no matter how central it is to the home, your kitchen can still start to look tired and dated. While a complete kitchen renovation is likely to set you back thousands, you can upgrade the style of your kitchen with the following three techniques. 

1. Add A Rug

Carpets and rugs are not usually popular options in kitchens where food is spilt and there is an abundance of moisture. However, if you choose a dedicated rug from the range offered by Missamara Rugs NZ, you’ll find it is perfectly adapted for kitchen life.

It can improve your grip, add warmth, and resist stains and spills. It will also protect your floor and it becomes a focal point, detracting from the condition of your old flooring. 

Best of all, rugs are available in a huge array of colours and textures, simply choose your favourite and enjoy.

2. Replace or Paint Cupboards

One of the simplest ways to transform the look and the style of any kitchen is to change the doors on your cupboards. After all, even if you renovate it’s the doors that most people see, the cupboard units are effectively invisible! 

Changing the doors is easy and a significantly cheaper DIY project than replacing everything. You can choose from a wide variety of colours and styles.

However, if none of these appeal then you can paint your existing cupboard doors. This is a slightly more time-consuming approach as every door will need to be sanded before it can be painted. This ensures the new paint will stick to the door. If you don’t sand or prep the door first the new paint will quickly peel off, leaving you with a very messy space.  

While you’re doing the doors it’s a good idea to change the countertops. 

3. Change Hardware

There are plenty of big objects in the kitchen but the pieces that make a fundamental difference is actually the hardware. That’s the door handles on your cupboards and the entry door, the light fitting, and even the organizers on the wall. 

Changing these can transform the style and look of your kitchen. There are hundreds of different designs, colours and styles to choose from. All you have to do is select the ones you like and swap your existing hardware over. 

The process is simple and effective, it’s also extremely cheap. 

Final Thoughts

Any one of the above will change the style of the kitchen, you can even repaint the walls to make it look different. But, if you really want to change the style and make it feel like a new kitchen, you’ll do all three things listed above. It will leave a positive and lasting impression.