The Kitchen Design Questions You Should Be Asking Yourself Before Renovating
Planning out your kitchen renovation – while not without its challenges – is a fun and exciting process. Bringing together the elements you’ve always wanted in a kitchen to create your ultimate space is fulfilling, and lets you unleash your inner designer or organiser on a project you’ll love for years to come.
While there are obvious, big-ticket items to tick off the planning checklist – what is my colour scheme? What style of kitchen do I prefer? What kind of splashback do I want? – there are a few smaller, more practical decisions that, if not considered at the outset, could cause a few headaches down the line.
Here are a few elements of your new kitchen to consider before getting stuck into your renovation.
Cabinetry: the ins and outs
Quite literally – will your cabinets open out, or fold up? Will they slide back in to sit inside the cabinet, or will a door that opens outward be an obstruction? Particularly when space is a consideration in your kitchen, you’ll want to be mindful of how your cabinetry is saving or stealing room.
Another cabinetry consideration is the hardware and knobs or handles you’ll use. A handle may better serve overhead cabinets, while a pull-style shell handle may be easier for opening drawers. It’s likely you will use up to 3 different styles of door hardware throughout your kitchen, and it’s important that these then sit within your overall aesthetic.
Or, you could always ditch the handles altogether and go for a pull strip along the tops and bottoms of cabinetry, or touch-to-open panelling.
Waste not, want not
Your kitchen is freshly renovated, you can’t wait to get in and use it – and then you realise there’s only a tiny space underneath the sink for your bin to live.
Consider the size of your household, and how often you want to be changing out the bin liner. Another thing to take into account is the amount of cooking and preparation you do – it may be easier to build an access point into your benchtop, to sweep waste away as you go.
It’s also a great time to consider other ways in which you can reduce your kitchen’s waste and your impact on the environment.
Set the benchmark
You may have your heart set on a marble benchtop – but have you considered how you want this marble bench to look?
Considerations here include whether you want to introduce a waterfall benchtop, where the top counter surface cascades down the side of the cabinetry to meet the floor; whether you want a polished or matte finish to your material; and what shape you want the edge of your benches to follow.
A square-edge profile looks sleek and complements the lines in your kitchen, but may not be the best option if you’ve got a young family. A full or half-bullnose may be more kid-friendly.
Now that you’re armed with the knowledge to better plan out your kitchen, have a read of some of the most common kitchen decoration mistakes (and how to fix them!)
