Here we will go into the functionality, lighting, appliances, countertops, cabinets, flooring, and everything else involved in a kitchen.

 

Functionality:

The traditional, proven, and typical layout of a kitchen is a triangle made between the sink, the fridge, and the range- the 3 most used areas while cooking. This triangle should be equilateral, or as close to as possible, and works best in small kitchen renovations. The design works well with islands, U-shaped, and L-shaped kitchens. Depending on personal preferences, the island can hold the range or sink and dishwasher, or whatever you wish. If you prefer to visit with guests from the adjacent space while cooking, it is a good option to place the range in a position where you can talk to family or guests while you prepare meals. The same goes for somebody who imagines themselves spending more time at the sink.  This is how we plan the triangle and the design of your kitchen.

Another layout option is called a workstation. Workstations are used in larger kitchens to accommodate a big, busy household. They are a chef's dream kitchen. Workstation kitchens can have multiple levels, different surfaces to define work areas (prep, cooking, clean up areas, etc.), various stations that are designed for specific tasks (baking, canning, etc), open shelving for storage, and many other options. It all depends on how you presently, or how you plan to, use your kitchen.

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Lighting:

For your kitchen renovation to look its best and function well, it needs to be properly lit. Since lighting is often neglected during the design and construction of your kitchen renovation, most contractors just end up installing one ceiling-mounted fixture used to light up the whole room. This is a mistake which visually overpowers everything in the kitchen. Recessed lighting is no better. These types of lighting create too much light directed at certain areas, not enough light in others, and too many shadows.

In order to make your kitchen look warm and welcoming, you need to have more than one kind of lighting. Whether it be ambient lighting above the cabinets, task lighting- also known as under cabinet lighting (these can change color!), accent lighting used to light up the inside of glass cabinets, or pendant lighting over the island, you should always have a minimum of two kinds of lighting in the new kitchen renovation.

As in any rooms in the house, it is nice to be able to dim the lights. This is another feature that we highly recommend for your kitchen renovation. When designing your kitchen renovation, we will always encourage our client to dim the main or secondary lighting for optimal ambience. It is simply luxurious and very affordable. 

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Countertops:

Let's just clarify something: Laminate costs the same as quartz. And quarts costs half the price as granite. In with the quartz and out with the rest! We highly recommend using quartz with all of our kitchen renovations. It is timeless, beautiful, affordable, durable, and environmentally friendly. 

You do not have to use only one color of countertop either. Why not accent your island with a different color of countertop? It is "in" right now and looks amazing. Having this contrast gives character and elegance to a kitchen renovation. You can also accent islands and other areas with natural wood countertops too. 

 

Cabinets:

The most important part of a kitchen renovation is the cabinets. There are essentially three trends: Traditional, Modern, and Exotic. Along with these 3 trends, there are 3 styles of doors: Shaker, Flat, and Raised Panel. It all comes down to the purpose of the renovation. Are you renovating for resale or are you planning on staying for the long run? If you are planning to renovate your kitchen for the purpose of selling your home, then you should choose the style which attracts the correct demographic of home buyers in that particular area. For example, if your home resides in a particularly trendy area which attracts younger adults, then you should choose a more modern design because that is what attracts the younger crowd. If you are planning on living in your home for a long time, then you should choose the style that suits you best. This also applies to the layout of the kitchen as well.

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Appliances:

When choosing new appliances for your kitchen renovation, one should expect to spend 8-12% of the total kitchen renovation on the appliances. This is a guideline. It should be forbidden to have a spectacular kitchen renovation and cheap out on appliances.

Stainless steel significantly increases the value of your home, ask any realtor. Stainless is beautiful, timeless, modern, water and rust resistant. 

Vintage style appliances are becoming more and more popular. Although, they cost as much as a small BMW, and do not increase the value of your home significantly. Stay away, unless you must have it, then OK fine..

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Flooring:

Basically anything goes except for carpet. We all knew that, right? Laminate is very affordable and comes in a wide selection of colors and styles and can go in the kitchen because our product is dent and scratch resistant. However, it is not recommended as it can swell up if it gets too wet. If your budget allows, put something else in there instead. The most popular types of flooring for kitchen renovations are: tile, cork, hardwood, vinyl, and polished concrete. Polished concrete is a specialty flooring and will cost big bucks, but is very modern and waterproof. It is hard on your feet though. Tile is also quite hard on your feet, especially if you are standing for extended periods of time, but is beautiful, timeless, very durable and practically water proof. Cork is water resistant and quite soft. It is a popular flooring in kitchens. Cork also comes in many colors to go along with any style of kitchen renovation. Hardwood has a much better resistance to water than laminate and is durable. It comes in a plethora of colors and styles, however, it is not dent and scratch resistant. Vinyl is dent, scratch, and water resistant. It is also very affordable. Vinyl is not allowed in some condo buildings because of the low IIC and STC ratings (meaning your downstairs neighbours will be able to hear everything).

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Now you have an idea of what to expect when planning your kitchen renovation!

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