Planning your perfect kitchen is about discovery and imaginagion. Using our practical, fun, and easy to follow guide will get us quickly on the path to creating the kitchen of your dreams.
Planning your perfect kitchen is about discovery and imaginagion. Using our practical, fun, and easy to follow guide will get us quickly on the path to creating the kitchen of your dreams.
Overview
Doing it Right - The importance of creating a journal and organizing your project notes
Where to Start - Understanding your motivations and identifying your goals
Overview
In this guide we'll start by thinking through your motivations for remodeling and how what motivates you should translate into project goals. Then, we'll walk step-by-step through the different aspects of planning your new kitchen from the layout that best suits your needs to the products that fit your sense of style. Along the way we'll consider your budget and how the elements you might want to include will affect the cost. In the end, you'll have thought through the many different aspects you'll need to consider and should have a definite vision of what the perfect kitchen design is for you. From this vision your designer will be able to create a blue print, specifications, and cost estimate for the kitchen of your dreams.
As you work through this guide may want to jump back to a section so you can continue where you left off or to review. You can do that quickly and easily by clicking on the at the top Table of Contents at the top of this page and then choosing the section you are interested in.
Doing it Right
If you're going to the grocery store to buy only the things you use on a daily basis, you might not need a list. A quick check of what's in the fridge and pantry might be enough to make sure you return with everything you need. But if you've ever set out to make a dish you've never made, you know just how handy a list of the ingredients you need can be. Unless you've remodeled your kitchen more times than you can remember (and you probably haven't) - you'll need to treat it like something you've never made before and begin by writing down the things you want and need. Find some paper, or better yet, a blank notebook where you can begin fresh and a pocket folder to hold loose paperwork. Having all your ideas and notes in one place will go a long way to helping your project move smoothly from beginning to end.
Or, if you prefer, you can download and print our Kitchen Remodeling Guide which includes space for you to jot down your notes. (download the Kitchen Remodeling Guide)
Motivations
Understanding what motivates you to remodel your kitchen is an important first step because it will help you to clearly identify and articulate the goals you have for your project. Don't let friends, designers or articles that start with "the ten must haves..." overly influence you. You should be encouraged to get input from as many sources you feel you need, but make sure to put the advise you receive into the context of your goals and not someone eles's, beause in the end this is your kitchen.
If you're like most people, you have a limited amount of space and money to work with, but that doesn't mean your project has to be filled with one compromise after another. Prioritizing your project goals will help you to get the most out of the space and budget you have to work with. Following is a list of some of the most popular reasons people have for remodeling their kitchen. Thinking through this list and adding to it any motivations you have that aren't listed, and then priotitizing the list, will help in making sure that when your new kitchen is complete that you'll have accomplished, or at least done your best, to achieve your goals in the order of greatest importance to you.
■ Looks Outdated
■ Not Enough Space to Cook
■ Not Enough Storage
■ No Place to Sit
■ Layout is Cramped and Congested
■ I Don't Have the Appliances I Need or Want
■ I Want to Improve Resale Value
■ Accessibility
■ Other
Now that you've thought your motivations for remodeling your kitchen and prioritized them in order of importance, we'll begin taking an in-depth look at the solutions for these motivations and the goals they create.
Where to Start
The order in which you've prioritized the goals you have for your project should determine the order you go through the process of gathering your ideas and deciding what you want to include in your project. Tackling these goals in the wrong order could mean you'll get to the end and need to start over thinking through the various elements.
For example, if maximising your resale value is of greatest importance and you began by exploring the options you have for appliances, you may have narrowed down your selections and even spent a considerable amount of time researching specific brands and models only to find out that these considerations won't give you the greatest return on your investment and you'll need to start over from the beginning.
Following is an in-depth look at solutions for the most common goals arranged in no particular order except that we've placed Resale Value and Appliances at the top becasue they tend to (though not always) have the greatest influence on the other areas of consideration. In some instances we've linked to additional pages that will provide an even greater level of detailed information so that you won't get too bogged down as you first begin to go through the information that's provided.
Clicking on the Down Arrow below will reveal a Jump-To guide that will help you quickly navigate to the section of interest. For convenience we've added a Jump-To guide at the end of each section.
Overview
Doing it Right - The importance of creating a journal and organizing your project notes
Where to Start - Understanding your motivations and identifying your goals