How to Design Your Dream Kitchen
iStockphoto/Thinkstock
What's in your dream kitchen?
The kitchen of your secret dreams may have a double oven Wolf range -- or just a cook to do the honors. It may be one of those brick and exposed-wooden-beam affairs with wrought iron pot racks and its own fireplace. Maybe it's so stainless steel streamlined that dirt and spills are ashamed to do their worst.
If you crave a porcelain pot sink or lust after a hideaway recycling station, be bold the next time your tax refund hits the mail box, and do something about it. Think of a kitchen renovation as an investment that will transform the look and feel of your home's hearth -- the place where everyone seems to gravitate whether dinner smells enticing or not.
More on Kitchens- What is a Tuscan style kitchen?
- What do French country kitchens look like?
- 10 Tips for Rustic Kitchen Designs
Dream kitchens don't just happen, they're designed. A dedicated baker with a hankering for the best will choose different equipment (and a different layout) from a couple of weekend gourmets who want to stay current with the latest food fad. If you're a sommelier, your requirements may run to temperature-controlled wine chillers, or your inner mountain man might long for smoked meats and plenty of them. If you prefer prepping a platter of elegantly designed appetizers or cupcakes, you'll definitely need enough countertop space to work your decorative wizardry.
Here are some helpful tips for crafting a luscious kitchen worth spending a weekend afternoon in. Luxury is in the eye of the beholder -- and the chef responsible for transforming a sack of groceries into a memorable meal.
Luxury Kitchen Ideas
TLC TipIf you want a kitchen countertop that's trendy, versatile and virtually indestructible, go with quartz. It's beautiful and easy to maintain.
Your ideal kitchen may be large and elegant or small and intimate, but whatever your personal proclivities, these areas deserve some attention:
- Add lavish countertops - Countertops are the little black dress of the kitchen. They should be basic, classic and built to last. Budget will play a big role in choosing the right kitchen countertop material for your needs, but whether you're planning on spending your kid's college fund on carrara marble, durable quartz or stainless steel, all countertop materials need maintenance and care -- even if it's just an annual application of a protective coating.
- Beautify your fixtures - If you can afford imported stone, hardwood and custom built-ins, you can probably write your own ticket regarding the small stuff. But that's the interesting part: Delightful design is often distinguished by the small stuff like the drawer pulls, the finish of the faucets and the light fixtures. Integrating your look is important, but being creative and unconventional can help raise your kitchen design to the next level.
- Update those cabinets - Because kitchen cabinetry is so visually prominent, it's often ground zero for a redesign. That, and the fact that it's a big ticket item, means that you'll see changes in cabinet trends every few years. This year, dark wood is the new thing; next year, it might be black lacquer (or red or even white bead board). A few years ago, open shelving was the rage -- and there's still some holdover from that. There's also tangential interest in cabinets that completely obscure those nasty large appliances, making your kitchen look less functional and more like a shipboard stateroom. Whatever you choose, make sure you're thinking long term if you don't have the desire or the budget to redecorate every five to seven years. Stay with the classics like quality natural materials in neutral colors, and you should be just fine.
- Customize the heat - Ranges, stoves and other cooking appliances are becoming more -- and less -- than you'd expect. The trend toward energy conservation and flexible functionality is making fire fun in the kitchen in lots of ways. If you grill, relying on a griddle or the temperature control offered by induction cooking, you can customize your range to suit. Don't like cooking smells in the house? Down draft systems lose the vent hood in favor of a more streamlined look that will still keep those fried onions on the down low. Need to maximize your energy savings? Try an induction cooktop (at a 60 percent savings over gas) with a convection oven. You'll get precision, shorter cooking times and flexibility, too.
- Take it outdoors - Your fantasy kitchen may not even be in the house. Outdoor kitchen options are becoming more lavish (think: imported tile, built-in fireplaces and dedicated icemakers). Cooking outdoors can combine all the fun of an impromptu campfire with the sophistication of modern design and function. There are even portable options for folks who want to stow their kitchens in winter.
Tips for Designing Your Dream Kitchen
Overhauling your kitchen can be a big, expensive step, so make sure you get what you want -- and need -- the first time out.
- Design with function in mind -- You have a functional style, and your kitchen should reflect that. If the kids spend time at the kitchen counter doing their homework, give them enough space to spread out. If you grill but don't bake, you don't need a range with a proofing drawer. If you cook for a crowd, a French-door refrigerator may be a good investment because it'll have more room to stow large items than a side-by-side model. An wine cabinet looks great until you realize that the space could have been better invested in a recycling center instead. Recognize what suits your family and functional style before you pull out your checkbook -- or the sledgehammer. Consider these useful features:
- under cabinet task lighting
- rotating or pull out storage
- Energy Star compliant (energy saving) appliances
- a built-in recycling setup
- dual oven range (no more having to split the temperature difference between two recipes)
- environmentally friendly materials like bamboo and stone
- Get an expert opinion -- Hiring a contractor can be a big help when you're planning a kitchen update. Adding an electrical outlet to your island or putting pocket doors in the entry may seem simple and straightforward until you start finding expensive surprises in your walls.
- Go bold in moderation -- If you love bright yellow, the kitchen's a cheerful place for it, but not in a refrigerator finish. Stick to neutrals for large items that'll be around for a while. When that big banana of an appliance finally becomes an eyesore, it'll cost a lot more to replace than a pair of yellow café curtains and a few area rugs.
- Consider the future -- As much as we love the idea of high-end appliances with all the bells and whistles, spending a fortune on kitchen gear may backfire. If you don't plan on staying at the same address for a decade or more, a potential owner may be turned off by your lavish choices.
While you're designing your dream kitchen, take a moment to ponder the value of low maintenance, too. That marble or granite countertop may be gorgeous, but having to worry every time someone puts a soda bottle on it could end up being more of a hassle than you bargained for. One great thing about a dream kitchen -- before it becomes a real kitchen -- is that you don't actually have to clean and maintain it. If you dreamed yourself a maid, pull out all the stops. If you're doing the cleanup work yourself, look for beauty and low-maintenance in your materials and equipment. That way your dream kitchen is much more likely to become a happy reality.