A weekend update for your kitchen.

We all love to renew our homes and do so on a budget, in a timely manner. Here are TEN do-it-yourself ideas to re-new your kitchen in one weekend.

From drab oak wood to fresh ivory paint.

1) If your wooden cabinets are in great shape but your kitchen looks dated or tired, new paint is the answer. I recommend Benjamin Moore or Sherwin Williams paints and primers. 


2) New hardware for the cabinets make a tremendous difference so swap your old knobs and pulls for a new style and finish. If you're painting cabinets, you can fill holes and go from knobs to pulls.

3) Add or change your backsplash.  If you have only drywall, adding a backsplash is easy.  Many big box home centers have weekend classes on installing tile.  You can remove the dated ceramic tile and install new, or try beadboard for a new look.

New pendants and under cabinet lighting.

4) Update your lighting.  Try www.lampsplus.com for well-priced kitchen pendants and flush-mounted fixtures. Install  under-cabinet lighting.












5) Swap some cabinet door panels with glass for a great style. Use reeded glass - have  a glass pro cut to the right size - for some obscurity, and clear when you want to display what's inside the cabinet. Can't cut out the panel? Cover with fabric, a great decal, or other creative idea.








6) Remove some doors and expose the shelves.

7) Swap your faucet for a new style. Take out your old chrome faucet and install a new stainless one with a spray head for under $100. Check out the prices and styles at your local big box hardware store.



8) Paint. For a really quick change, just paint your walls. A bit braver, paint the floor instead of replacing it. You can even cover old ceramic tile with the right paint.


9) Remove a cabinet or two.  If you have a joined family/kitchen space, you may have ceiling mounted cabinets dividing the two areas. Taking them down will open both spaces, adding pendant lighting will make the space task-oriented and gorgeous...just be sure you can remove the storage.

10) Add a furniture touch.   Adding moldings, legs, corbels and other furniture details can transform existing cabinets.

Why use an interior designer?

AFTER

Interior designers add value in many ways than simply through aesthetics. When you make a decision to remodel or update your home, and bring in a designer, it WILL change your life in the best ways. Making an investment in your home should be done wisely.  From a few hours of time spent by a designer, comes a many-year enjoyment of the spaces you change. Rather than struggle through agonizing weeks with plans, surface materials, fabrics, dimensions and "what-if's", using a professional designer will bring timely satisfaction, creativity, and perfection to your project.

BEFORE

I've rescued clients from bad furniture purchases, the "nightmare" they lived through with a bad contractor, the poor selections of  floor coverings and paint colors that they made, and throwing their hands up at a poorly designed kitchen or bath. Don't waste money. Don't waste time. In interior designer knows codes, space-planning, and had the resources and knowledge to recommend everything to finish and furnish your home. With access to new products and creative ideas, your time with a designer will be well-spent.

When want to you love the results, meet your budget, and nail your style, the decision to hire a designer is always right. 

Should you use stone or not?

When selecting surfaces for your floors, walls and counters, also consider the long-term cost of maintenance. With a huge variety of color and size options, the cost to purchase install your surface, as well as costs to maintain should be the determining factors for selection.  Here is a brief guide to surfaces and their care:

 Recommendation from the designer: Porcelain tile and Quartz counters are two of the most durable, easy care, competitive cost alternatives.  For both, the selection of colors, ways to use, and overall performance are fantastic. The options in porcelain tile sizes and styles are ever-increasing, with trim tiles to finish edges. I prefer porcelain and quartz to their natural stone counterparts.

1) Granite: Porous, igneous stone. Tile and slab available. Must be sealed annually in baths, more often in kitchens. Stains and etches. Don't let oils or vinegars sit on surface too long. Great heat resistance. Be aware that some colors have radon. Not impervious to bacteria. Clean with stone cleaner to avoid removing sealer or dulling shine. Don't use acidic products or shine can be dulled.

2) Quartz: (Silestone, Cambria, Caesarstone, etc..) Stone-epoxy composite.Tile and slab available. Non-porous so no sealer required.  Heat and stain resistant. High durability. Often embedded with antibacterial compound. Clean with almost any household cleaner. Some versions by Silestone are 'green'. Colors can be stone-like or unique in pattern and particulate.  This bath uses a fossil-like quartz in a soft white. 

3) Travertine-limestone-soapstone-marble-slate: These are all porous stone products that can be used on counters, floors and walls. Tile and slab available. They MUST be sealed often so water and products don't penetrate.  All are stainable and prone to scratches. Soapstone has good heat resistance. Requires regular cleaning with stone cleaner or neutral non-abrasive cleaner.  Products for ceramic tile may NOT be used on these stones. Soap scum is difficult to remove. Special products are available to help remove stains.

4) Porcelain: A subset of ceramic tile. Highly durable surface for floors, walls, and even counters. Generally through-body color with a glazed surface. No porosity. Clean with nearly any household cleaner. Recommend that you seal grout after installation for best stain resistance in high use areas. Patterns, colors, and sizes nearly limitless. Unique stone-like patterns available for more durable, easy care surface than real stone.

5) Ceramic: Made from clay or other inorganic materials, hardened by oven firing and usually coated with some kind of glaze.  Ceramic is easy to clean and doesn't harbor germs.

6) Solid surfaces (Corian, Corinthinan, Wilsonart, etc...) : Solid, manufactured with plastic or acrylic. Durable, non-porous, stain and bacteria resistant. Not heat resistant. Through-color and easy to buff scratches or make repairs. Often has integrated sink options. Seams are inconspicuous.

My FAVORITE THINGS ideas for your home!

These are some of my favorite things to create warm and unique spaces. Try using them

Lighting. A great pendant, a shapely table lamp, and even an architectural floor lamp, can be a dramatic accessory and a focal point to a room. With one table lamp on a corner end table having the right scale and color, you can complete the decor and add function.  See our lighting blog in December

 

Candlesticks: Whether you like classic turned wooden candlesticks or sleek glass ones, using real or flame less candles, nestled in the right place in your room, adds drama, softness, romance, and light

 Wreaths: Bringing a bit of color to your doors, fireplace, table, and even your cook top, with a great wreath. You can certainly bring seasonal warmth to these areas, but why not use one year-round. Boxwood, grapevine and twig and vine are some that can be dried, real or faux and look great all the time

 Orchids: Even if you don't have a green thumb, a flowering orchid plant will add an elegant feel to a room, soften a harsh corner and look refreshing. They're delicate and look expensive, and you can find them in most big box hardware stores for under $20.  Add a group in a blue and white vessel for a traditional look or a single plant in a chocolate brown cache pot for a modern feel

Vases. Empty or full, glass or ceramic, vases can add a finishing touch to any room.  Varying the scale, the shape and texture and adding a plant or leaving it empty creates focal points and add color.  The glass vases in this kitchen space bring a soft blue to a crisp white space, and the white-on-white textured vases on the table add interest

Books: While I love open space on tables, books add a lived in feel, an architectural element, and sophistication to consoles, end tables and coffee tables. Placing them at an angle, as in this small apartment, is both practical - these are study guides covered with wallpaper - and attractive

Blue and white.  In nearly all decorating styles, classic blue and white vases, bowls, lamps and urns add a wonderful, warm touch. As a collection or simply by itself, a blue and white vase looks elegant, adds a sense of antiquity, and a fresh look to a space

 Mirrors: With the ability to add light to a room, provide detail and wall art, mirrors are one of the most versatile design accessories...not to mention functional!  They can add more apparent space to a small room. Create a focal point in a dining room, an entry, or a master bathroom. By using floor mirrors you can even make a narrow hallway appear wider, and a low-ceiling room appear taller!   Be aware of what the mirror is reflecting...a drab wall or the tops of furniture, won't add to the impact of using one

 Area rugs: The ability to define or divide a space can come from an area rug. Add visual interest, scale, pattern and texture to any room. Change the perception of dimension. Enjoy the variety of materials, but get the BEST you can afford.  For neutral looks with detail, add a great border as shown here..with sisal and a crisp brown leather edge

 Panel curtains:  To add softness to any window, adding panels - even with existing blinds - will do the trick.  Have a small window? Flanking it with panels can make the window look larger.  Need a bit of texture or color? A great fabric panel curtain can add the layer to finish your space.  Of course they are functional!  Add privacy, block the cold, divide a space

Small space design

Need to make the most of your small apartment, room, cottage or other space? Try these ideas...

1)  Use color.  Accenting a sofa, the windows, and art on the wall, etc... will draw the eye towards color and can visually enlarge a space. White is NOT the only way to make spaces seem larger. Pattern too, draws the eye towards it so don't be afraid of large scale on wall coverings, window treatments and furniture. Group art and photos together to make a visual statement, rather than spreading small pieces around a space.

2) Make things function in more than one way.  Need a table and a shelf and a room divider? Purchase or make a piece that can do all of those things. An open backed piece with interior shelves, at 30" high, can resolve all three issues.  Be creative. Re-purpose furnishings. Need art? Hang hard-to-store necklaces or jewelry from pins on fabric boards and get storage and custom artwork.

3) Raise things up. Can you create a platform for a bed and use the space underneath as a desk or storage area? You don't need to make things 'standing height' if the ergonomics work otherwise while using the space. Increasing the scale of furniture used in small spaces is OK too. Larger scale pieces, used well, do give the impression that a room is larger.

4) Lighten up.  Literally.  Carefully selected layered lighting along with mirrors, can completely change the apparent space. Be careful with what the mirror reflects!  Dress windows lightly but don't sacrifice privacy. Remove interior doors when possible to create a floor-through impression. Use glass to divide spaces rather than knocking down all walls.

5) De-clutter.  The more things that are out-of-sight or organized, the more open a space seems.  Use decorative boxes for paperwork and sorting, baskets for storage, closed storage units versus open-shelves, and even hide your desk and craft area inside a gorgeous cabinet. When accessorizing, while I subscribe to the "less is more" theory, you can use and organize small collectibles and the end-result is something eye-catching.