Kitchens have become the heart beat of the modern home. Instead of placing the kitchen space in cramp quarters behind closed doors as what was common 25 years ago, kitchens have blossomed to reflect an interacting family and a new way of entertaining friends and guest. Instead of walls and doors, a luxury kitchen is now defined by furniture quality inland cabinetry, chief style appliances and a variety of unique accent lighting illuminations that remind you of a art museum.
From the kitchen design to the product selection, the devil is in the details. The new luxury kitchen requires a great deal of thought and detailed planning to execute properly. Due to the increasing demand of owners to incorporate the architectural trends of open kitchens into the existing living area during their kitchen remodeling projects, owners have found that the price of such needs have gotten more expensive principally due the required structural modifications to obtain these designs. Most find it well worth it when they transform their home into the livable show case they have been desiring.
The discussion we will examine is based upon the contributing components that make a luxury kitchen remodeling project special, in contrast to just upgrading the general appearance of the existing kitchen. Kitchen remodeling is the collective sum of good design, quality products and master craftsmanship.
Gourmet Kitchen Floor Plan
Planning the design of a kitchen remodeling involves the careful consideration of how your lifestyle can be enhanced, while balancing it with the structural limitations of the existing kitchen space. The floor plan provides the footprint for creating the perfect kitchen work flow triangle and incorporating the other living spaces.
If you prefer a chef style eating area or a more common breakfast bar service in the new floor plan, the secret sauce is associated with the way your family uses the kitchen. If you entertain frequently, it is necessary to create a kitchen space for intimate gatherings, while balancing the functionality for large party staff situations. This can be difficult to achieve but allows the owner to accommodate any need they may be presented with.
Cabinets
There is an endless variety of kitchen cabinet types and styles. Your design style should begin with deciding if you prefer a paint grade finish or a stain grade finish. The cabinets are typically the most important dominate feature in the kitchen space and often the most expensive product you will select when remodeling your kitchen.
Frameless cabinets provide greater access to the cabinets interior and more substantial cabinet box construction. Most frameless cabinets will be used with full extension European hinges to serve a full fitted door profile overlay across the front of the cabinet profile. Premium cabinets often will have wainscoat panelized ends that match the door style profile. Crown molding is commonly used for finishing the tops and bottoms of wall cabinets and will often be for defining even greater detail in the cabinetries furniture finish look.
It is difficult to mention premium cabinets without mentioning hardware. The best drawer guides to use are the full extension ball bearing retractable drawer slides. Door and drawer knobs and pulls are the promising accent to provide those finishing touches.
Appliances
In a gourmet kitchen the appliances become the center piece of a functional and artistic expression. They play an important role in the storage, preparation and cooking of the meals. If you entertain large groups then you will likely have a need for separate refrigerator / freezer, double ovens, dual dishwashers, warming drawers and multiple microwaves.
Chef style multiple burners provide many options these days with built-in grills and griddles. They come in the form of free standing appliances as well as built-in cook tops. Free standing ovens have become a bit of a trademark of the gourmet kitchen. Their stainless steel appearance and cast iron grating call back memories of kitchens of long ago.
Regardless of the products you select the gourmet kitchen is here to stay. It provides glamour, efficiency and the built in ability to service the most demanding culinary demands.
Flooring
The flooring used should provide comfort and the practical sustainability for the tremendous traffic and abuse that kitchen floors take over the years. Hardwood flooring continues to be the most popular of kitchen flooring in Houston. Despite its natural complementing beauty, hardwood floors can be problematic in the kitchen. The finishes on wood floors wears quickly with high traffic and heavy cleaning. It can also be a ticking time bomb if the dishwasher or icemaker ruptured or leaked.
Stone floors are also a popular choose and adds a glamorous appearance of the overall design ambiance. Depending on the stone, durability can also be a testing factor. Limestone’s and marbles are fundamentally soft stones and can lead to staining from spills or excessive wetness from water. Ceramic tile can be slippery if not honed. So care needs to be considered when selecting the best flooring materials for your kitchen remodeling.
Counter & Backsplash
The counter tops and the backsplash are an owners design opportunity to add color and contrast to the overall color scheme of the kitchen. There are an infinite number of possibilities that can be mixed and matched. Granite stone tops are giving way in popularity of alternative materials such as quartz and solid surface synthetic products.
Backsplash materials and design are the signature of any kitchen. Their texture and color tie the color scheme together for the entire kitchen.
Lighting
There are many forms of lighting to consider when designing the illumination pattern design for your kitchen area. These lighting schemes can be classified as general lighting, accent lighting and specialty lighting.
General lighting provides illumination for the immediate space. This is often done through recess can in ceiling lighting patterns. LED & hooligan lamps have become the most popular source of light bulbs for its color array and low electrical use required.
Accent lighting is often used for under counter lighting or glass cabinet illumination. It gets its name from the function it serves. Other types of popular accent lights are low voltage cans to be used for feature wall artwork or wall wash effects.
Specialty lighting typically represents unique lighting fixtures like pendants or special fixtures. These types of fixtures are often used for their ecstatic value of the fixture. They typically represent little actual illumination.
