The kitchen is one of the busiest rooms in most homes. People cook, clean, eat, and entertain guests there, and it should be a space that your entire family can enjoy. Designing your own kitchen is exciting, but there are a lot of important decisions to make. A great design can increase the future value of your new home and make living there more enjoyable, but a bad one could leave you regretting your decisions. Here are some of the steps you should take to create a kitchen that everyone in your house will love.

Think About What You Need in Your Kitchen

kitchen design

Image via Flickr by ChalonHandmade                                                      

Consider how you use your current kitchen and make a list of the elements you’ll need in your new kitchen. If you cook often, you might want more space for tasks like kneading dough or chopping vegetables. However, if you eat out often, you may not need lots of counter space. You can save some room by choosing a small oven rather than a full-sized model, but you might not be able to fit a whole turkey for your next Thanksgiving celebration. If you can’t stand washing dishes, you’ll need to make sure there’s enough space for a dishwasher.

You’ll also need places to put small appliances like coffee makers, blenders, juicers, and toaster ovens. Consider how much cabinet or other storage space you’ll need as well. If you have a lot of kitchen supplies or you prefer to buy much of your food in bulk, adding a small pantry next to the kitchen could be more convenient than storing stuff in a basement or another room.

People who usually eat in their dining room or living room may not need a kitchen table, but others may prefer to use one for meals, taking care of office work, and other tasks. If you want a table, remember to make sure your new kitchen has enough space.

Decide on Your Kitchen’s Shape

Think about whether you want an open floor plan where people in the kitchen can interact easily with those in the living room or a more traditional design. Open plans can make homes seem more spacious, but other plans provide more privacy. That way, you can focus on cooking, office work, or other kitchen activities with fewer interruptions from others in your home.

You can customize many types of kitchen designs. A U-shaped kitchen is surrounded by walls on three sides, and the sink is on the side farthest away from the entrance, often in front of a window. A larger U-shaped kitchen can have an island in the middle or a seating area on one wall. You can also add full-height cabinets to one wall instead of countertops. Some people choose a curved kitchen with curved walls of bay windows. This design can look great, but it’s difficult to add cabinets and other items without wasting some space because of the shape.

A G-shaped kitchen adds some counter space near the doorway, and an L-shaped kitchen is ideal for one corner of a large, open living area. A galley-style kitchen has two parallel counters, like the galley on a ship. This design works well in a long, narrow room, and many people place a back door at the far end.

Think About the Style You Want

Consider the style you should choose for your new kitchen, and think about how it will match with the rest of your home and your lifestyle. A modern or contemporary design has a sleek, minimalist look. It uses lots of solid colors, and cabinets and countertops look clean and simple.

A traditional kitchen looks cozy and familiar. Many people grew up with this type of kitchen, and it’s still very popular. Choose a Shaker style for cabinets and furniture that look handmade, lots of wood, bright colors, and simple knobs for doors and cabinets. People often call this a country or farmhouse kitchen. You can create a freestanding kitchen without built-in countertops for more flexibility. However, you may not be able to use all the available space efficiently.

Create a Floor Plan

After you decide on a basic design, you can use many design apps to make more detailed plans. You can measure the space where you want to put the kitchen and then decide where you want appliances and cabinets to go. You can also try a variety of colors and styles for the countertops, floors, and walls. Many apps let you preview a virtual, three-dimensional version of the finished kitchen as well.

Decide on Appliances and Materials

Make sure that appliances have the features you want, and get their measurements to make sure they can fit into your design. Look for light fixtures, flooring, paint colors, cabinets, and countertops as well. Many different materials are available, and they all have pros and cons. There are a huge amount of options, and you should take your time and consider your budget.

Cabinets are usually hardwood, plywood, fiberboard, particleboard, or wood veneer. You can choose laminate, marble, stone, stainless steel, or glass countertops. Placing tiles on the walls near the sink and the oven can make the area look more interesting and protect it from water and smoke. Tiles also work well for the kitchen floor. You can select laminate, vinyl, rubber, concrete, or resin in a variety of styles. You can even get a material that looks like wood but has better moisture resistance.

Place Electrical Outlets

Without the right amount of electrical outlets, you could have to run unsightly extension cords along your counters to get power to all your appliances. There should be plenty of outlets so that you can use your blender, mixer, toaster oven, or coffee maker easily. You can have an outlet built into a kitchen island or placed near the kitchen table as well. That way, people will be able to do office work and charge their phones and laptops without getting in the way of whoever’s cooking.

For help creating a kitchen design and then making your vision a reality, contact Steiner Homes. We’ll guide you through every step of the building process and help you curate the perfect home for your family’s needs. For more information, you can read through our blog, view our floorplans, learn about the subdivisions we build in, or check out our photo gallery! If you can’t find what you’re looking for give us a call at (219) 255-4418 – we’re happy to help!