It's no secret embarking on renovating your kitchen may well be one of the most expensive home projects you tackle. It's also one of the most costly to change should something go wrong and so complex to get right.
When planning a kitchen renovation, the design must take into account a whole range of activities from food preparation and cooking to eating and entertaining, working and let's not forget looking fab, too. With all of that in mind, my number one tip is to plan, plan, plan - and when you think you're done.. plan some more.
First things first, sit down and write a big list.
I like to break it into a few categories:
What do you hate about your current or previous kitchens
What do you love about your current or previous kitchens
How do you intend to use this space? Other than the obvious (for cooking) try to think about things such as dining space, do you have a designated dining area or do you prefer to eat at an island? Are small children using the space? If so placing the stove within reach of island seating would be a big no no. Are you big entertainers? Orientation to the living areas while prepping food may be a big box to tick. Really think about how it should work for you and your household.
How much storage do you need? Have a look through your cupboards and think about itemising things into categories (consumables, preparation items, your favourite crockery set which you'd like on display, the pesky plastics collection etc). Then make sure your plan has an allocated location for each.
Once you have all of this information together, it will really help in making a few decisions down the track.
Next up, to avoid the most common mistakes made in a kitchen renovation it's time to consider:
Organisation and Layout
Work Zones
If you haven't yet heard of the 'working triangle', jump over to our pal google and do a little research. It's basically the cooking recipe for those famous scones your Nonna makes. It's just not the same if you don't get it right.
The concept was designed in the 1940's by researchers at the University of Illinois School of Architecture. Basically, the triangle creates an unobstructed workflow while moving between the fridge, stove and sink. Implementing the triangle into your design will give you great fundamentals to work with. To take your design solution to the next level, I like to think of the kitchen as having five different zones: cleaning area, storing consumables (pantry and fridge), storing non consumables (pots and pans etc), food preparation and cooking. Taking pen to paper early on in the planning phase to sketch up some rough mud maps will help ensure all of these components are considered.
Bench Space
It's fair to say you can never have too much bench space. Have a think about how you can maximise or extend the bench top? A good way to increase the length of a bench top without having to add additional cabinetry below is to include decorative elements or open shelving to the end of the cabinets.
I also like to ensure when you are getting items out of the fridge, you can easily reach a bench top to put things down, without having to take more than half a step. This makes putting your groceries away, packing lunch boxes and putting milk in your cuppa much easier.
Regularly overlooked is the need for bench space either side of the stove. I aim to have at least enough room to fit a chopping board or mixing bowl, utensils and condiments to the side. Who ever does the cooking in your house will thank you for it.
Operational Doors
An easy and very common mistake is forgetting to make sure doors (of cupboards, drawers, ovens, dishwashers etc) all have plenty of room to open without obstructing something else. Ideally, you should be able to open the oven and still walk around it. Similarly, while the dishwasher is open, you want to be able to put the dishes away without having to close it for each item. Check the specifications of all appliances you have chosen before they are installed and plan for at least 900mm between a bench and any fixed items. Although where possible 1000-1100mm will feel much more comfortable for walking space.
I once lived in a brand new rental where the door to the laundry would open onto the fridge, we had quite a small fridge but the depth of the fridge space meant the fridge would sit proud 50mm. This stopped the laundry door from swinging open far enough to fit a washing basket through the door. Very frustrating having to pass all of the clothes through the door without a basket every time. Installing a cavity slider would be a good option to consider in this case.
Trying to fit too much in
A butlers pantry may just be one of the most luxurious inclusions for your new kitchen but something to really consider is how much do you actually NEED? A lot of houses these days are including two dishwashers and two ovens. For us, we struggle to fill one dishwasher every couple of days let alone arguing over who's going to empty it. Imagine having two on the go?!
If you're a lover of cooking, a second oven may well be the thing you never knew you needed, until now. A note on this (which could be a whole other blog) is to ensure these selections also fit within your budget. According to Houzz, the average spent on a kitchen renovation in Australia last year was $20k. It is one of those things where the sky is the limit, so work out what you can afford, whats going to add value (or not) to your home and go from there.
If the floor space permits, I always try to include either a butlers pantry or at the very least an appliances cupboard. The key to staying on top of keeping your beautiful new kitchen clean is making sure that everything has a designated place and if possible, that place being behind closed doors. An appliances cupboard can be as simple as an allocated shelf within a pantry, located at bench height that has power points available. Perfect spot for the toaster, kettle and coffee machine.. What crumbs?? Just make sure that the shelf can handle the weight of all appliances should you use a regular pantry shelf.
Lighting and Electrical
Power Points
I think we can all agree given how prevalent electronics are in our day to day lives, having enough power points around the house is a game changer. Where possible, placing outlets in the island bench is both very convenient and a highly made request. If you are installing a new island, make sure to chat with your trades as you may have a concrete slab which would require cutting in a channel. Using industry jargon, this is referred to as 'chasing' and provides a place for the electrical (and if required, plumbing) to run through.
Lighting
Considering majority of our cooking is done during the hours of darkness outside, having correct lighting in the kitchen will really help. Consider not only regular down lights but task lighting, strips lights and pendants too. When placing pendants over an island, a rough rule of thumb is to have them sit around 800-900mm above the bench top. If you have super high ceilings, I would raise this slightly.
Last but not least: Aesthetics
As we all know the kitchen is the heart of the home and an investment at that. Once you have mastered the functionality of your kitchen you can delve into the fun parts.. how it looks. On average a kitchen will be remodelled every 10 or so years. That's a pretty long time when you think about how often 'trends' are changing. My best advice in this regard depends on what your purpose is. If you're renovating your dream home to live in for a long time - go with what YOU love. Don't worry about what's going on around you or what's hot right now. If you're renovating to sell, you need to consider the style of the rest of the house, your target market and in this case, what's on trend right now may be something to consider. When renovating to sell I would suggest avoiding the use of any bright striking colours in elements which are difficult to change (such as a back splash) and save them for paint or decor if you are that way inclined.
There's many moving parts in designing a great kitchen and enlisting the help of qualified trades will definitely pay dividends. If you are local to the Gold Coast be sure to drop me a DM and I would be more than happy to share some trusted contacts with you.
I could honestly write about kitchens for days and we are really only just scratching the surface here but no one has time for that so on that note, I'm going to love ya's and leave ya's!
Be sure to let me know if this has been helpful for you or what you would like to read about next!
Rach x
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