Adding or changing your cabinetry can give a kitchen a much-needed facelift, often leaving your with a room that hardly resembles the original! With all the options available today, many homeowners are initially overwhelmed. However, there's no need to be. Although there are more choices, designs and possibilities than ever before, designing your new cabinetry or built-ins don't have to be a difficult process...in fact, it can be a lot of fun!
Here, we'll quickly review some of the most popular and trendy looks for cabinets and built-in pieces. We'll cover color, finish and customization, as well as some tips for choosing the best contractor to meet your needs. Once you've seen all that can be done with your existing space, we're sure you'll be excited...not overwhelmed...by the task ahead of you.
Cabinetry Trends
Customization
Once upon a time, cabinets were pretty much one-size-fits-all. They were lined up in rows, usual across the top of the kitchen wall and down near the floor. Perhaps there was a pantry off to the side somewhere, usually somewhere inconvenient and hard to reach.
Thankfully, the days of this boring and inconvenient trend are long gone. These days, one of the hottest trends in cabinetry and built-ins is customization. This means creating a kitchen that works for you, instead of being a hindrance. Perhaps you use a certain appliance all the time...why not create a cabinet for it within easy reach? On the other hand, if you're like many homeowners, you have a few small appliances that are great at what they do, but which you simply don't' use all that often. Think of juicers, food-sealer devices or maybe jerky machines. Why not create a space for these appliances, keeping them accessible but out of the way, freeing up space for the things you use on an everyday basis? It's this manner of thinking which drives the trend of customization.
It doesn't stop with small appliances. Many families use the kitchen for informal dining. However, they often have to make do with a small table tucked into a corner. If you're remodeling, why not create a built-in island, complete with cabinetry which holds your everyday dishes? This way, you've not only created a comfortable and relaxed place for family dining, but you've ensured that all the things you need are within easy reach!
Families are recycling more than ever these days, thanks to the “green†movement. While this is a wonderful thing, it can create some space issues. This is especially true if you live in an area where things like cans, glass, and plastic must be placed in separate bins. With some clever customization, a built-in can accommodate all of your trash and recycling needs, keeping them out of sight while still easy to reach. Many homeowners have struggled for years with the dilemma of the exposed garbage can. While it's inconvenient to try and hide a garbage can under the sink (too small, in most cases), it's also a big eyesore to have it right out in the open. With the installation of a built-in garbage and recycling closet, you'll never have to worry about odors or unsightly garbage again!
Finishes
Pretty much anything goes these days in the world of cabinetry finishes, and that's a great thing if you're a bit bored with standard stains and colors. Don't feel boxed in by the pressure to use a “traditional†finish like white paint or oak stain. Today, playing with finishes is just another method of customizing your kitchen, bringing your creative vision to life.
A great example of a fun, funky kitchen is the retro diner. These kitchens are definitely “statement†rooms, and they aren't for everybody. However, if you love the look, they can enliven your home and make your kitchen a truly fun place to be. A little red pain, a lot of chrome and some vintage-inspired signs can turn an ordinary kitchen into a retro diner. Add some red-vinyl stools at the built in island, perhaps a customized open cabinet for a cool soda-fountain, and you're ready for your first “customers!â€
On the other hand, maybe you prefer an elegant, understated kitchen. This look is very popular, and can easily be created with dark hardwoods, some customized cabinetry and the addition of built-ins. Kitchens today can be made to hardly look like kitchens, until the cabinets are opened and the appliances are revealed. Even large appliances like refrigerators can be faced with hardwood or wood-grain paneling to produce a serene, elegant look. Nearly everything but the kitchen sink can be concealed in some way, leaving you with a kitchen that reflects your chic, modernistic style. This elegant style of kitchen is best suited to either a very dark or very light hardwood, such as beech or an ebony stain.
If you want a traditional kitchen that's simply easier to work in, you're in luck. This is the easiest type of customized kitchen to create! Working closely with your contractor, you can plan a kitchen in which the items you use frequently are kept within easy reach, while the “once-a-year†things are up and out of the way. Traditional finishes and colors with a twist can keep this type of kitchen from looking boring. A warm, country-style oak or walnut finish on cabinetry and built-ins gives a kitchen a cozy, friendly look while still appearing fresh and contemporary.
Destructed or antiqued finishes are enjoying a new wave of popularity, as well. There are many different ways to attain this look, from buying it ready-made to getting creative with stains and different methods of application. Depending on your desired final look, you can create a cabinet front that looks a though it was rescued from a demolished barn, or you can simply take some of the shiny “newness†off a brand-new finish. The choice is yours.
Unexpected Color
Pops of color are big right now, whether you're talking about cabinetry or fashion. When used creatively, a color pop can take a boring kitchen and turn it upside down, giving you a fresh and fun atmosphere. The most popular items to “pop†in this manner are built-in kitchen islands and large cabinets. Many homeowners have popped a section of cabinetry, such as the pantry or hutch, while leaving the rest of the kitchen a neutral white or hardwood. A beautiful way to make this look flow is to continue the color in an adjoining room, such as a dining room. Popping the color of a kitchen island and a dining-room hutch provides wonderful continuity, as well as lending your home a fun, contemporary look. Even better, these color pops are small enough to be easily changed when you tire of that bright purple shade!
Built-In Storage
We all know that cabinets are for storage. However, how many times have you struggled to fit a stack of pans into a too-small cabinet? Or perhaps your collection of antique dinnerware sits, unappreciated, in a high cupboard simply because there's no place to safely display it.
Issues like these are exactly why more and more homeowners are looking to customized cabinetry and built-ins to meet their needs. If you have a lot of awkwardly-shaped pots and pans, you can have cabinets installed which fit them perfectly. That prized antique set? A hutch or glass-faced cabinet can be built into your kitchen to display it safely and beautifully.
Virtually any need or desire that you have can be addressed through custom cabinetry and the addition of built-ins. These additions not only add a great deal of enjoyment to your time in the kitchen, but they also add resale value if you decide to put your home on the market.
Non-Kitchen Options
While the bulk of customized cabinetry and built-in work is done in the kitchen, this type of home improvement can add convenience to literally any room in your home. A built-in can add easy-to-reach storage for towels and beauty products in a bath, it can house a home-entertainment center in the family room, and it can create an organized dressing room/walk-in closet in the master suite. Anywhere you need or want extra space, the use of cabinetry and built-in additions can suit your needs.
Hiring the Right Professional
Due to the high level of carpentry skill required, customized cabinetry and the addition of built-ins usually require the expertise of a professional. After all, a simple mistake can lead to years of frustration. Play it safe from the beginning, and hire somebody qualified to do the job correctly.
You can find the right professional for your project by using popular home-improvement websites. On these sites, you can find a professional in two different ways...you can post your project and let contractors bid on it, or you can search the profiles of qualified professionals in your area.
No matter how you find them, ensure that your profession is properly licensed (where applicable) and carries enough insurance for themselves and any helpers or assistants they may employ. In addition, read the consumer reviews to see what former clients have to say about the contractor's work ethic, quality and overall reputation. These reviews can be invaluable when choosing between contractors, since they give you a “sneak peek.†Be sure to talk through the entire project with your contractor before the job begins, to ensure that you're on the same page; this cuts down on wasted time once the project has begun. It's also great to find a contractor you genuinely like. This is not a requirement for quality work, of course, but it makes the entire project more enjoyable for everybody involved if you get along well.
Posted by: DianeSuggested Reading For You
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