The Gourmet Cupboard

Whenever you are considering a kitchen refurbishment, you should remember that overall success will be gauged according to the amount of planning that you do in advance. It’s easy to get overenthusiastic and many of us simply want to roll up our sleeves and pitch in. However, we may not be experts in kitchen design and if we aren’t careful we can run into many problems along the way. Not only can these problems cause setbacks and delay, but they can lead to significant additional expenditure that we were simply not budgeting for.

Planning is not everyone’s forte. Many people suggest that you consult with experts if you’re not predisposed to think things through carefully. If you are the creative type who doesn’t take well to the technicalities, you should ask for help. Remember that a partnership between people that have a tendency to be “left brain” as well as “right brain,” will usually work out best in the end.

It’s best to start with a maximum budget, in other words a line that you really don’t want to cross. Now, you shouldn’t aim to spend the budget at the beginning of your planning sequence, but should set the bar here a lot lower, to take into account the fact that there will invariably be additional costs as you plot your way through this planning sequence. Again, this is why it’s good to talk to experts in the field, who have been through this process before and will be able to give you some pointers at the beginning. It’s amazing how enthusiasm can give way to exasperation, if the planning phase simply reveals a path toward a budget that’s beyond your reach.

To many people budgeting is a necessary evil, but if you are careful to plan this strategically you will be surprised at how much you can accomplish. Remember that many new additions, accents and improvements can be achieved using an alternative approach, once you have all the fundamentals covered.

Don’t make the mistake of planning a room that is purely functional. Almost invariably you and other members of the family will spend much more time in the kitchen than you might have initially envisaged. Don’t forget that this can be a social gathering place, as well as an area for simply cooking meals. Estimate how important this social gathering place is within the bigger scheme of things and ensure that you include this functionality accordingly.

Once again, don’t allow frustration and exasperation to derail your plans for that fantastic kitchen refurbishment of your dreams. By setting realistic goals in the beginning and ensuring that you’re not overreaching as you plan, it’s remarkable how enjoyable this sequence of events can be. The kitchen can be a focal point of your home and many people consider it to be the most important room in the entire house. It does mean different things to different people though and you should consult with each and every member of the family to ensure that their description of the ideal kitchen is “in line” with the plans you ultimately choose.

Which room represents the centre of attention in your house? Where is it that people tend to congregate and that visitors gravitate toward, even if you seem to have the most welcoming lounge area? That’s right, it’s the kitchen. Maybe it’s because this is one of the more creative rooms in the home and where we are all used to turning when we are looking for sustenance and inspiration. It might be a very popular place to hang out, but it can also be a very complicated room with lots of different purposes and must, from a design perspective be functional, as well as inspiring.

Little wonder then that people tend to opt for a kitchen refurbishment whenever they’re looking for an opportunity for a home makeover in general. It can be difficult to know where to start and whether or not you should opt for a complete transformation, or just selective refurbishment along the way.

For example, you could completely transform the way that this place looks by just replacing the worktops, the cabinet doors, handles and hardware. You’d be surprised how this changes everything. Re-facing doors that look a bit tired can be a more cost-effective option for you than purchasing brand-new cabinetry. Never underestimate the impact that new handles and knobs can make when coordinated properly.

Do you have a kitchen area with quite a lot of room? Rather than have a table and chairs in the middle, perhaps you could have a brand-new island for preparation purposes? Maybe you could convert one of the surfaces to a breakfast bar and put stools around the outer edge, instead? You will still be able to feed the family at less formal meal times, but you will have a lot more room to let your creative juices flow during food preparation, too.

Preparation is everything here. You should do a lot of research before you even lift up a screwdriver, or think about calling somebody in to help. Look through some of those magazines that you find down at your newsagent for inspiration. It’s okay to take an idea from here and another one from there, but always remember that you’ve got to coordinate nicely at the end. Be creative with your budget too. We all have to work with limitations, especially these days, but you can spare some money from a particular area of your budget by using a cost saver, allowing you to repurpose the money that you save to make a bigger “splash” in some other area.

It isn’t always necessary for you to worry about the total replacement cost of all those appliances, especially the units that you have that are not that old. By refurbishing creatively and lovingly, you can make this room an even greater draw for all your family members, friends and visitors. Just don’t make it too comfortable in here, as you do want to be able to retire to the family room when all that cooking and consuming is complete!