5 Tips for Kitchen Design

The kitchen is a sacred space in your living area.  Whether a house or a studio, the kitchen is the central point of entertainment, the root of any good evening and truly the hub of your domestic life.  The kitchen reminds us of family and togetherness.  Sometimes, the kitchen is a solitary and meditative space, sometimes a wild array of scents and sounds.  Here are some tips for kitchen design.

a beautiful open space for casual evenings

1.  It is Your space, it Should Fit Your Needs
Figure it out:  Do you friends politely smile when you offer to cook or do they tell stories of your meals?  If you're a cook, too much fluff in the room can get in the way. Consider cutting any excess from the design.  Are you looking more for a space to simply entertain?  Well, in that case, go ahead and spruce up the room.  Add a  few extra stools and chairs.

2.  Extra Space
You can't always expand the room, but you can expand your surface area.  Adding an island or a table is a good way of creating space as well as entertaining area.  On the downside, they also consume a good amount of space, smaller kitchens need not apply.  Keep your tables small enough to be conversational, not so long or wide that you can't hear when the tables full.

3.  Multi-Purpose
The kitchen has become one of the most flexible rooms in the house.  Kids do homework around the table, friends drink and socialize, you eat, cook, read.  My parent's kitchen even has a wonderfully nap-able sun-seat.  Unless you're strictly utilitarian with your kitchen, keep the space's multi-purpose mindset intact.

4.  Thematic
There are so many appliances in the world that you can create nearly any ambience you'd like for your kitchen.  Sleek modernism is just as viable as country cottage.  Use the requisite items to set the tone.  Your kitchen will have an oven, stove, refrigerator, etc, use these pieces to create the feel you want.

5.  Small Changes Count
The small tweaks to your space can make a difference.  If your simply a bit board, switch up the handles on the cabinets, find new silverware or plates. Create a different sense of space by installing a chandelier or a hanging pot holder.  A redesign doesn't need to be whole-sale.

Have you recently gone through a kitchen redesign?  What inspired it?  What does it look like now?