Kitchen remodeling is one of the most common types of home renovations homeowners use to transform their houses. Your kitchen says a lot about your style and personality, so you want to utilize steps to help the room reflect just that. At the same time, you want a clean and modern kitchen to help make food prep and cooking a breeze.
Sadly, many homeowners fail to plan things out properly and jump ahead of themselves to make masterpieces out of the kitchens. Failed plans not only force you to start from scratch, but doing things over will also end up costing you more money. If you find that you have made some of the most five common kitchen remodeling mistakes, there are ways you can fix them to help save your budget—and your home.
Removing Storage
One of the best ways to make a kitchen look bigger is by opening up cabinets and giving the room a more “open” appearance. While this certainly is an effective method, you might find that you’re now out of space to put away appliances and other items. Before you settle on the remodel for good, keep your cabinet doors in case you want to replace them. Another option is to move kitchen essentials elsewhere, whether it’s on top of the refrigerator or within a china cabinet in another room.
Removing Counter Space
Before you remodeled, it seemed like there was extra counter space. Perhaps the extra space seemed to get in the way the space between a detached island, or maybe you want more space for barstools around the island. If you take out some of the counter space only to find that you really do need that extra room, all is not lost yet. There is the option of extending the space on the counter or the island—whichever you prefer. Or you can even purchase a small kitchen table and attach it to the wall for extra space. The latter option may be cheaper in most cases.
Lack of Circulation
Perhaps you wanted more space against a window and decided to cover it up. You will soon find that there is a lack of ventilation on those cooler days when you used to leave the windows open. If carving another window out of the wall is out of the question, consider adding a ceiling fan to help increase airflow into the kitchen. Just be sure you turn the fan off when warm food is sitting on the counters, or else the meal might get cold before serving.
Putting in Extra Lights
A kitchen remodeling project is nothing without the right lighting to accompany the setting. However, if you still use traditional yellow bulbs, you will soon find that it costs a lot of money to illuminate the kitchen. To save money on electricity, switch to LED bulbs. Plus, these bulbs give off more white, bright light.
Your Plan and Budget
With all the new items available in home improvement stores these days, it is easy to get wrapped up in what’s considered trendy and modern. However, blowing your plan ultimately means that you are sure to go way over budget before the kitchen remodel is even complete. To avoid this, make sure you go shopping before you draft up a plan so there is room to compromise.
Author Abby Evans is a professional blogger who writes on a variety of topics, ranging from home improvement, décor, and design. She loves to learn about sprucing up her home, and is always looking for the next writing opportunity.