Tuesday, January 17, 2017

A Kitchen Contractor Can Help You Plan for Your Family

From the type of counter to the cabinets, everyone has the images for their ideal kitchen. However, it can be difficult to bring that ideal dream kitchen to life with finding the supplies, tearing up the old kitchen and building the new one. Fortunately, we can help bring your dream kitchen to life in an efficient and professional manner.


Drawing up the plans


As a kitchen contractor, we can help to bring these ideas together to create a comprehensive and achievable plan. When we meet with clients, they have a variety of design ideas and things that they want to try. This can be an excellent place to start but very often these ideas do not come together. We can help determine what the client is trying to achieve overall and which design elements will flow into that plan.


The other aspect we can help to determine is what is important for one's family and lifestyle. The kitchen is the hardest-working room in the home and has to be more than functional; it has to function well. It should make daily life easier and less stressful whenever possible. While this may be a tall order, we know that it is possible. By having the right type of organization, storage, flow, and appliances; cooking dinner, packing lunches and cleaning up can be much faster than it is currently. This, in turn, will give one more time to spend doing other things that he or she enjoys, such as actually sitting down to dinner with the family.


To help clients make these important decisions, we will want to know:


Who normally cooks and are there several people in the kitchen at one time? If so, how many?


The answer will determine how much prep or counter space there needs to be and how wide the walkways should be to accommodate everyone. We can design a kitchen that allows for as much space as possible and gives multiple people enough room to use the kitchen at the same time.


What is it really like when making lunch in the morning?


Do you have three kids running and bumping into each other? If so, we can build a large center island so that they can be standing in different spots, making their sandwiches and getting lunch ready. We can take all concerns and requests into account when creating plans for the kitchen.


What type of food do you cook?


As a kitchen contractor, we need to know what the client likes to cook because that determines which appliances and storage solutions we need to build in. For example, anyone who cooks homemade pasta needs an area large enough to roll it out and a pasta faucet, so that water can fill up the pot with ease. Bakers need more storage for baking trays and mixers along with a double oven. These solutions are fully customizable.


Describe the cleanup time.


It is rare for a kitchen contractor to go into the details of what it is like to clean up after dinner. This is something that we need to know because it allows us to make cleaning up easier for the client. We can install an extra large and deep sink or two dishwashers if necessary. We can even make the cleanup area separate from where one cooks so that fewer people are bumping into each other.


We can help you to create your dream kitchen; one that is just as beautiful as it is functional and will work well for your family. To find out more information, call our office and schedule an appointment with a kitchen contractor.


 

Tuesday, January 3, 2017

Learn About the Types of Wood Cabinets You Can Have Installed in Your Kitchen

If you have decided to get the popular wood cabinets for your kitchen, your journey and decision-making are only just beginning. While wood cabinets are extremely popular, there are a number of different types of wood and styles that can enhance the look of your kitchen. Remember that cabinets are going to be one of the most focal points of any kitchen, so it is important to select the right wood cabinets that go with your decor.


Common wooden cabinet styles


These days, oak is the most common wood that is used in solid wood cabinets. The reason why it has gotten so popular is because it has a strong flower grain in the wood, and looks best in country settings. In addition to this, individuals can stain oak wood cabinets to virtually any color and the grain will continue to shine through the stain. For anyone looking to offset the reddish coloring that comes naturally with oak, one can choose white oak which is naturally lighter or a red oak. One can then go browner and darker with the stain selection. A cherry stain will greatly enhance the redness in oak wood cabinets.


Oak is not the only option for cabinets. People can consider cherry, rift oak, hickory, birch, ash, pine or maple. There are even more exotic options like wormy chestnut or cypress. Wormy chestnut gives a highly distressed finish, while cypress has a yellowish cast and easily pairs with gold or white tones. Below is more information on several types of wood to choose from.


Cherry wood


Cherry wood cabinets are usually for formal cabinets with raised panels. Cherry wood cabinets are typically either French or English in style because cherry is an elegant wood with a natural reddish coloring. the coloring is much deeper than that of oak wood cabinets.


Birch


Birch is a white wood with natural coloring and stainability that serve it well to make all kinds of contemporary style cabinets. It takes to stain easily and often makes contemporary cabinets as well as raised or recessed panel doors.


Pinewood


Pinewood cabinets are also increasing in popularity. Pine, which has a yellowish cast, takes distressing and antiquing beautifully. The cast is one of the reasons why it is commonly used in all three, English, French and American country settings. Unfortunately, pinewood has a drawback in that it is an extremely soft wood, which means the kitchen cabinets will have to be properly cared for since pine can break easily.


Rift oak


Rift Oak is a veneer that is often sought out by architects and designers. In order to get rift oak, the oak flower pattern is cut away and this leaves the vertical grain. Professionals use white oak for rift oak selection, so it becomes very light when it is stained. Typically rift wood cabinets are used as a flush overlay construction in which no frames are visible.


We can go over these options with you in greater detail and help you to select the wood cabinets that are right for you.