Whether renovating or building new, kitchen design requires careful consideration of a family's lifestyle. What happens in your kitchen dictates the first decision you make before further fine-tuning any design elements in your plan. Your first decision must be on kitchen size. For many families, the kitchen is indeed the heart of the home. Not only is the kitchen the site of food preparation, for many families who opt out of formal dining areas, it is also where all meals are served. For the family oriented home-owner who leads a casual and traditional lifestyle, the kitchen is also where children gather to do homework, where Mom sets up her scrapbooking supplies, where friends are entertained.
If this is you, your kitchen design must be planned to accommodate a variety of activities. For home owners whose approach to the kitchen is more utilitarian, a compact, modest-sized kitchen might be more in line with the design you have in mind. The kitchen can be much smaller, with the saved space devoted to rooms that see perhaps a little more activity than the kitchen.
For many of today's singles and couples, cooking has become a hobby as much as a necessity. If this is you, your kitchen design will be a backdrop to showcase your interest and talent. Be sure your kitchen adequately accommodates this popular pastime. No matter what your lifestyle, there are certain elements key to all kitchen design, all kitchen sizes. What appliances will occupy your kitchen space? Consider size and placement in your planning. Do you have room to work? Is an island necessary and is their adequate space to ensure its placement will not interfere with traffic flow? Is floor space sufficient for an easy flow of traffic from refrigerator to stove to sink to table? Have you allowed for adequate cupboard and countertop space? Do you have space for all your kitchen tools and those tools and appliances still on your wish list? Once you have studied carefully your lifestyle, you are better prepared to decide on a kitchen sized to meet your family's needs.
It is then that you can move on to design that perfect kitchen. Consider searching the Internet to find some useful design tips, methods and designs in particular for your kitchen. Who said kitchen design is a hard and frustrating experience -- it can actually be a lot of fun if you're prepared with the right tools and knowledge.
John Layton is the author of Designing Your Dream Kitchen and can provide additional tips and advise at his website http://www.kitchen-designnow.info he also publishes a daily blog at http://www.internetsighting.info
