Using What You Have!

Ever wonder why you can't get that design magazine look?  Well, you may have everything you need to get it.  You just have to work with what you have and make it work for you!  The steps are simple and can be quick (unless, of course, you have been neglecting taking care of your home and your things!):

1. Get a trash bag!  Eliminate all that can be thrown away!
2. Get a 'donation' bag!  Eliminate all that has no significance or value!
3. Collect 'like with like.'  Gather items that have something in common (color, type, theme, etc.) together and group accordingly.
4. Make those built ins or furniture work for you. 
5. Arrange all of your pretty things in groups or function.

Don't be afraid to repurpose some of your items.  In other words, why not convert a bookcase into a bar?  Instead of it holding junk you don't love or doesn't look good, pull those wine glasses Aunt Tillie gave you out of the bottom of the closet and display beautifully on the bookshelves.  Use the 'desk height' bookshelf for working the bar:  tray, ice bucket, wine opener, etc. work great here but leave room to actually pour a glass!

On the remaining shelves, display the treasures you've collected on your travels or have inherited from family! 

Don't forget other surfaces as well.  Find a commanding piece for your cocktail table.  Keep a vase of fresh flowers (even if they are from the grocery store!) on your end table.  And amend all of it with candles or more flowers, especially when entertaining. 

And don't forget that friend who has an eye and a knack for decorating.  Have him or her come help you through it all.  A cold drink and nice music will turn this task into a terrific afternoon!

Small Kitchens - Yes! They Can Be Full Functioning & Elegant!

When looking to update a small kitchen in a cottage or condominium, keep in mind a few things:

1.  Look for ways to 'steal' space!

     Open up a closet, a dead space or use an existing alcove that is not serving any function.

     Reorganize your floor plan to work more efficiently or differently.

     Build up!

2.  Edit, Edit, Edit!

     Before you start tearing out cabinets and walls, open all of your doors and drawers.

     Give away or recycle all unwanted items.

     Eliminate 'onesies' in glassware & pottery...actually, don't keep any items that come in less than a set of 4!

     Keep only your very best and use it for everyday!

     Old baking tins and dishes should be tossed if charred, soiled or bent.

     Minimize 'go cups' and plastic containers.  Substitute with glass containers.

    

3.  When you design your new cabinets, design for only what you need to store post edit.

In a perfect world, you would be able to move functions in your kitchen to be as efficient as possible.  However, sometimes the placement of water lines, drains, air vents and electrical lines could preclude much flexibility.  No problem.  Just remember the following:

Look to your sink area to establish your food prep area:  washing, cutting and chopping.  That means, locate your cutting boards, knives and colanders around this point of your kitchen. 

Look to your stove area to establish your mixing center:  store mixing bowls, measuring cups and spoons, mixers, rolling pins, etc. around this point of your kitchen.  And it is also the obvious point for spices and some staples like flour, sugars and salts.  Use your oven or any drawers below to store pans, pots and sheets.  However, see if you have an available space for an overhead pot rack to free up any under cabinet space for any of these items.

Look to your refrigerator area to store wraps, bags and storage containers as that is usually where you will need to grab for them when prepping to store in the fridge or cleaning out the fridge. 

Actually, these tips work in a kitchen of any size.  Just be judicious about what you let into your kitchen.  Similar rules apply here as in your closet:  if you haven't used it in a year, give it to someone who needs it!

Finally, why not try a built-in look to your refrigerator?  It will set you apart from standard building options and make your kitchen look like you spent a million  when you only spent hundreds!  Build a cabinet that sheaths your refrigerator.  Extend that pesky upper cabinet that is recessed and difficult to reach to be flush with the refrigerator cabinet proper.  And, the piece de resistence, select a refrigerator (panel-ready model) where you can add panels to match your cabinet doors to make it look totally professional!  You can use it to store trays, baking sheets and other odd/hard to store & oversized items.  At last, you can have a space to store your punch bowl!

Enjoy your new kitchen!

Kitchens and Construction

At Wakefield Farms - The Design Studio, we are, currently working on two kitchen remodels.  This can be a daunting t!ask for all the inconvenience a Homeowner must endure.  But there are a few things we have come to find as critical details in working with your Contractor.  These items help you avoid the situation where, when finished and back working in your new kitchen, you say, "why did they finish this way?", "this looks awful" or "this works poorly!"

1.  Sink Installation

Make sure the plumber centers your drains in the drain holes cut in the sink. 

This will look well crafted. 

Also, have the plumber place the opening for the drain stopper all running the same direction. 

This will keep you from spinning the stopper to find the point of insertion. 

Small points but amazing the impact of these two tiny details.

When the plumber asks you where you want all the pieces of your new faucet to go, consider if you are left or right handed. 

Do you work from left to right? 

For example:  if you work at the sink from left to right, you may want your soap dispenser on the left (wash hands first!), then your faucet spout, then faucet lever (if separate) and then your sprayer (if separate from your spout). 

This will allow you to start at the left and move to the right with respect to moving soiled dishes into the dishwasher (hopefully on the right also). 

You can reverse this process if you are left handed or if your dishwasher is installed to the left of your sink.  Don't leave it up to the plumber. 

You won't like the end result as something may seen quirkly or illogical to you!

2.  Dishwasher Installation

Some plumbers will push the dishwasher in the cabinet opening as far as it will go and fasten the brackets on the top of the dishwasher to the underside of the countertop. 

However, this may be too far back for the rubber gasket that runs around the sides and across the top of the dishwasher. 

The gasket edge needs to be flush with the edge of the cabinet so that no steam or moisture is allowed into the open edge of the cabinet. 

Make sure the dishwasher is sitting with no 'side' of the cabinet showing but with the gasket flush to the cabinet front.

3.  Refrigerator Installation 

Want the look of a built-in refrigerator without the cost? 

With the new french door refrigerators this can be done quite easily. 

Have your carpenter build out a cabinet around the refrigerator leaving a minimum of a 2 inch gap at the top.  The sides can be built in towards the refrigerator snuggly and covering the sides of the fridge proper. 

And that pesky recessed cabinet at the top you can never get to:  build it out flush with the front of the fridge cabinet and you can 'file' your trays/baking sheets, etc. in it. 

Then, install a 'panel ready' refrigerator and have your cabinet maker fabricate panels for the fridge to match your existing cabinets. 

Voila!  You have updated the look to be like a high end kitchen without the cost of one!

4.  Microwave/Range Hood Installation

Be very aware of where the bottom of each unit will ultimately reside. 

It may obsure the back of your cooktop or range. 

If you set the microwave where you can look directly into the window, this could obsure the back of your stove. 

You may want to set the microwave where you look up a bit into the window to have good clearance for your large pots with room for viewing on your stove.

5.  Contractor Management

Contractors have a knack for asking you for what you want in this detail or that detail when you are scattered, harried and overwhelmed. 

What they are really attempting to get you to verify is that it is ok for them to take a path of least resistance.  This may not be the best for your design or the end result you are trying to achieve. 

If you have hired a designer, this is the time to contact them (if not on site working with the contractor) for the answer that best achieves your objectives. 

Remember, the contractor is your employee. 

They need to do what you want. 

And, if they say it can't be done, find another contractor!

For a look into a few of our projects, go to http://www.wakefieldfarms.com/design.html !  Keep on the lookout for new photos of our completed kitchens!