Add Value to Your Home With a Kitchen Remodeling Job

Every year, various Realtor groups poll home improvement stores and other Realtors to come up with a list of home improvements that actually add value to your house. Year after year, the top results are the same. Kitchen remodeling is the home improvement job that adds the most value to your house. In fact, you’ll recover 80-90% of your kitchen remodeling costs in the added value to your house – more if you’re handy enough to do the work yourself. At least as important as the added monetary value of kitchen remodeling is the more subtle benefit – a newly remodeled kitchen is more likely to sell your house than virtually any other home improvement you can make. The kitchen is the heart of the home for most people, and a welcoming, warm and modern kitchen is an overwhelming factor in the decision to buy one house over another. But kitchen remodeling is an awfully broad term, and some kitchen remodels are more valuable than others in a buyer’s eyes. Which kitchen remodeling jobs should you tackle if your primary intent is to make your home more appealing to prospective buyers? The Realtors have the answer for that question as well. In general, the recommendations are for cosmetic changes rather than major changes to structure. The top five kitchen remodeling jobs recommended by Realtors are painting, cabinet re-facing, new countertops, new floors and a modern cook-top range. Painting is the easiest and most affordable kitchen remodeling job on the list – and it’s also the one most likely to be an effective selling tool for your house. Fresh, clean walls in a neutral color are best. Warm neutrals make everyone look and feel their best, and go with just about any décor. Don’t choose an offbeat or unusual color no matter how much you like it. The more distinctive the color, the more likely that prospective buyers will be wondering how hard it will be to paint over. Re-facing your old cabinets to give them a fresh new look is the second most popular and effective kitchen remodeling project. If there’s plenty of cabinet space in your kitchen and the cabinets are structurally sound, putting a new face on them is a far more affordable option than replacing your kitchen cabinets. New countertops can spruce up your kitchen and make it more appealing. Opt for ‘natural’ feeling materials like faux stone or one of the new wood composites. Tiled countertops are another option, but many women are going to be looking at all those little grooves and imagining all the time they’ll have to spend cleaning between the tiles. A new floor can change the entire feel of your old kitchen. There are thousands of options available, but two of your best options are natural wood or a solid color linoleum. A new cook-top range is one of the few appliance purchases that will actually make a difference in selling your house. It’s an instant update kitchen remodeling job that will make your entire kitchen appear more modern. More extensive kitchen remodeling jobs like adding windows or a cooking island are iffy propositions if your main intent is to add value to your house. Stick with kitchen remodeling jobs that are most likely to appeal to the broadest range of buyers.

www.LKNcabinets.com

Spring Is The Time When The Homeowner’s Fancy Turns To New Cabinets

Maybe your yearly spring cleaning frenzy has gotten you thinking: “Boy, this house would sure look a lot more cozy and inviting with some new cabinets.’ Whether your redecorating daydreams involved new kitchen cabinets, bathroom cabinets, closet cabinets, storage cabinets or all four types of cabinets, a manufacturer of do-it-yourself cabinets can make them a reality … without breaking the bank.

The Evansville Courier & Press recently ran an article titled “Discover the decorating style that fits both your family and your home.” The premise of the article centered on taking your home’s style into consideration when choosing a new decorating scheme. That advice extends into the realm of new cabinets, where do-it-yourself options are not only affordable, they’re also surprisingly versatile.

The newspaper points out that “Pinpointing the right design style for your home can be tricky – you have to consider everything from the corners to the color, and still keep in mind that it has to fit your family’s lifestyle.”

A do-it-yourself cabinet manufacturer that offers a wide variety of assembled and ready to assemble cabinet styles can aid you in your quest for the perfect cabinet redesign. Such a cabinet manufacturer can also offer advice on how to purchase cabinets and how to design your new room.

According to the Evansville Courier & Press, the first step in selecting the right cabinet design style is to take a look at which of the following categories your home falls into:

1. For Victorian homes, the newspaper’s expert recommends, “Cabinets are usually weathered looking and made of heavy, real wood with chrome pulls and knobs.” Champagne oak and natural rustic hickory are good cabinet style finishes for the Victorian homeowner.

2. Recent designs for the Modern home “include sleek, straight and clean lines. Common materials include stainless steel, marble, granite and frosted glass.” Fenwick Arctic Light, Kenton White Gloss and Sutherland door styles best suit the Modern home.

3. The Southwestern home “features a lot of detail and craftsmanship. Natural materials such as wood, quarry tile, ceramic tile, earth tones and vibrant accessories” are common with this house style. Cider, Bay and Burl Gloss door styles reflect the desert nature hues that are often seen in Southwestern decorating schemes.

4. Traditional home styles have a formal feel with “dark stains, honey tones, semi-opaque paints, and oak cabinets.” Nile Gloss, Burgundy and Ruxton Brown cabinet door color finishes play up the Traditional home’s features.

5. The rustic, weathered look is a hallmark of the Country home. To create “a warm, cozy feeling,” try colors that “range from muted hues to earth tones.” Pine paneling is another element that is used to express the Country style. Westbrook, Glendale, Avalon and Wadsworth door styles give you that paneled look.

6. Homeowners whose style runs the Eclectic gamut tend to combine “both old and new for a harmonious look.” This style is “a mix of extravagant decorations from numerous eras.” Gatsby door panels in a custard finish provide the Eclectic homeowner with the perfect blend of antique and contemporary.

www.LKNcabinets.com

Buying the Perfect Kitchen Cabinets For Your Style and Lifestyle

Selecting the right kitchen cabinets can be an eye-opening experience (and expensive). Kitchen cabinets come in a wide variety of styles, materials, finishes, and levels of quality. From wood or metal to veneers like melamine, cabinet set designs are varied. Whatever style or theme you’re conveying in your kitchen, there are kitchen cabinets to complement it.

Many traditional styles of kitchen cabinets are made from hardwood. They may have mullion glass doors to complement fine china sets, along with cathedral-type arch work. Traditional cabinets will also have the largest selection of accessories and modifications. Many of the designs come from the 18th and 19th centuries and can transform your kitchen into a timeless masterpiece. Whether renovating to match the rest of your historic home, or bringing some historic charm to your house, traditional cabinets are a great way to go.

Provencal kitchens are designed to evoke French country kitchens. They often lack high-wall cabinets, relying instead on low cabinets for pots, pans and serving ware. Shelves lining the walls keep essentials at hand. The entire kitchen is focused around the dining table. Colors range from light and dark browns to deep greens. If you want to travel to the Provence region whenever you cook and entertain, look at some Provencal cabinet sets and match your table accordingly.

If you’re looking for something more down-home, try a country-style kitchen cabinet set. Country-style cabinets have very clean lines and a simple look. Ordinary paint may be chipped away to give the wood a rustic feel and the handles may be mismatched to give the kitchen a “thrown-together” look. Even in the same room, finishes may be different to enhance this look. If you’re ready to make your kitchen look just like an old farm house, invest in some country-style cabinets.

Cottage-style (also called rustic-style) kitchens mix the shelving units of the Provencal style with the distressed look of country cabinet sets. They bring the same sense of comfort as these two styles. Cottage cabinet sets come in a variety of woods, from oak to maple. A very common type of wood used for cottage cabinets is Pine or Notty Pine. Pine is known for its bold grain lines and durable strength. A cottage kitchen is meant to be cozy and comforting. Sometimes cottage cabinets don’t have doors; which allows serving wares to be easily accessed. If this sounds like the kitchen of your dreams, choose cottage cabinets.

Modern kitchen cabinet styles rely on sleek surfaces and clean lines. They may be constructed of wood or metal, or covered in a shiny, stain-resistant laminate. The emphasis in modern cabinet styles is cleanliness. The distinct feature of modern cabinets is the seamless look and sharp lines. You can find stainless steel cabinets that give the appearance of an industrial kitchen or you can install maple cabinets to give the kitchen some warmth and atmosphere. There are many options to choose from in modern cabinet styles. Most modern kitchens will be partnered with industrial grade appliances for the professional cook. When you want an easy-to-use, easy-to-clean kitchen style, look no further than the modern cabinet section.

Regardless of the style or look that you are going for in your kitchen, there are hundreds of different styles out there (so make sure you do some research before settling for the wrong one). There are even more varieties of kitchen cabinets than are listed here, so you’ve got many options to consider. A well-designed kitchen is the centerpiece of a home, so make sure you take your time when choosing your kitchen cabinet set.

www.LKNcabinets.com