This new construction home has a rustic feel with the exposed rough sawn beams and wood throughout, but the kitchen is up to day on style, colors, and functionality. With cabinets to the ceiling and built in lighting with all soft close hardware and topped off with granite it is sure to inspire.
Contact Edgewood Custom Cabinetry for your next project.
For those of you who have not jumped on the decluttering and tidying train – it’s time to climb aboard! If your cabinets feel cluttered, look untidy, and have an overwhelming amount of stuff strewn all about – it’s time to learn how to declutter and tidy your cabinets. Here are some tips on how to clean and tidy:
Prepare by Study
Decluttering and tidying is not something that comes naturally. Naturally, we are sloppy, messy, and untidy. In order to clean your cabinets in an effective manner, you must prepare to do so by studying the actual methods you will use. Tidying doesn’t come easily to many, what some call tidying is in fact just the act of reorganizing the junk around the cabinets and drawers and it will soon by untidy again. The best way to prepare to declutter and tidy your cabinets is to study, one book you can study that will give you great ways to declutter and tidy is The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. Here are some tips she gives on how to tidy your house and cabinets:
The biggest mistake you can make while tidying is to start putting things away and storing them before you go through each item to decide what you are going to keep and what you are going to sell or throw away. Remember to declutter and throw things away first, and then store and put away.
Instead of cleaning one cabinet or one space at a time, Kondo suggests cleaning by category.
When you declutter one item at a time – hold it up and decide whether or not you want to keep it. Doing this will force you to actually see and feel every item you own and it will help you to truly decide if you want to keep it or not.
Now that you have cleaned you can decide where every item goes in your cabinets. Remember the saying ‘A place for everything, and everything in its place.’
Contact us today for more tips on cleaning your cabinets.
The decor of the kitchen should play a part in choosing the style of fixtures you want to use to light your kitchen. General lighting is a good place to add texture and color as well as light. Chandeliers and pendant lights come in every texture, style, color, and type you can imagine. Use all one type, or set an area off by using a different style. This could be using one style over the table and another over the island. While you are planning your general lighting, think about glass door cabinets. Lights inside those cabinets will show off the contents, and after all that is why you put glass doors. Using glass shelving will allow the light to filter down to lower shelves.
You can do task lighting this way, but often you will lose the impact with too many pendants. Depending on the cabinet design, you could use under cabinet lights for the counters. If your cabinets don’t line up with your work surfaces or you don’t care for under-cabinet lighting, can lights make a good source of task lighting. Can lights make very little impact on style, and add light where you need it most. You can even have those can lights on different switches by area for better control of where the extra light shines. Don’t forget to light up the sink area. Stoves have hoods for ventilation that usually have lights built-in. While your task lighting will show off the beauty of your kitchen, it is primarily for extra lighting in those places you use the most.
This is a great place to add a bit of flair to your room. At Edgewood Cabinetry LLC, we would love to show you more about how to create your perfect kitchen.
Ok, possibly the only exception would be a totally commercial kitchen look. All stainless steel does mandate all stainless steel.
Of course, here are considerations when picking the right top to compliment your cabinets.
Countertops are a significant investment, but they pack a powerful visual punch in the overall look of the room. As with any major purchase, you will never go wrong by getting the best you can afford.
Marble and granite are high-end, in both looks and cost. Ranging from $125-$250 per square foot, the look is timeless and luxurious, but color choices are somewhat limited. Engineered stone is beautiful, easier to maintain than natural stone, and available in an array of colors. Concrete, wood, solid surface, glass and stainless steel are all moderately priced, good-looking and aesthetically pleasing. Each one comes with kudos and caveats, so do your homework and choose wisely.
There is one piece of advice that we can give you sight unseen. Before you decide to change countertops, be very certain you plan to keep your existing cabinets. Seriously, we mean, do you really plan on keeping them for as long as you live in your home? Once you install a slab of granite or marble, you will be hard pressed to find a contractor to uninstall them. Doing so will likely void the manufacture’s warranty and leave the counter vulnerable to major damage.
At the end of the discussion, it comes down to personal preference. Is there a particular color or design theme throughout your home? If so, let your instincts be your guide. If you need another pair of eyes, or an alternative opinion, contact us. You know how much we love to talk design.
A New Debate Rages
Lately, the idea of a closed kitchen is gaining favor among traditionalists, those who like to keep their cooking messes out of view of their guests, and those who aren’t thrilled about cooking smells wafting willy-nilly through their homes. Could it be that we’re witnessing the beginnings of a shift back to the kitchens of yore? Here’s a look at the pros and cons of each. See if you can decide what side you’re on in the great open vs. closed kitchen debate!
The Open Kitchen
Open kitchens, as mentioned, are the epitome of modern style today, but they don’t necessarily work for every type of home. If you’re a purist, for example, and living in a 1930’s-style bungalow, an open kitchen would seem a bit odd and out of character for your home. On the other hand, if you’re living in a modern, open-concept home with cathedral ceilings and a zillion windows, a closed-off kitchen might seem out-of-place.
On the plus side, open kitchens let you have conversations with guests (or family) who are sitting in the family room, and they show off your beautiful cabinets and fancy appliances to everyone entering the house.
The downside, of course, is that everybody can also see dirty pots and pans in the sink, fingerprints on the fridge, and detect the lingering smell of the fish you cooked for lunch. It also means that family and guests will congregate at the island, which is a prerequisite in most open kitchens. Now that’s probably a good thing if you’re good at multi-tasking and can carry on a conversation and still pay attention to preparing a meal. Not everybody can.
The Closed Kitchen
It’s expensive to “open up” a closed kitchen, and many a homeowner has done just that after buying a house with a closed kitchen. If you didn’t spend the money tearing down walls (which involves electrical, plumbing and structural work), you could spend that money on nicer cabinets, counter tops and appliances. You could put in that pantry you’ve always wanted. Plus, you can make a mess and nobody has to see it except you, and smells will be less likely to infiltrate the rest of the house.
The main downside is that you’ll be stuck in the kitchen listening to the muffled laughter of your guests and the rest of your family in the next room!
When it comes down to the nitty-gritty, your kitchen layout — open or closed — is a personal choice. If you’re the social, gregarious type, you’ll probably prefer an open plan. If you like to concentrate on your cooking and don’t feel comfortable viewing the kitchen mess while you dine, a closed kitchen is probably the better choice for you!
Whether your kitchen is open or closed when the time comes to install new cabinets, contact us at Edgewood Cabinetry in Clayton, North Carolina. We build and install the finest custom cabinetry, wall pantries, islands and more in all of Eastern North Carolina!
And don’t forget beauty. Today’s kitchens balance high-efficient use-of-space coupled with stunning colors and materials. There is a style and design perfect for your dream kitchen. Clear away that clutter and enjoy the potential of your beautiful kitchen space.
With these elements in place, extras such as retro pendant lights, aged bronze or brass hardware, a vintage kitchen scale, wire storage baskets, wooden utensils, and a farmhouse pitcher filled with fresh flowers can be added to complete the look and feel. Just crack open your favorite cookbook and enjoy your new space!
To find out how we can help make your dream kitchen a reality, please don’t hesitate to Contact Us.
Light makes vision possible, we all know this is true;
But when it comes to uses for task lighting, folks just have not got a clue.
You really have several options: pucks, tape, rope, or strips;
We hope this rhyme will help you, as we offer up some tips.
You can retrofit a cabinet with lights that shine below;
Or hide some in a corner to help your houseplants grow.
Accent lights will highlight features, like a mantle or ceiling cove;
And they chase away the shadows that can linger on your stove.
Task lighting in a kitchen is inexpensive, practical, and wise;
Who knows, they may be helpful, so try some out for size.
These lights will work great anywhere: walls, ceilings, doors or floor;
Just imagine the benefits of placing them in a drawer.
You can make a walk-in closet look like a stylish boutique;
Outline each shelf with lighting strips for a look that’s chic and sleek.
Let’s not forget the patio, or deck, or garden wall;
Keep these areas illuminated so folks won’t slip and fall.
Enhance your bathroom’s functionality with water-resistant lights;
You’ll see much better shaving, and you’ll get that makeup right.
Put lights around your headboard if you like to read in bed;
Check out this great example and you’ll be a step ahead.
Natural finishes, like wood flooring, have been popular for some time. We now see beams and wooden ceilings as design elements in both kitchens and family living areas. This board-and-batten look, along with shiplap, (thank you Joanna Gaines), creates a focal poi and adds a feeling of warmth to both traditional and contemporary room designs.
Customized organizational and storage solutions are high on the list of what’s new for 2017. Wine cabinets, murphy beds, built-in recycle bins, and multi-tiered drawers reign supreme. Architects are incorporating benches, bookcases, nooks, alcoves, and under-stair storage into new home designs and renovators are following suit.
Automation and smart appliances have moved into today’s kitchens. Thanks to the relative affordability of technology, we can have a refrigerator that composes a grocery list, an oven that can communicate with our smartphone and a Wi-Fi enabled coffee maker.
When it comes to color, Benjamin Moore has named “shadow” their color of the year. A dramatic blend of amethyst, lilac and gray, it is a shade that will contrast beautifully with the new look in appliances – black stainless steel. Speaking of color, we recently saw a farmhouse sink in apple green. Stunning.
Whether you’re planning a small refresh or preparing for a major renovation, contact us for answers to the question, “What’s hot and what’s not?”
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