Many homes these days are mass produced by builders more concerned with saving money than aesthetics.
If you have a basic kitchen with boring oak cabinets, laminate countertops, and generic appliances, you can make minor fixes to your kitchen to make it look like you did a complete remodel.
Here are some ideas for how to customize a basic kitchen to enjoy now and make more money when you sell your home later.
photo courtesy of SandersLaura flickr.com/photos/71214692@N00/10290589106/Cabinets
Your cabinets may be extremely plain, but you can modify them without the expense of removing them and installing new.
Consider adding crown molding trim around the top of your upper cabinets.
If your doors are basic, you can add trim molding to the face of them to give them more personality.
Consider adding pull out drawers to the inside of your lower cabinets so you can easily access the back part of your cabinets.
Paint your cabinets or stain them a darker color to give your cabinets a custom look.
Don't forget to add cabinet knobs and pulls that not only look good but keep your cabinets clean and the paint from wearing off every time you open a door or drawer.
Appliances
The finish on your appliances should all match.
You should not have some black, some white, and some stainless appliances.
Save up for matching appliances in the same finish, which may be the most pricey upgrade in a kitchen.
Flooring
Kitchen flooring must withstand a lot of wear and tear, especially if you have pets or kids.
Upgrade your current flooring with something beautiful yet durable.
Wood is a beautiful choice, however wood can get damaged if wet.
A natural stone will not only look beautiful but will not look out of style in a few years like man made materials.
Countertops
Kitchen countertops are one of the first things people look at in a kitchen.
Simply upgrading your basic countertops with a natural stone countertop can change a boring basic kitchen into a custom kitchen.
For a countertop that will stay in style for a long time, select a natural material (like granite) over a man made material.
Backsplash
Kitchen backsplashes can be an artistic focal point in the kitchen, but don't go overboard.
Be realistic about what you keep on your countertops and how much of the backsplash will actually be visible on a daily basis when deciding on the backsplash material and its cost.
Intricate backsplashes with different shapes, sizes, and colors of tile used to be very popular, but are now going out of style.
Avoid 3 dimensional tile that will become a dust ledge and a cleaning nightmare.
When in doubt, simple is better.
You can even use the granite from your countertops as your backsplash to avoid tile grout lines and keep everything clean and streamlined.
Lighting
If you have one large fluorescent light box in your kitchen, it may be the elephant in the room.
Removing the light box and replacing it with a more updated fixture is preferred, else paint it the color of the ceiling to minimize the look of it.
Adding under cabinet and above cabinet lighting is a great way to customize your kitchen and give it a high end look.
Accessories
Accessories in a kitchen that are purely decorative only take up valuable counter space.
Opt for accessories that are functional as well as decorative.
You can have decorative jars that hold your pasta, a beautiful cookbook stand that holds a cookbook you actually use, or an ornate bowl to hold your fresh fruit (no plastic fruit please).
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