If you are living in an older house, odds are that the layout of some rooms will not be quite how you like them. Maybe it’s the colour of a wall, or perhaps the toilet faces in the wrong direction giving you a glaring morning sun in your eyes, perhaps a door opens in the wrong direction that it makes it a little awkward to get into a room, or possibly you have an air vent which is positioned poorly that it heats a room you seldom use. Whatever it is you’re always going to find some element of the design of, or within your home that eeks you, and truth be told you’re really not going to know precisely what it is, or which one will annoy you the most until you move in and live with it.
If you are considering updating some of these issues then of course like most people you’ll start to do your homework on exactly what you want to update and to ensure they check the leakage with the leak detection specialist, and look for ideas on exactly what you can do within your budget. So when you look at any current new housing designs, either in retail showrooms, going to house inspections or even from watching renovation shows on TV or even housing design magazines, one deciding element that impacts any new creation, especially in Australia is the use of space. Most of this can be attributed to the continual increase in the density of living, so we are constantly finding new ways to better use the space in and around our houses.
Given most families spend the bulk of their in the kitchen that if done right makeover of your kitchen will actually give you the best return on your investment if you do ever intend to sell your house. This is particularly the case if your kitchen hasn’t seen a refresh in 20 or possibly even more years! Kitchen layout and design from eras such as the 60s, ’70s or ’80s opted for as much open space as possible and would love to use the latest materials available at the time, such as linoleum and laminates. This emphasised “open” feeling would result in large open floor space and either display shelves with no cupboard doors to keep things put away, or if they did there was never much depth so very little could be stored regardless.
Nowadays we have all manner of kitchen devices, such as mixers, food processors, pressure cookers and ice cream makers, to name just a few. Many of these devices are large, heavy and a bit cumbersome, so if you don’t have enough bench space to store them all then it can be a bit of a pain, especially if your cupboards are not wide or deep enough to store everything.
So your corner cupboards are usually some of the largest in your kitchen but accessing these can sometimes be a bit difficult. Traditionally, they were either avoided, completely inaccessible or used those cheap double hinge doors, which would start to drop a few months after installation. Luckily there are now some pretty good options to utilise this area!
Lazy Susan’s – These can be hinged in 3 main different ways, either just sitting on a static shelf inside the bi-fold door, which is known as a carousel; a full carousel-style which causes all the shelf and door to spin as one element; or lastly the LeMans which has individual shelves that can be pulled out independently.
Corner Sinks – Placing a sink in a corner is a great way to fill an angled gap, and the pipework can easily sit at the back of the weird under-sink cupboard without taking up much space!
Motorised shelving – It’s even possible to have those fancy and heavy items such as mixers on a motorised shelf rise out of the countertop at the push of a button. Of course, the motor will require a little extra space, but if you want your kitchen to have a little wow factor then you can’t beat this option!
Clever Drawers – It’s possible to install draws that come out at a 45% angle meaning you can easily fill them with utensils or whatever takes your fancy right up to the back of the cupboard space.
Corner Appliances – Putting an oven, or stove cooktop is a great way to avoid having to install a corner cupboard, and the lost space can be utilised with ducting and wiring for range hoods etc. We know it might be hard for you but you can get an electrical contractor to make this easier for you.
There’s no denying that the look of a fancy new kitchen will not only satisfy your and your family’s needs but also make you the envy of many of your friends who see it!
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