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The kitchen is one of the rooms in your house you spend most of your time in. And if it isn’t very functional, it can add a lot of frustration to your life. Renovating the kitchen can often be a good idea. But before you start tearing out kitchen cabinets, consider the following tips:

1. Quality all the way

Unlike living rooms or dens, substituting cheap and cheerful materials for their more expensive cousins will not work here. Your new kitchen will have to deal with a lot of wear and tear. Make sure that you use high quality materials, particularly at the points where your kitchen moves, such as door hinges and drawer slides.

Image: Susan Serra / Flickr

2. Be aware of the maintenance consequences

Some surfaces have an inherent bumpiness which makes it difficult to clean – think of brick backsplashes or slate floors – but the odd spill here or there will be less noticeable. Ceramic or laminate, on the other hand, make cleaning a snap, but you’ll know if even a crumb is dropped. Plan your surfaces accordingly. And unless your kitchen is mainly used by people wearing gloves, avoid stainless steel: it will show up every smudge and thumbprint.

3. Simple is better

Avoid too many design-y pieces like mouldings or over-designed lighting fixtures. Keeping things simple will make it easier to clean and maintain – priority in a kitchen. If you want to add details, add pieces you can add or take away with ease like vases or decorative containers.

4. Keep your appliances simple and multi-functional

The simplicity theme extends to your appliances, as well. You may like the idea of separate wall ovens and a cooktop now, but your tastes will likely change in a few years and the simpler you keep things, the easier they will be to replace.

5. Follow your own taste

Too many people renovate to please their friends and not themselves. You are going to be the one spending all of the time in your kitchen, so why not put all your favourite knick-knacks and tchotchkes in it? If this will make some of the dreary tasks you have to do in this room more inviting, it can only be a good thing.

Heleen Jacobsen
Broker of Record with InfoMarket Group GMAC Real Estate
www.infomarketgroup.com