Kitchen Island Trends For 2022

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The up and coming kitchen island trend is to have double islands instead of one long island. One of the biggest advantages of double islands is that it can provide personalized multipurpose space, which include space for dining, storage, wine racks, sinks, cooktops, warming drawers, and other appliances.

Double islands designs include: 

       1. T- shaped islands: One double island option for a smaller kitchen is T- shaped island. It is a perpendicular layout for two small islands. For example, the top part of the island is the working stations, while the stem serves as a seating area. Those two parts can connect together or a few feet away from each other depending on the specific situations.

       2. Parallel islands: If you have a large, square kitchen, two coordinating parallel islands would be a great choice for you. For example, one of the islands is a preparation station, and the other one can be a sitting island. It allows for uninterrupted conversation between people working and sitting. The parallel islands can also be the focal point of your kitchen, with countertops flowing over the edge just like a waterfall.

       3. Adjacent islands: Two side-by-side islands can be a great choice if your kitchen has a long, rectangular shape. Instead of having one long island, you break it into two smaller ones. The design helps to increase the space in the kitchen.

       4. Wrap-around islands: The wrap-around islands can be L-shaped or a circle. It has a smaller working island in the middle for food preparation. It provides the optimal seating arrangement, which can accommodate a large number of people. In addition, it can also work as a separation between living space and kitchen.

       5. Mismatched islands: If you are a fan of a more modern style, you may want to consider double islands that don’t match. For example, the difference between islands can be colors, materials, or shapes.

Color and Technology: 

In fact, besides having two islands instead of one, people also care about the color of the island and the technological improvements that can be brought into kitchen renovations and remodeling: 

       1. Prioritizing colors: colorful kitchen islands can stand out and add some fun to the kitchen design. In addition, adding in bold dashes of color can make your space come alive. For example, some bold decorating colors are fresh greens, cool blues, energetic yellows, or punchy oranges.

       2. Hand-free technological innovations: smart dishwashers, ovens and refrigerators that respond to voice commands are something that would make life a lot easier. In addition, smart kitchen technology like Amazon Alexa, Google Assist, Apple’s Watch and Siri are great assistants for individuals working in the kitchen, which can help to improve efficiency and convenience.

Mistakes that can Derail Your Kitchen Remodel

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Are you thinking of remodeling your kitchen? No matter what you are trying to do, whether it’s adding an island or knocking down a wall, most people’s goal is to get the most out of your remodel without overspending. So what sort of mistakes would cost you more money? Here is a list to help you avoid those mistakes.

1. Not Buying Appliances First

Always choose your appliances first before you choose things like countertops or cabinets. It is much easier to match your cabinets to your appliances than the other way around.

2. Overspending on cabinets and appliances

Cabinets and appliances are incredibly important for your kitchen both aesthetically and functionally. However, there is no need to go broke trying to buy the “best” the store has to offer. Do some research before buying cabinets and appliances. There are many options that give the same look and feel as the high-end cabinets and appliances while staying on budget.

3. Failing to measure

This is one of the most common mistakes among people doing renovations. Make sure you measure twice before buying fixtures, hardware, or appliances.  Then once you do that, you should thoroughly review the product details before purchasing an item to ensure that it fits.

4. Going light on the lighting

Improper lighting can be incredibly problematic, especially in the kitchen. You want to make sure you have enough lighting for every task whether that’s cutting, cooking, or using appliances. It is suggested to include a dimmer switch and under cabinet lighting.

5. Botching the Backlash

Misplacing a backlash is a common decorative mistake that many people do. The backsplash should have a clear termination point horizontally, usually aligning with the bottom of the cabinets or where the walls meet. It should never overhang the upper cabinet or turn a corner.

6. Failing to level the floor

Make sure that you check if the floor is leveled before laying the flooring. If you need to level the floor you don’t want to have the floor half-laid before realizing. That is a huge extra cost.

10 Ways to Add a Splash of Color to Your Kitchen

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Do you want to brighten up your kitchen? Adding some color is a great way to do this. Here are some great suggestions that you can implement in your own kitchen. 
  1. Accent doors– Having two different colors for your cabinets allows you to add a pop of color. You can make a few of your cabinets, like a row of uppers, have a colorful door and then it adds an intriguing pop of color to your kitchen.
  2. Wallpaper– Instead of using tile or paint for wall finishes in your kitchen, wallpaper is a great alternative. Using wallpaper(make sure its wet-space-safe) allows for a fun wall pattern or color in your kitchen. It can either be an accent or an all-over treatment.
  3. Wall Paint– You can also add an accent wall really easily with wall paint. This is great for a wall without cabinets or if you want a small bold color you can add it on a wall with cabinets and the cabinets will break the color up.
  4. Counter and bar stools– Feel free to use these as a way to get creative with adding colors. the stools around the counter are a great place to put a pop of color right in the center of your space. 
  5. Pendant lightening– Small glass pendant lights are now great sources of light because of the power of LED lights. They also are a great way to add a splash of color without being right in your face. 
  6. Open Shelving– Open shelves allow your kitchen to be part of your decor since it makes your kitchen supplies and tools viewable at all times. Also just having a few opens up your space to pops of colors because of the different hues from pots and supplies. 
  7. Color changing LEDs – These lights allow for you to add a variety of color accents to your kitchen without the permanence of paint. You get to change the colors whenever you want for different events and more. 
  8. Glass accents –  Translucent or frosted glass objects are really nice for kitchens because of the way that light reflects off the surface of them. These can be any different types of objects that you place around your kitchen.
  9. Warm Metallics – Warm metallics like Brass and Gold work really well in spaces that don’t have much color but they still add a sense of warmth and color to your space. They also work really well with stainless steel and other cooler metals. 
  10. Window Treatments – Window Treatments are pretty normal for more traditional spaces however they are great for modern spaces as well. Having an in window shade allows an opportunity to add a color or pattern to your kitchen. 

The Best Kitchen Countertop Materials

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Shopping for countertops can feel very overwhelming since there are hundreds of colors, patterns, and textures. However, there are really only a few basic categories of materials for countertops that you should know. Let’s break down the pros and cons as well as the important information to know for each type of countertop.

First off, when choosing a counter material you need to think about your needs and habits in the kitchen.  For example, if you cook a lot and do prep on the countertop, you don’t want to use a soft porous material. You also have to consider your overall kitchen design. You want to make sure the counters fit with the appliances, the backsplash as well as the cabinets in your kitchen.

Natural Stone

Granite: This is a very common and popular material for a countertop since it comes in a variety of colors. The colors offered range from vibrant reds and blues, midnight black, as wells as white.

Pros – no (or low) visible seams, durable surface, heat-resistant

Cons – must be sealed to resist heat as well as can be expensive

Marble: This is a softer stone and more high end then granite. It is also comes in much fewer colors. However it is great surface for baking but since it is softer might show knife scars or be discolored by citric acid.   

Pros – durable, striking natural patterns

Cons – high-maintenance, needs repeated sealing, expensive

Soapstone

pros – won’t need sealing

cons – soft and may show knife marks

Slate

pros – won’t need sealing

cons – brittle especially at corners

 

Engineered Stone

Quartz : This is stone is what most engineered stone is made out of. It comes it lots of different colors and is a hard material so it doesn’t need any sealing

pros – no sealing, durable, low maitenance

cons – expensive 

Concrete

 

Precast: These concrete slabs are extremely smooth and flat. These countertops can also have a variety of colors as well as have glass or other materials embedded in to give it an artistic feel. 

pros – won’t scratch, durable, heat resistant

cons – must be professionally installed, expensive, needs sealing

Solid surfaces

Acrylic or Polyester: These counters show no seems since the pieces get fused together. This is great for long stretches of countertop. You can also get sinks to match

pros – low maitenance, lots of colors, repairable, non-porous

cons – not heat resistant, shows knife marks and scratches

Plastic Laminates

pros – very affordable, durable and hardwearing, ready-to-install,

cons – not heat resistant,  can chip or scratch

Tile

Ceramic or Stone:  Lots of color options and many different styles. Has to be applied over laminate or fresh plywood topped with cement backerboard. 

pros – lots of colors,  affordable, lots of choices,  ceramic is non porous

cons – regular grout cleaning is necessary

Wood

Edge-Grain: These counters have long, thick strips of wood that are glued together with the edge grain facing up

End-Grain (aka Butcher Block): These counters have relatively short, square sticks of wood that are joined together with the tough end grain facing up

Wide-Plank: These counters are made by edge-gluing wide boards together. These counters are the most susceptible to warping and cracking.

pros to wood – warm, ideal work surface, heat resistant

cons to wood– medium maintenance, will show knife marks

Do I Need an Interior Designer?

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If you’re planning to remodel a larger area, it might be a good idea to hire an interior designer. It might seem like a waste of money at first, but it is important to keep in mind that an interior designer will assume many of the roles traditionally assigned to subcontractors. Interior designers can also improve your home in ways that a subcontractor would not catch.

Researching and shopping for fixtures can be very time consuming, and having someone come to you that knows how to select these products can save a lot of time. Hiring an interior designer can design your workspace in a shorter amount of time, and it can also save on extra costs. Good interior designers know how to maximize the qualities of a space, emphasizing positive attributes and downplaying less desirable qualities.

Hiring an interior designer is a good idea no matter what, even if you have a full plan for your room or you have no idea. Hiring an interior designer will allow you to gain the advantage of their expertise and technical knowledge in terms of design, which will help you avoid potential issues and costly design mistakes in the future.

 

Kitchen Showrooms NYC

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Are you interested in having your kitchen renovated? Whether you are going for a modern or traditional look, there are many options for people with varying preferences. But sometimes it is not easy to start the process of looking for styles that fit your idea of the perfect kitchen. Therefore, we recommend going to see kitchen showrooms near me when researching.

If you happen to be in major cities like NYC, then you are in luck. Most of the high-end showrooms are located in such cities. Kitchen showrooms are a great place to find and actually feel what you might invest in. It is one thing to see the cabinets designs online versus going to a specialized showroom that features various designs for kitchens.

Kitchen design showrooms are designed with the customer in mind. It is important that you feel at home when looking for a kitchen design. NYC kitchen showrooms can range from apartment designs to home designs. If you are not satisfied with a color of a design, the company in charge of the showroom should be able to help with that. Colors and patterns may be subject to change in order to comply with a preference of a customer.

Golden I Construction currently has kitchen showrooms in NYC for different tastes and styles. We are currently located in 147 West 35th Street Suite 1204 New York, NY 10001. Come and check out our high-end showrooms for your next kitchen project! Call us at 212-837-8117 or email us at info@goldeniconstruction.com. To see more of our projects, go to our website at goldeniconstruction.com.