Each reworking venture has one factor in frequent: It is going to require you to make tons of choices alongside the best way. Inevitably, a few of the selections you make will likely be stuff you’ll proceed to like for years and others will likely be stuff you’ll want you probably did otherwise. In my expertise, reflecting on the stuff you want you probably did otherwise helps you higher perceive your preferences over time. It helps inform design selections you’ll make in future tasks.
A few of the largest reworking tasks we’ve tackled in our two homes have been our kitchens. Since 2015, we’ve executed three whole kitchen remodels (with the assistance of our contractors)—one in our present dwelling and two in our earlier dwelling.
At present I’m sharing what I remorse from every of those kitchen reworking tasks and the way I’d method them otherwise now.
First Kitchen Rework: 2015
These are two issues I’d have executed otherwise in our first kitchen remodel.
Chosen a Completely different Sort of Flooring
The flooring on this kitchen is the principle factor I’d have executed otherwise. We put in a fantastic cement tile flooring, unaware of the problems it will quickly current. The first difficulty was that the highest of the tile was porous and, subsequently, it stained nearly instantly. Whereas I cherished the design, the quantity of seen put on left lots to be desired, particularly from Joe’s viewpoint.
Overhauled Our Method to Storage and Group
Once we transformed this kitchen in 2015, our solely “youngster” was Winnie. By the tip of 2017, we had two youngsters beneath the age of two. Due to the inflow of “child stuff,” the best way we utilized this house fully modified. There have been points with storage—partially due to the comparatively small footprint of the kitchen and partially as a result of we weren’t utilizing our space for storing as correctly as we might have.
With two younger youngsters, I wasn’t internet hosting almost as a lot as I had been earlier than, but issues like serving dishes nonetheless took up prime actual property within the kitchen. Our storage and organization approach didn’t work for our new life-style, and altering it will have positively improved the best way we interacted with the kitchen in our on a regular basis lives.
Second Kitchen Rework: 2019
Once we remodeled our kitchen a second time in 2019, we had been trying to deal with the 2 points listed above and create a greater circulate from the kitchen to the remainder of the principle flooring. Wanting again, there aren’t very many particular issues I’d have executed otherwise on this kitchen. It served its function rather well throughout our final yr in our dwelling and was a key promoting level when we sold this house in 2020. My largest remorse is extra about how I approached the design course of.
Once I was designing this kitchen, I made selections extra from the lens of my job as a content material creator than from the lens of an individual who was going to be residing within the house. I sought out others’ opinions moderately than trusting my very own imaginative and prescient, and the design course of was much less gratifying than it might have been. Reflecting again on this course of has been a very good reminder to observe my intestine after I’m designing my dwelling.
P.S. Should you subscribe to my e-newsletter, House Call, you may learn extra about my ideas on designing this kitchen within the following essay: “What Designing for Myself Feels Like vs. Designing for the Internet.”
Third Kitchen Rework: 2021
I’ve a lot love for this kitchen. We had good causes for making each one of many design selections on this house, a lot of which got here all the way down to finances and product availability. But as with every house, the extra you reside in it, the extra you discover stuff you may need to change. Understanding what I do know now, these are three issues I’d have executed otherwise in our current kitchen.
Put in Customized Cabinetry
I want I’d have spent the additional cash on customized cabinetry, which we opted to not do due to finances constraints. The cupboards we now have do the job completely nicely, though they do require a little bit of repairs. The paint on our cupboards is chipping in some areas—my hunch is that it is because we opted to strive a paintable cupboard prototype which wasn’t but publicly obtainable.
Put in the Flooring I *Actually* Wished
Don’t get me fallacious: I really like the flooring we chosen for our kitchen. It’s stunning and has held up rather well on this high-traffic house. But I want we might have gone with the flooring I needed on the very begin of this venture.
From the onset of our kitchen transform, I needed to put in flooring in a diamond sample utilizing two completely different sorts of marble. Sadly, we didn’t have the contact or the fitting suppliers to make it occur in an economical manner. I believe if I’d have saved on the lookout for the fitting match, I might have made it work. The ethical of the story right here can be to know when a delay or additional work is value it!
Chosen an Vintage Desk As a substitute of an Island
The island we opted for in our kitchen’s dining area is useful and provides extra storage, which I really like. Nevertheless, through the years, I’ve continued to consider my first alternative for this house: an vintage desk. I’ve all the time needed the eating space to really feel extra separate from the cooking aspect of the kitchen, and there’s one thing in regards to the type of an vintage desk that feels so relaxed and charming to me.
Understanding how we really use the island, I additionally want I’d have chosen a distinct countertop. I’m completely cool with the marble in our kitchen growing a patina over time, however I’m discovering myself much less forgiving on the subject of the butcher block countertop we put in on the island. I plan to sand it down and apply a coat of mineral oil this spring!
Kate is presently studying to play the Ukulele, a lot to the despair of her husband, youngsters, and canines. Comply with her on Instagram at @witanddelight_.
