If you’re considering remodeling your kitchen, you have a wonderful and rare opportunity to create a space that is both functional and beautiful. It’s almost like having a blank canvas in front of you. With limitless possibilities, it’s important to have an experienced designer by your side to help with all the little details.
Whether you’re a homeowner or a contractor, the design team at Mid-Cape Home Centers can help find your vision and create something amazing. Mid-Cape designers will ask questions to get a good idea of what you want and, more importantly, what you need. Both style and functionality must be incorporated to create that ideal space.
“The most important thing would be accurate dimensions of the space in a layout,” said Becky Stoltz, Kitchen and Bath Designer for Mid-Cape Home Centers. “If we are trying to squeeze every inch of usable storage space, it is crucial to have those so we know what we have to work with. Photos of the existing space are also helpful along with any inspirational ideas they may have found in magazines or online.”
Kitchen and Bath Designer Donna Benoit said, “I need to know what appliances they are going to have in the kitchen. Appliances form the structure of the kitchen. Once you locate the appliances in the kitchen layout, the function of the cabinets surrounding them comes next.”
More storage space and hidden storage space are almost always requested for a new or remodeled kitchen. Homeowners want places where they can hide away appliances and give the appearance of clean countertops and no clutter. There are many ways to add this type of storage into your plan.
“A trend I am seeing is to get items off the countertop and out of sight,” said Benoit. “There are cabinets built with specific functions to do so. An example is a base pullout cabinet that has canisters and a knife block built into it. Appliance garages are another great way to keep countertop appliances out of sight.”
A quick tip of hers is putting your spice jars in a top drawer, if you have the room to do so. “With one motion, you have all of your spices visible and on hand.” The most common type of storage clients want to incorporate into the kitchen, she said, is a base pullout cabinet for trash and/or recycling.
Stoltz agreed. “Most prefer everything to be hidden,” she said. “’A place for everything and everything in its place’ comes to mind. To have a clean and organized space for everything makes it more enjoyable to work within. That being said, we are seeing more and more open storage with the trend of open shelving units which allows people to show off their creative side.”
A storage favorite of Stoltz’ is a pullout knife block. Each knife, she said, slides in and the block conforms to the knife every time, and allows you to have any knives that may not necessarily be part of a matched set. “It’s less dangerous than standard countertop knife blocks and it’s safely hidden away in this nice pullout that adds additional large utensil storage. I’d definitely recommend the knife block pullout and the large drawers, and a pullout trash, all of which I put in my own kitchen.”
Rebekkah Ziel, Kitchen and Bath Division Manager at Mid-Cape Home Centers, said Mid-Cape’s showrooms are always kept up to date so customers can see the newest colors and design trends for themselves.
“All of our kitchen and bath displays are outfitted with a lot of the accessories you can get,” Ziel said. “Roll-out trays and organizers are huge trends right now. We have four different showrooms, one of which is being constructed right now in Middleboro. The other showrooms are in South Dennis, Orleans and on Martha’s Vineyard. All can provide everything you need, from start to finish. We’re a one-stop shop, and have some of the best designers on the Cape.”
Mid-Cape Home Centers also has an in-house Custom Millwork Shop where almost anything can be created on-site, with a variety of woods and other materials, that offers pick up or delivery. If there’s something unusual or custom-made you want or need, chances are the millwork shop can probably create it for you.
“We do have a great in-house Custom Millwork Shop that can create custom molding knives if there is something unusual a client or contractor is looking for, or maybe they’re trying to match something in an old house that is not available anymore,” said Stoltz. “We do also have two custom cabinet manufacturers that we work with who can usually accommodate any request.”
In older Cape galley kitchens, these storage and custom pieces are especially important, to make the most of your usable space and to match the historic style of the home. Mid-Cape has some of the best machinery to create almost any shape or design, along with the resources for a fast turnaround time.
“We have an exceptional millwork shop with very talented craftsman working there,” Benoit said. “On a personal level, I had a 1935 wooden kitchen table top that had four damaged legs. The Mid-Cape millwork shop fabricated four new legs that worked perfectly with the top, and they reused the original hardware that attached the legs to the top. I am very happy with the finished product.”
Stoltz said she’s seeing changing trends in kitchen materials, as well. “I’m seeing more of the open shelving with mixed materials, like reclaimed wood with metals, to go with painted products.”
“That is what we are here for as designers – to help guide them through the design process,” said Stoltz. “Though the number-one thing I will tell clients is that this is ultimately your house and you have to be happy with the decisions you make and what the final product is.”
“Every kitchen brings a new challenge,” Benoit said. “Each time, you take away new approaches to solving clients’ storage needs.”
To learn more about Mid-Cape’s design team and see some of their work, click here.
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