The Kitchen Remodel Journey - Step 1: Find Inspiration
Last week we kicked off the story of our kitchen remodel journey. We shared the before photos and a little context for why now is right time. Today, we’re sharing Step 1: Find Inspiration.
For step 1 of our journey, we looked for inspiration both online and in person.
These three photos capture images from Instagram that have helped shape our overall vision for the space:
As seen above, these three Instagram accounts are my favorite to follow for inspiration and ideas:
View this profile on Instagram
View this profile on Instagram
Of course, once you start looking at and following certain things, lots of other relevant content will begin populating your feed to consider following.
Once we had some overall vision, we went and looked at several kitchens of friends and acquaintances to get ideas. One of the things these visits really helped me decide on was appliance selection and cabinet layout needs.
For example, it helped us decide that a side by side fridge was what we wanted. (No more french door step stool fridges for our four year old!). It also helped us see that the size we originally thought would work for a fridge was really going to be too small for our needs. Sometimes you just have to open a fridge up with stuff actually in it to see if space is conducive to your family’s lifestyle.
We discovered a beverage cooler that had a dual temperature feature that we wouldn’t have known to ask about had we not visited a particular kitchen.
Interested in beverage coolers? Home Depot carries a variety of options.
We also discovered a split farmhouse sink in our designer’s kitchen that we loved. That same kitchen taught us something else.
As far as cabinets go, we really need a utensil drawer by the stovetop, and the more appliance garages the better.
Visiting these other kitchens helped us see the perfect island layout and size and showed us how most things we need to access day to day could be housed in the island.
Visiting other kitchen remodel successes also gave us an idea on vendors to use and thoughts on colors and finishes we liked and did not like.
We are fast paced people, which means once we decide we are going to do a project we are ready to get on it and get it done. However, I would highly recommend taking the time to go and see some things in person in homes where people actually live and even better, who live similarly to you. For us that meant people who have kids at all different ages and who like to cook.
Thanks to Tara Thompson, Erin Cossey Interiors and the Gregory family for letting us check out your wonderful kitchens!
