A Guide to Decorating Your Kitchen

Floors
Your kitchen floor covering is important. This is where you want good looks, practicality and comfort. You may do a lot of standing while preparing meals in this room. You want the floor to be resilient and easy to clean. This is where you might be feeding pets and children. Is this also a play area? Is this where you’ll be eating as well as cooking?

If you don’t like what’s on the floor, you can redo it. Here are your options: brick, slate, hardwood, linoleum, tile, carpet, vinyl, stone, terrazzo. Most floor-covering projects should be done by a professional. However, if your budget can’t handle this but your floor is really terrible, I would suggest putting down vinyl sheet flooring (which requires a professional) or vinyl tiles that are individually glued to subflooring, which can be installed by the do-it-yourselfer. If you think this is the old linoleum your parents or grandparents had in their home, you’ll be happy to know it isn’t. Vinyl flooring has come a long way. Aside from colors and designs, you can choose a pattern that simulates the look of wood, marble, tile or brick; sometimes it’s hard to distinguish it from the real thing.

A Splash of Color
Ceramic tiles come in a variety of colors, patterns and sizes, and there are tile shops all over the country. If you want to spruce up a dull kitchen, consider adding interest to backsplashes with tiles. You might also create a scene with tiles, such as a basket of flowers, or a grouping of fruit, on the wall in back of the range, for example. A visit to a tile center will stimulate your imagination, and you can learn a lot from the sales people, who are generally quite knowledgeable.

Counters
There are many material choices for countertops, and if you’re planning to redo yours, you will want to look into the advantages and disadvantages of those you are most attracted to. Favorites are Formica, Corian, butcher block, stainless steel and tile. You want your countertops to be practical for their specific uses.

Storage Space
The success of any kitchen is measured in adequate storage and this translates into proper storage for each work area of the kitchen. If there is an island, for example, you’ll want a drawer for utensils. Pots and pans should be close to the stove. An eating counter needs a drawer for linens and flatware. Food that doesn’t go in the refrigerator must be stored conveniently if you don’t have a pantry for this purpose. The sink needs a cabinet for cleaning supplies and a garbage pail.