Kitchens see heavy daily use in any home, and today they often double as a kitchen, dining room, and family room. The combination of use, water, cooking and dirt quickly makes any kitchen look tired and worn. Fortunately, it’s easy to breathe new life into a kitchen, cheaply and quickly. Just follow some or all of the following interior design tips to wow your family and guests.
Cleaning
Like bathrooms, kitchens need regular cleaning, but they need special attention to ensure food hygiene. Kitchens also have special rules for handling cooked and raw meats for this reason. However, here we only care about aesthetic issues.
From time to time, kitchens need a deep, deep cleaning, all over the place. Good old-fashioned scrubbing is necessary to remove grease and grime buildup from floors, tiles, countertops, and surroundings.
Use proprietary kitchen cleaners, although traditional cleaners like vinegar and baking soda still work just fine. Just be careful to avoid strong acids in lime removers on any marble or limestone surfaces.
Also remember to clean the air vent or exhaust fan. These are often overlooked despite being a magnet for dirt and grime. Extractor hoods usually have filters that clog quickly, but if they are of the metal mesh type, they can be cleaned in the automatic dishwasher.
Open the window regularly to get fresh air. This will eliminate musty odors and also reduce humidity in the room, often a cause of mold or mildew.
Tidy
Often, kitchen owners and designers like to fill the kitchen with raised trim and trim, to give it a “farmhouse” look. Unfortunately, the image is quickly clouded by dust and dirt, which is difficult to remove except on smooth surfaces.
So while you may have a wide variety of kitchen styles, look at commercial kitchens and you’ll quickly realize why the surfaces are flat and smooth and mostly stainless steel, glass, granite or Corian.
Even strong tiles have their limitations. First, they age quickly in the kitchen style, second, they are very difficult to remove or alter, and third, the grout remains a trap for dirt and germs.
Add a touch of style and color
Kitchen walls and ceilings will benefit from fresh coats of paint more often than other rooms so you can experiment with color, but be sure to clean surfaces with baking soda or sugar soap before painting.
Two other ways to quickly change color in a kitchen are:
If your kitchen becomes a family room with a living room, you have many more decorating options with sofas and chairs. However, it should be remembered that these sofas will be a magnet for televised dinners, so they will be prone to staining with food. Keep this in mind and avoid pure white long hair finishes! Dark leather is a good choice as it is easy to clean and maintain.
Waterproofing and Anti-dirt
It is important that all cracks and crevices are airtight around sinks etc. If in doubt, remake silicone seals, although with the proper material and workmanship these should last 5-10 years. For a good seal it is vital that the surfaces are completely clean and free of grease. You can clean with a general purpose kitchen cleaner, but then finish with a degreasing solvent like acetone.
Look for dirt traps, especially under and behind kick panels between kitchen cabinets and the floor. Regularly remove and thoroughly clean here. Another often overlooked dirt trap is the top surface of wall-mounted cupboards and cabinets and other high-end units.
Tiles are usually strong and durable, but the grout used between them rarely is. Use a utility knife to carefully scrape away any old, flaky, and dirty grout and then re-grout to give your tile wall an instant makeover.
Complement
Kitchens may have accessories, but care must be taken to avoid too much clutter unless you are willing to do some extra cleaning. The most useful plugins tend towards the functional; think about:
Kitchen accessories can be relatively cheap and it’s fun to experiment. Your efforts will be appreciated every day by your family and friends when they are in this busy center of the family home.
