Careful planning will ensure that all your desired appliances will fit

“This might seem like a weird question, but: Is there such a thing as having too many appliances? In addition to our refrigerator, range, double wall oven, microwave, dishwashers (2), and trash compactor, we also want a warming drawer, ice machine, wine cooler, and built-in coffee station.”

Despite your long list, we don’t believe there’s such a thing as too many appliances. What there may be is too little storage space, depending upon the overall size of your kitchen. If you can break the design into the appropriate zones, and place the appliances that way and not just pack ‘em in as if your kitchen is a Tetris puzzle, you should be fine.

Have a design tip that will help others? Send us your tip!

Take pictures before the demo starts!

Today’s tip will seem like a given for a lot of people, but for those of you who haven’t thought about it:

Take lots of “before” pictures!

Before you start the demo, before you strip the room. You don’t even have to take all your stuff off the refrigerator. Grab the ol’ family camera, and snap away. This is about documenting the way the room is, and not about technical accuracy or lighting or artistic beauty. And it’s important. Why? The reason is two-fold: One, they’re great to have, capturing a little bit of your personal history. And really, we could stop there, as that is the most important. However, there is item two. If your kitchen, bath, home bar, mud room or whichever room gets professionally photographed, here’s a little secret: Magazine editors love “before” shots. Really, we hear that request frequently. And all too often, we have to say no, the homeowner didn’t take any.

So, if nothing else, preserve a bit of family history by taking those photos.

Crown Point kitchen on a cover of a magazine

Now, we can’t promise that your home will end up on the cover of a magazine, but you never know!

Have a design tip that will help others? Send us your tip!

A minimum of 36" is generally recommended for space between refrigerator and sink

“We’re tight for space in our redesign. How much space should we leave between the sink and the refrigerator?”

Assuming there is no island in this design, then the recommended minimum space is 36″. If there was an island, and if space was extremely tight, you might be able to get by with less. Not ideal, but sometimes compromises have to be made. Or (not to stir up trouble!) you might consider taking a second (third? hundredth?) look at your layout design.

Have a design tip that will help others? Send us your tip!

Make the most of your space, perhaps even under the stairs!

“My husband thinks I’m crazy, but I want to use the space under the stairs as part of our design for our remodel.”

Far be it from us to offer psychiatric evaluations, or to take sides, but! your idea has been accomplished before. As you can see in the image, it’s not impossible, and can work quite well. Your layout may (and probably does) differ, just discuss your idea with your builder, architect or remodeler.

Have a design tip that will help others? Send us your tip!

A towel bar doesn't necessarily have to be in a dedicated cabinet

“OK, this is a pretty small issue, but anyway: I like the function of a towel bar, I just don’t want to give up the space for a base cabinet to house it. And I swore with this remodel I wasn’t going to just end up draping them or throwing them on the counter.”

The good news is that you can have your towel bar, and the better news is that you don’t have to dedicate a base cabinet solely for that purpose. You can have a towel bar component built into a standard base cabinet. In the photo, you can just see the end of the towel bar in the upper left corner of the base cabinet opening. (And yes, you may feel it’s a small issue, but it’s the little things that annoy us day after day. Hope this helps take one item off your list!)

Have a design tip that will help others? Send us your tip!

The beautiful character of Antique Chestnut is quite distinctive in the wainscot of this kitchen island

“We love seeing the grain in wood, and want our cabinetry to really show some character. But as lovely as most woods are, they seem kind of, well, bland. Any other choices?”

Certainly! Perhaps you’d like our Wild Cherry; full of dark sap pockets, knots and sap wood. Or you can choose from our Vintage Collection of woods. Eight different reclaimed wood species, including Antique Chestnut, Old Growth Heart Pine and Antique Hickory. Truly gorgeous woods, unique in their appearance. You can see all the different choices on our Wood Species page.

Have a design tip that will help others? Send us your tip!

What could've ended up as empty wall space turned into a useful mudroom area

“We would love to have a mud room, but just don’t have the space…”

(Not sure if there’s a question in there, but anyway…) Perhaps you can make a small bit of “unused” space into something that will work. As you can see in the photo, there’s a bench built that makes the most of  a small space. The bench is open underneath, and features a shelf as well. Designing a back (with coat pegs!) gives it a nice built-in feeling. The important thing is that it provides a landing area and helps to minimize the trail that youngsters leave as they make their way from outdoors to in and other parts of the house.

Have a design tip that will help others? Send us your tip!

Designing your perfect home bar takes a little planning, and the results are worth it!

“We want to have a home bar in the den, but not sure how high it’s supposed to be?”

Typical bar height is 42″, with bar stools usually topping out at 30″ . A common depth is 24″, but that could depend whether you decide to design a two-level countertop. Length of your bar, of course, depends upon available space. The great thing about home bar design is that you can make it as large or as small as you see fit!

Have a design tip that will help others? Send us your tip!

Different calculations and personal preferences should be considered when designing your desk

“We’re designing a desk for our office, but not sure how to figure the drawer height?”

Well, it seems we’re on a drawer kick lately!

There’s more than one way to calculate things, and personal preference needs to be considered beyond that. But here are some general guidelines:

Typical desk height is 30″

Seat height can be between 15″- 18″.

Leg height clearance runs between 9″ – 12″

Countertop can be 3/4″, 1″, 1 1/4″ or 1 1/2″

So, subtract your combination of dimensions from the 30″ height, and the remaining number is the available height for a drawer. As an example, say we’ve got a chair at 16″, leg clearance at 9″ and 1″ countertop.

Doing the math: 30 – (16 + 9 + 1) = 4. Bear in mind the chosen construction method (framed or frameless) will need to be considered also. But at least now you have number to start!

Have a design tip that will help others? Send us your tip!

Instead of a knob or pull, consider a scoop cut to provide access to a drawer

“Looking for a different take on drawer hardware for a bathroom. Not a fan of pulls or knobs, am I out of luck?

Not necessarily. Have you considered a scoop cut? Instead of any knob or pull, a graceful curve is cut into the face of the drawer. Creates a wonderful vintage look, and solves your problem!

Have a design tip that will help others? Send us your tip!