2012 Top 5 Kitchen Remodeling Trends

A successful kitchen remodeling project can be a great return on your investment, since it automatically raises the value of your house. Kitchen remodels bring better utilization of space to meet the demands of lifestyles too – as well as providing better storage.

Hiding Appliances
Tucking away or hiding appliances is a new kitchen remodeling trend that is very popular due to the artistic way of saving space. It improves functionality in the kitchen and also prevents the kitchen from looking too cluttered. Some good examples of concealed appliances are: steam ovens, warming drawers, and built-in coffee centers. Built-in coffee centers, provide a customized cup of coffee with just one press of a button.

Color Trends For Appliances
Stainless steel is a common color choice for over a hundred years now. It has a universal appeal and a shiny appearance, which is often associated with luxury. It also provides a more sterile surface than the others. Black is another favored color. It offers a more formal, yet contemporary appearance and goes with any style. Other popular colors are beige, gray, and cream.

Cabinets
Maple cabinetry is among the most favored kitchen remodel ideas in 2012. Woods with different shades of white or off-white hues make good finishes, as well as dark natural finishes. Finishes that are either light natural or color painted are popular too. There are a variety of trendy styles of cabinets: floating units, cabinets with touch-latch doors, systems that are hidden behind sliding doors, and cabinets with innovative surfaces, such as semi-translucent glass, bamboo, and aluminum.

Countertops
Countertops with custom touches, such as marble pastry slab inserts and wooden butcher blocks will be huge in 2012. Some homeowners even embed concrete with metal and glass bits. Choosing renewable and recycled materials over natural stone, marble and quarts are a great option for those who want to cut down on maintenance. Some of the recycled materials that are used are laminate and paper.

Illumination
Light fixtures are also in the top five kitchen remodeling trends. Accent lighting to draw attention to kitchen decorations like glassware, dishware, and frames are extremely popular. For decorative light fixtures, sconce lighting is a great choice. They spill the light upward or sideways and form attractive backdrops.

2012 Home Remodeling Trends

Remodeling in 2012 is full of new ideas to benefit your home with practicality. Instead of going big and extravagant, people are looking more cost effective and useful features for their home.

Steam showers are on the rise since soaking tubs are rarely used and can be expensive. Homeowners focus their budget on a larger and more comfortable shower for therapeutic effects and conservation of water.

Drop Zones or Mud Rooms are extremely popular because they serve as a great way to de-clutter and organize your home. Cubbies, hooks, or closets are custom designed to hide these items and eliminate clutter in your home.

Formal living rooms are considered wasted space so opening the living room is a new trend that creates a great room that is warm and inviting. An open family room combines the kitchen, living room, and dining room. Creating one big room will help lessen energy consumption and create a more inviting environment.

Developing a lifestyle center for your whole family. Computers and electronics are put in this room for kids to do homework and parents to be able to monitor their children. It’s a versatile room work at home, paying the bills and more - instead of a closed-off office space.

Creating an outdoor living space remains popular. A patio can serve as a secondary dining room or living area. Making this outdoor living space available year-round with electric radiant heat, like slab heating or a snow melting system is the ideal for use all year long. It also makes your house feel larger, by adding sliding doors that lead from inside your house to the patio.