Countertops play a central role in the experience of your kitchen. The other kitchen elements have to work off of them colouristically and from a textural standpoint. If they’re highly reflective that may influence your lighting scheme and choice of appliances. On top of the aesthetic load they bear let’s not forget that you cook, eat, drink, work, talk and more while sitting and standing at them. Yup, the countertops you choose for your Toronto kitchen need to wear a lot of hats. So how do you make sure you chose the right ones? In this post we’ll look at some of the most important selection criteria.
Choosing the Right Countertops for Your Kitchen Renovation
The humble countertop is both eye candy and workhorse. As such making sure you wind up with the right countertop material is crucial and involves asking yourself some fundamental questions.
- Who will be using them? – If your kitchen is a beehive of family activity you’ll want to lean toward a material that is more stain resistant. If it’s you and your spouse and you use the kitchen mostly as a quiet place to enjoy your morning coffee and occasionally entertain you might want to go with something more obviously luxurious, like granite. Also, you’ll likely want bright countertops in a lively kitchen whereas a more subdued, adult oriented kitchen is free to indulge darker colour motifs.
- How much do you have to spend? – This could the most important consideration because a hard ceiling on what you can spend on the countertops will go a long way toward winnowing your material choices. If you decide to make a stretch and overspend on the countertops you may have to cut back on the quality of other elements of the kitchen renovation. Keep that in mind and try to maintain fiscal balance between the different components.
- Do you have a dream material? – If there is a certain type of countertop – let’s say marble – that has been whispering sweet nothings in your ear for a decade or so you owe it to yourself to indulge your wishes if at all possible. An entire kitchen design can be made to work off a single element like marble countertops, but your kitchen renovation designer needs to know upfront that’s what you have in mind so they can design accordingly.
- Keep maintenance in mind – Some countertop materials require virtually no maintenance. Granite for instance is typically sealed once a year in a process that takes about an hour. After that all you’ll need is a damp cloth until it’s time for next year’s resealing. On the other hand wood countertops stain and scratch easily and ceramic tiles tend to be high maintenance due to the grout. Don’t select a high maintenance material unless you’re prepared to do the work.
- Don’t lose sight of the whole kitchen – All the elements of a kitchen – countertops, cabinets, appliances, flooring, lighting and walls need to work together harmoniously. If they don’t the entire design will fall apart. Make sure you don’t make your final countertop selection without first making sure it will work with the rest of the kitchen. A disjointed kitchen design can negatively impact the market value of your home.
The kitchen countertops probably have more influence over the retail value of your Toronto home than any other single element. Get them right and your kitchen renovation can generate a handsome ROI. Get them wrong and you may wind up having to tear them out and try again. If you’re about to embark on a kitchen renovation talk to the kitchen design professionals at Karen Homes about which type of kitchen countertop will be right for you.