by Milcarsky's Staff | Mar 31, 2021 | Design
A lot of us found ourselves spending more time than ever at home last year. One of the effects that had for many was a greater degree of awareness when it came to things around the home that could stand to be improved. If all that time at home has you thinking that you’d like to see a change, even something as simple as changing up the color of the paint in your home has transformative power.
Create a Different Mood
Did you know that colors can have an impact on your mood? By carefully choosing your paint colors, you can influence how people feel in different areas of your home. Warmer colors, such as reds, oranges, and yellows tend to be energizing, while cooler colors, such as greens, blues, and purples, can have a more calming influence. Of course, there’s always overlap. Neon green is likely to be more energizing than pastel yellow, for example. Understanding color psychology can help you choose colors that will create the effect you want in any given room.
Make a Space Seem Bigger
Colors can do more than just impact your mood. They can also trick your eyes. The conventional wisdom is that lighter, brighter colors make spaces feel bigger while darker colors tend to make rooms feel smaller. Which one you should use depends on the effect you’re going for. If you have a vast living room, painting the walls with a darker color can help the room seem less expansive and more comfortable for smaller groups. You can also get away with darker colors in a larger bathroom. If you offset them with white countertops and trim, that will help you create a bathroom that feels classy instead of gloomy.
Creating Focus
The color itself isn’t the only thing to pay attention to. The sheen of your paint also impacts the effect the paint has. The more glossy the finish, the more the paint will draw the eye. Conversely, the more matte the finish, the less you’re likely to notice it. You can use this to draw the eye towards or away from different areas of the room, making it one of the many ways you can create focus within a room.
By carefully selecting the paint you use in your home, you can transform it into something that feels entirely new. Paint colors can be used to create a different mood in your home, change the size a room appears to be, and even change the focus of a room. If you’re ready to give your home a facelift, take a look at the paint you already have and consider whether starting there might be a good option for you and your home.
If you are repainting your kitchen, consider updating your appliances at the same time!
by Milcarsky's Staff | Jan 22, 2021 | Design
Countertops are an overlooked potion of the home that can contribute so much to the look, feel, and efficacy of your kitchen. However, it is critical that you do your research before bringing in a construction team. Here are several things you should consider as you design your countertops.
What Materials You Use
Fortunately, there are many different countertop materials to choose from. The material you choose should reflect your priorities. While some materials are prized for their eco-friendliness or protection against heat, others are great for their protection against stains or budget-friendliness.
If you are looking for a cheaper option, laminate may be right for you. It can be stylish, but it also can protect against heat and stain damage. However, you won’t want to ever cut directly onto laminate, or you’ll be left with permanent groves. A slightly more expensive—but great—option would be quartz. Quartz can give the appearance of a marble or granite countertop, but tends to be much more durable. If you want a bolder look, you could always go for recycled glass—a fun, eco-friendly (but not as durable) option.
How Much Space You Need
When you are working with counter space, you should try to maximize it as much as possible. Maximizing your space doesn’t mean less countertop, but it should mean a more efficient use of your countertop. The way your map out your kitchen and counter space should be based upon your needs and cooking habits.
For example, if you share your home with your family, you may need to arrange your counter space in a very purposeful way. For example, a lack of space can cause problems in a kitchen, especially if you have children. Or, if you are a culinary guru or bake as a hobby, you may want an island or extended counter space for ingredient preparation.
Best Color Combinations
Nobody wants to spend money on new countertops before realizing that their color choice is incompatible with their flooring, backsplash, or cabinet colors. You could say that color is nearly as important as the materials you choose for your countertops. To create a cohesive kitchen color palette, decide what kind of style you are going for. It is recommended that you stick with neutral colors like black, brown, white, gray, or beige, and then pair it with more vibrant accessories.
Whether you are looking for increased counter space, or just need a change of scenery in the kitchen, it is important to plan and design your new countertops carefully. Don’t forget to research the pros and cons of different materials, as well as consider color combinations and space. In doing so, you will be one step closer to achieving the kitchen of your dreams.
Want to update your appliances with your countertops? Check out our great selection!
by Milcarsky's Staff | Sep 1, 2020 | Design
The kitchen is the center of the home, but a generic kitchen doesn’t feel very homey. You want your kitchen to feel unique to you. But how do you do that?
Appliances
One way to make your kitchen unique to you is to buy appliances that you like. These appliances can all be a single color, or your kitchen could have a spectrum of color in its appliances such as having a red toaster, a blue microwave, and a white refrigerator for a red-white-blue feel. Your appliances should also be easily accessible to you. If you need a coffee maker daily, but never use a mixer, your coffee maker will be in a prominent place on your countertop and a mixer will be gone or out of sight.
Cabinets
You also want to make your cabinets feel unique to you. This could be the color, the design, even the doorknobs of the cabinets. You can repaint all the cabinets any color you choose. You can add your preferred type of doorknobs to the outside of the cabinets. You can even change the location of the cabinets to better fit your style. Redoing the cabinetry can also add value to your home. For example, some cabinet features can add up to 20 percent more value.
Decorations
Another way to express your personality and make your kitchen unique is to decorate it. Decorations could include a theme or be knick-knacks from your childhood home. For example, if you like the style of a farm kitchen, you could have a rooster wall piece, and egg-shaped salt and pepper shakers. You could also include a barn door that slides out to cover the pantry. You can add wallpaper or even just pictures on the walls. You can also add curtains unique to you. If you want to put in the extra effort, you can also repaint your entire kitchen to express your personality. If the kitchen started off as a pale green and you want to paint it a bright yellow, go ahead. Make your kitchen yours.
The kitchen is the heart of the home. It is a place where people want to come and gather, and it’s also a place where you’ll spend a lot of time. So take the effort and make your kitchen feel like it is the only kitchen in the world that is well and truly yours.
The Milcarsky's Appliance Centre' team wants to help answer any questions you may have. We'd also like to let you know when we publish a new blog post or have some great news to share.
by Milcarsky's Staff | May 5, 2020 | Appliances, Design
Renovating your kitchen is often the last project to tackle in a house. Unfortunately, because the kitchen is the room that works hardest in your home, this renovation is often the most disruptive. Before you tackle this area, it’s important to consider what you need from the space now and what you’ll need in the future.
Determine the Layout
The wide variety in kitchen cabinet styles and countertop options means that you can create any number of designs for your kitchen. Islands can be movable or permanently placed, and some appliances such as dishwashers can be portable or countertop. Before you tear into any kitchen renovation, spend some time in the space determining the footprint or layout. Consider work triangles. For example, raw ingredients come from one corner of the triangle (refrigerator), and tools are collected from another corner (cabinet). Cooking is finally accomplished at the third corner (stove).
Don’t Forget the Walls
Drywall can get pretty beat up when you’re moving large appliances around. When stripping the walls, check for any potential damages to the drywall in order to prevent further problems down the road. Additionally, if you have to open any walls to run power, water or gas lines, you may need to patch or repair the sheetrock before setting cabinets and appliances in place. If you do end up opening a wall and running new utilities, take photos of the changes for future reference before you seal up the opening. Provide these images to the new owners when you sell the house.
Work Slowly
If you’re doing any of the work yourself, do your best to work in a slow, organized fashion. You can save money on the project by doing your own demolition but not if you hurt your back moving the refrigerator. Reduce lifting requirements for cabinets by undoing the hardware and removing the doors. Before you pull the screws, set a brace or a block under the cabinet so you can lower the casing gently. Keep your walking paths clear of debris, tools and supplies. Finally, always wear your safety gear to protect yourself.
Renovating can be exciting. If you have a clear vision of how the new space will work and how much easier cooking and cleanup will be when you’re done, your renovation will be worth the hassle, mess and disruption. Be certain to spend a lot of time in the space determining the best working layout before you get started.
If you’re looking for some new appliances to put in your renovated kitchen, take a look at our cooking appliances!
