Fabulous Five Kitchen Design Tips with Beth of Caruso Kitchens
“Don’t be afraid to have fun with your kitchen design. Color and pattern can instill fear in some, but there are ways to incorporate color and pattern to fit every style preference.”
-Katie Schroder for Denver Life Magazine
The queen of Atelier Interior Design always says it best! The #1 key to creating a space you’ll love to cook in for years to come is about not being afraid to have fun with it. Key #2 is to ensure it functions as it needs to for you and your family. If you mesh a personality-driven design with ultimate functionality, the end result will be a kitchen that works hard and looks good while doing it. So, how do you make this beautiful, high-functioning heart-of-the-home come to life? We sat down with the expert, Beth of Caruso Kitchens, to get her insider kitchen design tips!
MIXING CABINETRY COLORS
Q: At Atelier, we love to mix cabinetry color in a kitchen - as you know, we are color cray-cray. How do you feel about it?
Beth: Obviously, this varies from client to client, but we do a lot of it and I personally think it can be a great design choice. You can approach it several different ways. For example, you can do the whole surround/perimeter cabinets in one color then do the island in something contrasting or you can do the base cabinets in a dark color, such as dark green or navy, and the uppers in a lighter color. By doing a darker color below and a lighter color above you avoid the kitchen appearing too top heavy.
Q: When picking out colors, many think “that’s too trendy” or “am I going to like that in 10 years” and your response is?
Beth: Absolutely and always do what you love. I don’t care if it’s neon pink, if you love it, do it. Don’t be afraid!
CONSIDER DURABILITY
Q: Caruso has lots of different lines, which is one of the many reasons we love working with you. Whatever you’re installing in your kitchen or secondary room, you want to make sure it’s durable. We’ve recently taken to your laminates - tell us about them.
Beth: So, these are not the old-school, cheesy laminate you think about when you hear the word “laminate”. Instead, these are thermally fused, making them a great option if you’re looking for something economical and durable. They are always a slab door and take on a more modern appearance, but they come in different textures which is really fun. Not only that, they install beautifully and really do look super hot all while being easy to maintain and clean.
HOOD & BACKSPLASH AS DESIGN FOCAL POINTS
Q: We think the hood and backsplash are all the rage. What do you say about them?
Beth: I agree with you! For instance, you can get really crazy with hoods - think patterns, shiplap, detailed cabinetry, plaster, even decorative detailing such as mesh metal… we happen to be working on one of those with you now. Can’t wait to see it!
You can get funky and really bring personality in with backsplash too. If you have a shorter span of space, it can be fun to bring in vibrant color and pattern as the whole of the backsplash or if you have a longer span of space, getting crazy underneath the hood while keeping the rest of the backsplash toned down can create great balance.
MIX UP THE HARDWARE
Q: We call the hardware “the jewelry of the cabinet”. Can you speak to that a bit?
Beth: Hardware is so much fun! A lot of clients assume all the hardware needs to match - it doesn’t! It doesn’t need to match your faucet, sink, light fixtures, nor do the pulls and knobs need to match. The more you mix, the better as it makes your kitchen appear more luxury and eclectic. For instance, you can use a pull on the drawers and a knob on smaller cabinet doors. Also, if you are mixing cabinetry color, you can use one hardware color paired with one cabinet color and another hardware color paired with the other cabinet color.
Q: Should you budget for the hardware?
Beth: Yes! We strongly believe that the hardware really makes the kitchen and in order to not have to skimp, we suggest budgeting $1,500 to $2,000 for high-end hardware.
BUILT-IN APPLIANCES: GO OR NO-GO?
Q: What are built-in appliances? Can you give us some pointers on when to use them and when not to?
Beth: Built-in appliances are higher-end appliances that are paneled so that they look exactly like your cabinetry. You can do this with the refrigerator and dishwasher. I like to use built-ins in a smaller kitchen to maintain consistency in the look, but in a larger kitchen, I prefer to break it up with the actual appliances’ faces - if you have 50 feet of cabinetry with nothing breaking it up or creating contrast, not only will it take you hours to find the refrigerator, it’s also not pleasing aesthetically.
Are you ready to make your Denver, CO-area dream kitchen come to life, but would like assistance from the Color, Pattern, Culture team? Contact us today!