Kitchens provide many functions, making them essential in any home. More than places for cooking and eating, kitchens host countless memories with family and friends.
Your kitchen is also one of the first rooms guests see when they enter your Cumming, Georgia, home. This is why it’s important to keep it looking incredible and up-to-date with your preferred style. Nobody wants a kitchen full of outdated trends.
Modern kitchen upgrades can take your kitchen to new heights. Many choices exist, whether adding a simple modern kitchen update or implementing a total kitchen renovation.
To help you choose the most suitable kitchen designs for your home, we’ll break down 17 upgrade possibilities.
1. Install a Tile Backsplash
Unfortunately, kitchens accumulate a lot of moisture, especially in sinks. Tile backsplashes protect against water damage and prevent staining from food and oil while cooking.
While functional, tile backsplashes provide great visual appeal, too.
Homeowners install tile backsplashes to blend perfectly with a kitchen’s surrounding walls or surfaces or strike a subtle difference. There are many styles, designs, and colors to choose from, so you can find the right look to complement your kitchen.
2. Add Open Shelving
Running out of space can become a genuine concern if you love to cook or find yourself constantly stocking up on snacks. However, adding too many kitchen cabinets makes a room feel stiff and unwelcoming.
Open shelving is one of the showier modern kitchen upgrades because it adds more space and visual flair. You can show off prized possessions to enhance your kitchen aesthetic and use it to keep plates, cups, and other functional items.
3. A Walk-in Pantry
Instead of adding open shelving, you might want to consider a walk-in pantry. A walk-in pantry boosts your kitchen’s elegance while providing additional space for food, cookware, and more.
4. Glass Cabinet Doors
Retrofitting standalone or upper cabinets with glass doors is another popular modern kitchen update. Enhance the natural light from your windows while showcasing necessities and heirlooms like vases or china. Your guests will love being able to see where what they need is instead of having to hunt through your cabinets.
5. Add a Kitchen Island
One of the most popular and sought-after modern kitchen upgrades is adding or enhancing a kitchen island. Kitchen islands turn the middle of your kitchen into a functional hub for cooking, eating, and storing additional items.
Portable options exist if you’re not ready to commit to a permanent kitchen island.
6. Upgrade Your Seating
Modern kitchen upgrades require a considerable investment or extensive labor. Simply swapping your kitchen seating for new chairs or stools goes a long way. Find a modern style that matches your existing kitchen and the style of homes in Cumming, Georgia.
7. Add a Sleek Black Finish to Your Countertop
Swap out your countertop or add a sleek black finish for a cost-effective solution to enhancing your kitchen. You can choose a matte finish or a glossier one depending on how much shine you want your countertops to have.
For a higher budget, add stone; for a lower budget, go with laminate. It all depends on what the best kitchen countertop is for you.
8. Paint Your Kitchen Cabinets
Homeowners spend a lot when replacing or refacing kitchen cabinets. Kitchen cabinets with sturdy frames and doors and no apparent signs of damage (besides faded colors) might only require a fresh coat of paint.
A weekend with a paint can and a brush is often enough to transform drab kitchen cabinets. You can also stain them if you want to show off the wood grain of your cabinets.
9. Invest in Smart Appliances
As technology evolves, so does overall convenience.
For example, many homeowners no longer worry about washing their dishes by hand or pouring water into ice trays. Smart kitchen appliances are one of the most functional modern kitchen upgrades because they further enhance these conveniences.
Today, many smart kitchen appliances exist, including:
- Smart coffee makers
- Automatic pan stirrers
- Smart wireless meat thermometers
- Kitchen faucets with voice-activated technology
- High-speed smart toasters
- And more
These smart kitchen appliances are especially handy for all the busybodies out there.
10. Wine Refrigerator
Many homeowners would agree that a wine pantry is an unnecessary expense. Having a glass of wine or two while cooking or eating dinner is a treat for many. And yet, your fridge may not keep your wine at its ideal temperature (which is often higher than refrigerator temperatures.)
Incorporating a tiny wine refrigerator into your kitchen island eliminates this problem. Even if you’re not an expert wine connoisseur who quickly spots temperature differences, a wine refrigerator adds an elegant touch.
You may also use it to store other beverages.
11. Add Hidden Light Fixtures
Many kitchens suffer from inadequate lighting, and adding lamps does little to enhance a kitchen’s visual appeal. Instead, homeowners install hidden light fixtures to create more light.
You can add hidden fixtures under cabinets and toe kicks, inside cabinets, under countertops, and more.
12. Pendant Lights
Another modern kitchen upgrade is installing pendant lights. Pendant lights come in many designs, some resembling chandeliers—only without the hefty price tag. They usually hang above places like sinks or kitchen islands.
13. Create a Hanging Plate Rack
The best modern kitchen upgrades combine functionality and visual appeal. While a plate rack might feel outdated to some, maximizing the space in your kitchen makes a hanging plate rack a must-have.
It also adds to the kitchen aesthetic and is a great way to show off your fancier dishes.
14. Upgrade Your Flooring
Replace your flooring to add some “wow” to your kitchen. Besides expensive options like stone tile, cost-effective solutions exist.
For example, cork flooring is catching on due to its cozy feel, relative durability, and lower cost. You can also use tile, laminate, and hardwood. It mainly depends on the look you’re going for and how much maintenance you want to do.
15. Add Some Life
While some don’t count plants as modern kitchen upgrades, they are still a way to enhance your kitchen. Plants light up any room with bright colors while granting fresher air.
You can start small, then gradually incorporate bigger plants and more brilliant colors to add warmth to your kitchen. Even a couple of small plants on your window sill will work wonders.
16. Don’t Shy Away From Statement Pieces
Adding decorations, artwork, and souvenirs gathered from travels is another popular modern kitchen upgrade. While you don’t want to go overboard, you can choose a specific theme for your kitchen, like one inspired by the ocean, a passionate hobby, a particular city, etc.
17. Invest in an Outdoor Kitchen
While we strive to perfect living indoors, sometimes, it’s essential to spend time outside, especially during those summer months. Still, grilling burgers and hotdogs gets old quickly and doesn’t exactly scream fancy.
This is where outdoor kitchens, the classiest of the modern kitchen upgrades, come in. Depending on your willingness to invest, an outdoor kitchen allows you to do everything an indoor kitchen does.
Let 33 North Homes & Construction Help With Your Next Kitchen Upgrade
Many modern kitchen upgrade trends exist, but choosing the right one for your home and budget can be challenging. Additionally, many upgrades require a professional hand. Luckily, our 33 North Homes & Construction team always jumps at the opportunity to help.
Discover how 33 North Homes & Construction implements the best modern kitchen upgrades by filling out our contact form today!