Fall-Ready Kitchen: Quick Updates for a Warm and Inviting Space

 

As the leaves begin to change and the air turns crisp, there’s no better time to consider refreshing your kitchen in preparation for the cozy gatherings and festive meals that autumn brings. The kitchen is the heart of the home, especially during the fall when cooking hearty meals and entertaining loved ones become central activities.

As a professional interior designer who also offers general contracting services, Carole Lee understands the importance of balancing style with functionality.  Here are six easy kitchen updates that can help transform your space this fall, ensuring it’s both beautiful and practical for the upcoming fall and holidays.

  1. Update Your Backsplash

The backsplash is one of the most visible parts of your kitchen and updating it can make a significant impact with minimal effort. Consider warm, earthy tones or natural materials like stone or wood-look tiles to bring in the warmth of autumn. A new backsplash not only refreshes the aesthetic but also provides a durable, easy-to-clean surface that’s perfect for a season filled with cooking.

  1. Install Under-Cabinet Lighting

As the days get shorter, good lighting becomes even more critical in the kitchen. Under-cabinet lighting is an easy upgrade that enhances both functionality and ambiance. Whether you opt for soft, warm LED strips or classic puck lights, this addition can make your kitchen feel cozier while also improving visibility for food prep and cooking during those darker evenings.

  1. Add a Kitchen Island or Update the Existing One

A kitchen island can be a game-changer, offering extra counter space, storage, and a place for family and friends to gather. If you already have an island, consider updating it with a new countertop, adding open shelving, or even integrating an under-counter appliance like a wine fridge. For those with smaller spaces, a portable island or a cart can add flexibility without a major renovation.

  1. Refresh Your Cabinet Hardware

Swapping out old cabinet hardware for new handles and knobs is a quick and easy update that can modernize your kitchen instantly. This fall, think about using materials like brushed brass, copper, or matte black to bring in that autumnal warmth and complement the season’s palette.

  1. Repaint or Refinish Your Cabinets

If your cabinets are looking tired but you’re not ready for a full replacement, repainting or refinishing them is a cost-effective way to breathe new life into your kitchen. Consider deep, rich colors like navy, forest green, or even a soft gray for a sophisticated, seasonal update. As a general contractor, Carole Lee can ensure the job is done with precision, making your cabinets look as good as new.

  1. Incorporate Seasonal Decor and Textiles

Finally, don’t underestimate the power of seasonal decor. Introduce autumn-themed items like patterned dish towels, a cozy area rug, or a centerpiece featuring pumpkins, gourds, and autumn leaves. These small touches can make your kitchen feel inviting and festive without requiring a major overhaul.

Each of these updates offers an opportunity to enhance your kitchen’s functionality and aesthetic, making it ready for the busy season ahead. As someone who can handle both the design and the execution, Carole Lee can ensure that your kitchen not only looks beautiful but also functions perfectly for all your fall cooking and entertaining needs. Ready to get started?

Contact Carole Lee Interiors today to schedule a consultation and let’s bring your dream kitchen to life this autumn!

Kitchen Trends For 2019

Planning a small update or an entire renovation to your kitchen can be both exciting and sometimes overwhelming.  With so many options in flooring, cabinetry, color schemes and the newest appliances, the choices can be endless.  Plus, today’s kitchens need to be a blend of both functionality and technology, helping to make your day-to-day life a little bit easier. Here are just a few of our favorite trends in kitchens we are seeing for 2019.

Bespoke Storage

Storage that is 100% tailor-made and designed for the client is on the rise. Ceiling height cupboards and tall units with overhead cabinets with additional storage is trending.  A wealth of storage solutions including appliance cupboards, pullout china stores, freestanding pieces such as dressers and multifunctional and hidden storage will be an essential feature for both compact and large kitchens in the coming year and bespoke storage is expected to rise.

Kitchen Islands

A kitchen island immediately conjures up ideas of both luxury and a sociable kitchen designed for entertaining.  Not only is it a great place for friends and family to gather, it can also provide extra storage space, or a casual dining alternative when you add stools. A great alternative to an island is a peninsula. A peninsula works very well in single wall or L-shaped layouts. And look for waterfall worktops – a surface that appears to flow over the edge of the worktop covering the side and reaching the floor.

Bespoke Pantries

When redesigning your kitchen, a bespoke pantry is still one of the biggest trends this year and next. A must-have in the modern kitchen, with storage at the right temperature and ingredients easily accessible, a well designed bespoke pantry can also be a thing of great beauty.

Multifunctional Trough Sinks

Tough sinks are multi-functional and are gaining in popularity.  With entertaining in the kitchen being one of its key functions, wine racks and wine coolers are now seen as must-haves. A relaxed modern country kitchen is a true marker of luxury and a trough sink used as Champagne cooler adds a perfect touch.

Specialty Water Taps

Premium water faucets will continue to grow in popularity this year. There are a multitude of finishes and styles to compliment every color palette.  Faucets are now as important to the design as the work surface, cabinetry or materials used in a kitchen. Plus technology has stepped up when it comes to faucets with eco-friendly designs, water saving and touch less options, water filtration, sink and pot fillers and multifunction pull-down sprayheads.

 The Smart Kitchen

The kitchen is the one room where you spend the most of you life so it must be the room that keeps you most up to date. Kitchen tech is endless and keeps evolving, but smart appliances, built-in Bluetooth speakers and automatic lighting will soon become necessities.

Single Slab Backsplash

Gone are the days when a backsplash was a very practical element in kitchen design.  Under certain circumstances, designers are now using stunning single slab backsplashes as a real focal point in kitchens. Similar to how you would use wallpaper or paint or a piece of art to create a feature wall in your living room, a single slab backsplash can be used as opposed to standard tiling in the kitchen. Plus not only is it stunning to look at but it is also easier upkeep with less grout lines to keep clean.