The kitchen is the busiest room in the house, a place where food is prepared and the family gather in the morning and evenings. Indeed, for some, the kitchen is also a living room – a wall-mounted flat screen TV is all you need.  If you feel that your kitchen is looking a bit jaded and it could do with a makeover, here are a few tips to help make the project a success.

• Start by creating an inventory – By inventory, we mean to decide what will remain and what will not. You might, for example, like the current ceramic tiling and have no plan to change, or perhaps the vinyl floor has many years left before it needs to be replaced. Make a list of things you won’t change, then you can start to think about the layout and design. 
• Breakfast island – If you have the space to create an island in the centre of the room, that’s ideal! With a space to locate your cutting-edge Delonghi automatic coffee machine, freshly brewed coffee is on tap, which is great on a busy workday morning. Check out Google Images for cool breakfast island examples, while YouTube hosts a lot of ‘How to build a kitchen island’ videos if you are planning to go down the DIY route.
• Get creative with kitchen storage – Why not ask a local carpenter to measure up for fitted storage cupboards and shelves? Having customised storage space ensures that your kitchen won’t be cluttered’ every item should have its own place for storage; use the inner surfaces of kitchen cabinet doors to hang implements and make sure everyone in the house knows where things are stored.
• Costing the project – An essential aspect of any room renovation is the cost; once the design is complete, you can use Google to help you source materials and products. If you are going to hire a kitchen renovation contractor, give him your budget and see what they come up with regarding design. It pays not to be totally price-focused when renovating a kitchen, as you may end up spending more in the long run. A good contractor would be able to work to the client’s budget and insist on an all-inclusive quote.
• 3D design apps – Search on Play Store and you will find apps that can be used to design a kitchen; this is a great way to see how the room would look with different layouts. Let’s say you would like to relocate the kitchen sink, this is possible with a little bit of plumbing, while gas appliances can also be relocated if you use a gas-approved tradesman.

Of course, it is more than a little inconvenient to have a team working in your kitchen, you could take a few days holiday, leave the keys with the contractor and when you return, your new kitchen will be ready for inspection.