Home remodeling is on the agenda for many Americans today, and it’s often the kitchen that receives the most attention – and, often, it receives it first. However, as Yahoo highlights, the kitchen is actually quite a risky place when it comes to renovations – there are several factors, from using poor quality materials to over-customizing the space – that will result in an overall reduction in property price. The threat of having to take remedial action is another factor. For those families looking to overhaul their kitchen, focusing on three key principles – flexibility, smart use and sustainability – will create a valuable room that’s fit for the future.
Flexible and fun
Kitchens should be designed around flexibility and versatility, rather than style – function over form. Building accessibility into your plans will help ensure you are prepared for any mobility problems faced by you and your family, and it will also help you to ensure kids can get involved in the kitchen. That latter point may be more important than you think – according to a study published by the British Medical Journal, kids who get involved with cooking for better dietary habits, and report lower blood pressure and related indicators of poor cardiovascular health. Bring in droppable counters, safe child-friendly kitchen tools, non-slip bowls and high quality aprons and mitts. You can make the kitchen fun and safe this way, and lay the groundwork to then take it to the next level with smart appliances.
Smart appliances
Smart kitchen tools have advanced rapidly over the past few years. Voice-controlled appliances were already a fantastic boon for cooks, whether through setting timers or turning appliances on at specific times. Now, there are countless smart tools for use in the kitchen that vastly improve the flexibility of your cooking and can help to influence them. In a recent roundup of their highlighted devices, Digital Trends focused on slow cookers, sous vide baths, microwaves and dishwashers. Every aspect of the kitchen can be made smarter – making operation of these devices more beneficial, and making the kitchen smart, which is the way of the future. Allowing the kitchen to guide itself through your eating habits and preferences, and enable you to automate your life, is the key factor.
Building in sustainability
Food waste is a huge part of the climate change question. Up to 31% of food in the USA is wasted, according to the US Department of Agriculture. This has a huge impact in terms of emissions and energy, according to New Food Magazine, who assert that the total food waste load is equivalent to 37 million cars in emissions terms. The new kitchen will have solar energy linked in from the home, a composter to ensure that all food waste is managed, water-saving appliances like taps and dishwashers, and proper recycling sorting. Building sustainability into the core competency of the home is key.
The kitchen of the future is one that reflects aspirational qualities today. Smart, inclusive, and sustainable.
