Kitchen Advice

Renovation shows make remodeling look so easy.  I enjoy (and yearn for) hard labor, but the toughest part of remodeling is deciding on a design.  I have experienced some design regret in rooms that are now completely finished.  For instance, my five year old kitchen floor of white ceramic tile - I no longer like.  How green is it to rip out a floor every few years because trends and tastes change?  Seems wasteful.   {I'll be curious to see how soon people will be ripping out their wildly-tiled backsplashes in the next few years (months?).  Those bold design statements will get old fast.}

I believe the answer lies in what I call "updated-classic" style of design.  My tips of the trade are to research, research and still more research.   Collect photos of designs you love - for at least six months.  Revisit those saved images along the way and you'll be surprised to find that some of those selections no longer appeal to you.  Frightening, what if you had installed that?  Phew, that was close!  I have images I've saved and still wonder what I saw that I liked because I sure don't see it now.   

Classic doesn't mean boring - but there is a reason it's called classic = tried and true, test of time.  Good design never goes out of style.  Update it with color or small elements of surprise to keep it interesting.  I still promote doing what you love - just make it smart design.  Don't follow the trends just because they're trends.