Kitchen & Bathroom Design Blog

Here is a new blog post from a guest author contributing to
Lang’s Kitchen & Bath’s website. All views expressed are those of the author.

Your house becomes your home because of how you feel about it. However, even your dream home can get old. Paint fades, surfaces chip and walls crack. Trendy colors go out of style, patterns fall out of favor and rooms get cramped. Your needs change over time.

An upgrade may be in order if you no longer find your abode as desirable as it used to be. Consider these seven ideas to rekindle your love for your home again.

1.   Open-Concept Layout Conversion

About one-third of Americans who want to renovate their houses hope to gain more space. Adopting an open floor plan is one of the best ways to make your home feel less crowded. Tearing down interior walls lets you reclaim more floor space and increases your usable square footage.

The open-concept layout optimizes flow and allows light to penetrate deeper into your home. Blurring the lines between your living room, dining area, and kitchen makes your interior look fresh. The absence of walls promotes cohesion, which you can reinforce using the same color scheme and a common decorative element — like period pieces, metallic objects, or wood items.

An open floor plan doesn’t mean zones lack borders. Thoughtful furniture arrangement and placement of carpets and rugs creatively demonstrate where rooms begin and end.

This layout has drawbacks. You give up privacy and security for space and lighting. Some walls contain pipes or wiring and knocking them down means realigning your plumbing or electrical system. Walls with load-bearing features are removable but require extra care and attention. An open-concept home isn’t for everybody, so consider this project’s implications to avoid regret.

2.   Uniform Flooring Switch

Replacing contrasting flooring materials and styles with a single product can be a cosmetic game-changer. It boosts aesthetic consistency, producing a sense of connectedness across your rooms. The lack of breaks in flooring can make your home airier with or without an open-concept plan, creating a smooth transition from one zone to another.

From a practical standpoint, a uniform floor design renders maintenance a breeze. Materials have dissimilar thicknesses, so using just one reduces the risk of tripping. Buying a single product in bulk costs less than ordering multiple ones in small quantities.

3.   English Country Kitchen Makeover

Of all kitchen designs, the English country aesthetic is one of the most enduring. Homeowners have Googled it 144% more lately — a testament to its timeless appeal. 

A quintessential English country farmhouse kitchen is big on wood with a weathered finish. Wood is the secret to its warmth and Old-World charm. It’s also synonymous with freestanding furniture, like a kitchen island and standing cabinets, making your life easier when you decide to tweak its appearance again. Deep, double-bowl ceramic sinks and Shaker-style storage units are staples of this classic kitchen design.

4.   Bathroom Modernization

If going to the bath feels like traveling through time — because everything looks dated, not because it’s pleasantly vintage — it’s time to renovate it. You can go minimalist with muted colors and clean lines or daring with dramatic tiles, textured walls, or a wild countertop pattern.

Whichever way to go, consider including a floating vanity. Every modern bathroom has it because it’s a sight to behold. It adds negative space and introduces depth into the room.

Making your bathroom more livable by upgrading its damaged surfaces, finishes, and materials will set you back about $35,000, depending on your requirements and location. It can be a significant expense, but you can recover about 71% of the job cost when you sell your home.

5.   Second Bath Addition

What’s better than a modern bathroom? A second one.

Prioritize this upgrade to make mornings less chaotic if your family has to share a single bathroom. Consider a Jack-and-Jill style if you have space constraints. It can turn two kids’ bedrooms on the same floor into a quasi-en suite. This space isn’t as private and convenient as a separate bath. Still, it can do wonders for teenagers willing to be considerate of one another and work out a favorable bathroom schedule for everybody.

Adding a powder room is worth the expense if your home already has two full or three-quarter baths. Providing more options makes sense if you have a growing household or love having people over.

Many homeowners tackle this project to boost property value. It’s the wrong mindset, though. An additional bathroom will justify a higher asking price but has an underwhelming resale value. It’s not an investment, so finance it for the right reasons.

6.   New Insulation Installation

It’s hard to love an under-insulated house. It offers little resistance to heat loss, causing your HVAC system to work harder and accelerating its wear and tear. It may not noticeably lower your comfort levels since your thermostat ensures your space is as warm or cold as you want it to be. However, you’ll feel the pinch when you look at your utility bills.

You can go about your insulation upgrade in many ways. A wide range of materials at numerous price points and levels of installability is at your disposal. What matters is to know and target your region’s minimum R-value requirements for various areas to make your home energy-efficient. Over-insulation is a thing, so think twice before you buy too much material to avoid its unintended effects.

7.   Aging-in-Place Modifications

Most American adults want to spend the rest of their lives in their houses. If you’re approaching your golden years, optimize your home for ease of mobility and accessibility.

Expect physical limitations the older you get, so fund key retrofits and remodels as early as possible. Handrails, ramps, door handles, cabinet pulls, nonslip and low-impact flooring, and stairlifts are must-haves in any aging-in-place home. Don’t stop at these modifications, though. Assess your unique needs to focus on suitable improvements to make your house as senior-friendly as possible.

Fall in Love with Your Home Again

Love can be challenging to regain once lost. With the above upgrades, you can reinvigorate your positive feelings toward your home and make you want to spend more time in it.