If you are a California resident like me, you know what I am talking about. We love the almost year round good weather (we are hating this heat wave, though), the beautiful beaches, international cuisine: a foodie’s heaven, the diversity, and did I say flip-flops? The perks of California come with a price though. Yes, we pay the high price of real estate and if we can afford to buy a home, then we wonder how we can fit all our stuff in it. Average homes are 1200-1700 square feet 3 bedroom 2 baths, very limited space. We park our cars mostly outside because the garage became the storage area we desperately need.
Fortunately, the good weather allows us to utilize outdoor space and make it a part of the home itself. With different innovative options to open up space like accordion, folding, sliding glass doors, homeowners can enhance indoor outdoor living. A big portion of the remodels we have done recently are designed for a more open space and give a home a brighter and lighter feel. We tore down quite a lot of non-load bearing walls. We have integrated the kitchen design into an open indoor/outdoor environment and not a totally separate room in itself. We have installed very tall windows to give an otherwise tight hallway look more spacious and let more light come into the home. Design trends are using formal dining rooms into added space for a more spacious and informal family room that is flexible and functional to add more sitting space if needed. Some projects had us create vaulted ceilings to give the home more space vertically creating an illusion of a bigger space.
Our kitchen remodels are mostly requested by homeowners to answer their needs in getting more organized, and for added storage, utilizing every inch of existing space. Kitchen cabinetry nowadays offer a wide range of stylish, functional, and creative storage solutions to choose from. Lazy Susans, full extension roll-out trays, toe-kick drawers, cutlery inserts, wall spice cabinets, deep drawer cabinets, tilt outs, mounted door racks, and so much more are available to choose from customizing the kitchen to suit every need. Islands and peninsulas are great choices in creating an informal dining area or add more sitting space for entertaining. Our kitchen designers create layouts that allows for fluid movement, efficiency, and functionality without sacrificing esthetics.
Bathroom remodels are also in big demand. Just like the kitchen, older California homes are not designed to maximize space. Posts, soffits, 4” high shower curbs, poor lighting, framed frosted shower glass doors, are some of the features that we modify allowing more light to come in, creating a bright more open space but still cozy enough for a candle-lit bath. Clear frameless shower glass doors allow homeowners to appreciate more the beautiful colors and texture of their chosen tiles. We use bigger tiles using 1/8th or 1/16th grout line to make them appear more solid and lessen the grid-look that tends to make the bathroom look even smaller. Shower tiles are installed all the way to the ceiling. Niches or shampoo boxes become focal points together with a feature band of decorative tiles, turning the shower into a piece of art that homeowners can truly call their own. Solid vanity countertops made of quartz, granite, silestone, are much more preferred for their beauty and ease of maintenance, saying goodbye to the 4x4 porcelain tiles whose grout lines are a pain to keep clean and simply dated. Mirrors, yes we love mirrors. They do wonderful magic in a small bathroom especially when LED lighting is incorporated into the design. LED lighting fixtures come in all kinds to fit into the bathroom design. A good lighting design can combine three types to light the bathroom. General (recessed lighting), Accent (chandelier), and Task (Vanity Lighting).
A home remodel will not be complete, all the design, layout, and finish materials, won’t take center stage without the right paint color selection. There are so many shades of white and neutral colors that can create a light and bright mood into a room with some homeowners opting to do a feature wall that is painted with rich or deep colors. We can help guide homeowners in their selection of colors.
Knowing that there are options to make a home more livable, spacious, and beautiful makes homeowners or soon to be homeowners confident that no matter the size of the house, they can still truly call it their home. A home where they can relax, entertain, and create good memories together.
FOR A FREE NO OBLIGATION CONSULTATION, CONTACT MARIA NICHOLSON AT 714-767-4198 OR EMAIL HER at maria.pbcinteriors@gmail.com. Follow her on Instagram @ she_remodels.