Remember, it is television.
First of all, let’s remember that HGTV shows are produced for entertainment. There are some shows that we all brace ourselves for the moment the beams are rotted from termite damage, or some other disaster, that always seems to right itself with added stress and expense. It’s a production formula. It has not been commonplace in our remodels of over 10 years. Our experience as a premier kitchen and bath remodeler in Naperville, IL, along with our combined experience in home remodeling has enabled us to put into production, some formulas of our own.
During the design phase is we are proactive in looking for hurdles and hiccups that may affect your project. There are some aspects of design that are written in stone because of functionality, and building codes. But a perfect example of a potential hurdle or hiccup, is removing kitchen soffits.
It’s rare to see soffits in new builds, but our kitchen remodels in older homes always have ‘remove soffits’ on the to-do list. By removing the soffits what do we get? An updated kitchen design and extra storage because the cabinets go to the ceiling, providing about an extra 10″-12″ of storage space multiplied by how many feet of perimeter cabinets do you have??? This can add 20, 30, and 40 extra cubic feet of storage. BUT WAIT! That sound like a lot of space but we’d better see what’s IN the soffits first.
We walk with our clients at every phase of their kitchen or bathroom remodeling project.
During the design phase, after we are on retainer for your project, we look in those soffits and see what’s there; oftentimes there will be some electrical, HVAC or even some plumbing being hidden. This isn’t a deal breaker for that extra storage. With minor adjustments, we can make the design work. The same concept goes for removing walls, or changing footprints in both kitchens and baths remodeling projects.
When the solution is cost prohibitive or seemingly impossible, we make it a priority to face any problem and create a solution with our clients. We take a proactive approach by making the holes, having a look, and if necessary, talking with our trade experts before you fall in love with the design.
