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The tile work alone illustrates the amount of detail that can go into a kitchen—as well as how much of a difference detail makes between ho-hum and memorable.
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By Anne Patterson
Do you want to be regarded as a remodeler who has outstanding ideas— one who stands out from the rest by being responsive to clients' desire for special features adding to the appearance and convenience of their home? You might like to consider some of the following recommendations offered by Mark Dixon, vice president and co-owner of Legacy Custom Building & Remodeling Inc., a design/build residential remodeling firm based in Scottsdale, Ariz.
The firm has been successfully remodeling upscale homes since 1988, so Mark is familiar with the difference special features can make in the overall success of a project. He suggests the following as relatively low-effort, low-cost ways to get a lot of positive reaction from your clients—and make your projects look and perform like a million bucks, even if they price out at a fraction of that:
Scenic lighting. "A lighting system with dimmer controls, such as the one offered by Lutron, shifts the mood in a room at the touch of a button," Mark says. "One of the rooms where we most often install this system is the kitchen, where a good deal of casual entertaining takes place today, especially when the kitchen is adjacent to the family room."
Low-voltage lighting. "We currently are using a lot of low-voltage lighting, most of it in the kitchen. For task lighting, we are installing more xenon lighting instead of halogen spots. Little halogen puck lights under the cabinets create hot spots, while the xenon lighting comes in strips producing a more even light on countertops. In addition, xenon lights generate less heat than halogen," Mark says.
Special kitchen storage. "More and more homeowners want easily accessible storage in their kitchens," says Mark. Special storage features include vegetable bins, lift-up shelves for mixers, slotted storage for cookware lids and spice racks. Another popular feature is shallow pantry shelving in several layers. The front layer of shelving can be folded back on piano hinges to access the back shelves.
Combination steam/convection oven. "Clients love the combo steam/convection oven offered by Gaggenau because food retains its moisture and vitamins," Mark says. "The cooking time is almost the same as cooking with a microwave."
Air-activated switches at the kitchen sink. Available at Home Depot, these handy push button switches can be mounted on the counter behind the sink, keeping the backsplash area free to feature an attractive tile design, according to Mark. The disposal can be activated without the potential danger of electrocution. Electric plug strips are mounted out of sight under the kitchen cabinets.
Television in master bath. "The newer flat screen TVs can be installed behind the vanity mirror," says Mark. "When you turn on the TV, it shows through the mirrored glass. Turned off, you only see the mirror."
Radiant heat in floors. Legacy frequently installs radiant heat under a tile floor when the master bath is remodeled. "We use a thermostat system with a timer," Mark says.
Front door video monitoring. The homeowner can monitor who comes to the front door and respond via an intercom system.
Water filter system. "Clients are more conscious of water purity today, so we install reverse osmosis water filter systems a lot," Mark says.
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