With only 13 Mondays until Christmas, the festive season is quickly approaching! While we can expect the big day to be filled with joy and cheer, it can be somewhat stressful for the hosts and, most importantly, the designated chef. On Christmas Day, the kitchen is most definitely the heart of the home. So, to make life just a little bit easier, why not get ahead and upgrade your kitchen to create the perfect hosting space?
In this article, co-founder of Kitchen Makeovers, Will Frankling, offers practical tips and tricks on how to create a kitchen that’s both beautiful and functional, perfect for hosting friends and family this Christmas.
Maximising storage for all your Christmas Day treats
Households will soon begin stocking up on mince pies, sweets and chocolates ready for the big day! But sometimes it can be a struggle to fit everything in your kitchen alongside all the usual items. By maximising cupboard and shelving storage through incorporating in-drawer organisers, dividers and pull-out shelves, you can create more space for food, cutlery and crockery – keeping things fresh, clean and tidy – ready for guests to arrive. Storing your treats efficiently also helps to avoid the temptation to eat the treats before Christmas Day!
When hosting, you also want to make sure your kitchen is looking beautiful for your guests. By fitting open shelves onto your walls, you are provided with the opportunity to display your favourite crockery, fruit bowls and ornaments – you can even add a miniature Christmas tree! This allows you to incorporate your own style and character to the kitchen through different textures and pops of colour.
Creating a safe space to prepare Christmas dinner
When cooking a large meal for several guests, it’s crucial to keep the area hygienic and tidy for safety and practicality – it also just looks much nicer for your visitors. There are several things you can incorporate into your kitchen to achieve this more easily.
Internal bins can be installed to be hidden inside drawers or cupboards for easy access while also keeping away any mess or smell which will hinder the pleasantry of your kitchen. Similarly, you can reduce clutter and mess by upgrading your sink to contain a larger basin or countertop with an improved drain. These will not only make the kitchen a safer space – especially for families with young children – but will also give your kitchen that ‘clean’ look.
The kitchen becomes a social hub
While the delicious festive delicacies are being prepared and anticipated and drinks begin to flow – the kitchen often becomes an area for social gathering. Incorporating a freestanding island divides the kitchen into zones separating the chaos and acts as a social area for sitting around while chatting to friends and family as Christmas dinner is cooking. It can also act as additional dining space, which at Christmas can be decorated with tablecloths, placemats and a centrepiece – adding character and creating that festive feel.
Adding warmth during the colder months
The winter months are often dull and very cold here in the UK, and we usually only see 7 to 8 hours of daylight on Christmas Day. Therefore, it is important to create a warm ambience that gets everyone in the festive spirit.
The most obvious way to create warmth is by switching up your radiators to make them more efficient. With strategic placing and changing to vertical-style radiators, you can quickly improve heat efficiency – making you want to spend time in your kitchen.
You can also create a warmer atmosphere through lighting. While natural lighting is essential to a good kitchen – adding warmer tones through lamps and other lighting accessories can create the illusion of a more warm and welcoming space. This is enhanced by adding life to your kitchen through mixing in plants and greenery. Christmas is the perfect time to treat your kitchen to a festive wreath or some miniature pine trees!
Festive finishing touches such as decorative rugs and cushions also encourage the cosy feeling of Christmas by adding in colours, textures and creating a more lived-in feel to your kitchen.
Save time and money this Christmas
Flaky, peeling paintwork and stained, cracked worktops or shelves don’t look very festive but can often be expensive and time-consuming to replace. Instead of going through the process of a full kitchen renovation, you could breathe new life into your kitchen by rethinking your space and making the most out of what’s already there.
Kitchen Makeovers offers a sustainable service which utilises your current units to provide you with a brand-new kitchen look at a fraction of the cost. Simply replacing old tiles, surfaces, doors, drawers, and handles can make a big difference to your space – this can also be achieved quickly and with minimal disruption, taking between only 2-3 days to complete, removing the hassle of not having access to your kitchen for a long period of time. This approach is also more eco-friendly, as you are reusing materials, therefore creating less waste – a vital factor to bear in mind as we all try to limit our negative impact on the environment this festive season.
To find out more about Kitchen Makeovers, please visit: https://kitchenmakeovers.co.uk/
