Kitchen and Bath Basics
First, thanks to all of you for your well wishes and prayers while I was on maternity leave! My husband and I are thrilled to welcome a beautiful baby girl into our family and have been enjoying the baby cuddles and smiles. The sleepless nights didn’t last too long either—thankfully, she’s a great little sleeper.
I’m excited to return for our kitchens and baths issue, because I’ve personally been in the remodel phase for these spaces in my own home. Our house was built in 1988 and was full of 30-year-old builder-grade basics when we moved in. We’ve been slowly renovating the spaces to be more functional (hello, faucets that don’t leak!) and match our stylistic tastes. We renovated our kitchen in 2018, a powder room in 2019, and we’re getting ready to do the primary bathroom this year.
One of the main questions that comes with renovating these key spaces is: What makes for a lasting kitchen or bathroom? In my experience, it’s a combination of quality materials and quality work. Whether you’re hiring a designer and contractor or DIYing the spaces yourself, it’s important to take the time to really think through what layout will be most functional, the design elements that will make your heart happy, and then make sure the materials and labor are quality so you’re not left with peeling cabinets or leaking plumbing in a year or two.
Luckily, we’ve got ideas and information for you to make the most out of these spaces. Tour some beautiful renovations (pages 28 and 38), a few new builds (pages 56 and 98) and homes with DIYed spaces you can replicate yourself (pages 72 and 82). Shop fun products to update your kitchen or bathrooms (pages 14 and 16), and learn about the hardware and finishes you can swap out for an easy update (pages 24 and 115).
Ready to get going? I hope so!
Cheers,