Makeover Your Kitchen With A New Sink And Taps
Choosing sinks and taps in your kitchen makeover
The availability of a wide range of kitchen sinks and taps makes it ever more important to make the right choice when it comes to revitalising your kitchen. A kitchen makeover (changing the doors, handles and maybe the worktops) is less expensive than installing a brand new fitted kitchen. Even so, it represents a substantial household investment, so it is essential that the sink and taps you choose convey the 'look' that you are trying to achieve.
This article poses the questions that will help you make the right choice when it comes to selecting a new kitchen sink and the tap(s) to go with it.
Style - modern or traditional?
The first fitted kitchens were seen in the post war housing boom of the 1950s and '60s and it is these houses that probably have the greatest flexibility when it comes to kitchen styling. You could choose anything from American diner influences with a bubblegum colour scheme and a huge fridge freezer, to the most ultra of modern kitchens.
Whatever style you decide to adopt, to create an overall look your finished kitchen should have matching elements. And nowadays doors, handles, decor, sink, taps, floor tiles, wall tiles and even appliances can be chosen to match your kitchen style. The first thing to decide is whether you want a modern or traditional look, a contemporary or a country cottage style. In most instances this will be influenced by the type of house you own. For example, an ultra modern glossy kitchen may not be the best choice for a thatched cottage with roses around its front door. On the other hand, a modern open plan conversion in an inner city warehouse has great flexibility and either a modern or traditional kitchen would suit. The general rule of thumb is, that the more modern your house, the more acceptable it will be to install an ultramodern kitchen.
Sink - single, one and a half or double bowl sink?
The answer to which size of sink you're installing depends upon whether you're changing the work top. If you're not changing the worktop then your choices are a bit more limited because you've really got to replace what was there before with a sink which is of a similar size, or larger. In other words, if your 'old' sink had a one and a half bowl, then you can replace it with the same again or have a double bowl sink, just by cutting a bit more of the worktop away. However, you can't have a Belfast sink or any of the undermounted sinks because the hole in the original worktop will be too big.
If you're changing the worktop then you have much more flexibility in your choice of sink. Modern sinks can span more than one style depending upon the design. For example, a ceramic Belfast sink looks great in either a traditional or a country cottage kitchen, but you can get the same look with a modern composite or stainless steel sit-in sink to match the rest of your contemporary kitchen.
Taps - pillar taps or mixer, monobloc or twin?
Your taps should match the overall 'look' of the new kitchen. It would not look as good having an ultramodern kitchen with handle-less gloss red doors combined with a Victorian kitchen tap in antique gold. Similarly, a mono bloc mixer in chrome and volcano black just wouldn't match the image of your country cottage kitchen. However, some of the options for taps may be dictated by the sink you have selected - does the sink have single or twin tap holes? Some designs can be ordered with either which makes life a bit easier. Other designs, such as the Belfast, sit-in and undermount sinks have no drainer (or they have a separate drainer) and therefore there's total flexibility in the choice of tap. Most modern taps, indeed most modern traditionally styled taps, have quarter turn ceramic valves which are much easier to use. They last far longer than the old rubber washer taps and, more importantly, don't drip.
The availability of a wide range of kitchen sinks and taps makes it ever more important to make the right choice when it comes to revitalising your kitchen. A kitchen makeover (changing the doors, handles and maybe the worktops) is less expensive than installing a brand new fitted kitchen. Even so, it represents a substantial household investment, so it is essential that the sink and taps you choose convey the 'look' that you are trying to achieve.
This article poses the questions that will help you make the right choice when it comes to selecting a new kitchen sink and the tap(s) to go with it.
Style - modern or traditional?
The first fitted kitchens were seen in the post war housing boom of the 1950s and '60s and it is these houses that probably have the greatest flexibility when it comes to kitchen styling. You could choose anything from American diner influences with a bubblegum colour scheme and a huge fridge freezer, to the most ultra of modern kitchens.
Whatever style you decide to adopt, to create an overall look your finished kitchen should have matching elements. And nowadays doors, handles, decor, sink, taps, floor tiles, wall tiles and even appliances can be chosen to match your kitchen style. The first thing to decide is whether you want a modern or traditional look, a contemporary or a country cottage style. In most instances this will be influenced by the type of house you own. For example, an ultra modern glossy kitchen may not be the best choice for a thatched cottage with roses around its front door. On the other hand, a modern open plan conversion in an inner city warehouse has great flexibility and either a modern or traditional kitchen would suit. The general rule of thumb is, that the more modern your house, the more acceptable it will be to install an ultramodern kitchen.
Sink - single, one and a half or double bowl sink?
The answer to which size of sink you're installing depends upon whether you're changing the work top. If you're not changing the worktop then your choices are a bit more limited because you've really got to replace what was there before with a sink which is of a similar size, or larger. In other words, if your 'old' sink had a one and a half bowl, then you can replace it with the same again or have a double bowl sink, just by cutting a bit more of the worktop away. However, you can't have a Belfast sink or any of the undermounted sinks because the hole in the original worktop will be too big.
If you're changing the worktop then you have much more flexibility in your choice of sink. Modern sinks can span more than one style depending upon the design. For example, a ceramic Belfast sink looks great in either a traditional or a country cottage kitchen, but you can get the same look with a modern composite or stainless steel sit-in sink to match the rest of your contemporary kitchen.
Taps - pillar taps or mixer, monobloc or twin?
Your taps should match the overall 'look' of the new kitchen. It would not look as good having an ultramodern kitchen with handle-less gloss red doors combined with a Victorian kitchen tap in antique gold. Similarly, a mono bloc mixer in chrome and volcano black just wouldn't match the image of your country cottage kitchen. However, some of the options for taps may be dictated by the sink you have selected - does the sink have single or twin tap holes? Some designs can be ordered with either which makes life a bit easier. Other designs, such as the Belfast, sit-in and undermount sinks have no drainer (or they have a separate drainer) and therefore there's total flexibility in the choice of tap. Most modern taps, indeed most modern traditionally styled taps, have quarter turn ceramic valves which are much easier to use. They last far longer than the old rubber washer taps and, more importantly, don't drip.
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