If you’re thinking of hosting friends and family for the holidays and have need for any remodeling projects, now is definitely the time to get started. But before we talk about which projects make the biggest impact for holiday remodeling, we suggest making a list of what you want your home renovation to accomplish. Weigh these factors when considering your renovation priorities and what your options are. Our experienced design center team can then help you find everything you need to achieve your remodeling goals.

• Price:
  The happiest holidays are ones that fit into your budget with room to spare.

  Style:

  Your renovation should fit your personal taste and the look of your home.

  Necessity:

  What’s the biggest thing you feel your home is missing? Now’s the time to build it. More counter space? Another oven?

  Convenience:

  Even if your home has everything you need, some special additions can simplify entertaining, letting you spend less time preparing and more time with guests.

  Personal Touches: Think about the people who will be spending time in your home and their needs and tastes. Accessibility remodels, for example, make sure that all your guests feel included and welcome.

With your remodeling priorities in mind, let’s look at some of the best holiday renovations you can make.

Kitchen Islands

Nothing improves the flow of your kitchen like a well-designed island. Used for food preparation, storage and service, a kitchen island solves a host of problems for holiday entertaining. Because every kitchen is unique in how it’s used, custom islands are the key to making this design work in your home.

Home design experts often talk of kitchen efficiency in terms of the work triangle, the pathways created by the three most important parts of your kitchen: the refrigerator, stove and sink. When your work triangle is optimal, you save steps in the kitchen, and saved steps mean saved time. Installing a kitchen island that contains a stove, full sink or bar sink can reconfigure your work triangle to make it more efficient.

Double Oven

Whether it’s whipping up some cookies or roasting a turkey, the holidays invariably mean baking, and having two ovens cuts the time you spend doing it in half. Preparing a feast for family and friends is also easier in a double oven that gives you enough space to make huge batches to feed large crowds. Versatility is another factor; with two ovens, you’re able to have one set to bake and the other to broil foods, giving them that finishing touch of browned toppings or melted cheese.

Dual ovens can even help you turn out better food. Proper oven temperature is essential to food safety and quality, but it isn’t practical to wait for an oven that’s just baked a casserole at 400 degrees to cool down to the 325 degrees needed for a delicate cake. With a double oven, you can set one to a higher temperature range and the other to a lower one, ensuring that everything you serve is cooked through without being overdone.

Counters

One of the best ways to refresh a kitchen or bath is with new countertops. New counters are more than just an aesthetic upgrade; they can also make clean-up simpler, streamlining your meal and party prep. Natural and synthetic stone surfaces offer high style with low maintenance. Restaurant-grade materials are also finding their way into home kitchens, butcher block and stainless steel. If these counters can stand up to professional kitchens, they can handle your holiday cooking.

Floors and Carpets

Your home’s flooring will see heavy use during the holidays, so now is the right time to look into the beautiful, durable new options available for every room of the house. Laminate flooring is an economical way to give a room a makeover, and laminates stand up well to high traffic. New tile is another great way to refresh a room. With designs that mimic stone, brick or even natural wood, tile’s making inroads into rooms other than kitchens and baths.

Carpeting will make guest bedrooms feel cozy, and modern materials make carpet care easier than ever. The freshest designs incorporate texture as well as color, giving floors dimension and resisting wear or crushing in high-traffic zones.

Bath Upgrades

While most of the renovations you might think of for the holidays involve the kitchen, don’t forget about your bathrooms and whether they’re up to a houseful of guests. While building out an entire bathroom before the holidays may not be practical, turning a half bath into a 3/4 bath with an all-in-one shower unit can help make guests feel welcome for longer stays. Upgrading a pedestal sink to a vanity with towel storage or a place to put extra rolls of toilet paper, or maybe even a double sink are relatively small, but very helpful upgrades.

Some of the most important bathroom improvements are invisible. Is your water heater large and powerful enough to supply water for house guests and their additional showers? Are your water bills high enough to necessitate low-flow shower heads and toilets? Do you have persistent plumbing issues that frequent use might exacerbate? Now is the time to take care of these hidden concerns that could put a damper on holiday cheer.

Transition Spaces and Closets

Almost every home could use more storage, and that’s especially true when it’s full of holiday guests. Carving out space in existing rooms can work if you have enough square footage, but you might have other solutions that spare you from cutting into living space. Mud rooms, basements, closets and under-stair storage areas are just a few places to look for space to reclaim.

Fireplaces

Jack Frost shouldn’t nip at anyone’s nose inside your home. A new or upgraded fireplace acts as a focal point for a room while bringing light and cheer into your home. Older homes that have had fireplaces sealed over can often reclaim them, but the outdated surround may not be what you’re looking for in a modernized home. Our design team at Tum-a-Lum will find you the pieces you need to frame out a fireplace or repair a mantel in style.

Look for everything you need for your home’s holiday renovation project at our Hood River Design Center. Whether you just want to freshen your kitchen or give your whole home a holiday makeover, we’re ready to help.