From Rendering to Reality: Remodeling a Kitchen

The kitchen is the room that homeowners most often want to remodel but it can also be the hardest room to visualize. Enter kitchen design rendering—a game-changer in the world of remodeling. Designing a kitchen involves balancing functionality, aesthetics, and personal style to create a space where you can cook, dine, and entertain. Traditional methods of kitchen design often relied on sketches and blueprints, which, while useful, can be difficult to visualize in three dimensions.

What is Kitchen Design Rendering?

Kitchen design rendering uses advanced computer software to create a detailed, three-dimensional representation of your kitchen. This technology allows you to see exactly what your kitchen will look like before any construction begins. Renderings can include everything from cabinets and countertops to lighting and appliances, giving you a realistic preview of the final result.

The Benefits of Kitchen Design Rendering

We often create 3D renderings for homeowners so that they can really understand what their home will look like when construction is complete. Renderings provide:

  1. Enhanced Visualization: One of the primary benefits of kitchen design rendering is its ability to provide a realistic view of the proposed design. This helps homeowners visualize how their kitchen will look and feel, making it easier to make informed decisions about layout, materials, and colors.
  2. Accurate Planning: Renderings allow for precise measurements and scaling, ensuring that every element of the kitchen fits perfectly within the space. This reduces the risk of errors during construction and helps in planning the placement of appliances and cabinetry more effectively.
  3. Cost Efficiency: By visualizing the final design beforehand, homeowners can make changes to the plan without the need for costly adjustments during construction. This can save both time and money in the long run, as potential issues can be identified and addressed early in the design process.
  4. Customization: Homeowners can experiment with different styles, colors, and materials to create a kitchen that truly reflects their taste and lifestyle. Whether you prefer a modern, minimalist look or a cozy, rustic feel, renderings can help bring your vision to life.

“Before:” Analyzing the existing space

We recently worked with a local family on renovating their entire first floor. The biggest changes were in the kitchen. Even from first glance, it was easy to see why they wanted to renovate. The cabinets and appliances were dated, there were different ceiling heights where the soffit hid pipes and a beam, and the layout simply didn’t lend itself to spending time preparing meals or as a family.

Custom Contracting’s Scott Blain worked with the homeowner to come up with ideas on how to best transform the home. In the end, the entire first floor was renovated, allowing the team to “start from scratch” with the layout.

Is this the same house?! YES!

There’s usually a “wow” moment when homeowners see the proposed rendering. The future kitchen would be relocated to the area formerly used as a dining room. New cabinets in complimentary colors for uppers and lowers, an island with plenty of seating, a large stove hood, pendant lights, and a tiled backsplash were proposed.  

Our in-house designer worked with the homeowners on several versions of the rendering. What would these cabinets look like in another color? Is the island the right size? Does the proposed kitchen reflect the clients’ style and also work with the overall aesthetic of the home?

Sometimes choosing the finishes is challenging for homeowners. With a rendering our designer can change the layout, swap out hardware, add cabinetry, and change the backsplash with the click of a button.

From Rendering to Reality

Once the design is finalized it’s time for construction to begin! So how closely does the rendering match the completed kitchen? See for yourself!

Doing a side-by-side comparison of the rendering to the finished kitchen feels like a kids’ game of “spot the differences.” You might notice that the cabinet hardware and pendant lights are different from the rendering, but overall, they are nearly identical. By using a rendering there were no surprises or “what ifs.” Instead, the homeowners knew exactly what they were going to get when our team completed the punch list and cleaned up. Today, the homeowners are enjoying the new kitchen we helped them visualize!