• Cabniets and flooring can improve your home look, feel and value.Modern elegant kitchen image by MAXFX from Fotolia.com
  
  Floors and cabinets are huge focal points in a kitchen, leaving a lot to consider when shopping. Flooring and cabinets come in many different designs and often are the foundation used for designing the rest of the kitchen. Choose flooring and cabinets first, then design the rest of the kitchen.
  
  

Flooring

• Kitchen floors must have an impervious and resistant surface, which rules out all surfaces like carpet and most timber laminates. With the high wear and tear and repetitive spills prone to happen in a kitchen, the floor must be able to withstand continuous abuse and still look good. Tiles, wood and even granite are popular choices for kitchen flooring. Pick something that is durable. Generally, stick with lighter colors to brighten the room, though you can go dark if it is more appropriate for your kitchen color scheme.
  
  

Cabinets

• Kitchen cabinet designs vary depending on the home. To design the layout of new cabinets in a kitchen, the distribution of cabinets will be the first thing to consider. Traditionally, the distribution and placement of cabinets is around kitchen appliances: oven, stove, refrigerator, dishwasher and sink. The classical way to distribute cabinets in a kitchen keeps the heat from the oven away from the refrigerator, while still keeping everything close by. Draw out a basic floor plan of the kitchen to figure out the final design of the cabinets. Establish the cabinet material, choose between framed or panel doors, knobs styles, hinges and drawer slides. Finally, consider the overall kitchen design to complement the cabinet colors.
  
  

Budget

• Calculate the budget for the kitchen's floor and cabinet design. If your budget is tight, consider purchasing the materials and doing the installation yourself. Most home repair stores can help get you started correctly. The higher your budget, the higher quality materials you can buy. Keep in mind that although the redesign can get expensive, you are adding value to your home with a clean, fresh kitchen floor and cabinet design. The investment will pay off when you sell the house, but do not break the bank just to make your kitchen look nicer.