| Ben Thompson (24)

Outdoor kitchens are a HOT trend! Homeowners are embracing the trend of adding an outdoor kitchen to their backyard living space. The Weber grill is being pushed aside for fully outfitted outdoor kitchens with top-of-the-line appliances, countertops, bar seating, and cabinets. Extending your living spaces outdoors increases your options for entertaining and adds to your personal enjoyment of your home during the warmer months. With an outdoor kitchen, the chef can be a part of the action while your guests and family enjoy the outdoors.

Natural light in your home enhances mood, adds ambiance and promotes a healthy environment. Who doesn't want a home that's warm, inviting and healthy? One of the easiest ways to improve your home in these areas is by enhancing and improving the flow of natural light. Better use of natural light also reduces energy consumption and can lower your utility bills.

The kitchen is the heart of the home. The island is the hub of the kitchen. Kitchen islands are a key element of your overall kitchen design. And that makes sense since its placement establishes the traffic pattern and is often a main focal point.

These 5 tips will help you set a realistic budget for your remodeling project. So you've decided you want to remodel your home. That's fantastic! Now, one of the first things you should do is develop a realistic budget. A remodeling project is a significant financial investment, one that will pay off in happiness and comfort as well as adding value to your home. To help you, we've put together a list of five tips to help you establish a realistic budget for your remodeling project.

Layered light is the best way to enhance ambiance and the overall design aesthetic of the spaces in your home. Lighting planning and selection is one of the most important design aspects of a remodeling project. There are three basic types of lighting: ambient, task and accent. Layered lighting is the design principle of combining all three types to create a balance between visual aid for performing tasks and enhancing the design aesthetic and ambiance. A professional designer will know how to design your remodeled space with an effective layered lighting plan.

Keep your comings and goings more organized with a mudroom. Every home can use a mudroom - a place to drop your bags, coats, umbrella, book bags, leashes, golf bags, or baseball mitt. Households of all types and sizes can use this room as a staging area to help manage clutter and keep mud and dirt out of the rest of the home.

Important things to consider when remodeling a family-friendly kitchen. Let's face it, the kitchen is the busiest room in the house. Whether it's cooking meals, grabbing a snack or baking cookies, your kitchen is bound to see people of all ages passing through. Creating the family friendly kitchen to accommodate adults and children of all ages can be done. All it takes is looking at your family's habits and planning your design accordingly.

Stainless steel appliances are still the number one selection for kitchen remodels. It's easy to see why. They look great, blend well with all varieties of cabinets and most countertops, and can be used in both traditional and contemporary spaces. But, anyone who owns stainless steel appliances know that they have a tendency to show fingerprints, which means the need frequent cleaning. Stainless is more sensitive than other finishes so you must use the right materials and cleansers to avoid damage to the surface.

Creating the functional garage – ideas for your garage remodel. There’s a great space in your home that is just begging to be more useful or organized – it’s your garage! Since many people only use it for entering or exiting the home, it’s easy to overlook as a great opportunity for functional space. In this blog, we will get you thinking about how a garage remodel could make you love your home even more.

Are you in need of a home office remodel? Today, every home has a need for some type of home office space. The type and size of the space varies depending on how and who needs to use it. Fortunately, there are many ways to accommodate home office space in your home and we’ve compiled a list of questions to help you discover some of those options.

Is Your Master Bedroom Ready for a Makeover? Your master bedroom isn’t just for sleeping. It’s the place where you start and end each day. So, why not make it as relaxing and functional as possible? Thompson Remodeling has compiled a list of six questions we use to help clients think through the type of space they want to create in their master bedrooms.