Laurysen Kitchens has been infusing style into home décor since 1970. The Stittsville, Ontario based, family-owned and -operated business offers discerning homeowners an array of services, from custom cabinetry to green material options. Giuseppe Castrucci, part owner and vice-president of sales and marketing, sat down with Xtra to offer some tips on turning around a drab kitchen.
Xtra: What’s your advice for a homeowner who is working with a limited budget?
Giuseppe Castrucci: Always look for function and form first. What is going to increase or decrease the cost of your kitchen is your door selection and your finish selection. Look at the footprint of your kitchen. If you can’t afford a granite countertop, put laminate in because that’s something you can go back to and upgrade in the future. If you really like birch but can only afford melamine, five years down the road you can take those doors off, put in brand-new birch doors and put in two finished gables on either side. Now you have the kitchen you wanted.
What are the most popular kitchen trends?
Right now what seems to be the most popular are grey tones in kitchens. Anise and pepper are two of our new stains that pick up on that demand. More and more people are going towards a painted or opaque finish. The balance depends on if they want to go ultra-modern, contemporary or classic. Most people are interested in colour, colour, colour. That’s the big driving force right now. Grey tones and dark espresso tones are still the most popular. However, white is making a comeback. It’s nice to see that rebound come about. Yet most customers don’t want to go totally white. What most want is an antique white, grey white or beige white, but not so beige that it’s yellow. If those issues arise, we attack that problem by using our coconut or biscotti finish. Because colour is so important now we have rolled out a new series called the Fresco series. So basically, choose any colour from Benjamin Moore or Beauti-Tone and we’ll match it. We have our own mixer here now, and we’ll do a custom paint colour for you.
How do you infuse joy into a lifeless kitchen?
A kitchen should be a reflection of the person who owns it. If you are someone who is very conservative, we’ll do a dark colour but dress it up with some cool handles. Very much like your clothes — it’s the accessories that are going to punch it up. With a kitchen it’s the countertops that are going to punch it up. If it’s not in the budget, we’ll ask about a paint colour. If you have a very classic kitchen, you can punch it up by having a lively paint colour, like a yellow or a red or even a detailed wall.
Of the three main styles you mentioned — classic, modern and contemporary — which is the most in demand?
It depends. If you are going into the condo market, then it’s very contemporary or ultra-modern. They want high-gloss doors, very chic-looking, a New York style.
Are there common denominators that everybody can agree on?
Granite and quartz seem to be a running theme throughout every style of kitchen. Everybody wants a solid surface material if budget allows. Everyone is very much into lighting. We have the right lighting now with the right fixtures, which punch up the kitchen. It’s a common theme throughout.
Laurysen Kitchens
2415 Carp Rd, Stittsville
laurysenkitchens.com
Why you can trust Xtra
