Yes, the kitchen is the heart of your Mexican home. Do you remember the beautiful onion slicing scene in the movie “Like Water for Chocolate?” I do. It seems to me that any memories that involve food and kitchens are always more vivid. It makes perfect sense: they are accompanied by flavor, color, textures, aromas all of which makes them more evocative and powerful.
When considering your furniture choices in Mexico, do pay close and special attention to your kitchen. Not only is it the heart of your Mexican home or condo, but often kitchen space becomes a combination of dining room, living room, hang out place and oasis of relaxation (if you like cooking and entertaining, that is!) Following these 5 tips will help improve your kitchen, wherever in the world it is … but especially if it is in Mexico.
In Mexico, kitchens tend to need to breathe more. The humidity in some areas makes homeowners opt for open shelving so that everything can breathe and air out. Regardless of where your Mexican kitchen is, though, you must plan for ample storage space that can accommodate your activities and your family's entertaining needs so that you can easily put things away. When we have no storage place, things end up on counters or other places in your home. Good planning and ample storage space makes for a clutter-free kitchen.
Your kitchen will be used to store, prepare, wash, cook food, and also for connecting. Make sure you consider these uses when you are choosing furniture, storage, space requirements and even color design for your Mexican kitchen.
Everything you will need must be accessible so that you can use, prep, cook or share it as easily and swiftly as possible. If you are left-handed and you are the primary cook, then the handles, doors, drawers should be designed and built for your needs. Very heavy items should not be in bottom drawers or cabinets. If they are, someone will get hurt as they lift them over time. Plan the space considering your family and guests so that the kitchen area works well for you whether you are alone in your Mexican kitchen or cooking while friends and family sip margaritas while delighting in the aromas, colors and textures of your food preparation.
Plan your kitchen organization for visual appeal as well as practical appeal and invest in organization systems as you go along. It is easier to incorporate organization while you are planning and considering your furniture needs rather than afterwards. In my kitchen, I have a motto of “clean up as you go along.” In my humble opinion, a clean organized kitchen is one hundred percent more joyful.
Details such as counter stools, kitchen islands, drawer pulls and even kitchen utensils should be practical, but also aesthetically pleasing to you. The more enjoyment you are able to feel and cultivate in your kitchen, the more enjoyment your family and guests will derive from the food that comes out of it. Just as we have to be in the right “inner space” to cook a great meal, everything we feel, sense and think of while we prepare food goes into the food and is experienced by those partaking of it. A happy beautifully designed soothing kitchen with colors, furniture and accents that make you feel joyful and composed will be the wonderful, vital, nourishing heart of your home.
