Road to a complete kitchen makeover can be easy

(WMS) — In most homes the living room is a misnomer. In fact, families spend most of their time in the kitchen. That's why many homeowners are updating kitchens to make them more attractive, functional and an expression of their personalities.

Improvements to the kitchen can be as minimal or extensive as your budget allows, and the simplest of changes can often greatly enhance your home's enjoyment and value. In fact, according to a study by Remodeling magazine, kitchen renovations provide the best return on investment out of all home-improvement projects.

If you're thinking about giving your kitchen a makeover, here are a few tips to keep in mind from the experts at DuPont:

• Color is key — Color helps create the environment you desire in your kitchen,whether you'd like to create a warm, comfortable kitchen or a bold, radiant one. Mixing colors and materials and experimenting with painting techniques like sponging can add new depth to your room's decor.

Coordinate your new paint color with complementary accessories like decorative towels, copper pots and pans hung over a workspace and fun place mats for the table.

• Upgrade countertops — If you can't afford to renovate your entire kitchen, one option is to replace your countertops. Not only can this enhance the beauty and performance, but it can change the whole look of the kitchen.

With a material like CorianÆ solid surfaces, you can select from more than 100 colors and can choose design options such as a seamless sink, coved backsplash or rounded edges. To encourage consumers to bring Corian into the home, this popular brand is introducing a "Why Settle?" price promotion that provides savings of up to 20 percent on six popular colors including Glacier White, Bisque, Tarragon, Beach, Dusk and Oceanic.

In addition, the brand has recently introduced a Manufacturers Suggested Retail Prices program that reduces the costs on all single and double bowl sinks for the kitchen. With a Corian seamless sink, you may actually enjoy cleaning up after meals.

• Refinish cabinets — A large focal point of the kitchen are the cabinets. Oftentimes, older homes feature dark wood cabinets that don't always work with today's lighter, more earthy design schemes.

If you don't have the budget to to have a complete new set of cabinets installed, you can add new doors and hardware for an instant update. Or for an even more economical option, consider sanding down wooden cabinets and restaining them in a new shade. Painting, stenciling and decoupaging the cabinets are other inexpensive options.

For additional design ideas for the home, visit www.corian.com or call 800-4-CORIAN.