When choosing the right luxury home plan, many to-be homeowners often get hung up on the kitchen details. Should there be a separate breakfast nook? How much storage space is needed? Does it include island countertops? Will there be a skylight? The kitchen is often times the center of your family's day-to-day activities, so every detail needs to meet your needs and design aesthetic. As you begin planning out your custom luxury home, here are 4 things to keep in mind when designing the kitchen:

1. Use a mixture of counter top materials.
In large luxury kitchens, having the space dominated by slabs of granite or marble countertop can make the room feel cold and harsh. Your kitchen is arguably one of the most used rooms in your home, shouldn't it feel warm and welcoming? Why not take a different approach to luxury kitchen design and use a variety of counter top materials including limestone, silestone, or even wood in addition to the usual marble. For instance, you could opt for a wood top on the island, making it look and feel more like a traditional kitchen table and less like counter space.

2. Hide the appliances.
Nothing clutters the design of your luxury kitchen like a bunch of appliances filling up your countertops. When you're designing your luxury kitchen, make sure you incorporate plenty of room to store your kitchen gadgets! You can opt for a large pantry with built in shelving, or larder cabinet with an internal countertop for your big, heavy kitchen equipment. You can even integrate large appliances like the refrigerator and dishwasher into the design so that it blends in with the rest of the cabinet design. Done properly, the paneling should hide the appliance so well you shouldn't even be able to tell they're there.

3. Get the light right.
Terrible lighting can effectively kill any luxury kitchen, no matter how perfect the rest of the design is. Many homeowners opt for functional lighting that strives to illuminate the whole room at once, but this kind of lighting doesn't lend itself much to creating a "mood" in your kitchen. Lighting is a lot like fashion-you have to mix and match different styles to create the right look for you. Why not try a variety of recessed lights over the counters and sink, an elegant ceiling lamp over the island and decorative pendent lights that add color, style and light to the corners of your kitchen.

4. Don't be afraid to add color and patterns.
While white kitchens just seem to ooze luxury, there is no rule saying that colors and vibrant patterns aren't just at home in a luxury kitchen. A bright red accent wall with white cabinetry can really intensify the space and becomes the focal point of your kitchen. A blue, patterned backsplash over the stove adds a Mediterranean flair to your luxury kitchen and jewel tones can really pop against a dark countertop.

5. Add an island.
The old days of kitchen peninsulas are gone! When designing your luxury kitchen, go for the biggest island the space can hold (maybe even two!) The island is the hub of your kitchen-it's a place to prepare meals for a dinner party, mix drinks for guests, and act as a self-serve buffet or as a seat for the family to sit down for a quick snack. Kitchen islands work well in U-shape and L-shape kitchens because they shorten the distance between counters and keep kids and guests from getting in the way.