If you dream of an updated, upgraded kitchen, don’t feel guilty about it. Kitchens sell houses, as any real estate expert will tell you. They’re also the heart of the home, where we spend most of our time, studies show. So improving this important living space is a sound financial investment, and an investment in your family’s happiness.

You don’t need to spend a lot to create a dramatic difference in your kitchen. A mini-makeover may be all that you need to turn that blah kitchen into the showpiece of your home.

“When people think of kitchen renovation, they usually think of the expensive ventures, like replacing cabinets, countertops and appliances,” says Dan Auer of Faucet.com, a leading online retailer of decorative home products. “But starting small - with easy yet dramatic changes that can be done in a weekend - can make a big difference in the appearance and value of your kitchen.”

Auer offers a few tips for getting started on your kitchen’s mini-makeover:

* First, pick up some home magazines or visit some model homes in your area to get ideas. Pay close attention to the projects that will make the most impact but will be easy to accomplish, like wall color, sinks and faucets, lighting fixtures, cabinet knobs and accessories.

* Forego the frustration of home improvement stores, where what you want may not be in stock, or where you can spend hours looking for someone to answer questions or get the product you want. Take advantage of online resources, like www.Faucet.com, where you can see exactly what’s in inventory, and shop by style, finish brand or price range from a selection of more than 50,000 sinks, faucets and accessories all with just the click of a mouse.

* A new faucet can vastly improve the look and usability of your kitchen. Installing a new one is a basic improvement within the abilities of the average homeowner. When choosing your new faucet, keep in mind both the look you want to achieve and how you will be using the faucet.

For example, if you’re often trying to regulate water temperature with one hand (while the other handles 10 other tasks), a single-hand faucet offers easy control. If you’re creating a traditional or period-style look, consider a two-handle faucet. Serious cooks may consider adding a pot-filler faucet, which mounts on the wall near the range to allow you to fill a pot that’s already on the stove.

* “Sinks are an important factor in a kitchen’s overall appearance, yet many people overlook them completely,” Auer says. Stainless steel, cast iron, single bowl, double bowl or even triple bowl – kitchen sinks now come in styles, sizes, colors and features to fit virtually every décor and work space.

The number of bowls you’ll choose will depend on your personal preferences and how you use your sink. Heavy food prep use may call for two or even three bowls, while use as a rinsing station may require only one bowl. The material you choose should complement the overall look of your kitchen. If you need help deciding which sink is right for you, Faucet.com offers a Kitchen Sink Buying Guide.

* Next, look up – at your lighting. While kitchens in some high-end new homes may already be decked out with the latest in lighting, chances are if you’re in an older home you have some very basic overhead lighting. While this lighting might be functional, it’s not always visually attractive. Fortunately, it’s an easy job for a do-it yourselfer to replace a basic overhead fluorescent fixture with something equally bright but more visually appealing. Under-the-counter task lighting is also a must for a well-lit modern kitchen. And a few artfully placed pendant lights over a breakfast bar or kitchen island can impart elegance and practicality.

When you’re ready to start shopping for your mini-kitchen makeover, log on to www.Faucet.com for more ideas, inspirations and easy shopping.

Air tubs speak to luxury. Reaching high onto the tub ladder of classes, air tubs are the creme de la creme. Many have turned to air tubs, and not whirlpools, for the bathroom for the very reason that a whirlpool, while often a true luxury, can also be a consistent annoyance. An air tub just speaks to rest and relaxation. To comfort. Big and spacious, air tubs from leading brands Kohler and Jacuzzi come in various shapes and styles, and if you’re willing to splurge for comfort, there’s no reason to not weigh the pros and cons of an air tub versus a whirlpool tub in the process.

A Fiat laundry sink is a must have for active families or city apartment laundry rooms, among many others. Large and industrial, these are super efficient sinks that fill all of your hand washing needs. With a sleek white finish, the sinks are not only clean, but go a long way to brighten your laundry room. And with various design options available, there’s little doubt you’ll be able to find a sink that best fits your laundry desires.

It’s truly amazing how far things have come. Always looking for the next best thing, consumer demand has been anticipated and met and as such, homeowners everywhere have taken decor to the next level. Things like sink faucets, once nothing more than functional eyesores, are now, believe it or not, things of fine crafted beauty. For the kitchen there’s the ground-breaking prototype of the pull-out spray faucet and for the bathroom there’s such a wide array of styles and designs available that you can find a faucet finished in rustic copper reminiscent of the French countryside. No matter your need, to not take advantage of the many options available would be to fall terribly behind the times.

A drop of the word, and a sense of calm overwhelms the mind: Jacuzzi. Synonymous with rest and relaxation, Jacuzzi products go that extra mile to turn your bathroom into a luxurious spa. For your shower, a Jacuzzi shower base is just one way to get started on the aforementioned transformation. With classic lines, ridges, and cuts, you’ll find an oasis at the bottom of your feet every time you step beneath that shower faucet.

In the kitchen there is the stove. There is the refrigerator. The oven. Blender. Toaster. Even dish towels. And of course, there is the kitchen sink. With that sink there is one ever-important detail that can so easily be taken foregranted: the sink faucet. The sink faucet is something used everyday, at all times of the day, and when it comes down to it, how many people could even describe their kitchen faucet in great detail? It’s something that just flies under the radar. But there’s no reason for that! With kitchen sink faucets from leading designers such as Belle Foret, Kohler, and LaToscana, there’s finally an ending to that dull, overlooked, who-even-cares-about-it faucet.

As with any tub or shower, when shopping for whirlpool faucets, the obvious thing is to match the faucet to the whirlpool itself. If you’re planning to have a cascading rock garden with trickling waterfalls flowing into the whirlpool, then obviously certain faucets will not work. But, if you’re looking for a handsome faucet to compliment a more practical whirlpool, then your options definitely open up. As silly as it might seem, it’s important to be prepared. Find out what designers specialize in what type of tub faucet. Compare value to quality. Detail. Style. There are loads of ways to go, so choosing the right faucet depends on this preparation, albeit simple.

A favorite for consistency in quality and durability, Kohler raises the bar even higher with handsome designs and various styles. For the bathroom, a Kohler shower faucet can be sleek and shiny or rustic and bronze, appearing to have been hand-rubbed with time-wrenching dedication. They can be super modern and simple or traditional with an antiquated sophistication. No matter the style you prefer, adding that new shower faucet to your bathroom is always something to look forward to, and with Kohler, there’s no doubt you’ll be thrilled every time you hit that morning shower.

Whirlpool faucets are certainly a luxury, but when installing a whirlpool tub, the faucet is also an obvious essential. For such a specified household item, it’s easy to worry that options for high quality whirlpool faucets are few and far between. But, that’s just not the case. With faucets from brands like Kohler, Danze, and Moen, and many more, there’s no shortage of competition between the leading manufacturers, which of course equates to better product. And with designs ranging from modern to innovative Art Deco to classic Victorian, there’s plenty of style options to choose from.

Moen makes a great faucet. Often the statement can be made that when buying bathroom faucets, you should buy for style, or function, or value. It’s therefore difficult for the three to be synonymous, but Moen breaks from the norm. A Moen bathroom faucet is altogether an incredible value, with each faucet conceived as a marriage of unparalleled function or head-turning style. And with their LifeShine durable finish guarantee, which promises that our faucet will not tarnish, corrode, or flake, the cat’s in the bag. Truthfully, even if you tried to buy a Moen faucet strictly for function, you’d windup with something that looks great and won’t break the bank.