You know how much I love my white walls and the uber sleekness of contemporary design. Today I came across a post at deZeen.com and discovered the world of Japanese product designer Naoto Fukasawa. He makes accessible, functional and simply gorgeous small appliances for your kitchen under the brand name Muji.
There are no sharp corners here, it's all minimal, voluptuously curvy and white. The series includes toasters, electric kettles (I want one!) rice cookers and more. Muji is crazy popular in Japan not just for the innovative styling of its products but also for their affordability. This line retails from $95-$195 and will be available in the UK and select USA (whatever that means) stores at the end of the year.
Fukasawa is a creative thinker who also designs furniture and intuitive interfaces for cell phones . The comment element is it's minimal, highly functional and always artful!
5 Elements of an Artful Kitchen
Summer projects are underway in South Florida! In fact, it's the height of the busy season for most design professionals here.
I don't have to tell you that a new kitchen is a big investment, in fact the kitchen is the most expensive renovation you're ever likely to undertake. It stands to reason that you'd want a kitchen that is tailor-made for you whether you can afford custom or not. This is what we're all about at Artful Kitchens.
The concept of an "artful kitchen" has many different facets. It is not just about budget or the amount of space you have but the skill you employ using what is available to you. Here are five tips to consider along with some visual inspiration featuring products I saw this year at the Kitchen & Bath Industry (KBIS) trade show in Las Vegas. Implement these with style and confidence and you will be the proud owner of an artful kitchen!
1. Flawless Function
I'm all about artistic expression but a major part of creativity in the kitchen comes from devising flawless function. This quality is not something you see but something you can experience if artfully accomplished. When I say function, I mean work centers comprised of cooking, clean up and food prep areas.
Those are the basics but you could have more such as a beverage center (think coffee, tea, wine), a computer station or a baking center. If you have a two-cook kitchen, your layout should be designed so that any one of the major functions can be performed without anyone getting underfoot.
Following the guidelines set by the NKBA is a must to make sure all clearances are adequate. Sometimes we don't have a lot of choice about where to locate our sink or appliances but we can organize our utensils, dishes, pots and food items in a more efficient way. Don't forget the more flawlessly your kitchen functions the safer it is. You don't have to be an expert at this, just think about how you use your kitchen so that you will be a good collaborator when it comes time to work with a professional.
2. Personalization
This is, without a doubt, the biggest movement in the design world. An artful kitchen is your own personal statement customized to the way you live. It could be a steam oven because healthy eating is your passion or it could be a lovely furniture piece with glass doors to display your grandmother's china. Include the colors you love. Even though you must be mindful of your budget (everyone has one), strive to retain the essence of what you see as your dream kitchen.
3. Harmony
Harmony is one of the principles of design and a must for your kitchen. Whenever I design a two-toned kitchen I like to ensure that different finishes and details are carried through the space to create a cohesive whole. It's about how the floor relates to the cabinets and how the cabinet hardware relates to the faucet. You get the picture! It does not mean that everything has to match perfectly, it means elements should relate to and complement each other. It also does not mean that every element has to be perfectly symmetrical. In fact, consider this permission NOT to be! I find that the best rule of thumb is to follow the architecture and style of the home you're in. If, for example, the kitchen window is way off center you should work with that not against it. Never force solutions by sacrificing function.
4. Focal Point
Every piece of great artwork has a focal point. It is the "star of the show", so to speak. In a kitchen it can be a sculptural range hood, a granite counter with big bold movement or actually a piece of art! It is the item that makes you say WOW when you enter the kitchen. Just remember less is more here. One great focal point is probably enough. Too much and the statement gets lost. Less is definitely more.
5. Texture
The element of texture involves at least two of our senses, touch and sight. The textures you are likely to come across include the glossy finishes popular in contemporary design, prominent wood grains which can be traditional or modern and smooth honed surfaces that are more matte. A flat slab cabinet door is a great choice if you plan to use a wood with a lot of pattern and graining. In this case the material is the decorative element of the cabinet. On the other hand, if you are traditional and you are using white cabinets you can select a door with some molding or detail. Also let the wild patterns either be on your cabinets or on your counter, both would be busy and distracting.
This is only the tip of the iceberg, so to speak. There are many more tricks and methods to create an artful kitchen. What are yours? Please keep in touch and contact me. Whether you need a quick consult or a full design layout I can help in person or virtually.
I'm located in the West Palm Beach area, so if you're local I can also help you shop for your kitchen products.
Bake to the Future with A Smart Oven
Appliances of yesteryear barely resemble those that we take for granted today. We have ovens that can remember how to cook our favorite recipes and even refrigerators that send messages to an of state location to report a malfunction!
Here's how it works. Say you're away and your fridge goes kaput. Said fridge sends a report to headquarters who in turn follow up with a phone call to let you know and to schedule a service call. I was amazed when I heard that a year or so ago at a Miele appliance demo. Miele calls it "Remote Vision". Sounds a bit creepy but smart creepy, no? The "smart" function is beginning to infiltrate most appliances but today I want to talk about ovens.
Yesterday Tech Crunch announced the unveiling of a new counter top “smart oven” by June, a teeny tiny company based in San Fransisco. The new June oven features precision, intuitive function and modern convenience all in something that resembles a toaster oven. It has a built-in ability to identify and even weigh food to suggest cooking methods and utilizes convection technology and carbon fiber heating elements . It also allows you to monitor your steaks with your smart phone. There's more, you can check it out here, but it still looks like a toaster oven. It fits a dish as big as 11" by 16", so maybe a little bigger than toaster oven capacity.
To be fair, there are already built-in "smart ovens" on the market. Justin Landman of House of Appliances in Delray Beach, Florida says, "Jenn-Air announced their wifi connected oven earlier this year. Dacor also offers a smart oven feature called Discovery IQ". The price tag on these starts at $3,600 for Jenn-Air and $4,400 for Dacor.
The new June oven will be available starting next spring for $1,495 but you can reserve one for $95 now. You'll just have to get over the loss of counter space.
BigTrends from KBIS2015 Part I
Day two of the Modenus Blog Tour was opening day for the 51st annual Kitchen and Bath Industry Show (KBIS). The Bloggers were given an inside peek into many of the booths at the show and as we toured, trends most certainly did emerge.
"There is a three year lag between Europe and North America when it comes to trends", says Warren Ramsland, President of Top Knobs. Taking that into account, there were many differences between what I saw here and what I witnessed in Italy at Euro Cucina last year. Perhaps the biggest European influence that continues to pick up steam is contemporary design for both the kitchen and bath.
Laminates are enjoying a serge in popularity. This material is more widely used and experimented with by our friends across the pond but we're picking up speed. I was wowed by the offerings at Wilsonart who debuted their "Spirit of Mindfulness" collection of 27 exciting laminate colors and textures. Also introduced were a line of quartz counter tops in a great assortment of neutral, workable hues. By late spring, a selection of 50 patterns will showcase a full range of colors, textures and four structures: Fine and Small Scale, Medium Scale, Large Scale, and Veining and Movement. That is one of the things I love about quartz, the wide variety of pattern, or no pattern at all! I was impressed not only by the innovative product development at Wilsonart but also their philosophy. This press release statement says it all:"Fueled in part by a turbulent economy, today’s more budget-savvy and eco-conscious consumers have responded by making their homes the calm eye in the storm of life. For many, this translates to finding a spirit of mindfulness within themselves and expressing it in their surroundings."
One of the new Wilsonart quartz options showing beautiful veining. Photo courtesy of WilsonartCheck out the Wilsonart Visualizer to help you pick your counter top color. It's easy, fun and very helpfulTechnology is also taking the kitchen and bath world by storm. There were numerous examples but two stood out for me. A company called TechTop took home the Best In Show Award for their counter top charging technology. Simply place your phone, tablet etc. on the counter top and viola' it will charge, no plug-in required. 
This great idea is from LG Hausy, yes it's the same "Life's Good" LG that makes appliances. They make counter tops too. I also loved this Solna articulating faucet by one of my favorite brands, Brizo. How convenient, right?!Fifty Shades of Gray has moved on to what I call "greige". It's the new warm toned beigey-gray which I saw everywhere! Palettes are definitely neutral. A great example is the Tangent collection by Walker Zanger. Love the mid-century inspiration which I also saw a lot of at the show. 
Walker-Zanger deals in tile, marble and stone artistry. Their collections are arguably the most innovative I've seen. Case in point is their Sterling Row collection, inspired by menswear and a favorite at the show. I found it to be extremely sophisticated, eye catching and innovative. The collection was a favorite at the show. 
We saw more of the Sterling Row Collection later on the blog tour in The New American Home, so there's more to come!Perhaps the BIGGEST trend of the show was personalization. I mentioned this in the last post about Thermador but they were not alone. Here are a few more pics highlighting the concept. Frigidaire's SpaceWise Custom Flex refrigerators allow you to totally customize the shelves inside by moving the drawers and shelving to your desired configuration.
How about this great storage system by Rev-A- Shelf? I know we all want this level of organization in our lives, yes? Right now this is a prototype but the response from the industry was good so I think we can expect to see this in the coming year.
Enough for now? Well there's more to come.Up next: KBIS 2015 Part II where I'll tell you about all my great finds for the bath and more.
Getting Personal with Thermador
The Kitchen & Bath Industry show (KBIS) is like Christmas morning for a designer, full of excitement and new discoveries. That's exactly what my experience was like this year as a member of the Modenus Blog Tour. 
Not only that, I also had the opportunity to meet and mingle with some truly awesome designers, the rock stars of our industry. Before we get to that, on Monday our group visited the Las Vegas Market located in the World Market Center, also the location of Modenus Talks, a meeting of the minds where the topic of the day was: The Power of Great Design - Improving Well Being at Work and at Home.
So awesome to think that the way we design our homes and work spaces impacts our health and well being, including mental health! Combine this with personalization, a significant trend across brands, and you have a winning recipe for client and designer.
Personalization means more options and choices to suit your individual needs. One example of this is the innovation at Thermador. Zach Elkin, Director Luxury Division at Thermador, spoke about how the brand embraces the culinary enthusiast.
This year, at KBIS, they introduced a new 30” professional style range with innovative features that provide more design possibilities. Sister company Bosch also introduced a line of smaller appliances proving that very good things come in small packages
Another big healthy trend is steam cooking. Trust me, you are going to be seeing much more of this. You can cook ANYTHING except popcorn in a steam oven and it comes out great, even pizza, crispy too! Steam is not just for veggies anymore.
I can't leave without telling you about Thermador's new Freedom Induction Range, the first full-surface induction appliance in the luxury appliance category. That means that there are no "burners", in fact the whole thing is one big "burner"! It has sensory technology that "just knows" ;)
Next up: The Perfect Party Mix: Blanco & Poggenpohl
Blog Tour Preview
As you know, I'll be heading off on Sunday to immerse myself in all the magic of KBIS2015, courtesy of super design site Modenus. This is a HUGE show for our industry and you can be sure I'll be partying taking careful notes and lots of pics to share with my blog peeps! 
I'll be posting recaps here upon my return but if you'd like to follow along in real time please LIKE my new Face Book page, Kitchens for Living or you can follow me on Twitter and Instagram. If you're planning a new kitchen, listen up! We're about to unleash upon you all the latest product and design info you need to plan for your home.
Don't forget to check Modenus to see what all the Blog Tour Bloggers are saying. These pics are a preview of the Blog Tour sponsor line up. That means that you'll be hearing more about this diverse group of industry favorites as I learn about them.
Now if you made it all the way to the end of this blog post, ladies (and certain gents), you shall be rewarded. 
Stay tuned for more about all these brands and more!