One thing I discovered during my Bosch Blanco Bloggers' Retreat is that creativity cannot be contained. It spills out of the box in all sorts of interesting ways. It was a great experience. It's exciting and inspiring to learn about all the products, both the history and origins, as well as the very latest technologies. Most of all, I loved hearing about the design process and how these products come into being. I enjoyed interacting, not only with the creatives at Bosch and Blanco, but also with my peers. Whenever I could, I asked them about their typical days, how they work and what they do in their off time. What I found is that there is no off time for a creative. I should know that, right? I discovered an editor who loves to knit, a kitchen designer who's passion is ballroom dancing and a much admired kitchen blogger who loves to photograph roses. She confesses to having literally thousands of rose photos lurking in her hard drive! The creative process is also a big part of what I learned about during our two days at the BSH Design Center in Irvine, California.
The process of developing new products begins with colored pencils and adventurous minds. The team at Bosch endeavors to achieve just the right combination of precision German engineering and the latest technology to address the needs of the consumer.
Sometimes these needs are apparent but often they can be situations (observed and researched) that we may not even be aware of! This is what makes the folks at Blanco and Bosch such a great team. They have a similar approach which understands that everything's connected in our world and it all informs what we need to function comfortably and efficiently in our homes. Kudos to them and thanks for the memories!
DAY 1 BOSCH/BLANCO BLOGGER RETREAT
Back to the real world!! Got home around 11:30 last night. Jet lag be damned. I owe you! Here are my notes from Thursday which was officially day one of our Blanco/Bosch Blogger Retreat. So without further ado:It's beautiful here! The sun is shining but no sweat! They tell me it's because it's dry. I could get used to this no humidity stuff. Last night the first arrivals gathered for dinner at Bayside, a beautiful restaurant in Newport Beach.
The food was delicious, the scenery beautiful and I was so excited to be in California with such an impressive group! This morning we went on a walking tour of the amazing Segerstrom Preforming Arts Center which is right around the corner from our hotel. It's a world class venue for concerts, theater and especially dance. In fact it's the largest privately funded performing arts center of its kind in the nation. The oldest part was built in 1986 and the newest twenty years later. The design is comprised of an interesting juxtaposition of triangles and undulating curves.
The 3000 seat theater is currently running the musical American Idiot featuring the rock group Green Day. We got a sneak peak back stage. I had no idea it was so complex behind the scenes!
After a delicious lunch at Seasons 52 it was time to descend on the brand new BSH Design Center located close by in Irvine. BSH will feature not only Bosch but also Thermador and Gaggenau appliances when completed. Blanco and Bosch are two German based companies who value fine German engineering so it makes sense that they are collaborating to offer consumers the whole package, sinks, faucets and appliances of unmatched quality and design.
After a champagne reception we got to participate in a panel discussion on kitchen design trends moderated by Dwell Magazine Contributing Editor Erika Heet.
Thursday's dinner was a real treat. The event was titled Designed to Devour. That was a pretty apt description. True Food Kitchen, Newport Beach is a new restaurant specializing in a very "California" type of cuisine, very whole, healthy and organic. I had the best panang curry ever (vegetable, of course). The acai-pomegranite mojito was not too shabby either!
Enough for day one? Day two we entered the "design lab" (lab coats and all, honest!). We got a first hand view at the design process, materials and more. Check back next post for round two where we really dig into the nitty gritty of what makes Bosch appliances so extraordinary.
CALIFORNIA HERE I COME!
Yes, I'll be on the road again. As a proud member of the Blanco Design Council I have been invited to a Blogger Retreat happening May 31st-June 1 in Orange County. The event is sponsored by Bosch and, of course, Blanco.
My last California adventure was for my honeymoon in 09 when the hubs and I explored San Francisco and surrounding locales. This time it'll be the southern scene. We're staying in Costa Mesa and will also be visiting New Port Beach. They've got all kinds of interesting events in store all based around the theme "European Design for the Modern Kitchen". I'm also very excited to meet up with my fellow bloggers and Design Council members, some of whom I will be seeing for the first time! As usual, YOU get to come along (virtually, that is). Stay tuned! Until then I'll be California dreamin...
2012 DREAM
Last night I had a dream. Before I share it, let me back up a bit and set the scene. One of the nicest, no actually the BEST thing that has come out of this blog for me is to have been chosen by Brizo Faucets to attend Fashion Week in September 2010 as one of the "illustrious" members of the Blogger 19. This was followed by a trip to Toronto in January 2011, as a member of the Blanco Design Council, to attend IDS (International Design Show). I not only became acquainted with cutting edge state-of-the-art products but also with many talented folks in the blogging community.
Now Modenus, a go-to site for design dreamers as well as professionals, is sponsoring Blog Tour 2012. Veronika Miller, who I had the pleasure of sitting next to at the Jason Wu fashion show is the mastermind behind this venture. They are currently selecting the blogger line up for some new design adventures. All this must have been lurking in the outer recesses of my mind when I went to sleep. To sleep perchance to dream!Hubs and I arrive at a hotel and check in. We are down in the lobby where I discover that a great meeting is about to take place. It's an advance gathering of potential candidates for the 2012 Blogger World Tour! Lo and behold, in walks in the King of Kitchen Bloggers, Paul Anater along with Nick from Cupboards, who I've never actually met. We all fall into a big group hug and I am swept into the event. Wow. All "potentials" are handed a "blog critique" and mine is pretty complimentary, actually. Paul leads the group which now also includes Erin Lochner of Design for Mankind. As the meeting unfolds I begin to see how unprepared I am. Yikes! I'm dropping pens, struggling to keep up when it occurs to me that I need to take pictures and blog about this! I must go to the room and get my camera. (It never occurs to me to call Hubs and ask him to wait for me even though he's being really good and waiting for me on the sidelines.) I feel the big brass room key in my pocket. I pull it out and it says 27. (I dream a lot in numbers.) I locate a very helpful bell hop who helps me figure out what floor that's on. He consults a chart which tells us that 27 is actually 7151 which means I'm on the 7th floor. Now I can grab my camera and get back to the group. The bell hop senses my sense of urgency and puts me on the closet elevator which is for freight. Did I mention he's wearing a hairnet?Everyone knows dreams are meant to be exploited for shameless self-promotion. So there you have it, just a lil wish for the new year. If I don't get that I'll settle for health, prosperity and another great year for Kitchens for Living where my dream is to motivate, inspire or help you create your own DREAM KITCHEN. Happy new year!
Elements Converge In Dream Kitchen
Another year is winding down. We have been blessed again with many interesting projects. As we are in “finishing up mode” I thought I’d share with you one of the best of 2011. This project was a true collaboration. Our clients, a couple of sweet snowbirds from Chicago, were very hands on which made it fun to see this kitchen take shape. The existing space was on the small side, the cabinets a little dated.
Our assignment was to add a whole range of state-of-the-art appliances and a clean unique contemporary feel that would flow into the existing family room. Naturally storage and function were also of the utmost importance but the real challenge was in fitting it all in!!
They chose a rich coffee bean stain for the cabinets to match existing cabinetry in the family room. The cabinet fronts were not ordinary doors, no way. Together, with our clients, we designed the Soldono and the Soldono Pacifica Doors just for this job. The Soldono custom door features a cherry frame around a horizontal grained oak center panel all stained in a rich espresso color. The center panel is beveled on one end with stainless steel grip strip inset on the frame. No hardware sticking out in this kitchen! A select few of the upper cabinets sport the Soldono Pacifica custom door which received center panels in olive ash burl veneer for a huge shot of “unique”. 
Stainless steel serves as an accent finish and is found in the appliances and in the monster-multi-functional Hafele appliance garage. Refrigerators are Subzero, ovens are by Gaggenau, cooktop is by Miele and the dishwasher drawers are by Fisher Paykel. Thank you to Linda Roberts at House of Appliances for her guidance. Counter tops are Caesarstone quartz by Stone Palace and the backsplash is painted glass by Florida Shower Door & Mirror, Inc. Clearly they do much more that shower doors! Perhaps the "piece de resistance" however is the glass tile behind the hood. It truly looks like water cascading down the wall behind the hood! The sink is a Precision by Blanco and the glass theme is picked up again with the glass table. You can find a listing of all the trades on the Local Resources page here at Kitchens for Living.
LATEST PRODUCTS TAKE THE STAGE
I’m finally feeling better, thank you, after being laid low by a vicious virus last week. You know the one, right? I won’t bore you with the details. Suffice to say, while I was out going viral (and not in the way I would wish) here’s what’s been happening far and wide.
Delta Faucet Company unveiled its flagship DREAM2O(SM) showroom, located in Chicago's Merchandise Mart, during a private grand opening event on Thursday, May 5. (You’ll remember my amazing experience with them last year in New York. If not, click here for a flashback.) The new 3,097 square-foot design center is a hands-on, interactive environment where architects, designers, and homeowners can experience more than 90 fully-functioning faucets and fixtures from the Delta® and Brizo® brands. What makes this showroom unique is not only the fact that it is the first and only showroom of its kind, but also the innovative displays which are just a perfect way to showcase their cutting-edge products. Read more about it here.
If you’re in NYC this weekend you can visit the International Contemporary Furniture Fair or ICFF held at New York City’s Jacob K. Javits Convention Center through May 17th. Sink manufacturer extraordinaire, Blanco (another flashback here) is officially launching two new collections including the Silgranit II Truffle Sink and the Culina faucet.
Italian kitchen cabinet manufacturer Scavolini is introducing the new quartz surface Santa Margherita on May 16th from 6-9pm in their Soho gallery. If you'd like to attend contact Daniele Busca 212-209-0910 as this is an invitation only event.