I'm loving this kitchen featured on thekitchn.com. Looks like she's having way too much fun, huh? Of course I can't help noticing the design. (Maybe that's what she's so happy about.) There is a great idea here. Open space. In this case there is a window in the way which does not allow for an upper cabinet. Even if the window was 15" or so further to the left that corner area is very difficult to reach. One solution is to put open shelves there or, nothing! It's okay to have some open spaces in the kitchen when they make sense. It can even create an opportunity for art, which is always a good thing!If you'd like to read about these hip-home-owning-kitchen-lovers click here.
KITCHEN FAVORITES GUEST POST
Today’s guest post is from Susi, a writer for Arcadian Lighting, a must-shop resource for beautiful light fixtures. Susi is sharing some favorite kitchens, from traditional to contemporary, cottage to penthouse. There is a wide range of styles, fixtures, cabinets, flooring and lighting in these kitchens. We hope you see something that will inspire you. What is your favorite kitchen?
Pinterest via
Love the greenhouse feeling to this kitchen. The cream cabinets and countertops blend seamlessly with the architecture. Pantry & appliances are tucked further back so they don’t disrupt the view.
Pinterest via
This cottage kitchen is one of our favorites because of the island that feels like a farmhouse table. Classic white subway tiles are classic for a reason…they’re timeless.
Apartment Therapy via
Small doesn’t mean unstylish. Love this eat-in-kitchen that is small on space but large on style. High gloss cabinets reflect the light to make the room feel bigger. The pendant light over the table adds a stylish touch.
Fresh Home via
Colored cabinets are not a new trend but we love the high gloss aqua on these metal cabinets. Everything feels sleek and polished in this contemporary kitchen.
House and Home via
Luxury finishes and quality materials make this kitchen a favorite. Dramatic dark cabinets and contemporary lighting make this kitchen feel sophisticated.
Abode Love via
This white kitchen is anything but sterile. Grey veined white marble, dark floors and punches of orange from the counter stools keep it lively. Love the kitchen pendant lights.
Shatter Boxx via
While many of our favorite kitchens are light and airy, we do love the drama of dark cabinets paired with dark floors. The island sink also makes this a fave, as does the professional range.
A Note on Design via
This contemporary farmhouse kitchen is a gorgeous blend of new and old. Love how the design incorporates the stone wall with contemporary cabinets and pendant lightsContent provided by Arcadian Lighting, a site that specializes in top quality lighting fixtures at extremely affordable prices. If you like this post, be sure to stop by the Arcadian Lighting blog and let us know you saw us here!
FIVE LOW COST KITCHEN UPGRADES
You’ve heard of Snakes on a Plane. Well yesterday we had snakes in a Kitchen Design Studio. Ok I exaggerate. It was one snake, a juvenile black snake (according to Trevor’s iphone Googling). I think he slithered in to tell me it’s high time I write a blog post so here I am with a topic that is especially near and dear to our hearts nowadays, saving money.If you don’t have thousands of dollars to invest in a new kitchen, there are some small tricks that can make a big difference. Whether you just seek to make your tired dysfunctional kitchen great looking and user friendly, or you want to up the appeal for a potential buyer, these smaller upgrades fit the bill.Consumer Reports’ latest tests offers the home owner a variety of low investment ideas to freshen up the kitchen. Here's my twist on what they had to say.Paint!“Every artist dips his brush in his own soul, and paints his own nature into his pictures.”- Henry Ward Beecher (Love the quote and was going to find a way to work it in here no matter what) SO, how about painting your nature in your kitchen? Paint is the most inexpesive low-risk investment you can undertake to make a dramatic difference. Most of us can even tackle the walls ourselves. You can be bold as there typically isn't a whole lot of wall exposed in a kitchen (except this one!). Don't forget to consider adjoining rooms and how colors will work together. I prefer a satin or even a semi-gloss finish that is easy to wipe clean in the kitchen. If you’re more ambitious and want to paint your cabinets, do it right. Remove the doors, drawers and hardware, clean all surfaces, sand or de-gloss, use a primer and take your time!
Make it work! (As Tim would say)You know what I’m talking about. Are you tired of falling spice containers? Do you yearn for a convenient trash receptacle? If you’ve lived in your kitchen for a while you will probably have a few functional pet peeves. Many of them can be addressed without breaking the budget. There are all kinds of ways to store those unruly spices. Check out my previous post Spaces for Spices. If you have a 15” to 21” wide cabinet to spare you can install a pull out trash container. I’d say this is the number one accessory for a kitchen and every kitchen needs one! How about roll out trays? You can also purchase these and install them yourself if you’re handy. 
Counter solutionOne of the most visible elements in your kitchen is the counter top and a new one can make a world of difference. Unless you’re going with a laminate, and there are some really nice selections out there, you’re going to spend more than $1,000. If that’s the case make sure your cabinets are worthy. Check for damage, especially for water damage in and around the sink cabinet. If the integrity of your cabinetry is compromised you certainly don’t want to set a butt load of money on top! Did you know that once granite or quartz are installed no one will guarantee it can be removed without breakage? 
Create a splashThe back splash is another visible element with a lot of impact. Here you can get even more creative than with the counter top because it’s purely decorative! Other than being cleaner- friendly it doesn’t have to do anything but look pretty. Tile, tin panels, or even wine bottle corks can make a unique statement on your back splash. 
Floor itWood flooring is hot at the moment and that’s because it’s a great look and it goes with almost everything but here’s the best kept secret in kitchen flooring. Traffic Master Allure Ultra Resilient Flooring.
It looks great, it’s pet proof, kid proof and water proof. It’s really easy to install. I know, my hubs installed it for us and it still looks great after five years!No excuses. I find that even the smallest project completed yields such a sense of accomplishment. These are even things you can do to tide you over until you have saved enough for the full Monty! (At which time you will call me) In the meantime, send me pix. I want to see what you can do.
MY DESIGN PROCESS: A CASE STUDY
I write about a lot of varied things on this blog. Today I'm going to open my mind to you so you can step inside the creative (or whatever you want to call what goes on in there) process, as it pertains to cabinet design. The thing about designing kitchens and baths is that it doesn't only require vision in the aesthetic sense but also in the functional sense. We have to be creative in terms of the space constraints while being very aware of function.
WHAT HAVE WE HERE? This is a nursery equipped to serve the nanny. She's got an under the counter refrigerator to store bottles, baby food and wine whatever she wishes for herself. In addition there is a small sink and a microwave. There is also storage and counter top work space (underneath all the debris). That's a lot of function packed into less that six lineal feet! The lucky owners of this oceanfront abode are away for the summer, as is the custom in Palm Beach.MY ASSIGNMENTI have been asked to replace this set up but to keep the same foot print and function. The cabinets are to be more in keeping for this traditionally styled beach house.MY OBSERVATIONSThe backsplash (area between counter and upper cabinets) is really high, about 22". Not only does this mean less cabinet space but it's a bit of a stretch unless you're a very tall nanny. In addition, there is nothing tying the upper cabinets to the lower cabinets and since they do not go wall to wall it looks as if the uppers are just hanging out, hovering over the base cabinets, not a great look. In general the layout is off kilter. The microwave requires a deeper cabinet and it sticks out unattractively on the left.WHERE DO I START?The appliances are old and will appear even older surrounded by new cabinets. Remember that if you are investing in a new kitchen it's penny wise and pound foolish to try to build your new cabinets around your older appliances. I will suggest that we replace the microwave with a small built-in model in stainless steel. For this I know I must use a minimum of 24" out of the 70" I have available. The refrigerator is important too. This one is old and it's an odd size, about 19". The new one will have to be 24" and I will reccommend that we build it in for a more custom look and to unify the small space. These types of built-in panel- accepting- under- the- counter refrigerators are either 15" wide or 24" wide. I certainly can't detract from the function by going smaller so I will give them more refrigerator space by going with 24" wide. Now that I know what I'm doing with the appliances I will work the cabinet layout around that.
Here's phase one showing the larger ref, a built-in micro and an attempt to even things up and connect the uppers to the bases but it's still not quite there yet. I usually draw a free-hand sketch to work out my initial thoughts. The final solution (I drew it using Chief Architect) is to use 42" upper side cabinets instead of the existing 30" uppers. Then since the microwave needs a deeper cabinet (15"), I moved it to the middle and raised it up to create some design interest and to take advantage of the tall ceiling. I made the side backsplashes 16" high with the center at 19". I centered the 24" upper microwave over a 21" wide sink cabinet which allows the bigger refrigerator on the right and does not lessen the size of the existing drawers on the left. I'll need a minimum of 3/4" panel to the right of the ref. That makes a total of 24 3/4" with ref and panel. I will duplicate that on the left making the 4 drawer cabinet 24 3/4" wide as well. This allows the upper side cabinets to be equal at 23 1/4" each. Last but not least, I am going to suggest using matching wood beadboard above the 4" backsplash to tie the uppers to the lowers and add a small crown moulding on the top to finish it off.
PRODUCTSHere are the goods and why I picked them:Kholer faucet K7342 in brushed nickel finish- It's a traditional faucet in a finish that will blend with the stainless steel of the microwave. The height makes it user friendly yet it will fit perfectly in the space.
Kohler undermount entertainment sink K5848- I love the shape of this sink. I double checked the size and it fits in our 21" wide cabinet. It's a more updated undermount model but it's still cast iron. I'm specifying Biscuit to go with the cabinets but I will also suggest a stainless option which would also work.
SHARP R1214OVER THE COUNTER MICROWAVE- This model fits into our 24" wide space. It requires a 15" deep cabinet, check. It has a light below and I happen to know that Sharp makes a kick-ass microwave.
CABINETS BY HOLIDAY KITCHENS- flat panel with applied moulding. Finish, selected by designer, to be Snowdrift paint with Mink Wash. I chose Holiday cabinets because we have some custom size requirements and I can order Holiday in fractional increments. They also offer a wide array of finishes and door styles which is important in a higher end application.
U-Line Under the counter refrigerator - This model offers an overlay trim kit option which will allow us to apply a door panel to match the cabinets.What do you think? You see there's no mystery behind the magic of design. Those are the steps in a nutshell. I would love to walk you through the steps of your own potential magic. It's really a lot of fun when it all comes together, kind of like solving a puzzle AND you get to continue to enjoy it everyday!
CREATING AN INSPIRING WHITE KITCHEN
Today's Let's Blog Off topic queries the source of our ideas. Where does creativity reside? Is it within or is it outside and all around awaiting discovery? For me the answer is both. Yes, it's all around us, for sure, but it also requires the eye of the beholder to breathe life into it. Here is a recent example in my life of something I saw which inspired a blog post.You may have the panache to pull off a monochrome white room that invites and stimulates the senses but for most of us going all the way with white runs the risk of BORING. Since white is so "white hot" at the moment, especially in the kitchen, I’m going to share with you the secret of how to make white pop.One thing to remember is white is a team player, it’s all about the colors around it. As you know, I love art (a big source of inspiration). I recently came across this image in Cloth Paper Scissors Magazine which is a perfect example of how white can glow when surrounded by the right color. I see it work time and again. White cabinets plus color equals stunning. If your taste runs more to the conservative think camels, taupes or warm beige walls to create the contrast.
If you’re more daring go for Apple Martini Green or Sky Blue. The nice thing is if you want to go for the gusto paint is a safe bet. It’s one thing you can change fairly easily and reasonably.
Another thing to remember about white is that it’s just not white. There are probably hundreds of whites and they all read differently depending on your lighting and location. The lesson here is to test your whites on site. Consider the color for a full 24 hours so you can see how it looks as lighting changes throughout the day.
Many times wherever you find white you will also find black. You can tastefully mix black and white cabinets or if you have guts and great lighting the walls could be black, as in this example. This photo also serves as a great inspiration for many of the newer homes we have in my area with cathedral ceilings but short stumpy cabinets (thank you Mr. Builder). If you can't afford to change the cabinets take advantage of the great space above for art. Here, it carries the eye upwards taking attention away from shorty cabinets.
This stunning Apple Green back splash looks like glass but it's actually a colored plastic by Opticolor! So there you have it, inspiration of the day all inspired by a whimsical little piece of art!
BEAUTY IS SKIN DEEP ON NEW VENEER DOORS
Brendan has done it again! One of our favorite clients has been exploring exotic wood veneers as a way to add unique beauty to their new dream kitchen. (See previous post about wood veneers here). They chose Olive Ash Burl veneer and here are the doors we've come up with. The first is a dark stained cherry frame around a natural Olive Ash Burl veneer center panel.
The swirls of the burl are stunning. They stimulate the imagination. With every glance a new shape emerges. Maybe this would be a good tool for psychlogists! Keep in mind that a little goes a long way here. I probably wouldn't use these for every single door in your kitchen. Use them as a focal point. Not only will it have just the right amount of impact but you'll save money by mixing it up with a basic.
The second door is slab-styled with a dark stained Olive Ash Burl veneer face. The edge banding is a smooth dark stained cherry to match. They are going to become part of our standard offering here at Brendan Donovan Furniture & Cabinet Co. and shall be named! Any good ideas? I'm open to suggestions. Oh and by the way, this veneer comes from various parts of Europe, in case that influences your decision.Don't forget to check out the Tip of the Day at Blanco by Design as we count down to Earth Day. You can find mine featured today!