Elements of design are the building blocks of art for good reason. They also happen to work when it comes to planning and laying out your kitchen. Whether you are all about luxury or bound to the basics, awareness of these fundamentals can make all the difference.
Read moreThe Many Facets of Custom Cupboards
Who says the art of printing is dead? You may be devouring novels on your Kindle but printing is very much alive at Custom Cupboards. Their Facets program allows you to bring a new level of personalization to your kitchen, bath or anywhere you have cabinets through digital printing. 
With Facets you can have a truly artful kitchen enhanced with your own original artwork or photography. If you can dream it they can do it. Just remember you can't reproduce work that is copyrighted. That is a no no, but you knew that, yes?
Mael Hernandez, President of this Wichita Kansas based company, was quoted in the Wichita Business Journal as saying,“It’s all about the trend in personalization. We think this is going to change the cabinet industry. It’s very exciting for us.”
Custom Cupboards uses patent pending digital printing technology to stylize cabinet fronts with textures, patterns, art, photography and even typography.
What do you think? Remember it's just an accent, doesn't have to be on every cabinet. In fact, less is definitely more in this case. You're creating a focal point which gets diluted when over done. In case you're wondering, Facets would add about 15% to the cost of an average 13 cabinet, L-shaped kitchen if you did it on say three doors. If you'd like to explore adding a new "facet" to your kitchen, I'd love to help you do it!
A Tile Tale Inspired by Life and Process: Meet Guy Mitchell
Handmade products are one of the easiest ways to create an artful kitchen. In fact there was a whole turn of the century style devoted to that concept. The Arts and Crafts movement (1880-1910) was a reaction to the industrial age of machinery and mass production. Proponents felt that items crafted by human hands were imbued with a soulfulness that was lacking in factory produced goods. I think they had a point and, although mass production definitely has its perks, it's nice to include unique handcrafted tiles, tableware or linens in your kitchen.
Today we're seeing a resurgence of this philosophy in the "Makers' Movement". More on that later but, since today is Tile Tuesday, I'd love for you to meet Guy Mitchell, a tile artisan that takes his craft to the next level. He has graciously agreed to an interview with AK.
AK: What is your background and how did you get into making artisan tile?
Guy: All of my education has been art based, resulting in a degree in three-dimensional design, specialising in ceramic making and tableware. What I loved best was experimenting with glazes and finishes, so whilst other students were spending weeks sculpting huge ceramic art pieces I was making hundreds of tiles to test glazes on! After university I took up a voluntary placement in a pottery department at a day service for adults with learning disabilities. This led to paid work and then a career in the care sector, but a move away from art and craft. Jump forward to late 2013 and I was in a position to buy a kiln and set up a studio in the garden.
AK: I notice that you are in the UK. Are your products available in the US?
Guy: I am based in the UK and I can ship to the US. There are no stocklists of my work in the US just yet but if any retailers over there to want to get in touch then please do!
AK: What is your inspiration?
Guy: I take inspiration from all sorts of places. I love the colours and patterns of Islamic tiles,the simplicity of Victorian English architectural and subway tiles and also British and Scandinavian mid-century studio pottery. African and Japanese textiles are also a big influence as is contemporary interior design. I like dark and glamorous rather than light and plain. Inspiration also comes from the process of making, and the results I get from experimenting with glaze colours.I think there is beauty in simple repetition and tiles are the perfect medium for this.
AK: Do you accept custom commissions?
Guy: Yes! Custom commissions are most welcome. I can supply wall tiles for any room but I can also design and make art panels than can be used as back splashes, counters or table tops. I'm happy to receive offers for any tile related work, just email me at guymitchellartist@gmail.com
AK: What has been your favorite project/tile?
In the last month I have been working on a couple of table tops and I am very happy with the designs. Like all of my work, the tiles are cut out by hand, from a slab of clay I've rolled out by hand. All of the glazes and colours I have used are mixed from scratch using raw materials.
Thank you to Guy for sharing his vision with us on Tile Tuesday. His work is unique and beautiful. If you'd like to know more check out the following links:
Artful Kitchen Composition Inspired by Jane Freilicher
"To strain after innovation, to worry about being 'on the cutting edge' – a phrase I hate – reflects concern for a place in history or for one's career rather than for the authenticity of one's own painting."- Jane Freilicher
One of the reasons I became a designer is because I just have to do something that involves creativity. Art is a huge part of what I think about and what inspires me. If you follow me on social media, you may have noticed the “Super Cool Peeps” board on my personal Pinterest. It’s packed with images of my favorite artists or otherwise creative muses. I thought it would be an interesting change of pace to highlight one every now and then.
Jane Freilicher who passed away on December 9, 2014 at the age of 90, was sometimes referred to as “the poet’s painter”. I love the quote above and I think it's true of design as well as art. Nothing is truly 100% original. The point is to personalize what you produce in just the right way for your clients. Jane was a lifelong resident of the "Big Apple" who created her own landscapes with still life. To me they seem like a moment of tranquility layered over the vibrancy of New York City. She did also spend time on Long Island, in the Hamptons, which is another aspect of her work.
In the 1950’s Freilicher kept company with not only the leading abstract expressionists, but also many poets of the time such as Frank O’hara and John Ashbery. She was part of an informal circle of writers and artists called the New York School. Interestingly, O’Hara was the first person to purchase one of her paintings!
Freilicher could be called the quintessential Bohemian. She dropped out of school at 17 to marry a jazz musician. Jazz, poetry and art were all an integral part of who she was. She was also a rebel, choosing to paint portraits and still life at a time when Abstract Expressionism was all the rage.
Still life is not normally a big draw for me but the way in which Freilicher placed hers is intriguing. It’s the clean purity of a flower contrasting with the grimy, gritty but also living cityscapes. This is all portrayed with a sense of quiet solitude, a rising above.
You can include a bit of Jane's vision in your own artful kitchen. A lovely floral arrangement placed strategically by a window works perfectly! You can do it where ever you are and it becomes your very own creativity touchstone.
As with all artists, Jane lives on in her work which can be seen in many museums and galleries including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art and The Whitney Museum.
An Artful New Adventure!
Let’s face it, things change. As we navigate those twists and turns of fate we can only hope to move forward, seeing new things with a fresh eye. Like it or not, change is a constant. You can dread it (understandable) or you can choose to embrace it. That said, it has been more than five years since I began my adventure as Kitchens for Living.
I believe I have been true to my promise to share the latest design trends and product info for the heart of your home. We have frequently ventured out of the kitchen and even around the globe! I am so grateful for all the wonderful and talented kindred souls I have met along the way, fellow bloggers, designers and great organizations such as Modenus, Blanco, Brizo, Tile of Spain and many more. This blog has afforded me the opportunity to travel and bear witness to marvelous destinations and inspiring trade shows. Before this starts sounding too sad, let me tell you I have never felt so excited about the future and eager to explore new opportunities. 
This will be the last post for Kitchens for Living. From now on I will be able to merge two of the things I love, kitchen design and art with my new site, Artful Kitchens. A big THANK YOU to Leslie Carothers of The Kaleidoscope Partnership for her guidance and insight which lead me to discover a new path full of promise and possibilities. 
Artful Kitchens will focus on all the ways you can use creativity to personalize your kitchen. Artful spaces reflect who you are and the way you live.
The stunning tile above, by Walker Zanger, was featured at KBIS 2015 which I had the pleasure of attending with The Modenus Blog Tour Vegas. 
New products like this perfectly white quartz by Wilsonart enhance the kitchen with a feeling of crisp clean freshness!
Color is a primary element of the Artful Kitchen. We'll be talking a lot about that in an upcoming interview with Amy Wax of Color 911
We will continue to incorporate new products and technologies as they emerge and we will explore all the artful ways of creating a kitchen that reflects who you really are. I’m so excited, I hope you’ll join me and spread the word. Last but certainly not least, whether you are a brand or a consumer, I want to collaborate with you! 
Continue the conversation on Face Book or email me at ArtfulKitchensbyGlo@gmail.com
Cabinet Doors + Art=Maple Craft Doors
One of the benefits of working for a custom cabinet shop like Brendan Donovan Furniture & Cabinet Co. is OPTIONS! Many of the projects I work on are combinations of both manufactured and custom cabinets. We can order it. We can make it all (including doors) or we can make the cabinet boxes and order the doors. Speaking of doors, how about these doors?!
If you know me you know I’m drawn to anything different, quirky, off the beaten path. I think these cabinet fronts by Maple Craft Doors fit the bill. They’re definitely at the higher end of the price spectrum but consider this: you don’t have to use them for the whole kitchen. In fact because they’re so striking less is actually more.Frank Dyck, Administrator/Sales at Maple Craft had this to say about these uber cool doors (MY COMMENTS INSERTED IN CAPS):
"We have the ability of creating a custom wood pattern that runs from door to door through the entire kitchen. (OK SO I LIED, IT CAN ALSO BE COOL TO GO ALL THE WAY) There are some limitations to how detailed we can go as far as sharp corners and such but the possibilities are endless.
All the customer has to do is send a front view of the cabinet with door/drawer sizes and a rough sketch of their artwork. (JUST THINK, YOUR ART ON YOUR CABINETS!!)
We do the final drawing, send back for confirmation and as soon as we have confirmation, production is about 14 working days.
This is also something that the general public has for the most part not seen." (YOU'VE GOT THAT RIGHT. I WAS HARD PRESSED TO FIND OTHER EXAMPLES)
I did find this leaf-pattern rosewood inlay side board from One King's Lane. I love it and it's perfect if you're going for a Mid-Century vibe. (In fact, I also discovered this treasure trove of cabinet curiosity on Pinterest.)
Another original fun door I spied at Maple Craft Door is the Hilton. Each door and drawer panel is custom programmed. By doing this, they create a random pattern over the whole kitchen.
So what do you think? How crazy are you willing to go in the kitchen? It's beautiful and unique but will you love it in 20 years? I believe this creativity could be timeless.