A Trip To A Kitchen Show

I went to a regional kitchen show on Tuesday and part of Wednesday in Pennsylvania. I go to this show every year. It's small, very small, but I always find some interesting materials or products, and information from seminars, so I go (to the crummy hotel room in King of Prussia, PA.)

In terms of trends, what I saw was DARK cabinetry, whether it be black (lots of black!) or very dark brown wood finishes. I saw some white, but not much, but that doesn't mean anything. I did see some exotic wood door samples and displays, clearly a trend for some time now. 

I saw beautiful wood countertops in a good selection of woods that were very impressive, including bamboo and lyptus, among others. I also saw a great soapstone display and had a good refresher conversation about soapstone. It's soft, yet non porous. And, it's all about regular oiling, to maintain an even patina (the positive word for wear marks!)  

One booth I almost missed was a tiny booth showing Sirius hoods that I have used before. They just came out with a great hood for a small application. The hood is 24" wide. Great for apartment or small kitchens.

And, the very best part of the show was that I got to meet Erinn from The Happy Living Blog! I knew she lived in the area near the show, and I sent her an email and asked if she was free, and to my delight, she was. We had dinner together and had such a really nice visit.

Try it...if you know a blogging buddy may be in a particular area you are visiting, take a chance and make the effort to meet. It's well worth it. Erinn is an architect, so we talked shop for quite awhile (we both agreed it's great to have allied professionals actually talk to one another!) and had an all around good time.

 

 

Retro Kitchens - Step Away From These!

I couldn't let this post go without showing it to you, especially since you know I have a "thing" for retro kitchens of the 60s and 70s. Do I love them? Um.....right now, I have that sort of pained half smile squinty-eyed look on my face. Sort of like greeting someone you really don't like. Let's be brave soldiers together and gaze at these wonders from kitchens past. My mother issues are coming up for me...

What a fabulous collection we have here from Desire to Inspire, ok, fabulous being an oxymoron. Nonetheless, we can talk about color, pattern, pattern (oh, sorry, I said that already) and color. I know there has to be one with a rug in there somewhere.

Desire to Inspire's Retro Kitchens 

Modern Kitchens 2007

Here is a collection of modern kitchens, snapped at the kitchen show a few months back in Las Vegas. I have not put these images up till now, and it's interesting to compare them with the Scandinavian modern kitchens I just photographed in August. Some of these kitchens were made to showcase appliances, and some were showcasing cabinetry. Perhaps you can see that the trend of tile walls is strong. A bright color trend is seen, as well as dark shades of cabinets in these images, also strong. Quite frankly, I think some of these are uninspiring, at least to my eye, a few others are good, and the second to last image is a great example of just way too much going on...putting different materials together just because you can!

What's your take...and preferences?

Redesigning My New York City Apartment Kitchen

I'm about to start planning the kitchen in my NYC apartment. Join me, and fasten your seat belts!

Here's The Background

We (my husband, Steve, and I) own a one bedroom apartment (about 550-570 sf), which we bought 2 1/2 years ago on the upper west side of New York.  We're a 1/2 block from Central Park, the park location being the reason we bought the apartment, and enjoy the city tremendously. As we are just getting out of college paying years, home equity played a part in buying us this dream (my dream from when I was a very young girl.)

Our son recently attended college in the city and lives in the apartment now. He will be moving out in December (clean before you leave, please!) to start his next phase of life. Our life plan is to split our time between Long Island and the city, with more time in the city as time goes by, starting in December.

The Kitchen

The kitchen is 7x7.  While our existing kitchen is in good enough shape, we want to remove half of the wall which separates the living area from the kitchen, exposing one, large room. This is what is driving the project. It will be a snowball effect, and all materials will have to be replaced. Much more about the kitchen to come...

Here's The Conundrum 

Given the (small) square footage of the apartment, compared to how we're used to living in our fairly spacious suburban house on Long Island, I can see us wanting a larger apartment down the road. Could we afford a larger apartment? Not now. Down the road? Maybe, maybe NOT (the biggest reason for taking down the wall.) If we downsized our house on Long Island? Yes. Could we learn to live in 570 sf for extended periods of time? I would hope so, but I'm not entirely convinced. That's my honest answer. I can't know the answer to that right now.

The question of a larger apartment in our future is a significant one. This apartment will not be a pied a terre. We will spend lots of time there. I don't see it making sense to have a big house and a small apartment, if we end up spending equal time at each. Yet, if you were with us at breakfast on Sunday in the backyard, as we talked about this, in a private setting, surrounded by gorgeous, thick, woods and our large rose/perennial garden (which we enjoy working on together from spring to frost) you'd make an argument to keep the house and work around the small apartment. "If" is a pretty powerful word!

Look, these are all intrinsically "good" scenarios in the big picture, which ever way we go. We are very fortunate to have two homes in the first place. This conundrum is worthy of serious thought for us, but not worry. I am sure the answers will eventually reveal themselves to us!

The Paradox

Ah, that last sentence is said, oh, so casually, but it brings to mind one of the first questions I ask my clients...how long will you stay in the home (in our case, the apartment?) The answer is useful (if not necessary) in providing direction for spending and design decisions, going forward.

We don't know the answer to how long we will keep the apartment. That said, ultimately, we must decide if we design/spend for us or design/spend for the real estate market. In fact, we cannot move forward until we decide.

Updates will happen randomly. Sometimes days together, sometimes weeks apart. Seek out the category to keep up to date! Pictures are coming too!

Stay tuned! 

Blogging for Kitchens!

Here's what's happening around the blogs for some kitchen info and inspiration.

First, check out Desire To Inspire's post on dining spots. Definitely an important stylistic part of the kitchen, it's great to see this variety of styles and colors. Love their choices! Jo & Kim at DTI recently spent the week guest blogging at design*sponge. Some great postings this week on the d*s blog.

Breaking News: Stay tuned, as this week I'll be interviewing Grace Bonney, design*sponge publisher extraordinaire, on all things NOW, relating to home design.

Did you say you wanted a colorful kitchen? Take a look at this kitchen and all the other home entries in Apartment Therapy's Fall Colors Contest. AT says: "Color is a powerful part of interior design, and the cheapest way to change a room, but few feel comfortable using it. To inspire confidence, we're going to share all of the best color homes, tips and sources, worldwide." Vote!

Kitchen Design Notes has some solid information on butcherblock countertops, all you every wanted to know and all that. I LOVE wood countertops for a whole lot of reasons. I definitely see one in my future. Good work, Laurie!

And don't miss this kitchen over at Materialicious, it has, um.....gravitas!