Kelly's Kitchen Sync

Designing Your Dream Home - Reviewed

I should point out for disclosure purposes that Susan Lang, the author of Designing Your Dream Home, was kind enough to send me a copy of her latest book well over a month ago without any requests for review, but I was impressed enough to do one anyway.

For those of you considering a new home, whether building or buying, this may be the book for you.

Are double sinks on their way out (and single bowls in?)

Five years ago, when a client said they wanted a "new kitchen sink", this meant a double-bowl sink (at least in this area): a combination of two equal bowls or a "bowl and a half" (aka "1-1/2") where one bowl is smaller than the other, like the one above.

Then they gradually morphed into "huge sink on one side with the smallest possible secondary sink on the other".

Now, in the past two years, I've noticed the requests for double-bowl sinks diminishing while the requests for single bowls are overtaking everything else.

Yes, you heard that right. Single bowl sinks. And yes, I'm aware in many parts of the world, single bowls are standard. But we've had double bowls as a standard here as long as I can remember. Whether the gradual switch came from the clients seeing it in magazines or they're talking in chat rooms or they're simply discussing amongst themselves, I don't know, but whatever the reason, the current demand seems entirely client-based. I haven't noticed any buzz of "Here's the latest trend!" (like there was for apron-style sinks a few years ago), or seen many articles or blog posts that would alert me to "oh, here's the latest news". 

So what is spurring this quiet evolution to the single bowl?  And let's be clear here: we're not talking the old style 21" and 24" wide bowls.

Contest!

How would you like to win either a custom hood, or a zinc or pewter counter, plus 10 hours of design time by a professional kitchen designer?

Fellow designer, Paul Anaker of Kitchen and Residential Design has teamed up with the fine craftsfolks at Metallo Arts to offer "TELL ME ABOUT YOUR FANTASY KITCHEN" contest.

Contest is open to all (as Metallo Arts works all over the world.) The only caveat is the interior fan unit is the wonderful Ventahood so it may pose a bit of an electrical/wiring challenge for those with different systems than North America. (Not a big deal: if all else fails, put your own fan in!)

The grand prize is a $ 3,200.00 gift certificate at Metallo Arts and $ 1,300.00 worth of design time from Paul to help you achieve your dream for a grand total of $ 4,500.00.

So what do you have to do?  Shoot over to Kitchen and Residential Design blog for the post here and check out the creative talents of Metallo Arts.

Contest ends April 2nd, 2009 at midnight.

Steampunk home design

Okay, time for something fun.

I love reading fantasy and science-fiction; always have. (In fact, one day I'll finish my novel -- you know, in my spare time between midnight and 6am. I have a bunch of evil taskmasters writer friends who will elbow me to death mock me horribly if I don't, so there's no need to join in.)

Like anything else, fantasy can be broken into sub-genres, and steampunk is a particular favorite I like to read. To clarify, it's a time period usually set a la the iron/Victorian age -- think Jules Verne or the movie The Golden Compass and gears and clocks and Zepplins -- where steam power became the more viable source of power over electricity. (Electricity is in the early "fragile glass and ornate coil" system but with ornate detailing.) 

A laptop might look like this, for example. Might not have been in a steampunk novel, but it's adapted to what people think laptops/typewriters might have looked like. I have no idea how anyone figured they would power it, but my imagination supplies very static-y 1950s-tv screens. Of course, it's a working laptop that has been redesigned with a steampunk "look":

A thought on material selection

I receive a LOT of requests for "What is the best _________ for my kitchen/bath/fireplace/other?"

If you're a client, great; that means I can say, "I don't know yet. Let me ask you a lot of questions." Because here's the deal: due to different lifestyles and yes, climate, there is no generic right answer for everyone.

This is what I need to discover and what the clients are really saying: "What is best for ME? For my situation, for my family, for my lifestyle?"

And that's important, because every single time a person comes to me, saying "I hate my dishwasher because it takes too long to dry" or "I hate my floor because it shows all the crumbs" or "I hate my counters because there's always a dark patch around my sink", it's a mismatch between the clients and the product that could have been solved with a little knowledge.

Let's use the example of counters, for instance. The client asks, "Which is better? Quartz (manufactured) counters or granite?"

Instead of focusing on the pros and cons, let's focus on the client's lifestyle first:

California Sales Tax Increase

A reminder for those of you in the Golden State:

Sales tax goes up on April 1st, 2009 - where this might be of interest to both the remodeling side and the clients is noted below:

In general, fixed-price contracts and fixed-price lease agreements entered into prior to April 1, 2009, are not subject to the tax increase. To qualify as fixed-price, neither party can have the unconditional right to adjust the price for an increase in costs or terminate the contract or lease [Revenue and Taxation Code, sections 7261(g) or 7262 (f)]. In addition, the tax amount or rate must be specifically stated in the contract or lease agreement. If the contract or lease qualifies as fixed-price, you should continue to report and pay the tax at the rate in effect at the time you entered into the contract or lease.

Which means we're working very diligently to get the final scopes of work and contracts done before April 1st.

FAQs from the California State Board of Equalization.

Why semi-gloss paint is used in kitchens

I've periodically posted about kitchen history and how we continue to design kitchens because "that's the way it's always been."

So, having visited my latest 1960s kitchen, let's talk about my pet peeve: glossy paint in the kitchen.

Wait. I should backtrack: if the kitchen is separated from the rest of the home, the gloss is fine. However, the plan I saw this week is a common theme here: an open plan where the kitchen and nook and perhaps the family room are all one room. The painting solution is that the gloss stops at the end of the cabinets, leaving a clear delineation between the semi-gloss finish in the kitchen and the matte finish in the rest of the home.

The reasoning goes something like this: "There's grease in the kitchen! The semi-gloss makes the walls easier to wipe down."

It may, but it wasn't the original reason.