Kelly's Kitchen Sync

Freight and delivery delays: brace yourselves

I’m seeing a lot of frustration from professionals to homeowners about delays in shipping, in stocking, and in delivery, for just about everything from furniture to tile to handles.

I’ve seen this before…and believe it or not, it’s a good sign; it means people are buying again, but the short-staffed trucking industry and manufacturers are having some difficulties catching up. Way back when the recession first hit, I posted “A sign of the (delivery) times” back in July 2008.

Company staff is greatly reduced. No one is going to send a truck half-empty across the country because they can’t afford to with the current gas prices. The professional truck drivers are being forced out of the business by cheaper, less efficient and less-experienced firms.

Here’s something to keep in mind: When your rep. or a sales staff or a designer *cough* tells you they expect a shipment next Wednesday, yet nothing happens, and then they tell you that the shipment is coming on Friday and it still doesn't arrive for another two weeks, it has nothing to do with any of us, but everything to do with the shipping companies. 

Until demand picks up, we’re all at their mercies until they feel they can safely hire more people and the trucks fill up faster.

Take a breath, remind yourself that yes, it is a delay. We’re frustrated as you – we were used to a humming economy and instant gratification. We can't expect the industry to be the same right now as when we were flying pre-recession. Expect more of the same for at least the next 9-11 months.

DIY-ers: I have a blog for you

Even if you’re not a DIY-er, I still have a blog for you: DIYdiva 

 

If you ever wondered what the reality of do-it-yourself entails, here’s someone who explains it in a matter-of-fact, humorous way. (And you know how I hate humor, right? The above photo from the website is captioned, “La Femme Makita”.)

This is DIY as follows: if you’re going to do it, take the time to learn. You’ll achieve beautiful results, but you’ll also find that there are a lot of roadblocks that design shows never talk about. It’s satisfying to me because yes, there are challenges, there always are: delivery delays, incorrect orders, inexperience, but there is also sharing here, so you won’t fall into the same traps.

My current favorite post is: “Two.Tiles.Short”  about tiling her bathroom floor. On paper, tiling looks simple, but there’s a fair amount of fitness involved…and the last tiles are always the ones who give you grief.

Or this very useful article: "How not to Kill Your Significant Other with a Shim?"  

See what you think.

A Reader Asks: Can I pair a drop-in tub with undermount sinks?

Hello Kelly and thank you for your blog,

Will I offend any “quality” designers if pair a drop-in tub with under mounted sinks (2) on the vanity?  Or should I just stick with one style throughout, drop-in or under mounted?  Am I over thinking this?  Any help will be very much appreciated!!

Perplexed in Folsom, CA. Thank you, Stephanie

 

Hi Stephanie and you’re welcome!

In our showroom, we designed our front kitchen display with two sinks. While the sinks are both undermount, the main sink is fitted with a very traditional faucet set in an oil-rubbed finish. The prep sink has a very contemporary arched faucet in stainless steel.

Here's the kicker -- most people never notice, including designers and architects, until we point it out...because the colors work within the overall scheme of the entire kitchen. 

Regarding your question, mixing undermount with top-mount is along the same lines and more common than you might think. Check out this bathroom photo below. Does it bother you? Would you have even noticed?

(Actually, the bumpouts in the sink counter bother me more – looks a bit choppy.) 

Two undermount sinks and a top-mount tub.

The degree of design awareness is different for everyone. For your project, here’s what a designer might find more important:

• Better quality always shows. Yes there is a huge difference between a high-end quality brand-name and an inexpensive overseas imitation. It’s the fashion equivalent of wearing a designer dress with vinyl shoes from Big Shoe Barn. (I made that name up. I hope.)
• Keep them within the same brand. If not, make sure the colors match. Manufacturers like to alter their color patterns from their competitors because they hope you'll buy all of their products. If you're not careful, you could end up with a vanilla white for your sinks and a bright white for your tub. At least, make sure you can compare the two side-by-side to check the color. And if you can get the samples, you’ll want to check them in your own home, because lighting in a bathroom can be vastly different from a plumbing showroom.
• Keep the styles in mind. Undermount sinks, like the ones above, are streamlined. If you were to pair them with a very traditional ornate oval drop-in tub, it'd be a bit jarring, like something was slightly off --  which it would be. Notice here how the tub is square and matches the sinks. If you had oval lavatory sinks, they might look better paired with an oval top-mount tub -- again, one that doesn't have a number of steps or ornate details on its lip. 

And if someone walks into our showroom from my example above and spots the mismatched faucets, good. It was designed as a test. For a designer, understanding the degree of detail a person notices is crucial. And really good design can break all the rules.

Good luck!

What design question do you wish people had simply told you?

We have a consultant looking at our business to see how we can improve. She comes from international/global corporation experience, but she's also fascinated with home design and remodeling.

It's fascination on both sides, because what she asks me is providing all sorts of insight on helping my clients. There are things she likes ("the pop-up door would make a great place to store cell phones instead of the mixer") to her dislike of something because the space is only half-finished and she can't see the end.

For those of you who are in any stage of remodeling or building your home, there's always a starting point where you wish you knew enough to ask the right questions.

Now that you're in the midst of it, or have "been-there, done-that", what do you wish people had told you? Or what sort of advice would you offer to someone just starting out? 

Author page up on Facebook

June. June is when my book, Kelly’s Kitchen Sync, will be out. I don’t know what day just yet, or what time, but as soon as I find out, we’re counting down to Virtual Launch Party^TM.

Bring your party hats, your virtual champagne, and your bad jokes -- Virtual Launch Party will be a day where various bloggers, designers, writers, and friends will be joining us in a online book launch celebration and extravaganza to celebrate the book’s release. I don’t know what trouble we’ll get into, but I’m sure we’re good for something. (Note to self: you’ll have to tell them where to buy it. Oh, right. That too. *makes note*)

Kelly’s Kitchen Sync, (The Book!)--

(I can’t say it anymore without going, “Kelly’s Kitchen Sync”…pause…*radio announcer voice* "The Book!")

--is an insider guide for all of you who don’t know where to start or where to go, for all of you who’ve started your design but need a check point, and for all of you who simply want a reference on how to avoid some of kitchen design’s most common and not-so-common mistakes.

In preparation, I’ve set up my author page over at Facebook to share snippets and photos from the book as we start the countdown. Clicking on either the link above or the book below will take you to the Facebook page.

Come on over, grab some virtual coffee, add a “like” if you're so inclined, and see if you have an answer to:

What’s the biggest mistake you’ve seen someone make in their kitchen design?

For those of you who aren’t on Facebook, no worries. As we start counting down, I’ll be posting snippets here too. In the meantime, leave your answer here, and I’ll cross-post the answers back and forth.

It doesn’t even need to be the “biggest” mistake or about you. It can be a story you heard, or a project you were called in to fix up, or simply a funny “oh-no” moment. I know you’ve got some good ones out there!

I’ll start. I’ve two doozies:

• When you’re a newbie designer with barely 3 months under your belt, did you know it was possible to have a great design that solves all the client’s dreams and works on every level? The two-hour presentation goes like everything you’ve read about, everyone looks misty-eyed like you’ve got a cape and can leap tall buildings…at least until someone stops and says, “Wait. Where’s the refrigerator?”  *facepalm*
• In the book I talk about a client who thought her husband was taking way too much time to demo her kitchen. She grabbed a hammer and forged ahead, taking out the rest of the cabinets, and blitzing out the wall between the kitchen and dining room. “Once I got started and he came home, he couldn’t start working fast enough,” she said proudly. I took one look at the central wall she’d taken out…the load-bearing wall on the top floor of a two-story home. “Ummm,” was all I could think of. To this day, I’m still amazed that the roof didn’t collapse. I would have loved to see the husband’s face when he came home that day…

Your turn!

A Reader Asks: Cabinet Glazing on MDF or Hardwood?

Hi Kelly,

First off I want to say that I love, love, love your blog!

I am emailing you today to get your take on MDF painted doors with glazing versus painted doors with glazing that have a hardwood frame and MDF center panel.  Are there pros and/or cons to either and is there one that you would recommend over the other?

I look forward to your input!

Sincerely, Stanley

 

Thank you for the kind words, Stanley. I’ve been mulling this one over, trying to determine if I would recommend one over the other.

First of all, let’s clarify for readers who don’t know what we’re talking about.

The center panel of a cabinet door is a separate section from the frame. It’s built that way to allow for expansion and contraction of the panel, which happens whenever the humidity of the home rises and falls.

 

Remember the post where I discussed how a solid wood center panels were made? (I actually discussed the difference between wood and MDF doors.) The jist of the post is that a wood center panel isn’t made out of one piece – it’s made in pieces, butcher block fashion, to prevent the center panel from warping. But it will still expand and contract depending on the home’s humidity and overall climate.

In comparison, MDF doesn’t expand or contract. A center panel made from MDF won't shrink. This is good news for those in a dry climate where wood can sometimes shrink so much that it exposes the bare wood hidden inside the frame.

Wood is alive. It has dips, mineral streaks, knot-holes, and pin-holes depending on the wood. The joints swell and expand, causing cracks in the paints. While the knots can be filled, all of the above are part of what many consider the beauty of the door. On a wood door, the glazing tends to follow the slight imperfections of the door, as seen by the photo above. 

Yet not everybody likes this traditional look. So the question becomes – do we even out all these areas, including the joints by producing an entire MDF door with glazing? Or do we split the difference and have a center panel of MDF and still have some movement which can cause paint cracks in a wood frame?

Here’s my two cents: Glazing is a traditional look. Those very dips and joint cracks on the frame are part of that "tradition". Yet I like the MDF center panel because it’s more stable, especially for a center panel because "paint" and "board expansion" has always been problematic.  I like how the MDF panel takes paint, and doesn’t shrink or show the seams but I like the wood frame because it still lives us with joint cracks which are part of this style.

I might design a full glazed MDF door for a client who doesn’t want all the “flaws” but it all depends on the door style, the colors, and the detailing of the room. Some of the MDF doors with glazing...try too hard, if you know what I mean.

Either one of these might not find as much favor in traditional regions where the expectations are "all wood, all the time", but as always, it entirely depends on the consumers and their expectations. Seeing them all side-by-side can prove very helpful with the final decision.

New Ravenna tiles at KBIS

I’m horribly late in adding this,due to countdown on my book release and all the work that goes into it, but since I’d been talking about New Ravenna before I left for KBIS, I wanted to follow up.

The subtitle of this post should really be, “In which I finally meet the designer of New Ravenna and plot ways to “borrow’ the samples during KBIS.”

Here’s my best shot, and you’ll see why I was tempted:

All the new, beautiful tiles, just waiting to find a good home. (Mine.)

Joking aside, when a designer starts daydreaming of the kitchen that she’ll design around the materials, that’s a good sign. I like the softness -- they don’t shout “look at me!” – they’re more like “I’m here. Admire.”

There were a lot of tiles there and I had a hard time even pulling these few samples to show you because other designers were drawn by what I’d pulled and I had to wait for them to get out of the shot.

I was especially looking forward to meeting Sara Baldwin, New Ravenna’s designer, who is every bit as lovely in person as she is in social media. She and her publicist, JoAnn Locktov of Bella Figura Communications, (just as lovely and personable – we’ve met in San Francisco) were kept hopping during our meeting, answering questions on where the tiles could be found.

 

JoAnn Locktov on left, with designer Sara Baldwin answering questions on the right. 

 

The lighting at the show didn’t show off this pattern as well as it could – thin vertical patterned tile inspired by the colorful cloth below it.

You can find New Ravenna here.

Edited to add: Joseph Freenor over at CFT411 has a great post on the detailing of New Ravenna's mosaics and it's quite eye-opening. Pop over for a look: http://cft411.com/2011/05/16/new-ravenna-mosaics/

A Reader Asks: Why are farm sinks so popular?

Kelly,

Why are farm sinks so popular? Is it just the aesthetic? Something different than the usual? Someone expressed concern about scratching this kind of sink if they were wearing a belt buckle. I hadn't thought of that but it's true.Do you use these sinks often or is that really driven by the owner's preference?

Thanks,

Robin

Hi Robin,

I’ve held onto your question for awhile. If I had to make a guess about why farmhouse sinks are still popular, I’d say nostalgia is a key factor, especially in homes that were never old enough to have one originally. The preference is dictated by the owners, and while I don’t do them often, I included them in my book on what to watch for.

Regarding belt buckles and other clothing metal: I suppose if you leaned hard against the sink and your belt buckle was particularly harsh, you could scratch the sink but it would take a fair bit of leaning. Also, the scratching might be more apparent in a stainless or copper sink than a vitreous china sink.

For those of you who love farm sinks, there are two items to pay attention to:

1. The sink lip, installation, and your lifestyle: If anyone in the family is sloppy with water, know that the rounded edges on the sinks are a perfect conduit for water to flow over the edge, down the face, and under to the cabinet doors.

Constant water landing on any type of cabinet will eventually damage the finish over time, no matter how good the finish. Original farm sinks typically never had cabinets underneath – they were supported by legs, and some had a curtain below. I suggest a drip dam, which is a thin piece of beaded wood attached just above the doors to act as a water break. (Ends up looking like a thin, pretty breadboard edge.)  If it gets damaged it can always be replaced…as can the doors, I suppose, but the beaded trim is usually less expensive to replace.

On the plus side, if you lean hard enough to scratch  the sink with your belt buckle, your clothes would sop up the drips first. See? Always a win in there somewhere.

2. Be aware of large garbage disposals with the smaller sinks: I’m working on a farmhouse sink now, which protrudes a nice distance out from the cabinets, and eliminates some of the dripping concerns onto the cabinet. Unfortunately, note where the drain is in relation to the doors: 

With a 1hp disposal, there is literally about 1-1/2” behind the doors to the front of the disposal…

The garbage disposal ends up tucked just behind the doors, blocking the access to the interior of cabinet. We could have gone with a smaller disposal, or eliminated it entirely, but fortunately this is for a single person who preferred the larger disposal. She wasn’t too concerned, but I could see someone being shocked at the blockage.

Do I see them  going away any time soon? No. 

Steampunk Sunday: Las Vegas Steampunk & Octopus coffee tables

Okay, two items of interest today ~

Steampunk in Las Vegas

Last week, when we were all in Las Vegas for the big kitchen and bath show, designer Arne Salvesen of useful spaces spotted some steampunk artwork at the Cosmopolitan Hotel that he was kind enough to forward me -- thank you, Arne!

I’m really wanting this to be a transmogrifier gun.If you don’t know what a transmogrifier is, may I suggest some Calvin and Hobbes?

 

If you wanted a kaleidescope, there are portable ones, you know…

 I’d like to be, under the sea, in an octopus’ garden…

I bring you octopuses! (Now there’s something I never thought I’d say in my design career.)

Paul Harder of Paul Harder Bronze Works is based in Saanich, British Columbia. With the glorious nature in B.C.’s backyard, he is inspired by the local wildlife…including the octopus population.

I doubt very much that he knew he would inspire a California designer to crow, “Jules Verne for the win!” upon seeing the following piece:

 

Octopus Coffee Table
Edition of 10. Size: 110 x 65 x 38 cm. (Approx. 43” x 26” x 15”)

In a steampunk home, I might change the glass top to one with a bronze lip to mach the octopus for a harder edge industrial look, but if a client wanted that 20,000 Leagues under the Sea feeling, they couldn’t do any better than starting with this piece.

What do you think?

Product mistakes: How design is getting tougher

I was reminded this week why trade professionals are so leery of new products…because every last one of them is going to bite us where it hurts. They’re either going to overcompensate for the inexperienced, or the level of detail is going to be so staggering that you’ll go blind on the documentation.

Case in point: Cabinet orders. I order an overlay filler, a decorative piece which fits between a wall and a cabinet. I need a piece that is 2-5/8” wide. No problem, right?

One cabinet company designs and builds it as measured. The other cabinet company allows a 1/4” of clearance on the filler width, as if to say, “We’ll be super helpful with that and calculate the width for you. You really wanted a 2-3/8” filler. There you go. You’re welcome!”

No. If I wanted a 2-3/8” wide filler, I would have ordered a 2-3/8” filler. Now I have to order all of them over again.

This is about as helpful as when a window company once switched all the operable openings on a sizable window and door order, “because interior designers always order them backwards.” (Door and window operation is always called out from the exterior of the home, no exceptions.) They were shocked when I told them that I had indeed ordered them correctly and asked them how they were going to fix it?

Now imagine that every single item in your kitchen and bath is now custom, where we once only had mass production. Dear readers trying to figure this out on your own, I feel for you. If many of us trade professionals are gritting our teeth on the inconsistencies, I can’t imagine what you’re facing if you’re on your own. In the haste to make everything as "easy as possible" for newcomers to the trade, it's getting to the ridiculous stage. Where we could once order products as a grouping (e.g. appliances, cabinets, handles) and be assured that it'd all work, nothing is working anymore...not without hours and hours of research.

Here, it's Friday. Have a virtual drink on me, and happy weekend!