Kelly's Kitchen Sync

In love with weathered nickel

This is going to be a short post because between too many hours spent on the computer with design work and lifting tile samples, I’ve tweaked my lower back. I’m a bit like a 4-year-old at the moment; can’t sit still for too long.

Tuesday, I fly off to New Orleans courtesy of Modenus BlogTourNOLA and our kind sponsors  to report on design and doings. (Sitting in a plane for multiple hours, yay. Can’t wait.)

In the meantime, here’s something to talk about: weathered nickel, specifically for cabinet handles and knobs. 

 

Sure, it’s been around forever, and many older homes may have a worn iron that is similar to this patina, but here are 4 reasons why I’m enamored with it now:

• The burnish is softer than stainless
• For those who don’t like seeing fingerprints on metal
• It fits well with all styles: traditional, transitional, and contemporary
• It goes well with stainless fixtures

There are some name variations on the finish, such as burnished pewter or weathered iron. Ordering a sample before you buy would be a good idea as there is a wide variation on the “weathering”.

Because, as I see it, you don’t need to make your appliances, plumbing, and handles match. Not that there’s anything wrong with that; simply, as a designer, I’m always looking to layer elements in a room. This is a nice way to do it.

Do you like the finish? Would you use it?

How has kitchen design changed over the last 4 years?

I’ve been composing posts in my head all day, but so far they’re not very willing to pop onto the page.

So be it. Grab a chair and we’ll just sit and chat.

This last week was a nice one; three of my clients reached that epiphany moment when they could finally see “the vision” or what we’re trying to achieve. That dawning light in their eyes, and the excitement that follows, never gets old.

What I hear more these days is a jokey accusation: “You knew it all along. It just took us some time to get it.”

That’s not entirely true. From the moment a client comes in, I ask questions. Lots and lots of questions. I'm looking at lifestyle, at color, at what makes a homeowner light up, and how to make everything as functional as possible. Yes, sometimes I do know exactly what someone will select.

However lately, I’m noticing a new pattern: what clients say they want when they first visit isn’t the same style for the final design. For example, a client wants a super contemporary kitchen. Over the course of 3-5 months of designing, they realize maybe they like more traditional elements mixed in. The chef’s kitchen of stainless steel wonders is morphing into integrated units covered by door panels, the Wonder Chef kitchen vision becomes softened to a warm inviting place for the family to gather.

The nearest theory I can come up with is thanks to all the photos on the internet, homeowners are diverted by ideas they hadn’t previously considered. And the photos are of high, high, high-end design. Hard to go back to the old designs when there is so much shiny vision out there! You plan a lovely kitchen with wall cabinets and bases and then see something like this with useable backsplash and unusual materials and fall in love:

But after the distractions comes the realization: maybe all that stainless and chrome won’t fit for that young, finger-print-y family member. Those cabinets aren’t standard, and the cost is high, and it’s all so…dark.

Budget rears its ugly head, and second-guessing comes in. However, it's not that the budget is being scaled back; it's turned into “we’re going to have what we want” attitude that I haven’t seen for awhile. Homeowners are definitely feeling optimistic again…at least in my area.

There’s a lot of revisiting. Again, to be fair, there’s a lot of education on the pros and cons of what will work for the long term. Yes, the homeowners want some cool backsplash but decided they don’t need the expense of the inset sliding doors in the backsplash. they need some light.

And that beginning kitchen above finalizes into something like this:

Okay, this is grossly overstated, primarily because these are the closest photos I can find. *laughing* But there are some major styling changes up to the final designs that I’ve never seen at any other point in my career.

Here’s what I’m now seeing:

• Appliance selections/price/selections are up. Way up. Budgets for appliances have almost doubled and tripled this year alone. There are steam ovens, coffeemakers, refrigerator drawers, microwave drawers, double dishwashers—sometimes in the same kitchen.
• Hands-free/touch kitchen faucets are the norm. Part of that may be due to yours truly owning a hands-free faucet that Brizo generously gifted me back in 2010. I’ve had a few years to use it and discuss the results. (“Hands are all gummy with pastry, I tap the faucet with my wrist!” “The batteries last a bit over 3 years with frequent use.” ) This year so far, almost all of the clients I’m working with are purchasing hands-free/touch faucets. This is not just for the kitchen sink, it’s for the prep/bar sinks as well.
• Door styles are more ornate than 3 years ago. The Shaker door is getting some embellishment – perhaps an applied molding or profiles/edges are softened with some angles.
• LED lighting all the way.

Your mileage may vary, as always. Still, nice to see a few kitchen trends here that I’ll probably chat about at the end of the year if they have some sticking power.

What can you take away from this?  Weigh the options for durability, family usage, the style of your home, the colors you like. Don’t choose something because you’re swayed by the novelty. Take your time to choose.

Three Ways to Spice Up Your Kitchen Now

Yes, I know. You want to gut your kitchen, but it’s simply not in the budget right now. so what can you do in the meantime?  These are my three simplest ways to provide instant lift to a tired kitchen. Best of all, they don’t cost obscene amounts of money (unless you have that natural talent for selecting the most luxurious of goods). If you plan it right, two of the ideas can even transfer when you’re ready to remodel.

PAINT 

Every designer says it, because it’s true: a good paint job can freshen and brighten, and can really provide a quick facelift when you’re looking to get the best bang for your buck. Whether you’re planning on painting walls or cabinets, consider changing beige walls to brighter tones, or lightening up a dark tone for a lighter one--especially if your cabinets are dark.

For walls, see:

• Houdini: How to choose kitchen paint colors (video)
• Decorating by Donna: How to add color to a white kitchen
• HGTV: 10 Colorful Kitchen Designs

Painting the cabinets: This one isn’t as easy as it looks; I don’t have the patience and tend to look to an experienced painter for this, but I know others tackle it with enthusiasm. Be sure to check what finish is on the cabinets now – not all of them will accept a new paint finish due to the chemicals and/or stain properties already on wood.

For cabinets, see:

• Houzz: From the Pros: How to Paint Kitchen Cabinets
• Young House Love: How to Paint Your Cabinets
• The Inspired Room: My Kitchen Makeover (Before and After Cabinets

HANDLES

Adding or changing out handles on cabinets can add a bit of zing and can be a subtle update, especially if the existing knobs are looking a bit worn or scratched.

Links for above photos: Sky Blue, Virtuoso, Uptown Appeal

Consider:

• Simply Knobs: Adding a back plate if you want to switch from handles to knobs
• Adding a touch of color such as the glass or bronze knobs above
• Adding a couple of custom pieces where you’ll see them most or to add extra sparkle to a cabinet with glass doors

See:

• Decoist: Choosing the Right Knobs and Pulls for Kitchen Cabinets
• Just A Girl: How to Install Cabinet Hardware

 

GENERAL LIGHTING

Last week, I was in an older 1950s home. The single ceiling light was original and dim,dim,dim.

For simple “let’s increase the brightness level”,  I might suggest a swap-out to an LED lighting fixture: its light spread is similar for fluorescent but its color rendering is more like incandescent lighting. As a bonus, it can be matched with a dimmer, but be careful as not all dimmers works with all LEDs.

The Philips Ledino LED ceiling light (Photo credit: Phillips)

 

I surprised you, didn’t I? You thought I would go for some designer-y type light? In this case of the 1950s home, if the homeowner couldn’t remodel, this one change would lighten and brighten.

Think of it like lighting design in movies or onstage. What do set designers want to do when they want to convey depression and sadness? They dim or darken the lighting.When they want the big finish or the happy ending, they bump up the lighting.

We’re creatures with moods that are strongly affected by light. This is why I would go for altering the lighting levels first instead of a fancy designer light that would stand out by its newness. This light would make kitchen would feel bigger for relatively little cost, and the general lighting would be more than sufficient for the space. Best of all, for this fixture would disappear into the ceiling…for now.

If your kitchen is not that dark, then of course you can look for a little sparkle.

See:

• HGTV: Kitchen Design Lighting Tips
• Chris Loves Julia: The New Kitchen Lighting (or Fluorescent Be Gone!)
• Making it Lovely: Kitchen Lighting Options

Two notes: new website and a poll

No posts today, although I have some lined up for next week.

I know that I've been talking about this for ages (well, it feels like it to me!), but I've been working with my web designer to finally move from Typepad to Wordpress. My new website isn't quite ready, but I will be moving everything over to www.kellymorisseau.com.

It's time. I've had that trusty site since 2008, and I am SUCH a designer that I needed to freshen up and sweep away the cobwebs.

Hopefully, the site will link over smoothly when it's time to change, so you don't have to do anything now. Those of you who type in Kitchen Sync hopefully won't have too much of a challenge typing in my name. It's so much easier after the 30th time, you know. ;)

And it's Morisseau - one 'r', double 's'. In the meantime, here's a poll with bad grammar and a question. What do you like to read the most when you visit? Poll is multiple choice; feel free to leave any other ideas in the comments.

Big News!

I’m delighted to finally announce that I’ve been invited for a second BlogTour with the prestigious interior design website resource, Modenus!

I’m pretty flattered to be asked back a second time, especially for something that’s near and dear to all of our hearts. Can you guess where?

Here are couple of hints. It involves kitchens and baths, my press pass, and one of the biggest North American design shows in my industry:

 

 

It’ll be taking place in a city I’ve always wanted to visit: a city of gracious people, food, and jazz...

 

 

If you're still going,"Where?" here you go: it’s the big Kitchen and Bath Industry Show (KBIS) in New Orleans! 

The theme of KBIS (that’s Kay-Biz so you sound like the rest of us) is “Evolve”. I’ve been noticing some excitement in our field as the economy recovers and we're once again seeing some positive growth. I’m looking forward to showing you some of the trends from this side of the pond, what's new, what's innovative, and what my general impressions will be.

 

 

Again, one of the lovely parts about accepting an invitation like this is:

• partnering with Modenus. The talented Veronika Miller always has so many opportunities available for us to meet local curators of style, design, architecture, and food 
• the sponsors of tour include many of the brands I’ve specified in the past and can personally vouch for
• the groups comprise of some of the best in the design field, both old friends and new. (I'm very delighted to be included, trust me. I keep pinching myself.)

All of this happens in April, from the 16th – 20th. What a great time to visit New Orleans! 

For those of you on Twitter, I’ll be tweeting live impressions from the show: @kitchen_sync with the hashtags: #blogtourNOLA and #kbis2013. For those of you on Facebook, I’ll be posting photos on my author page: http://www.facebook.com/kellymorisseau 

Please do me a favor: let me know if there’s anything you want to see – appliances, lighting, surface materials – you name it. I'm open to thoughts and ideas up until I leave.

Stay tuned!

Is home design getting harder?

I’m pondering that sentence. I have the feeling some of you might roll your eyes and say, “You’re such a downer. Design is fun!” It is…and it’s also a lot of work if you want the construction to go smoothly. A conversation with a client this week was an eye-opener.

Holy mantle, Batman! One of the biggest mantles I've ever designed

We’re working together on a few rooms, one of which has a fireplace. This is a repeat client who had worked with us on a substantial portion of the home some 5-6 years ago. He’s back to finish off some other rooms. I’m going to change some of the details and circumstances to protect the innocent; however, the following conversation is real:

I asked him, “So are there any differences that you note now from when we worked together last?”

He frowned and said slowly, “It seems harder than it was the first time.”

That wasn’t what I expected to hear. (Really, none of us wants to hear it’s harder, right? We like to think we’re getting better/faster/able to leap tall buildings.)

I asked cautiously, “Why do you think that is?”

He thought for a moment, then said, “There’s so much more to choose from. It’s overwhelming.”

Bingo.

I said, “For us, the amount of time spent researching and designing has quadrupled.”  I pointed to his fireplace. “Once when I used to order a mantle and legs, I knew within a few inches what model I could tweak. 1/2 hour and I was done.

Every single fireplace insert has different requirements. For the one you selected, there are 6 pages of specifications and the mantle height and the depth of the legs has to be designed to meet the specifications of the unit.

Our behind-the-scenes meetings for this one fireplace consists of an hour of drawing of the mantle to be sent to the fabricator to be priced, a meeting  to the house with the electrician (inserts require an electrical plug inside the fire box that wood-burning fireplaces don’t need), an in-house meeting with the boss for the work involved, including discussion of the existing gas stub and whether it has a) sufficient pressure and b) it’s in the correct location. We also discussed where the gas key can be located and if it needs to be replaced. That’s why it took me a few days to get back to you.”

The client blinked. “I was getting a bit frustrated at how long it was taking but I had no idea. I Thank you for telling me.”

I don’t know if there’s a moral to that story or not, although I was reminded once again to share more with the client on the process, and thought some of you homeowners out there might find it insightful. With the overwhelming amount of products on the market, the time to make sure they work has increased exponentially.

Remember the mantra: “Not all products work well in every kitchen room. Not all products work well together.”  It’s no longer safe to specify a product and figure someone will work out the details during construction, especially for new products. That, and read, read, read the specs before buying.

 

Prominent Brand Nameplates -Yea or Nay?

Last week, I was part of a small panel critiquing students kitchen designs at the UC Berkeley Extension in San Francisco, and  the subject of overly large or prominent brand names on appliances came up.*

This was the subject of discussion. See the logo?:

Photo credit: Wolf/Sub-Zero

 

“Brand-name logos: hate them,” one of the designers said. “Right at eye level. I avoid specifying this hood. There are others that don’t have a logo in your face.”

Another said, “But it’s easy to tell what the appliances are, especially for those who want bragging rights. Also makes it easy for real estate agents to identify.” **

To be honest, I never really paid much attention to the logos, and now I see them everywhere.*** In the end, it would depend on what my client was looking for, however, it's an interesting discussion and I  thought you might like to weigh in.

What do you think?

 

*  Some very good designs in this group. The future is in good hands.

** Beware the horrible paraphrasing. Names deleted to protect the innocent.

***If I had a choice, I’d prefer a discreet logo instead of words, but that’s me.

NKBA Top Trends for 2013

Last month, the National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA) put out their top trends for 2013. These were from a survey of over 300 designers in the last quarter of 2013:

Among the overall trends identified for this year, the most significant that surfaced for both kitchens and baths are as follows:

• Gray color schemes in both kitchens and baths have witnessed a dramatic escalation since 2010, particularly over the past year. Used currently in 55% of kitchens and 56% of bathrooms, shades of gray are growing in appeal, creating chic, sophisticated spaces that many consumers desire.
• Continuing an important trend from last year, transitional-style kitchens and baths have clearly surpassed traditional styles, a longstanding favorite until 2012.
• While the use of quartz finishes was in slight decline last year, it has surfaced as a clear trendsetter this year, coming a close second to perennial favorite granite.
• No growth in consumer outlays: Homeowners were spending more on their kitchen and bath remodels a year ago -- however, the latest report reveals a slightly less robust situation. The total cost of the average kitchen and of the average bath design in 2012 was $51,050 and $18,575, respectively, but the most recent figures have dipped to $47,308 in kitchens, while staying steady at $18,538 in bathrooms.

Although some trends from the past year continue to grow significantly into 2013, the last three months of 2012 have also laid the groundwork for new ones to thrive. Some of the other top trending design components include white painted cabinetry, glass backsplashes, LED lighting, touch-activated faucets and satin-nickel finishes in kitchens; and ceramic/porcelain tiles and undermount sinks in bathrooms.

The full report is here. (pdf)

 

Photo Credit: Desire to Inspire via Apartment Therapy “Shades of Gray: Kitchens that Make a Statement”

 

Let’s discuss, shall we?

Grays: While I see the gray emerging in magazines, I haven’t seen a lot of gray in our California climate. I suspect when we do, it will be a lot of warm or red-based grays vs. the cooler blue-based grays. Driftwood as opposed to platinum, if you will.

Transitional vs. traditional: The transitional style can also be regional. I see it in everything except the period homes.

Quartz:  I strongly suspect the two main reasons for the popularity of quartz are: a) it doesn’t require sealing and b) a homeowner doesn’t have to dash out to the stone yard, pick a stone, then dash out again to approve the template.

Growth: Out here, the figures are the opposite, spurred by the tech re-boom and pent-up demand. Our kitchens have been much larger, with more additions than we’ve seen in a long time. Bathrooms have also grown more custom. For this, I credit the high-end box of chocolates known as Houzz. Almost everything in Houzz in in the 5- and 6- figure ranges, but it enables homeowners to see what is possible…and they want it.

 

Any of these trends on your home improvement or client request list?

Do you believe these claims?

Over at the marketing blog at David Meerman Scott is a recent post called “Lies, Damned Lies, and Marketing”:

 

Do you believe these claims?

Lose twenty pounds in a week, no exercise or diet required!

…

What about these?

Regular price $100.

…

 

Deluxe.

…

 

 

Now I know my readers are pretty savvy, but there are times when I look at the “sales” offered for home interior goods and I shake my head. Here are my caveats:

1. Don’t pay attention to what the price was.  You’re buying it now. That price is meaningless and you’re not really getting any deals. Case in point: a client was thrilled that she was getting 30% off for a sink. That same sink is 30% off everywhere.
2. If it’s too good to be true, it is.  No, you’re not saving $100.00-$200.00 off that brand-name faucet by buying it at a big store. That faucet was made especially for that store and uses a plastic cartridge instead of a metal one. That’s why the price is cheaper. Do yourself a favor and check the SKU (model numbers). If they aren’t the same, then you’re not getting the same product.
3. If that bathroom or plumbing product is online, and you can’t find it in stores, and it has no installation specifications, but promises, “…it can be installed using standard plumbing parts.” – Run. Run as far and as fast as you can. It’s made overseas and bears no resemblance to our plumbing standards. You’ll pay double for installation, if it installs properly at all, and when you go to ask for help, no one at the website knows anything. Ask me how I know. (Better yet, ask our team how we know; I owe them dinner or something small, like a 400-day cruise to make up for it.)
4. And my favorite, uttered by a local bath vanity importer: “It’s exactly the same as the products designers use but for a fraction of the price!” Uh, no. Your 13” deep drawers have the bottoms nailed to the underside of the drawer (load it up and watch the bottom fall out). That’s just for starters. Don’t get me started on the 6-month finish. 

Avoid wild claims:

• 60% – 80% off
• Custom
• Designer goods at a fraction of the price.
• Special this week only
• Free (fill in the blank) with your purchase. (Look for rebates in our industry, not free.)

Monitor the hype, and take your time to research. That’s where you’ll really save money.

Is your kitchen bold enough for this cabinet hardware?

Designers are often fond of saying, “The cabinet hardware is the jewelry of the room.”  I’ve held onto a few statement pieces that I’ve been wanting to share with you.

 

BERENSON “LEVEL” COLLECTION (ART TECH)

Yes, we can figure out where the inspiration for these came from (and now I want the option of the true level bubble), they would be a terrific fit for a ultra-contemporary kitchen, bar, or office.  

Knob: 9458-1000-C  Black Polished Chrome, 2-15/16”. This would install off-center since it’s the shank that’s centered.

Offset handle (for base and wall doors): 9451-1000-C Black Polished Chrome, 12-15/16”. Comes in 14-3/16” and 15-3/8”

Centered handle (for drawers): 9471-1000-C Black Polished Chrome, 12-15/16”. 

 

MARTIN PIERCE – MORPHIC COLLECTION

I love many of the designs of Martin Pierce, even if they’re not for the faint of pocketbook. Here’s an Art Nouveau-inspired handles. (Wasn’t so enamored of the knob.) I could design a free-flowing circular kitchen around these.

The entire collection also boasts some wild entry door handles (steampunk fans, take note.)

Small pull, 7 3/4"W x 1"D x 1 1/2"H

 

Large pull,14"W x 1 1/2"D x 2"H

 

I know these aren’t for everyone. Do you like them, even if you might not use them? Or am I getting too designer-y for you? *grin*