Kitchen Ideas
A wide range of materials are being employed when building and fabricating hoods. In a design mixing modern lines with a rustic material, this custom made hood by Sullivan Building & Design Group features a band of a reclaimed beam wrapped around its lower edge. Tip: Look for reclaimed wood at salvage building material stores, and hood inserts from appliance stores or hood manufacturers. And don’t fret over any airborne cooking deposits on such a surface; it has weathered
Chic coastal style. Designers went more subtle when going for coastal style. Rather than creating a shell-a-palooza, elements like distressed paint, driftwood tones and shiplap brought in the beach. In this beach house bathroom, the team at Laura U used an oversized porthole mirror as an intriguing focal point.
Specialized narrow pullout cabinets. It’s inconvenient to have to reach for utensils jumbled in drawers or for oils buried deep in a pantry. These skinny units take advantage of the cabinetry’s depth and make items easy to locate. Cabinets: custom; hardware: Restoration Hardware; utensil containers (similar): Bain Marie pots
Hardworking tall pantry cabinets. Those of us without the luxury of a walk-in pantry need to make the most of the kitchen space we do have. By outfitting pantry cabinets with smart storage, there’s room for food, small appliances, even table linens. Painting the pantry cabinet a different color from the rest of the cabinetry gives it more of a freestanding furniture look. If you prefer a piece that stands out even further, consider using different hardware from what you have in the rest of the kitchen.
NEAT Method Michigan SaveEmail Pullout shelves large enough to stash small appliances. Cleared-off counters free up workspace and present a pleasing uncluttered look. But having to bend down and dig around messy lower cabinets makes storing appliances there not worth the hassle. Solutions like this are starting to overtake appliance garages, a favorite from last year. As Houzz contributor Sam Ferris pointed out, a system like this where heavy items can be accessible at a back-friendly height is good for an aging-in-place strategy. The chalkboard labels are an especially useful detail in this design.
Cabinets that extend to the ceiling. You may not ever make it up there, and if so, trust me, the area between the tops of your upper cabinets and the ceiling is probably the dirtiest, dustiest spot in your home. Extending cabinets all the way to the ceiling is cleaner and offers extra storage space. These upper-uppers are usually an additional row atop the upper cabinets, which have more pleasing proportions than super tall upper cabinets would. They also provide an opportunity to put glass-fronted cabinets up top for displaying items and a lighter look.
In this busy family’s kitchen, interior designer Harmony Weihs incorporated a rolling cabinet with outlets integrated into the drawers for charging phones, tablets and laptops. The butcher block top adds an extra work surface, and the casters mean the family can move it to another room if they wish or take it with them if they move.
The countertops around the perimeter are the standard 1¼-inch thickness, and the steel gray granite contrasts all of the light colors. “This granite has a beautiful crystal pattern in it that sparkles, while the honed finish makes it really durable,” Jules says. The island is full of storage all the way around. The sides have spaces for cookie sheets, platters and cutting boards. Cookware fits under the island, and panel-front cabinets without hardware on the stool side provide hidden storage. There is also a panel-front dishwasher tucked in below the sink area. “I love my sink — it’s so practical,” the designer says. It has a cutting board and a colander that fit inside it for easy chopping and cleanup. Hardware: Richelieu; faucet: Grohe; range: Thermador; perimeter countertops: steel gray 2-centimeter granite with a honed finish; island countertop: Super White quartzite (which varies greatly from lot to lot)
Crown Point Cabinetry SaveEmail Not only are the fronts of the cabinets glass, but the sides are too. This allows the light from the window to pass through them completely. Tip: Don’t overlook the design opportunity inside your cabinets. The interiors of these cabinets are painted a beautiful pale shade of blue.
2. Cost-Cutting Cabinetry Other than a few custom pieces (such as the refrigerator panel and upper pantry shelving), all of the kitchen’s cabinets are from Ikea. The cost savings that resulted from the cabinet selection allowed the Kroekers to spend extra money on the appliances. “Lori really likes to cook,” Marshall says. “She was much more interested in having a top-notch cooktop and oven than high-end cabinets.” Cabinets: Ikea; oven and dishwasher: Bosch
Open and closed storage. You’ll never find everything hidden behind closed doors in a country kitchen so, for someone like me — not the world’s tidiest person — mixing cupboards with open shelving is the ideal compromise. Of course, we all need ample cupboard space for storing food and equipment, but equally, the country kitchen loves to show and display its wares, be they rows of shiny pans, stacks of pure white crockery or vases ready to be filled with flowers from the garden.
Shaker style. A simple Shaker-style kitchen is a thing of beauty and should stand the test of time. This relaxed and refined style is perfect for the country kitchen, particularly when the cabinets are painted in a palette of chalky vintage hues (from dove gray to oatmeal and buttermilk) and finished with pewter knobs or handles. Beautiful, handcrafted versions of Shaker cabinets have a robust, in-frame construction, meaning the door is set within a frame. Or seek out purse-friendlier, ready-made alternatives that have a Shaker-style door attached directly to the cabinet box.
Big ceramic sink. A staple ingredient for every English country kitchen is a big, beautiful ceramic sink. Be it a Belfast, butler or farmhouse, these robust, practical workhorses are perfect for washing sizable pots, pans and trays, as well as scrubbing your veggies. The large, double-bowl design in this clean-lined kitchen demonstrates how this classic fixture can look fresh and up-to-date in a more modern rustic setting.
Brookhaven Cabinets made the cabinets using smoky pear wood laminate. The toe kick on the island is matching laminate, and the toe kick around the perimeter is stainless steel. The countertops are durable quartz. The wine refrigerator faces the coffee bar, creating another good prep area — this one for cocktails. Just over it to the left, a cutting-prep area has a special detail that was on the home chef’s wish list.
country feel - lots of storage
pull out
white kitchen
The pipes under a kitchen sink have always made it difficult to organize cleaning supplies. This drawer, with its U-shaped wire basket, is designed to fit around the piping, so you can easily access spray bottles, sponges and scrub brushes.
oe kick.) This one hides a folding step stool to reach those high shelves, but you could also use this space to hold trays or cookie sheets.
storage is ace
Get creative with chalkboard paint. This medium's popularity has exploded in the past few years; I see chalkboard most often in the kitchen. Refrigerators, islands, menu boards, cabinetry ... you name it, and someone has chalkboard-painted it and then chalked a grocery list, schedule or favorite quotation on it.
great pantry
Take advantage of shallow spaces. If storage is a difficult thing to find room for, make room in unexpected places, like shallow drawers. In this kitchen the otherwise wasted space below the base cabinets has been utilized for valuable storage.
what about a seat at dining table?
Tip: You'll have to bend a lot to access a toe kick space, so consider storing items here that you'll need to access just once or twice a year — such as serving dishes, chargers and holiday napkins.
Floor-to-ceiling shelves and cabinets maximize storage. Inserting clear glass in the upper cabinets' door fronts creates visual interest and allows the opportunity to display those extra-special pieces you don't want hidden.
Binder clips. These metal clips have a nostalgic feel and are a great way to clip up art. You can use them on a magnetic board or attach them to the wall with tiny nails. I've used the giant ones before to hold up larger pieces and the look is clean and industrial.
nice colour combo - love floors
pantry
cool herb garden
Including a narrow shelf along the face of a hood design provides the opportunity to display favorite decorate plates in a prominent location. And if keeping these items clean is a concern a wider ledge will provide a measure of protection from cooking activities below.
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