One of the easiest — and one of the most difficult — colors to imagine in a kitchen is vibrant blue. By that I mean saturated blue and blue-green which are cool colors that read hot. That’s because they are intense rather than muted. Vibrant blue and blue-greens are the anti-neutrals. We don’t see vibrant blue kitchens very often but when we do, it’s color-lover's … [Read more...]
Celebrity Kitchens Are Just Like Ours
Are celebrity kitchens just like ours? The answer is yes, and why is something of a surprise. When I saw these four celebrity kitchens in Architectural Digest I thought to myself: they re not especially formal, they have a variety of styles, and they were created according to the needs and wishes of the owners. That's what makes them just like ours. Take the all-white … [Read more...]
Blue-Green Kitchens
Chameleon color for a trio of kitchen styles. Blue-green is such a soothing color family it rolls on, underrated, as a choice for kitchens. Despite the trendy showing of all-white, black-and-white and most recently gray schemes over the last 15 years, blue green kitchens have their own consistent fan base. But because there are so many variations in any hybrid hue, an … [Read more...]
Aspects of Yellow Kitchens
Yellow is the most visible of all colors. That's why yellow kitchen features show so well. That’s also why yellow used for traffic signs, pavement markings and for low-vision computer keyboards. I knew it was the lightest hue but never connected that with it being so easy to see. It’s also the color of the sun as well as many foods, and known to be mentally stimulating and … [Read more...]
Barcelona Modern Kitchen
This highly styled kitchen dining room combination gives the dining area a big hug. Wrapping a kitchen around a dining area is an idea we discussed in our post on Big Kitchen Banquettes. We haven’t seen this before and we feel it's significant because it also suggests a modern way to redefine two key spaces in the house. Usually, a kitchen dining room combination occupies one … [Read more...]
Eclectic Spanish Kitchen
Built to reflect a passion for the Mediterranean, a Spanish kitchen reigns as a timeless beauty. The desire for an intimate "old" home led a Southern California couple to downsize. Yet they still needed room for their large family to gather. Merle and Ron Mardigian partnered with Liza Kerrigan to design a Spanish kitchen addition for their new Spanish-style house. The room … [Read more...]
Hydrangea Colors Kitchen
Inspiration from the garden found its way inside with blue kitchen counters and purple tile. I never thought I’d swoon over a kitchen with nature wood-tone cabinets, lavender tile and blue-violet counters. But this is one knockout babe, done up in summer florals that read from cobalt to lavender – a homage to the range of colors found in hydrangeas. Clearly this Massachusetts … [Read more...]
Indigo Cabinet Kitchen
An unusual indigo cabinet kitchen is designed as a decorative showpiece and for entertaining This indigo cabinet kitchen is a great example of the way scale and color work together. Designer Bunny Williams designed cabinets in the color of distressed indigo blue jeans. Conceptually, for me, this is new Texas ranch/manor house style, a highly original mix and one that's not … [Read more...]
Tin Ceiling Kitchen
In a kitchen super-abundant with detail the most striking feature – embossed tin tile – stands out. Tin tile was used for ceilings early in the century as a way to add detail and pattern but inexpensively. No doubt the tiles were also used for cosmetic reasons. Tin tile isn't for every kitchen but it works in this one which is full of Victorian style details including the … [Read more...]
Cherry & Onyx Kitchen
A classic kitchen with cherry cabinets and a happy marriage of his-and-her special features. The combination of natural cherry cabinets with a honey-onyx tile backsplash creates a classic amber and bronze scheme that leads to an impressive kitchen with a host of special features. Designed by a couple of serious cooks, this favorite of ours boasts a Viking pro-range plus a … [Read more...]
Corner Farm Sink Kitchen
A unusual corner farm sink has takes advantage of light from greenhouse style kitchen windows. The most interesting feature in this Massachusetts country kitchen centers on the white farm sink installed in the corner. It’s an unusual placement but one that gives the user maximum light and views since the corner is all windows. The base cabinets are likely 30-inches deep … [Read more...]
Romantic Stone Kitchen
Romantic and vintage, this stone kitchen is so seductive. When do we move in? Sigh. The romance of a stone kitchen is preserved here by moving a kitchen into a room with vintage stone walls and floor but not making the space kitchen-y in the traditional sense. Minimizing the look of a kitchen starts with having no built in cabinets. There's a large hutch on the main wall for … [Read more...]
Great White Kitchen
In an American manor house, a white kitchen has exceptional glass-door cabinets In a house with exceptionally large spaces it's often necessary to define the way each is used. That's true in this jumbo white kitchen where an imposing see-through, glass-door upper cabinet is used as a screen between the breakfast room and working area of the kitchen. Interior … [Read more...]
