Kitchen

Kitchen Renovations

February 3, 2025 by LuxeSpecs

What happens when a contractor/owner, award winning interior designer and an experienced showroom owner of European cabinetry walk into a bar-less kitchen? Investigation ensues! We are looking for supporting walls to see how much can be removed! In the kitchen pictured, the supporting wall was on the right in the photo and now anchors the island. State-of-the-art Miele appliances allow the typical old kitchen look to disappear and the new integrated kitchen to emerge. What was a separate dining room and living room are now combined into one open space. Visual space with freedom for homeowners and guests to interact is the new norm. An original door to the exterior (There were already sliding doors.) was eliminated and a flat screen TV that can be viewed from the island and dining area was added.

If you can’t find the appliances, we have achieved our goal! The seamless cooktop in black surrounded by black granite with the granite, marble, mirror and metal combination mosaic as the new focal point of the wall. The hood is directly above the cooktop – another new option! The island has a quartz seamless top. Suspended lighting in modules completes the look with added cans above. This is the third kitchen this team has created and even with visuals to assist homeowners with the “new” look a trust factor between team members allows for more creativity. Let the tear out begin!

A kitchen remodel without changing the cabinets or down time!

August 23, 2024 by LuxeSpecs

The kitchen had potential – nice quality cabinets, a view, and space to improve.

So I made improvements:

All new appliances with wooden refrigerator doors blend the Sub Zero refrigerator with the cabinetry that is visible from the entry.
The existing cabinets were sanded.
The soffit above the refrigerator and the top of a partial wall that divided the kitchen from the family room were eliminated.
A new cabinetry section was added to replace the kitchen desk. It holds small appliances and file drawers for kitchen related materials.
The new leathered granite countertop/pass through to the family room has bar stool seating on the family room side. Blacks are easy to blend.
A new cabinetry section was needed for the island. We didn’t need to have space for bar stools. The rounded corners mimic the original countertop. The sliding doors have the same spacing as the new cabinet opposite.
The 6” cans were replaced with 2” cans and hand painted medallions were added to the ceiling.
For interest and depth, the door into the office was removed which allowed space for the artwork (Apple by Weston).
A custom shelf in this laundry area is handy and expands the kitchen.

Over the pass through into the family room.

How To Select the Right Island(s)

January 12, 2022 by LuxeSpecs

What has happened to kitchens? Once we went to an island, it evolved into a single long counter in front of cabinetry. This looks great but real cooks need convenient appliance locations and ample countertops for assembling their dishes! We learned quickly and thoroughly during the COVID lockdown that it was important to eat at home! There have been more recipes published since then AND they have been more practical. So, back to kitchen design. From one island to two? How do you navigate two? Start with your appliance locations and go from there. Consider your preference for double ovens or a range. The spacing on this is a major determining factor. Restrictions also include doors and windows.

A recent photo I saw showed two islands and at the back was the Wolf range – between the islands. This range is a focal point and it is difficult to give it its due with an island covering it up!

Other designs show a prep kitchen separate from the show kitchen. Others have a spice kitchen for the separation of aromas! This is ever changing. Just work it out with function first as there are many options to make it look great!

Backsplashes Offer a New Look for Your Kitchen

January 5, 2021 by LuxeSpecs

Are you ready for a new look in your kitchen in the new year? A great backsplash can give the entire kitchen an updated look! Your eye goes to a contrast in color so if you want pop then add a backsplash that is colorful. The entire area from the base cabinets to the uppers can be updated. Covering the wall up to the exhaust fan over the stove is also a good idea.

It can be paint in your favorite color or a pattern you find that you love. DIY down and dirty option – use chalk paint for color and you can write on it!

You can use tile or tile banded by narrower tiles of the same or coordinating colors to achieve the desirable height. (Put the cut tiles where they show the least if you can’t use all full tiles.) Ceramic or glass tile will have many options.

Glass, mirror, stainless or copper are a totally different look and again can be combined with tiles or used in specific areas. The smooth surface requires more cleaning so use accordingly.

You can use natural stone or quartz. Either the same surface as the countertop or a contrasting solid color. Backsplashes made from slab can be cut to fit the space in squares, rectangles or slab. We had black galaxy granite on the countertops and the backsplash of our last home. Natural stone does not have to be sealed every year as you often read. It varies from stone to stone. We never resealed the black granite backsplash and regularly need to reseal our current limestone.

Don’t know a kitchen remodeling contractor? The supplier will! Or ask your interior designer!

Looking for inspiration? Visit my Pinterest Kitchen board or the Countertops board.

Is Natural Stone Obsolete?

December 13, 2020 by LuxeSpecs

Is natural stone obsolete? Never! Even as we were trending toward the quartz (composite) products in recent years, many people were holding out for the real thing! Yes, quartz is lower maintenance than natural stone products that need to have the surface recoated. But the Black Galaxy granite we had in our last kitchen was never recoated in the fifteen years we lived there and it still looked great! Natural products also look real – they are! Quartz is great for the contemporary look that is now in. It doesn’t need to be refinished but it is also harder to repair. A recent project with an oversized island required natural stone as quartz was not available in a wide enough slab. Approach each situation with an open mind and use the product that is best for it. The current limestone in our kitchen is high maintenance but I would only replace it with quartzite – another natural stone!