Posts Tagged ‘backsplash’
Design an Easy-Clean Kitchen
Wednesday, September 5th, 2012
If you would rather get a root canal than clean your kitchen then this ideabook is for you. Take a look here for tips in selecting low-maintenance countertops, flooring, backsplash, storage, and appliances that will have you loving your easy-clean kitchen.
Tags: appliances, backsplash, cabinet hardware, countertop, Design Tips, design trends, easy-clean, Flooring, Interior Design, Kitchen, low-maintenance, storage, tile
Posted in Cool Ideas, Cool Stuff, DIY, Design Tips, Flooring, Interior Design, Kitchen, Storage Solutions, Trends, redesign | No Comments »
Crocodile Rocks! Wild Texture for Every Room in Your Home
Monday, November 7th, 2011
Crocodile and Alligator texture isn’t just for your fancy shoes and purses anymore! This reptile texture has always been one to catch my eye. Get a little wild and put it on your kitchen backsplash tiles, your chair upholstery, and even … get ready for it … your bathtub!
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Tags: backsplash, Bathroom, Design Tips, design trends, dining chair, Dining Room, headboard, interior design portland, Kitchen, Living Room, modern design, ottoman, room divider, texture, tile, upholstery, wall tile, wingback chair
Posted in Bathroom, Cool Ideas, Cool Stuff, Design Tips, Dining Room, Furniture, Interior Design, Kitchen, Living Room, Seating, Trends, Uncategorized, Upholstery | No Comments »
5 Quick & Inexpensive Pick-Me-Ups For a Tired Kitchen
Wednesday, June 30th, 2010
Are you living with a kitchen that has seen better days? I certainly am! My house – purchased almost 5 years ago – was built in the 70′s and the kitchen had not had updates of any kind. Eventually I will remodel. But when I do, it will be the kind of remodel that includes knocking down walls, moving windows, adding an exterior door and will cost tens of thousands. Business is getting better all the time, so hopefully the day is not far off when I can have the sleek and modern kitchen of my dreams like this beauty by Bulthaup.
Maybe you are living with a kitchen that is outdated, or even a new construction home with a kitchen that is bland and boring. If you aren’t ready for a full blown remodel, it doesn’t mean you can’t inject a fresh feel into your kitchen and do it affordably. In the meantime, why not make some quick and relatively inexpensive improvements that will make your kitchen more enjoyable and livable for now?
Today I’m sharing 5 ways to freshen up your kitchen without a remodel. These quick and lower cost improvements are also great for people who want to make their home look it’s best before putting it on the market.
1. Lighting: Just a few improvements in your kitchen’s lighting can make a dramatic impact in how warm and beautiful it looks and make your kitchen more functional. Under-cabinet lights are available in both plug-in models you can install yourself or hard-wired versions that will require an electrician. Getting ones that have a low and high setting means you can set them to bright so you can see to cook, and then turn them down to a soft glow for ambience when you are entertaining. This is especially nice in open plan homes because it makes great accent lighting. Placing them toward the front of the cabinets gives the best light over your work area. In the kitchen below, the under-cabinet lights cast a beautiful glow on the tile backsplash and light the countertop beautifully making it easy to see what you’re doing.
via Gardenweb
Updating ceiling light fixtures is another quick way to improve lighting. Removing an old dropped-ceiling fluorescent fixture and replacing it with track or spot lights gives a more contemporary look and better light. If you have higher ceilings in the kitchen, consider a chandelier to replace a nondescript ceiling light or ceiling pendants above a breakfast bar or kitchen island.
2. Backsplash: Changing your backsplash is a quick way to add interest or color without all the work and expense of changing out your countertops. In the kitchen below, the single row of 6″ x 6″ glass tiles adds shine and complements the color of the painted cabinets. Although glass tile is not cheap, you don’t need much to do a simple backsplash like this.
via HGTV, designed by Beth Haley
This beautiful stainless steel backsplash below is done in peel & stick tiles that require no grouting. They are carried at Lowe’s and are manufactured from 60% recycled material. When adding a new backsplash, take care to choose a material that relates to something else in the kitchen. The glass tiles above relate in color to the cabinets. The steel tiles below relate in finish to the cabinet and appliance hardware.
via Lowe’s
3. Paint and Paintings: Giving the walls a fresh coat of paint in a new color will give you an instant transformation. But an even easier way to add color and interest to a kitchen is to add art. Just as in other rooms, be sure to use art that is large enough for the wall to really make an impact. In the 50′s kitchen below, the bright orange countertop didn’t go well with the gold linoleum. This home was going up for sale and the client didn’t have the budget to change flooring or countertop. So the large colorful art with oranges, golds, reds and greens pulls together the disparate colors in the room.
You can incorporate art even when there isn’t much wall space. Inexpensive printed giclee canvases are easy to wipe clean, so they can be placed anywhere. Here I used art above the backsplash and below the wall cabinets to add a bit of color to this bland kitchen. Colorful accessories continue the color scheme.
4. Flooring: Kitchen flooring takes quite a beating. If your kitchen flooring is looking shabby, and it is different from the rest of the flooring in your house as is often the case – then changing it can be a relatively inexpensive project with big results. If you have old wood floors that are beyond refinishing, consider painting them. Painted checker board patterns are popular, but the kitchen below is very contemporary. I know this is unusual, but the dramatic black floor and charcoal wall work well against the white cabinetry and yellow tile behind the stove with a bright yellow chair as accent. Light colors like soft aqua or muted yellow-green work well in a kitchen too. Again, just be sure to relate the color to other finishes in your kitchen.
via apartmenttherapy.com
Other great flooring options are cork, or Marmoleum. Cork and Marmoleum both come in tiles and can be handled by an experienced do-it-yourselfer. Linoleum comes in a great range of patterns including ones that look like stone. Installation of the large sheet material is better left to a pro.
via apartmenttherapy.com
5. Hardware: If you have that shiny brass hardware from the 80′s – RUN – DON’T WALK, to your nearest hardware store! Your cabinet drawer pulls and handles and kitchen plumbing fixtures are like jewelry for your kitchen. Updating them is like getting a new tie to wear with your favorite suit, or a new necklace to wear with that classic dress you love. And just like a new tie or a new necklace, new hardware will change the look of your kitchen equally as effectively. But before you are tempted to pick the cheapest ones you can find — let me say this: hardware is something that you touch everyday. It should feel good in your hand and be of a good quality.
Choose a style and finish that works with the rest of your home. With thousands of styles available, you can create any look you want — from simple traditional or contemporary styles — to highly decorative statements. Although it is possible to successfully mix metals in your kitchen, the finish should relate to other things in your home such as your light fixtures or other metals found in adjacent and visible rooms. In the first two photos below, these simple hardware styles complement the style of the cabinetry. The turquoise glass knob echos the color of the aqua glass inserts in the cabinets, while the ornate tree shaped pulls work well with the elaborate leaf design carved into the wood.
With so many choices available, it can be overwhelming. But just choose one of the above five steps to get started. For most people, the kitchen is the heart of the home, so making it more appealing will give you a big payoff in enjoyment for yourself — or in speed of sale if your house is going on the market.
If you still aren’t sure which changes would be the best for your kitchen, I can help you decide your first step. Give me a call or email me today to set up an in-home visit or online consultation.
You may also like:
Painting Kitchen Cabinets: Which Color Would You Choose?
Home Staging Success: Portland Home Sold In One Day … See How
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Tags: Art, backsplash, cabinet hardware, cabinet knobs, cabinet pulls, faucet, Flooring, Kitchen, kitchen cabinets, kitchen remodel, Lighting, paint, plumbing fixtures, stainless steel
Posted in Art, Colors, Cool Ideas, DIY, Design Dollars, Design Tips, Flooring, Home Staging, Interior Design, Kitchen, Lighting, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Sensational Surface: Part #1 – Kerlite Porcelain Tile
Friday, November 13th, 2009
Actually I am talking about two sensational surfaces here. One is the store: Surface, located at 1235 SE Grand Ave., Portland, OR 97214. The other is Kerlite Porcelain Tile. I’m always on the lookout for cool looking, new and innovative materials to inspire great design ideas for interiors, so I was delighted to be invited to a new product party held at Surface last week. They have some amazing new products for flooring, backsplashes, countertops & walls, and also an intriguing material that can be used in place of glass in cabinet doors, interior sliding doors as well as other unique applications. Rather than cram all this great stuff into one long post, I’m splitting it up, so keep your eye open for “part 2″ and so on.
First I’d like to tell you a little about my experience with the store. Surface is a truly unique finish materials boutique. I recently worked with them to help one of my clients select flooring, countertop and backsplash materials. My sales person was David Horn. His professionalism, helpfulness with my client and expert product knowledge was all first rate. The staff members are all very respectful of the designer/client relationship and will help you as much or as little as you want. The showroom has a warm and comfortable ambiance with nice big work tables to lay out and compare all your possible choices. Enormous windows give you great natural light so you can really see the colors and textures. If you like a little privacy, they also have a separate conference room where designer and client can really brainstorm uninterrupted.
For my last client, I went in alone to preview their selections, then when I knew I was coming in with my client, I phoned ahead and David had all the selections pulled out and arranged on a work table for us when we arrived. Their vast selection is encased in big rolling carts so not everything is on view at once. Initially, I thought this would make it harder to view products, but after being in there with a client, I really appreciated that this display system kept us from going into overwhelm or being distracted with too many choices.
Kerlite:
This product is an ultra-thin – just 3 mm - super strong, porcelain tile that comes in seven sizes, including huge sheets. You can use it on floors or walls, but here is the very cool thing — you can put it right over existing materials including old tile or even linoleum without having to take out the old material. This is true even going over textured floor tiles.
Available in 26 colors and 3 finishes, my favorite is the tone-on-tone floral pattern. The photos of the bathrooms and living room are from the manufacturer’s website and they show the use of the huge sheet sizes to minimize grout lines. It’s also perfect for great kitchen design applications such as backsplash walls. Kerlite is even frost proof so it can be installed outdoors. I’m told that this product has even been installed as siding on a home exterior. I’d love to see that.
In keeping with my desire to find sustainably made options for my clients, according to Coto d’Este, Kerlite ceramic tiling material is “obtained from natural and carefully selected raw materials, such as light clays and pure feldspars,” and “firing is carried out in electric kilns without any release of polluting fumes.” With seemingly endless uses in both interior decor and exterior design applications, it is a product worth checking out. As porcelain tile goes, this is rather high-end, retailing around $12 per square foot. But for the amazing flexibility and lack of demo work, it could be a great idea for your next design project.
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Tags: backsplash, Bathroom, design idea, Flooring, Interior Design, Kerlite, Kitchen, Living Room, porcelain tile, Surface, sustainable, sustainable materials, tile, wall tile
Posted in Bathroom, Cool Stuff, Design Tips, Fireplace, Flooring, Interior Design, Kitchen, Living Room, Sustainable style, Uncategorized | No Comments »