New Kitchen Idea Book
Create a Kitchen for Any Style and Budget

Introduction:

When my mother-in-law, Doris Azzarrone, was a girl in Flushing, Queens, her father Louis built a house to her mother's specifications. Tess was adamant: Two kitchens were better than one. A formal kitchen was built on the main living level open to the dining room, while a canning kitchen was built on the ground floor off the herb garden. This was the down-and-dirty kitchen, with a big range, a refrigerator, tile countertops and backsplashes, and a white-painted concrete floor with a drain in the middle.

Tess also used the downstairs kitchen for messy foods such as roasts, fish, and long-cooking sauces. On Sunday afternoons the clinking of pot lids from downstairs would indicate the arrival of future son-in-law O'Neil Bouknight, taking a peek at dinner. Tess approved of Neil because he, too, came from rural families -- his mother from Italy and his father from South Carolina -- and because he loved home cooking, unlike her four city-born daughters (Doris included), who turned up their noses at their mother's delicious home-spun cooking, now venerated as cucina rustica. "You don't know what's good," Tess would say.

How wonderful it would be to have a waterproof, stainproof space like that canning kitchen -- one that you could just hose down after cooking. But many of us don't work at home all day the way Tess did, sewing, keeping house, and cooking. When we do make meals, we want to be surrounded by family or friends. And we multitask-work on the computer, do bills, grade papers, help with homework. Our ideal kitchen must be not only functional like that canning kitchen, but beautiful as well, like the upstairs kitchen.

It is possible to achieve that blend of beauty and utility, as you'll see in many of the kitchens in this book. You will find kitchens above your price range but well within the range of your imagination. Design basics kick off the book, with subsequent chapters moving through each of the major elements of kitchens: cabinets, shelves and pantries, countertops and sinks, cooking and cooling appliances, and lighting.

It's easy to spend days, weeks, or months, choosing surfaces -- your kitchen's fashionable side -- but also spend time choosing the things that will make your kitchen work. You love that slender gooseneck faucet, but are you willing to have another hole cut in the countertop (and more to clean around) for a separate sprayer? And what about hyperpractical issues, such as switchplates? If fixture types are switched separately, for instance -- advisable for flexible lighting -- you may end up with a formidable row of switches. This book will help you navigate the proper balance of form and function with its hundreds of photos supplemented by nitty-gritty information collected in drawings and sidebars.

Another word of advice: Be watchful of the latest thing. Any new, hot material will have new, not-so-hot providers and installers. Do research, follow up recommendations, and don't be swayed only by the bottom line. Take fashion for what it is-fleeting. Choose what works for you, whether it's an appliance or a finish. Your choice of an uncommon countertop material may turn up in next year's "hot new trends" kitchen magazine. Durability is important, but you can replace a less-durable countertop three times over for the price of a countertop that's as tough as nails. Keep in mind that most home lenders suggest limiting a kitchen renovation to 15 percent of the home's value. On the other hand, it's your kitchen, and you may be working in it for a lifetime.

Ideally, you've hired a contractor you trust. If so, hover lightly. Many contractors would love their clients to travel to Tahiti during construction. Make sure that you and your contractor agree about who is responsible for what. Understand that undergoing a kitchen renovation can be an emotional roller coaster, when every choice is fraught with what-ifs, every hitch seems like a calamity, and every meal is fast food. But your kitchen will be finished. When it's finished, stop second-guessing your decisions. Live with your new kitchen before declaring that the color of your granite countertops is an utter disaster. In a week or two, chances are you'll love it.

Table of Contents:

Kitchen Design: From Looks to Layout
Set the Style
Fitting the Kitchen into the House
Configuring the Kitchen

Cabinetry: The Kitchen Workhorse
Cabinet Anatomy
Doors and Drawers
Finishing Cabinet Tops and Bottoms
Materials and Finishes
Cabinet Accessories

Open Shelves and Pantries
Shelves
Pantries

Countertops and Sinks
Countertops and Backsplashes
The Kitchen Sink

From Ranges to Refrigerators
Locating Cooking Appliances
Range Options
Oven Options
Cooktop Options
Ventilation
Refrigerators

Floors, Walls, and Ceilings
Choosing a Floor
Walls and Ceilings

A Well-Lit Kitchen
Natural Light
Supplemental Light
 

Soft-cover, Over 350 color photos

ISBN: 978-1-56158-693-6