WHO ARE YOU?

Whether it be blogging or kitchen design, I am always thinking –How can I make it better?  With that commitment in mind, I signed up for the 4-week Blog Triage class with Cynthia Morris http://www.originalimpulse.com/blog and Alyson Stanfield http://artbizblog.com.. Today’s assignment is to describe the people I want to visit and read my blog.  Let me know if I’m right.  Send me a comment.  Let me know  who you are and what you want to read about on this blog.

Reader Profile 1

I see you as a woman perhaps 35-63 years of age.  You are pretty savvy, like to utilize the internet for research and comparison.  You have resigned yourself to the fact that although you may want to move, you’re not going anywhere soon but dammit you deserve to have a kitchen you love.  You want this kitchen to work better than the one you have and you want it to reflect your own unique spirit.  You are a creative.  Maybe you are an artist, a quilter, a crafter, a writer OR perhaps you haven’t realized it yet.  But you know all the great meals you devise or that beautiful garden you have behind the house?  Well that’s art too.  You don’t go out as much as you once did but have found some great  blogs about cooking, entertaining and home décor.  You’re beginning to think about this project as a reality but where do you start?  How much is it going to cost?  Everyone of us has a budget, right?  You’re a little overwhelmed.  You don’t want to make such a big investment and make a mistake.    You’re sitting  with your cup of tea or glass of wine enjoying your quiet time early in the morning or after everyone else has gone to bed and your dreaming…

Reader Profile 2

You are a fellow blogger or kitchen and bath professional.  Either you have met me in business circles or through another blog.  Scanning/reading blogs is part of keeping informed about your topic.   I’m hoping that you will see Kitchens for Living as a venue to market yourself, your product or your own blog.  It is my philosophy that the more expert information I can provide the more valuable it will be as a resource for my readers.

If I got this wrong let me know.  I want to know who you are!

IS YOUR KITCHEN REPUBLICAN OR DEMOCRAT?

Thank God the campaign ads are over.  The public has spoken.  The die is cast.  That said,  I thought it would be fun to see what a Republican kitchen looks like vs. a Democratic kitchen.  After all your kitchen is a reflection of you and we intend to get to the bottom of that as we continue to explore the Intuitive Kitchen process.  Since they won, let's examine what a GOP (stands for Grand Old Party in case you didn't know)  space entails.  The Grand Old Party kitchen is "old world".  (Think family values, back in the day and all that).  It's American-made (what else?).  The bigger the better,  luxurious, we're talking the Porsche Cayenne Turbo S  (oops, sorry not American) of kitchens.  Notice the strategically placed island positioned to defend the maid from attacks from the family room (and did I mention big?).  If you think this is funny, don't laugh.  People DO design to the party.  A few years back when France was strongly out of favor by the GOP I offended a potential client by showing them French limestone for the backsplash!

On the other side of the aisle we have a Democrats kitchen,  smaller in size and high in function so that Mama can easily whip up those 30 minute meals (thanks Rachel) after a hard day surfing the web at work.  Bamboo cabinet doors (harvested by kids in Costa Rica because it's not as far as China) on no-formaldehyde added boxes are a must in keeping with the sustainable Green initiative.  No pretense here,  just a liberal dose of the exotic as we embrace the contributions of world culture.  If we could, we'd spend the big bucks on the latest technology like an induction cook top but they're too expensive.  Let's go with a nifty Electric Gourmet Wok for $99.95  at Amazon.com instead.

If you're of the Independent persuasion, don't feel left out.  There's a kitchen for you too.  It's called Transitional and it works whether you're having a conservative OR  liberal day.  The door is a Shaker style.  Definitely modern with the right hardware or it can be "countryfied" in a flash with cup pulls and few porcelain farm animals on the counter.

THE KITCHEN DANCE

If you've been reading my blog you know that the innovative brand, Brizo Faucets turns the handle full blast when it comes to creativity.  Their current advertising campaign is aptly titled "License to Dream".  What better way to illustrate a dream than by blending product with artist?  That is exactly what they did.   Artist  and illustrator Erin Petson was one of five chosen to take a product line (Talo Smarttouch)  and dream it to life.  Here's how she describes her inspiration,  "A new sense of grace in the kitchen.  Cooking becomes less of a chore and more of a dance.  It's choreography."

Hmmmm. This got me dreaming about my own dancing adventures in my kitchen.  Now I must confess, loyal readers, that I have a small kitchen, really small.   That said, the hubs and I do turn out some pretty exceptional dinners every now and then and we love to cook together.  How do we do it?  We dance.  We've got the rhythm down.  It goes something like this.   I swing my hips to the right.  He opens the trash.  He slides to the left I open the utensil drawer.  He opens the fridge and I dip under his arm.   Whenever we cook in our little kitchen  I think we fall in love a little more.  You should try it sometime.  It's very romantic.  There is a rhythm to everything.  The Intuitive Kitchen can be a place to revel in the ritual of cooking and eating at home.  So find your partner,  grab a recipe, turn up the tunes and dance in the kitchen.

THE BEST DISHWASHER

Premier global marketing information service J.D. Power and Associates recently ranked Miele dishwashers number one in customer satisfaction for 2010.  Miele dishwashers have long been a favorite of mine as well.  I love the nifty cutlery tray they offer which not only cleans your eating utensils more efficiently but is also conveniently located in a pull out drawer at the very top of the dishwasher.  Ranging in price from about $1,200-$2,200,  a Miele dishwasher definitely falls in the "champagne taste" category.  Nevertheless  check it out and you may find it well worth the splurge.  What makes this appliance a favorite is performance and reliability including an almost non-existent noise level, variety of functions and energy efficiency.

In its Economy cycle, the new Miele series only uses 1.2 gallons of water.  A typical  Energy Star dishwasher uses an average of 4 and  non-Energy Star models use about 6 gallons.  In contrast, washing by hand uses around 16 gallons of water!

Another interesting,  if slightly creepy, feature  is Miele's innovative RemoteVision^™ monitoring service  now available on select dishwasher models. RemoteVision provides a 24/7 WiFi link that alerts the technical service team whenever there's a performance issue to assist the homeowner to correct the problem or, if necessary,  schedule a service appointment.

The best way to find out about the full line of Miele products is to visit one of their Galleries like I did.

The Galleries, located throughout the US,  are open to both the trade as well as consumers, and many special events and demonstrations are scheduled throughout the year.   If you live in South Florida you can visit the one in Boca Raton.  To purchase a Miele appliance you'll have to visit one of their dealers.  My favorites in the area are Florida Builder Appliances in West Palm Beach and House of Appliances in Delray Beach.    They are listed on this website under LOCAL RESOURCES.

5 TIPS TO IMPROVE THE LIGHTING IN YOUR KITCHEN

Friday afternoon I had the pleasure of sipping a Starbucks pumpkin spice soy latte while chatting with my favorite local lighting expert Marcia (that’s MAR-see-uh) Exelrud .  (Click here for previous guest post by Marcia.) As we discussed how to save the world from poor kitchen design and bad lighting , I asked her to come up with  a list of the TOP 5 Lighting Fixes for your kitchen. Here's what she had to say:

1. Replace trims and bulbs in existing recessed fixtures. New trim will give you a fresh updated look.  Replace bulbs so that they are all the same type for uniform and even lighting. Remember that the most up to date fixtures and bulbs will usually also be more energy efficient.  The initial investment is greater but they more than pay for themselves and save you time and aggravation in the long run.

2. Move or add fixtures to add direct light where you need it. Take a moment to study your kitchen both during the day and at night with the lights on.  Does your current arrangement work or do you need to make some changes?

3.  Add cove lighting with an LED or xenon strip light fixture. Do you have space above your cabinets?  This is a perfect opportunity for cove lighting.  LED or Xenon strips are perfect for this area.

4. Remove unsightly dropped ceilings.   You know what I’m talking about, those plastic squares set into a metal grid concealing fluorescent tubes.  Yeah that’s them.  Remove them and you instantly create an open feeling!  Replace those tube lights with some recessed high hats for better light. Welcome to 2010!  A word of caution, if you have a concrete ceiling you may have to lower it just enough to recess lights.  If that’s not in the budget consider a surface mounted fixture.

5. Install lighting under the upper cabinets and above islands.. Never install open fixtures such as pendants, spot lights or recessed lights witout lenses directly over cooking areas.

If you have questions about any type of lighting you can contact Marcia at

http://marcia@brightlightdesigns.net/

You can also find her listed under LOCAL RESOURCES  at Kitchens for Living

TAP INTO YOUR CREATIVE ZONE

I live in a hectic family household  but Sundays are sacred.  Joe is off at work and kids sleep late, sometimes really late.  That is when I am blessedly alone.  That is when my spirit flies.  I catch up with all the blogs I haven’t been able to read during the busy week, maybe I do a little art and I dream.  Despite all my financial responsibilities,  my parenting realities and my work I get into a place where, for a moment,  I think just because I’m alive I can do ANYTHING.  Here are some things I become capable of on Sunday morning:

1. Going back to India to take up where I left off.

2. Buy and decorate a hip Mid-Century modern apartment in Miami

3.Become a full time artist exploring and developing my many ideas and musings at my leisure. This is one of my collages.  If you want to see more visit www.papermoongoddess.blogspot.com

4. Go back to California to study more art

Ok, you get the picture.  When you want to create or remodel your own kitchen or design a kitchen for a client this is a very good space to be in.  Get in the mood and the ideas will come.  This is truly the first step in the Intuitive Kitchen process. When you have returned to earth you can edit.  Trust me it works.  Now tell me, don't be shy (that's counter intuitive). How do you get in the zone?