By Gale
I am always on the lookout for new ideas to share with you. That was why I was puzzled to discover in a press release from the National Kitchen and Bath Association that they were using research from their member kitchen and bath designers and calling it the “11 Kitchen and Bath Trends of 2011.” Maybe I’m wrong, but I think of trends as being able to look forward to the future… not backwards to what has already happened. Let me give you a few good examples:
A Place for Wine
While the incorporation of wine refrigerators seems to be on the decline according to The National Kitchen and Bath Association, un-chilled wine storage is growing in popularity. While only 39% of surveyed designers incorporated wine storage areas into their kitchens at the end of 2009, just over half—51%—did so as 2010 came to a close.
What does that mean? Either we Americans are not aware that there is a need to optimize our wine, so it does need to be stored properly, or maybe we are drinking it faster so it does not have time to spoil! I think that wine bottles stored for “show” is a really a total waste of space.
How you store your wine will affect the flavor, color and character of each bottle. Even those bottles kept for a few weeks or months can be positively or negatively impacted by the type of home wine storage you have. For most wine lovers, having the right kind of wine storage unit is imperative. Think about temperature, light, humidity, storage angle and ventilation... and a wine cooler. And use those cubbies for some other purpose.
Bonjour Réfrigérateur
The French door refrigerator has strengthened its position as the type specified most often by NKBA member designers. Freezer-bottom models specified by 8% of designers fell very slightly from 60% to 59%, while freezer-top refrigerators were only as 2010 drew to a close—down from 10% a year earlier. Translated from the statistics, this means that French door refrigerators, which are almost all freezer-bottom design, are still relevant to designed-kitchens.
I think what is relevant is that most of us hate to bend down or even worse, get on our hands and knees to retrieve something that lurks in the back of our refrigerators. And as time goes on, we want even our fridges to be more accessible. I, for one, do really want to find those unused cartons of leftover food before they become pungent. Keeping everything chilled at eye level means that I never have to bow down to the refrigerator god again!
A Worthy Vessel
Undermount sinks continue to dominate newly remodeled bathrooms, with 97% of NKBA bathroom designers having specified them over the last three months of 2010, up from 95% a year earlier. However, vessel sinks have become the clear second choice among designers, as 51% of NKBA member designers have specified them in the final quarter of 2010, up from 39% a year ago. Why are they touting the Number Two choice?
Vessel sinks have been in the market for a number of years and are a “certain look”, which is not always practical but is usually pretty. I like having the extra countertop space that the Number One choice, an undermount sink, provides. It is a cleaner look and one that is important in the kitchen as well. Technology has also allowed the mixing of materials for undermount, say a stainless sink marries with a solid surface counter, or an acrylic sink works well with a laminate top.
Next month: 8 more ‘trends’
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