8/12/2013

Stylish Home Accents that Inspire

Design a grand style of elegance in your decor with contemporary inspiration. Beautiful home accents invite stylish finishes, sumptuous textures and imaginative design into a modern dwelling. Add elegance and personality to a home entry way with a new entry doormat. Update your floors with floor mats in designs that feature color, pattern and texture impact.

Decorative Tray

Choose a decorative tray as an affordable style accent. A beautiful tray in a mirrored, wood, glass or metal finish is great to use in a living room, family room or kitchen space. Modern accent trays come in round, oval or square shapes. Choose a beautiful serving tray for a formal or casual decor scheme. They are also available in decorative stainless steel, bamboo, acrylic and aluminum materials.


4/09/2013

About French Kitchen Decorating



   French kitchens bring to mind wonderful dishes such as coq au vin, fresh truffles that have been discovered by pigs in the woods, souffles, lovely cheeses, quiche Lorraine and lots of high-quality wines. In addition to producing gourmet food, French kitchens have a look all their own, too. While it's true they all have a stove, oven, refrigerator, sink and other normal kitchen equipment, some elements set them apart, sending the message that a French cook lives in this kitchen.


Kitchen design

According to "French Country Signature" by interior designer Charles Faudree, kitchens in France have no upper cabinets in the kitchens. Open shelves above the lower cabinets are popular in French kitchens for dishes and collections.
 
Colors

The most common colors seen in French kitchens are light yellow with red accents, or blue and white.

Cooking tools

Copper pans hang above the stove or center island for easy access. Wire whisks, wooden spoons of all types and sizes and good French knives are staples in every French kitchen, and are typically out in plain sight as part of the decor.

Accents

Roosters, often made of ceramic, seem to be a common touch in French kitchens, as are white Staffordshire hens sitting on a dish that looks like a nest. Wire egg baskets full of eggs, blue and white porcelain china, fresh fruit and herb plants also add to the look.

Effects

Ceilings are often high and open with beams or nontypical wood such as grapevine fencing.

3/04/2013

Vintage Kitchen Decorating Ideas



     In many ways, nothing says homey or cozy like a vintage styled kitchen. The kitchen is already one of the best rooms in the house for sitting down with a piece of pie and a good book; it becomes even more so with vintage decor. Vintage decor can make this room seem like a kitchen on "Leave it to Beaver" or the "Brady Bunch," emitting both a safe and comforting feeling.  



Brick Hearth
Nothing says vintage like a brick hearth behind your stove, or to put it more aptly, a brick hearth strongly evokes the Colonial period, claims the website Kitchenbathideas.com. You can use that brick hearth as a foundational piece from which to continue decorating in a vintage manner. For example, copper pots hung on or around the brick hearth complete the Colonial feel. Consider installing a farmhouse style sink; the massive depth of the sink and pure functionality will point to the Colonial period, furthering the vintage theme. Bronze light fixtures that are somewhat weathered and soapstone counters will help to complete a historical look.

Lights and Walls
Painting kitchen walls the right color can really help you to identify which period you want your kitchen to evoke. For example, for kitchens to resemble something from the 1890s to the mid 1900s, basic white, cream or even light yellow walls are suitable. For kitchens from the mid 1900s to the 1970s, more striking colors such as blues, mint or olive greens, reds and oranges are suitable. Invest in a few lighting fixtures from the period but have them rewired for safety and your kitchen will have a strong foundation for further vintage decor.

Accessories
The right accessories and other small touches will help to complete the finished vintage look of your kitchen. You can find things like blue and white speckled pots, copper pots, chrome cannisters, milk bottles, butter churns, wire egg baskets, old clocks, sets of antique or retro dishes, vintage signs and rag rugs on the Internet, at yard and garage sales and secondhand and antique shops.

1/29/2013

How to do Italian Kitchen Decor



    Italian kitchen decor was all the rage a few years ago. People were faux finishing their walls in bright yellow & had cookie jars that looked like fat chefs. This went out of style pretty quickly. Real Italian kitchen decor is much more lasting & enduring. It speaks of good food & lots of laughter.



Instructions
1 ,Go Modern Italian. If you look through kitchens that are actually in Italy you might be in for somewhat of a shock. You can browse through these websites even if you don't speak Italian. You will see a lot of stainless steel, on the walls, on the counter tops & on the appliances. They even use modern curved islands.

2, Interpret the theme. If you want Italian kitchen decor, you probably have at one point thought of basing your room around wine or grapes. Many times, this is done literally by hanging grapes from the chandelier or even stenciling them on the walls. Instead, use the colors of wine or turn your room into a dark, romantic wine cellar.

3, Decorate around your cooking style. It's all about the food. Make your Italian kitchen decor function well for cooking. Have a center island in the kitchen with bar stools where kids can learn how to cook from their moms or grandmas. Italian kitchens are places where recipes are passed down from generation to generation.

4, Make it comfortable. Your Italian kitchen will be a place where people spend a lot of time. You can even add a small sofa behind your dining table. Choose bar stools with high backs on them for maximum comfort.

5, Turn everything into artwork. Use a tumbled marble tile back splash for that old world feel. You can hang a large poster in your breakfast nook. You can even get wall words to express your favorite saying or family motto. Plus, you can remove it, if it becomes dated

10/25/2011

Fire and ice from Home & Architectural Trends

Technological wizardry in the home isn't just about new home automation and entertainment systems. Kitchen appliances are also reflecting ever-increasing technology breakthroughs.
Two of the latest innovations changing the look and functionality of modern kitchens are the result of extensive research and development by leading appliance manufacturer Fisher & Paykel.
The new 36-inch CookSurface, shown on this page, is a frameless black glass gas cooktop with retractable gas burners and pan supports. The CookSurface supports three gas burners, which rise out of the cooking surface when the control knob is activated. When the burners and knobs are recessed, the cooktop presents a smooth, clutter-free surface that is easy to clean.
Laurence Mawhinney, Fisher & Paykel's vice president sales and marketing, says the cooktop's Aero™ burners provide precise temperature control for greatly improved cooking results. Variable-speed fans regulate the air flow, controlling the delicate balance between oxygen and gas levels.
Fisher & Paykel's new 36-inch CoolDrawer, shown above, is a natural extension of the DishDrawer concept. This modular drawer refrigerator allows you to customize your refrigeration, and position it exactly where you need it. Mawhinney says the CoolDrawer provides ergonomic benefits and also helps streamline meal preparation.
"But, most importantly, the refrigeration can be personalized at the simple touch of a button. The drawers can be programmed to freeze or chill food or wine at the desired temperature."
The drawers are available in stainless steel, or they can be fully integrated into your cabinets for a seamless look.