MoMA Exhibits Frankfurt Kitchen in Counter Space: Design and the Modern Kitchen
Until March 14, 2011, the MoMA will be doing a special exhibition of a complete example of the “Frankfurt Kitchen” designed by the architect Grete Schütte-Lihotzky. This kitchen features some of the ergonomics and design elements that we take for granted in today’s kitchen. This kitchen, designed in the 1920’s marks the beginning of a gradual move from the kitchen being something hidden away to it being a more integral part of everyday use.
The designer designed the Frankfurt Kitchen in order to better the day to day lives of women. So, we can see this kitchen as also a political statement and cultural landmark.
The exhibit also features a mobile fold-out piece from 1968 as well as various blueprints, designs, industrial movies, and photographs.
Read what others have had to say about it:
Charles & Hudson Kitchens
NPR
The Daily Femme
Puff & Choux
How to refinish laminate countertops
There are now products on the market that allow you to easily refinish your laminate countertops. These are available as kits that include a base coat, chips, and the top coat. It allows you to easily and quickly refinish. However, the last time I priced a comparison between using this product and ordering new postform laminate tops, the postform laminate tops were only $100 more. They have a much larger variety of colors and you get to change your edge options … I guess to each his own though.
Kitchen Demolition
Kitchen Demolition can sometimes be a chore …
Read about what how one couple tackled the issue @ The Flipping Couple.
Great article on How to Install Hardwood Flooring
Check out this great article on How to Install Hardwood Flooring over @ One Project Closer.
How to Install Hardwood Flooring
Autodesk Homestyler: Free online interior design software
Today I stumbled across some newly available online software for interior design. Of course its from Autodesk, makers of CAD and animation software. It allows you to start from scratch or to choose existing designs submitted by users. After you’ve completed your design you can then print out a schedule of materials or share it with your designer. It has a few brand specific products in its catalog, like Dupont Corian, Sherwin Williams paint, Kohler products, etc. However, I’d like to see a few more choices with other brands to choose from.
Check it out:
Autodesk Homestyler
20-20 Design Demo of a Kitchen Design
CAD Software for Kitchen Design: 20-20 & Chief Architect
Though there are many kitchen design software solutions on the market today, two are the industry standards. They are 20-20 Design and Chief Architect. 20-20 Design has a huge market share in big box retailers like Home Depot and Lowes and in independents. Chief Architect is closing in and with its integration into a large suite of CAD tools for the homebuilder and architect it will be a contender for some time to come.
The following is a list of tutorials and howto videos available online:
Chief Architect:
Chief Architect’s official site!
20-20 Design:
Demo video.
New Project: How to Build a Kitchen Table pt. 1 - research
I’ve recently been wanting to build a new kitchen table approximately 42″ x 72″. While researching the interwebs this is what I’ve come up with:
This Old House’s How to Build a Butcherblock Island.
This Old House’s How to Build a Side Board using stock cabinets.
Nathan Hurst’s How to Build a Router Table.
WikiHow’s How to Build a Kitchen Table.
DoItYourself.com’s How to build a Table.
I was thinking along the lines of using a butcherblock top with a polyurethane finish, and rails and legs that have a distressed, almost white-washed finish.
Cabinet Accessories
The most noteworthy direction kitchen design has taken in the last ten years is toward the inclusion of a multitude of accessories in basic kitchen designs. These accessories can take your parent’s kitchen and turn it into the functional and feng-shui modern version. Items such as appliance panels, waste container pull-outs, drawer organizers, pull-outs for shelves and pantries, and the purpose-specific items (integrated cutting boards, stemware storage, spice racks, etc.) make the modern kitchen convenient, effective, and efficient.
Prices for these items can range from exorbitant to reasonable … as features range from custom to modular. Anyone remodeling their kitchen should consider why they are doing so. Is it to improve the look, function, or flow of their existing kitchen? Or, is it because a pipe burst and in the process of repairs they now need a new kitchen? Is this the kitchen they have been dreaming of ever since their first home? Is this their first home? All these motivations and many others should be taken into account by a kitchen designer in order to determine what accessories you may want. Many times designers put simply what is in vogue, or cram every thing in their spec books into a design, or fall into the trap every designer has at least once design what they like best.
A major manufacturer of after-market cabinet accessories is Rev-a-Shelf who supplies many large cabinet manufacturers on down to mom and pop cabinet shops and even the home owner. Some of these products are simply extraordinary (Stainless Steel Tip Out Trays for Sink Bases … I love it!) to the mundane but still very functional (Lazy Susan).
Just to give you a starting point; here are five accessories I get asked for on a daily basis:
- Tip Out Trays for the Sink Base
CabinetParts.com
KitchenSource.com - Waste Container Pull-Outs
CabinetParts.com
OvisOnline.com
KitchenSource.com
ShelvesThatSlide.com - Untensil Organizers & Cutlery Trays
OrganizedLiving.com
CabinetWare.com
eDirectHardware.com - Spice Racks
TheHardwareHut.com
Condells.com
ZipCabs.com
Organize.com - Pull Outs
SlideOutShelvesLLC.com
KnapeAndVogt.com
KitchenShelves.com
OrganizeIt.com
As you can see there is just about everything under the sun to choose from. What you choose depends on what cabinet it will be placed in and to what use you will actually put these accessories. Other considerations include your budget, what style cabinet you have chosen, and how much use you will put these to. A few well chosen accessories can can make that new kitchen whether you spend $1,500 on it or $40,000.
Cleaning laminate floors
One of the biggest advantages of laminate floors is that they are made to look good for many years with a minimum of effort. Most laminates come with a 10 to 25 years residential warranty against staining, wearing and fading, depending on the brand. All you really need for cleaning are a vacuum cleaner, a dry mop and a damp towel for more difficult stains. Laminates are built to stand up to wear, but to keep them looking like new, here are a few recommendations.