I recently attended a seminar on kitchen trends hosted by the folks at Jenn-Air and presented by Ellen Cheever, a renowned expert on kitchen and bath design. It was an informative and interesting day, packed with inspiration and lots of wonderful food!
Ellen discussed new ways of organizing the appliances in different areas of the kitchen, namely the cook, prep, clean-up and storage areas. I’d like to talk about 3 of these today; prep, clean-up and storage, and touch on the others in later posts.
1. Due to the emphasis on healthy eating, more fresh food is being prpared, with a need for sometimes as many as three sinks in the kitchen. One for prep work and possibly serving, one for clean-up and one for a dedicated beverage center. There are a multitude of new sinks on the market today that can perform a number of different functions. Here’s a really cool one that I was introduced to by Rick Glickman of Dream Kitchens in Deerfield.
http://www.thegalleysink.com/promolong.html?action=showdetail&pic_id=184
2. The dishwasher is also showing up in a number of places, and people are tending to opt for more than one. The butler’s pantry is a great place for an additional clean-up sink and dishwasher as is a dish drawer in a beverage center. As we’ve been discussing Age-in-Place issues, a new trend is to also separate the dishwasher from the sink and then elevate it by adding a drawer beneath it. This allows for easy access and less bending.
3. One of the most interesting trends is in utilizing food storage (refrigeration and freezers) in multiple places in the kitchen. Gone are the days when there was only one place to grab a beverage. Undercounter refrigerated and freezer drawers can be incorporated into prep areas and beverage areas. Individual refrigerator and freezer units can be separated to allow for maximum storage in the most convenient place. For instance, there was one design that incorporated a full freezer out of the main kitchen and in the butler’s pantry. There are now great options for combination units like wine and beverage storage in the same undercounter units.
I enjoy keeping up to date on the latest trends and ways to help my clients make the most of their kitchens! Which idea strikes your fancy?