New York Kitchen Style - Cabinets - Door hardware
Posted on July 7, 2008 - Filed Under Cabinet Door, Hardware | Leave a Comment
While hinges and door latches are ordinarily included with the cabinets, customers usually get to choose their own knobs and pulls. That affords buyers the opportunity to express their individual taste in their selections, and their choices are virtually limitless.
Hardware is available in every conceivable style and color. In fact, it’s impossible to show a representative cross section of styles because there are simply too many. This article describes some of the basic types that are available and how they’re used.
Hinges
Hinges and exposed latches are ordinarily selected from a handful of options offered by the cabinet manufacturer, and are chosen to match the knobs and pulls.
Each manufacturer works a little differently, but most offer a choice of a small number of hinges to complement whatever knobs the customer wants. Obviously this is less important with a concealed hinge. But unless the cabinet is custom built, you’ll find the hinge selection rather limited. Generally, the hinges will vary by finish and design, and they do change from time to time without notice.
Basic types
Knobs - These are handles mounted to doors or drawers with a single screw or bolt. Knobs may be combined with backplates or used alone. They typically range in size from 3/4″ to 2″ in diameter.
Some knobs have screws built in, making them easier to install. They are becoming ever more popular because they’re more versatile than pulls, and easier to use than small latch handles. They have the added advantage of being more easily replaced than pulls because they don’t pose a problem in matching existing holes.
Knobs aren’t limited to being round. They can be flat with rounded edges, round like a ball, square, “T” shaped, or even bun shaped. They come in a variety of finishes, from wood to metal, and can be decorated or plain .
Most questions concerning knobs involve size, quantity or positioning. Knobs are like eyes and noses; their size and placement on a cabinet can have unpleasant results if not well planned.
For all but the largest cabinets, a knob between 1″ and 1 1/2″ diameter is appropriate.
If knobs are used on the drawers, they should be the same size or bigger than those on the doors. Wood knobs should generally be one size larger than an equivalent metal knob.
Most knobs come with a machine screw sized for 3/4″ thick material. For thicker wood, a longer screw may need to be special-ordered. American made knobs are commonly threaded for 8/32 screws that can easily be found in most local hardware stores. European manufacturers use screws with a wide range of threads from 2mm metric to 1/4″, which may not be readily available.
Pulls
Pulls perform the same service as knobs, but tend to be larger or more elaborate, and can greatly alter the look of the cabinet.
Pulls may be combined with a backplate or used alone; they’re usually attached with two or more screws, or have movable parts such as a ring handle. They also come in many different styles. Some of the more common types are D handles, bail handles, ring handles, latch handles, and cup pulls. There is some confusion in naming conventions across manufacturers, so you may see similar types of pulls given contradictory names by different companies.
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it Kitchens Base Cabinet White
Posted on June 30, 2008 - Filed Under Base Cabinet, IT kitchen | Leave a Comment
The IT kitchen concept is all about simplicity, flexibility and choice. With our innovative range of mix and match doors, cabinets, handles and accessories, the possibilities are endless and you can create your own individual kitchen.
| Width (mm): | 800 |
|---|---|
| Depth (mm): | 570 |
| Height (mm): | 870 |
| Brand: | it Kitchens |
| Colour: | White |
| Fixings included: | Yes |
| Material: | Particleboard |
| Product Type: | Cabinets |
| Specific Product Type: | Base Cabinets |
| Finish: | MFC (Melamine Faced Chipboard) |
Kitchen Styles - Flooring - Bamboo
Posted on June 30, 2008 - Filed Under Kitchen Flooring, Kitchen Style, Kitchen Design | Leave a Comment
What you will learn: The strength of bamboo in its natural 
habitat; environmental benefits of choosing bamboo flooring; the process of turning bamboo into flooring; two distinct colors of bamboo flooring; three distinct styles of bamboo flooring; about vertical-style, horizontal style, and strand-woven style bamboo flooring.
Bamboo is quickly gaining popularity for use as both household
and commercial flooring. Find out how this fast-growing, sustainable plant with style and durability that has come to rival traditional hardwood as a quality flooring material.
For some, it is odd to think that bamboo, a type of grass, would serve as a durable flooring surface. And yet, bamboo flooring is becoming known as an attractive, long lasting and environmentally friendly alternative to the more conventional choice of hardwood flooring. The bamboo plant is extremely well adapted to its environment, unaffected by poor soil quality and other outside influences. Bamboo is a very fast growing type of grass, one of the fastest growing in the world, and the vitality of bamboo plants is not harmed by harvesting. The shoots of the harvested bamboo plant remain alive and quickly re-grow new stalks, making bamboo a highly renewable resource. As such, bamboo has become a popular choice of flooring by ecologically minded consumers, perhaps the “greenest” flooring of flooring materials as well as one of the most aesthetically pleasing.
What happens after harvesting
Once the bamboo is harvested, the green outer skin of the bamboo is removed and the bamboo stalk is cut lengthwise into strips or “fillets.” The filleted strips of bamboo – still curved because they are a section of a round stalk – are milled along their outer edges to make a flat strip. (The excess trim is turned into “strand-woven” bamboo, a separate process which we discuss later.) The flat strips are kiln dried to remove the bamboo’s natural moisture, and then boiled to eliminate natural starches and sugars. Boiling the bamboo actually serves two purposes. By removing starch and sugar, the bamboo flooring is rendered unattractive to termites and other pests that can infest many wood products. This termite resistance makes bamboo an especially suitable material for certain geographical areas. In addition, bamboo flooring is less prone to expanding and contracting due to climate changes, specifically temperature and humidity, than many traditional hardwoods. The other reason for boiling the bamboo is for its aesthetic purpose.
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Kosher Kitchens
Posted on June 30, 2008 - Filed Under Kosher Kitchens, Kitchen Space, Kitchen Design | Leave a Comment
What makes a kosher kitchen? It’s the way the kitchen is used and 
maintained, rather than the design or materials, although some materials may be preferable. Ritual Jewish law and practice dictates separation of meat from dairy, and this extends to having entirely distinct sets of dishes, silver, cutlery, cookware, sinks, appliances and countertop areas. During the week of Passover dishes are changed again, and it’s clear to see that observant Jews – particularly those with sufficient space – are in the market for additional cabinetry, as well as all of the other accessories that make a kitchen convenient and appealing.
In the real world not every home is large enough to accommodate doubling or tripling of the kitchen space, nor is every customer wealthy enough to handle such a large investment. Those with severely modest means may have to box up Passover tableware and utensils and store them in closets for the other 51 weeks of the year. Sometimes a double sink will have to stand in for two separate units (even a single sink can be permissible, provided it is not of porous material and is properly cleaned before switching from meat to dairy or vise versa). A single dishwasher also may be acceptable to some authorities provided it has a stainless steel interior and the racks are changed depending on what dishes are being washed.
Under the circumstances, it’s obvious that any kosher customer with the means id going to want to make their kitchen as large and as workable as possible. Other clients may also want large, easy to use kitchens and more than one dishwasher or sink, but for the kosher observant, it is almost a necessity.
One of the more significant differences between a kosher and non-kosher kitchen is that most conventional kitchens are predicted on an invisible work triangle defined by the placement of one sink, one refrigerator and one range. In a kosher kitchen we have two overlapping triangles and, ideally, two sinks, two refrigerators and two ranges.
There is more to designing a kosher kitchen than just adding extra appliances. Our Urban Homes designers have designed many kosher kitchens, and as with conventional designs, we realize that the ability to make every inch of space count is a highly valued skill.
Accordingly, our designers advise customers to:
Feng Shui Kitchen Design
Posted on June 30, 2008 - Filed Under Feng Shui, Kitchen Stove, Kitchen Placement, Kitchen Tips, Kitchen Layouts, Kitchen Design | Leave a Comment
In Feng Shui, the kitchen represents nourishment and prosperity; after all, it’s human nature to associate food and nutrition with nurturing and sustenance. Believers in Feng Shui say that how you design and decorate the kitchen can influence your prosperity and health.
The first thing to bear in mind when considering any Feng Shui advice is that ultimately, Feng Shui is a complex practice with several different schools, and the recommendations will vary from school to school and from one practitioner to another. So too, advice will differ depending upon the unique home — and the unique people living in it. Despite the fact that different schools may have diverse views on some topics, there are basic Feng Shui principles that apply to all kitchens.
Kitchen Placement
The first thing to consider when looking at the kitchen is its placement in terms of the whole house.
Small Space Tips
Posted on June 30, 2008 - Filed Under Kitchen Tips, Kitchen Islands, Small Kitchen | Leave a Comment
- To make a small kitchen look larger, use the same material or colors on the cabinets and counters.
- A checkerboard design on the floor can help a small kitchen seem larger.
- Planning cabinet storage for small appliances will keep counters clutter-free.
- The soffit area above cabinets is a perfect place to incorporate storage.
- Kitchen islands don’t have to be large. A small compact island can be designed to provide storage, seating and counter space.
- When locked into a footprint, go vertical. Adding height gives you opportunity to create more storage and introduce light in a room.
- Designing cabinets up to the ceiling ensures optimum use of kitchen space.
- Make small rooms feel bigger by adding windows to bring in more sunlight.
- Accenting white ceramic wall tiles with a continuous listel strip placed 4 feet from the floor will help make a small space appear larger.
- Use dark colors on the lower half of a room and lighter colors higher up. This will draw the eye upward and make a room appear larger than it really is.
- Installing mirrors on adjacent walls will expand a room visually.
Small New York kitchen space NYC Living - 100 ways to maximize your space
Posted on June 30, 2008 - Filed Under Kitchen Space, Kitchen Style | Leave a Comment
- Use pocket doors where there’s no room for standard door.
- Hang open shelves above a kitchen island for extra storage, secure with steel brackets attached to the ceiling.
- Replace a solid wall between the kitchen and dining room with an arched opening.
- Built out a window seat and add drawer beneath it for storage.
- Position deep shelving units on either side of the window seat.
- Install beadboard wainscoting to break up the vertical expanse of a wall.
- What is the main purpose of remodeling your room? To add extra space, upgrade the kitchen/bathroom, improve security, make changes for health reasons, or just to improve your living space
- What are your options? Is there room to expand into the back/front yard or is there enough room to redesign using the existing floor space?
- What are your priorities? Figure out what you what to change the most, and what can you keep or just update
- Get input from all members of your household – find out their needs and wants
- Consider short-term and long-term implications of your renovation decisions (Will you have more/any children, how long you plan to live in this house, will your choices increase/decrease its resale value?)
- Read magazines and books to get an idea of the ‘look’ you want
- Make a clip book of all the pictures and ideas that represent your taste and style
- Watch related television shows and record episodes you particularly like
- Visit home shows and manufacturer/supplier showrooms
- Talk to relatives, friends and co-workers that have renovated. What have they learned, what would they recommend
- Break down your priorities and figure out what you are willing to spend the most money on
- What’s the total amount you are willing to spend?
- How much can/are you willing to borrow?
Kitchen Styles - Budgeting and getting started
Posted on June 30, 2008 - Filed Under Kitchen Style | Leave a Comment
Where to begin
Ok, now you know your kitchen or bathroom needs remodeling, but you still don’t know where to begin! It may seem like the list of things-to-do is endless, but don’t worry, just follow the steps below and take our advice. You’ll be on your way in no time!
1. Decide What You Want
2. Collect Ideas and Information
3. Determine Your Budget
CONTROL YOUR BUDGET
The most important part of any remodeling project is making sure you don’t go over your budget. Doing so can lead to settling for unexpected options, disagreements with contractors and worst case, an unfinished room. Follow these steps below to make sure you get the most for your money! Read more
Kitchen Styles - Color 101
Posted on June 30, 2008 - Filed Under Kitchen Color, Kitchen Style | Leave a Comment
Your surroundings can affect you physically as well as emotionally, and can alter your outlook on life. For example, studies have shown that blue reduces aggression, that pink reduces stress, and that orange increases one’s energy.
Your bathroom is among the first things you see when you wake up in the morning, and it could set the mood for your whole day. Generally speaking, bathroom colors should be light and airy to keep the walls from closing in, but there are opportunities to add vibrant colors in accent pieces.
Red
the color of Fire, signifies Summer, symbolizes Fame
Mood: Energy, Passion, Power, Excitement
In various cultures, red represents energy and intelligence, authority and power, or leadership and confidence.
In color therapy it represents courage, self-reliance, and vitality. It carries a maximal state of energy.
People who like reds tend to be generous, to appreciate order, and develop keen sensitivities to the arts.
Prolonged exposure can leave one agitated or even aggressive as it increases heart rate and blood pressure. It is a color best used for accessories.
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Kitchen Styles - Ventilation
Posted on June 30, 2008 - Filed Under Kitchen Cooking, Kitchen Style, Kitchen Design | Leave a Comment
Cooking in the kitchen generates a great deal of heat, steam, grease, smoke, and odors that need to be ventilated to clean the air and to prevent harm to the home.
Cooking generates heat, and modern professional-type ranges generate even more. It is not uncommon for a range to have four burners going, each generating 15,000 btu’s of heat (total 60,000 btu’s), along with an oven or broiler adding even more.
Yet a typical four-ton residential air conditioner is only capable of removing 48,000 btu’s of heat per hour from the home. Clearly, the air conditioner will be overtaxed without supplemental ventilation.
Cooking also vaporizes oil and water contained in food and forms an extremely tough film that sticks like glue to everything it touches. In fact, home cooking can produce over a gallon of vaporized grease per year, and this grease needs to be removed from the house.
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