New Ideas in Kitchens and Baths

Photo courtesy of STOCK Building Supply

Family and friends gather in the kitchen. Food is prepared. News is shared. Bright and lively conversation flows. It’s a room designed with nurturing in mind.

We begin and end our days in the bathroom. There is something comforting in our rituals of routine and relaxation. In relative peace and quiet, we prepare to meet the morning, and in the evening, we dust off the remnants of the day. 

Both rooms are getting the attention they deserve these days, but it takes a wizard to keep up with the latest and greatest ideas in kitchens and baths. Fortunately, there are a number of businesses right here in the Raleigh area, working their magic to pair function and form in ways that make the ordinary extraordinary.

••• Cabinetry •••

One trend in bathrooms is to create a room that doesn’t look much like a bathroom. Vanities now look like dressers. Toilets have sliding covers and look like benches when not in use. Shower surrounds are works of art. Materials and fixtures run from luxurious to opulent. The bathroom is less utilitarian and more retreat-like. “Furniture-style vanities remain a big seller in painted or wood finishes,” says Jamie Fussell, sales manager for the Triangle Cabinet Division of Stock Building Supply. “They have Queen Anne-style or bun feet to make them look like a piece of furniture.”

Furniture-grade cabinets in kitchens also have a firm hold in the marketplace, and in the Raleigh-area that means mostly cherry and maple with raised panel doors, according to Fussell. Also getting some attention in the market are lighter woods such as alder and beech, even lyptus, considered a “green” product because of its quick regrowth.

Customers are also combining white and off-white finishes in combination with wood tones. “We might see a white perimeter kitchen with an island in a rustic wood tone,” he says. “I like it. It’s refreshing. It’s a change from what we’ve been doing.”


Photo courtesy of Kirk Imports

••• Appliances •••

Fine cabinetry has also driven the demand for professional-grade appliances in the kitchen. Stainless steel or cabinet-clad refrigerators and commercial-quality cooktops, wine coolers, warming drawers and multiple dishwashers are being carefully fitted into floor plans and becoming popular at all price points.

Two of the most popular products new to the market are Viking’s high-speed convection oven and a combination steam-convection oven, according to Lara Donoghue, a designer and showroom manager for Hadco. Both ovens are smaller than standard and much more energy efficient, cutting cooking times by as much as 80 percent.

Courtney Wilkinson, sales consultant for Wilkinson Supply, also sees more movement in the newer, energy-efficient products, such as the Liebherr refrigerator, a large side-by-side style with a freezer at the bottom. People like this style because the longer shelves mean they can set up entire party trays and store until needed, Wilkinson says, adding that she recommends that customers compare features before they buy at www.gardenweb.com, a forum that allows consumers to share the pros and cons of their purchases.

••• Countertops •••

A variety of materials are good choices for bathroom vanity countertops. The marble that is too porous and easily stained in kitchens works better in bathrooms as do other natural stones and resin products. Glass is also becoming a popular choice, according to David Fitchett of Carolina Glass and Mirror, who has been doing textured glass countertops with integrated sink bowls.

The top choice for kitchen counters is stone. No surprise there. But, a trend toward having several different surfaces in a kitchen means there is room for wood and steel as well as granite or a quartz product.

Granite is the top choice for kitchens for some very good reasons. Its durability and heat resistant qualities make it practical, while its color and veining make it beautiful, says Mel Neale, owner of WorldGranite in Raleigh. He likes the look of mixing colors and patterns in the kitchen by using different stone surfaces for counters, bar tops and islands, and believes the investment is well justified.

“We’re walking through this world with a limited amount of time,” Neale says. “Just get what you like, not something a decorator said would look good with the wallpaper. Granite is naturally beautiful. Every slice, every slab is different. Mother Nature gave it one shot.

So, even if your neighbor has the same granite you have, it will be slightly different in appearance.”

Neale recommends that customers pick their countertops first, then try to match flooring, cabinetry and paint colors. He sells only natural stone, and believes it is as economical as it is beautiful. The quartz or resin products use petroleum, which is creeping up in cost along with the prices per barrel of oil, Neale says, while quarrying techniques are improving so stone can be brought out of the ground cheaper.

It’s a trend Merritt Bradsher, owner of Hearth & Stone, has also noticed. “With the rise in the price of laminate, granite is becoming more and more attractive,” he says. Granite no longer costs twice as much and some of the granites are less expensive than quartz.

According to Absolute Stone Corporation, a countertop edge treatment will vary depending upon the materials you choose. The square edge is the
most common, particularly with laminates, wood and tile while Bullnose is a safe, practical edge that makes a countertop look substantial. Ogee is more decorative - and possible only with certain materials. For a more decorative appearance, a detail of wood, metal or a different color is sometimes sandwiched between layers of laminate, solid surfacing or stone.

••• Flooring •••

That warm, rich look is reflected more often these days in what’s underfoot as more and more homeowners opt to extend a home’s hardwood floors into the kitchen.

Nearly 85 percent of the kitchens Lee's Hardwoods & Designer Flooring does these days is in hardwoods, according to Daniel Lee, who says it’s an excellent choice. “It cleans well, has a warm feel and look to it. It’s durable and provides a little more give than a traditional ceramic floor. It can provide a nice contrast when you go with lighter cabinets and a darker floor or vice versa.”

Ceramic or stone is still the most common flooring for a bath, Lee says, the color range is hard to beat. Hardwoods are showing up in master baths more often. With adequate ventilation for the shower and good bath mats, it’s a good choice.

The change in attitude toward wood floors in kitchens and baths has to do with better plumbing and appliances, Lee says. People don’t worry as much about water leaks anymore. Those who are less sure are opting for cork, he adds, which is resilient even in the event of a leak or large spill.

Ceramic tile is very durable, looks nice, is easy to clean, and can also handle the water, Lee says. “Radiant heat systems can overcome the concern about
coldness in a tile floor.”

“There are many new options to hardwood flooring and ceramic tile,” states Greg Long of Carpet One of Durham. “The exotic hardwood flooring including Brazilian cherry and tigerwoods is in high demand, as is the larger 18-inch ceramic tile.”

For those who want a tile look but do not want the cost of ceramic tile, luxury vinyl is the way to go.  Long explains “The material of luxury vinyl may be more expensive but you save on the cost of labor as well as the preparation of the floor.” 

••• Lighting •••

“Kitchens need three different kinds of lighting – overall, task and decorative,” says Janice Nobles, a designer and owner of Colonial Lighting and Design in Cary. “Undercabinet lighting to show off countertops and provide task lighting. Recessed lighting for all over. Pendants or inverted bowls above islands just to add pizzazz.”

That’s where things get a little complicated, according to Sanford Friedman, owner of Accipiter Gallery. Pendant lights are a hot item, and manufacturers are responding. “There are thousands of choices, more than 2,500 in our store alone. The number of colors, sizes and even materials are staggering.”

To help narrow your choices, Friedman recommends choosing a pendant light that will look good against the backdrop of your cabinetry. He even
provides glass samples for customers to take home and is happy to see a customer bring a cabinet door to his showroom. As to what size will work best, Friedman often advises clients to blow up balloons or wrap paper cones to size and hang them from the ceiling. Customers should also see glass pendants with the bulbs turned on and off so they won’t be disappointed by how different they may look.

Dreamscapes, a local Triangle company, has begun installing home automation systems that allow a homeowner to program lighting scenarios in the kitchen and through a home.

“All off, clean up, and entertaining” are scenarios that adjust the lighting to the activity, says Dustin Costello, co-owner of the Cary company. On a more
practical note, in a home of 7,000 square feet, a customer can turn off all the lights from a single location without spending five minutes walking through the house looking for lights to turn off.

The system is easy to retrofit, according to Costello. No additional wires need to be pulled. The system can also be used to control the security system, heating and air conditioning.

Lighting in the bathroom has also reached new heights. The old Hollywood strip above the motel-sized mirror doesn’t do an aging face any favors. “A light above the bathroom mirror casts shadows,” Friedman says. “The brighter the lights and the more you can light up the room, the less shadow you get. Better light is having it on the sides. Best is having on the top and the sides.”

“Overhead lights in bathrooms are big,” Nobles says. “I love chandeliers for powder rooms. It’s the one room in your house everyone will see. You want some kind of atmosphere in there. Put it on a dimmer. When you entertain, you want just a little bit of light in there. A chandelier doesn’t limit what kind of mirror you can have and it gives good overall lighting.”

Bathroom lighting hasn’t changed much, Friedman says. If you want to get creative with colored pendants, you can’t do it over the mirror where you shave or put on makeup. “Most people want white light. If you use red glass, you’re going to look pink. If you use green, you’re going to look like a Martian.”

••• Fixtures •••

Moen's Vivid Faucet - Photo courtesy of Moen

As in cabinetry, most fixture styles in the Raleigh area are traditional, which means bronze, says Courtney Wilkinson, of Wilkinson Supply. However, 25 miles west in Carrboro, it’s contemporary chrome.

The company carries an extensive line of Bluewater products that come in 40 finishes with handle styles to mix and match. Grohe is still a leader in kitchen faucets, and their faucet with the pull-out sprayer is a best seller.

Credit for the clean, tall lines in fixtures goes to the Europeans, who rely on these styles in smaller spaces to keep down the visual clutter. Newer designs also boast glass spouts that present the water rather than just deliver it, and the sight and sound of it is quite soothing. Moen’s “Vivid” faucet is one such style. The faucet sends water cascading down a tempered glass waterway.  

••• Colors •••

Colors play just as an important part of kitchens and baths as all of the other elements. “It is important to pick out the bathroom vanities, kitchen
cabinets, and flooring before choosing paint colors,” states Laurel Lane of Laurel-Lane Interiors and creator of Laurel-Lane Custom Collection (LLCC) at Sherwin-Williams.

After choosing a granite countertop, it is much easier to pick a paint color than vice versa. One example would be to use the LLCC color Rosso, which is a tomato red color, with dark granite with dark red veins, explains Lane. “In my collection there are seven specific colors that coordinate with granite including Venetian Gold, Giallo, and Almondorr.”

“The hottest colors for the master bathroom are robin’s egg blue and brown,” explains Lane. “Brown is a color that has been moving back to the kitchen. Greens such as sage or olive are still going strong as well as golden colors.”

Another important aspect of painting is selecting a finish. Sherwin-Williams sales representative Steve Clement states “the best paint to use in the kitchen and bath is a finish that is washable and durable such as  matte, stain or semi gloss finish.”  Sherwin Williams’ products Duration Home and Harmony are two
particular paints that are easy to maintain and have low or no VOC/odor. “These paints are also anti-microbial and are a perfect fit for bathrooms and kitchens,” concludes Clement.

Jane shealy is a Freelance Writer