Italian Kitchen Design

Kitchen Styles - Aster Cucine

ASTER CUCINE - Established in 1983, Aster is today a young and dynamic company, always ready to interpreter the new trends in the market in terms of product and service. The firm is deeply pervaded by a "service oriented" philosophy that has developed a comprehensive company-product-distribution system geared to meet fully the aesthetic and functional requirements of each individual customer. The painstaking care taken to produce top quality products with an innovative design, a distinguishing mark since the very beginning of our activity, is supported by a network of highly qualified sales outlets with staff who know how to design kitchens with the utmost professionalism, and most of all equipped with a wide range of models in a great number of variants which, together with the availability of made-to-measure articles, and colors produced to match customer samples, practically making a whole world of design possibilities available.

MODERN KITCHENS - The modern kitchen collection by Aster contemporary design that with the numerous innovative solutions allows to project an exclusive and unique environment in your kitchen.

Urban Renewal

SIGNATURE KITCHENS & BATHS - SPRING 2009

Lower East Side - Aster Cucine kitchen cabinets

Their lovely lair tucked tidily amid Manhattan’s trendy Lower East Side, this small family is enamored of entertaining. Their culinary quandary? Boxed-in by four walls, the claustrophobic kitchen made navigation near impossible. To give them some breathing room while breathing new life into their lethargic layout, the homeowners hired Derek Zylewicz and Laura Husni of Urban Homes.
After some considered planning, Zylewicz and Husni accomplished their objectives in spades. The designers gutted the existing room, a move that enabled them to tie the new kitchen to the living and dining areas. The result is a unified space characterized by clean lines and smooth continuity.
They punched up the cohesive ante even more so via their choice of three-quarter-inch-thick Caesarstone Blizzard counters, which continue along the perimeter of the
cabinetry and descend to the floor. Also,the contrasting two-toned Aster Cucine cabinetry—walnut and white high-gloss lacquer—add a distinctively retro-esque riff that accompanies the aesthetic used throughout the rest of the home. And the minimal application of grout-work in the oversized tile backsplash helps round out the seamless assembly.
The result: a chic-and-serviceable gourmet’s delight perfectly befitting of its
fashionable Big Apple locale.

DESIGNER
Derek Zylewicz and Laura Husni
Urban Homes, Inc.
724 11th Ave.
New York, NY 10019
212.246.7700
http://uhny.com/



SPECIAL FEATURES:
- Oversized tile backsplash with little grout for a seamless clean finish
countertop that continues alongside the cabinets to thefloor for a unified look
- 3/4-inch-thick countertops
- two-toned cabinets

DIMENSIONS:
15 x 8
PRODUCTS USED
Cabinetry: Aster Cucine
Flooring: Quarter sawn oak
Countertops: Caesarstone Blizzard
Sink(s): Blanco
Faucet(s): Blanco
Refrigerator: Liebherr
Range: Jenn-Air
Dishwasher: Miele
Lighting: Design Within Reach, Nunzia Carbone
and Tiziano Vudafieri, Zaneen Polidemo Five-Light Flush Mount
Wallcovering: Tiled backsplash and paint

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Kitchen Design Ideas - Budgeting and getting started

Where to begin
Ok, now you know your kitchen or bathroom remodeling needs, 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
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?)
2. Collect Ideas and Information
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
3. Determine Your Budget
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?
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!
Make sure you visit a showroom and see exactly what you are buying and check out the quality for yourself.
It is recommended to have a retailer visit your home before accepting a quote for the design and installation of the room. Once they have completed a survey, you should get a full quote for the project.
Most deposits don't exceed more than 25% of the total contract value. Try to get a written schedule of payments upfront so there are no misunderstandings along the way.
It's best to wait until all your goods are delivered before you pay in full. Companies that ask you to make a full payment ahead of delivery have your money – but you don’t have your appliances.
Be aware of everything in a written contract before you sign it. Some ‘Terms and Conditions’ have expensive cancellation fines.
REMODELING GUIDE
Most of your remodeling budget will likely go towards the things you just can’t live without such as a sink, dishwasher and refrigerator. Therefore, selecting quality appliances that will give you the most for your money is essential! With the abundance of brands, styles, colors and technologically advanced machines, it’s hard to weed out the good and the bad and pick what’s best for you. Luckily, we put together a few guidelines to make this process much easier!
Dishwasher – Look for brands with low energy consumption, a delay timer and an economy cycle or half-load button, all which will result in saving water, and saving money.
Refrigerator – One feature worth paying for is a new design to prevent frost build-up. By circulating air inside the freezer compartment rather than using a defroster, you can say goodbye to freezer burn!
Sink – Materials include stainless steal, which can withstand more abrasions, is hygienic and trendy, and fireclay and ceramic which are more traditional for their solidity and wide-range of colors.
Oven – Multi-functional ovens may be worth the investment. Traditional cooking and fan assisted cooking and grilling is increasingly popular. The combination also provides cooks with more options such as browning and thawing.
Range – Ranges are either free-standing or built-in. Picking one out depends on the design of your kitchen and the features you want. Worthwhile accessories include a cooker hood, splash back, grill, griddle plates, rotisserie, wok burner and fish-kettle burner.
Tap – A cost-efficient option is the three-way or tri-flow taps which takes away the need for bottled water or other purification system. New models also offer dual-flow for hot and cold filtered water.
Countertops – Formica and Corian are some of the most common surfacing materials, however new trends such as CaesarStone®, a non-porous heat and chip resistant stone.
Flooring – The cost of installing can be as much as the material and harder options such as tile can be tiresome to stand on too long. Softer, more absorbent materials include cork, carpet or vinyl and most of the time, are much cheaper.
MANAGE YOUR PROJECT
DON’T do it yourself. Remodeling a bedroom, dining room or family room is very different than taking on the challenge of a kitchen or bathroom. A specialized designer should be brought in to figure logistics, suggest proper materials and make a functional and cost efficient room that specifically reflects your taste, style and personality. This is NOT a do-it-yourself project!
DO think of resale value. You may be happier than ever in your home from the location to the neighbors, to the town and your property, you may think you’ve settled for good – but don’t be too sure! Sometimes being too ‘unique’ means regrets down the road, so especially for your first remodeling project, we suggest sticking to the basics and put thought into what others would like about your kitchen, as much as you. Someone else might own it one day and you’ll want to make sure you get your moneys worth!
DON’T overspend! Set a budget at the beginning of your project including room for additional charges, and don’t go over that amount - no matter what! Be proactive and figure out what you want during the months leading up to the renovation. If you want more than you can have, make a conscious decision to pick one or the other based on necessity and future projects, if one can or can’t be added down the road.
DO pick a qualified professional. Choose several designers in your area; meet with each of them and trade ideas and suggestions. Make sure they’re qualified; ask to see past projects and/or a portfolio and discuss your budget. It’s also a good idea to ask for references and checkout their showroom or store if possible. Pick the designer that satisfies your taste and style most. You should never be persuaded to do anything you don’t like or that’s too high-end for your budget. A good designer will work closely with you until your dream home comes true.

Kitchens

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Kitchen Styles - Cabinets - The Box

Cabinets - The box
First you should understand what lies behind the cabinet door—the cabinet box. Your response may be a smug, Duh! But cabinet construction can get complicated rather quickly. There’s more going on than you might think. It breaks down by:
Framed construction
Frameless construction
In framed cabinets, wood joinery holds the parts together. Horizontal rails and vertical stiles secure the door to the box. In frameless cabinets, special hardware fittings do both jobs. Because no rails or stiles block the way, frameless cabinets offer slightly easier access to their interiors.
You might be surprised to learn that solid wood rarely forms the cabinet box. It’s more often used in face frames and doors than in the larger side panel parts. That’s because it tends to warp—a special concern in the kitchen where the moisture level changes frequently. But in the doors, using multiple strips of lumber in a variety of sizes can reduce the warp factor. A “floating” panel might also be used. The panel floats because instead of being glued to the doorframe, its edges sit between wooden grooves, allowing the wood to move more freely with changes in the kitchen’s humidity.
Box materials typically contain wood chips, other wood by-products, and synthetic additives to make them especially strong and warp resistant.
Your options for box material include:
Plywood
Particleboard or furniture-grade flake board
Medium-density fiberboard.

Frame vs Frameless
All have solid reputations for durability and screw-holding power, particularly plywood. Medium-density fiberboard has gained a following for its ability to be formed into door and drawer heads and other decorative features. Furniture-grade flake board offers a stronger alternative than particleboard, which you’ll pay the least for.
Often the door and box will be constructed of different materials. A cabinet door might be solid maple and the sides plywood covered with a maple veneer. The same finish would be applied to both, unifying the look. Or you may decide you want different tones on the door and the sides to add contrast.
You’ll want to make sure you know if the finish you like requires a certain base material, and you’ll want to check out examples of your manufacturer’s work. Beware of staples! Staples will pull apart. You want cabinets with thick panels that have been corner blocked and glued or fastened with screws.

CaesarStone is GREENGUARD Certified!

CaesarStone is GREENGUARD Certified!
CaesarStone, the original quartz surface manufacturer has broadened its eco-friendly commitment with its recent GREENGUARD certification. This latest certification is just one of several that the company has received in its continuous commitment to the environment in the past 20 years.
The GREENGUARD Certification Program is an industry - independent, third-party testing program for low-emitting products and materials.
GREENGUARD establishes acceptable indoor air standards for indoor products, environments, and buildings.
GREENGUARD Children & Schools standard, which evaluates the sensitive nature of school populations combined with the unique building characteristics found in schools, and presents the most rigorous product emissions criteria to date.
CaesarStone has and will continue to improve its commitment to the environment, utilizing the latest and best methods to ensure that it delivers an eco-friendly product. CaesarStone's continuing mission is to keep the earth as beautiful as the products it provides. For more information about GREENGUARD, please visit: www.greenguard.org.

Miele Refrigerator Line - MasterCool

Miele announces its first refrigerator line for the North American market. The Miele Mastercool refrigerator will officially launch April 2008 with a sneak preview at the International Builders' Show in Orlando, FL, in February and the Kitchen and Bath Industry Show in Chicago, in April.
The MasterCool line, which will also include freezers and wine coolers, are based on a modular design concept allowing for limitless combinations and location flexibility when designing a kitchen environment. Three types of installation are available: Framed Stainless – a standard stainless design that remains a popular, classic look right out of the box; 2) Framed – allows models to be installed proud flush of the surrounding cabinetry and provides a frame for custom cabinet panels; and 3) Fully Integrated – frameless, solution where the refrigerator disappears into the cabinetry surrounding it. A bottom mounted ventilation system integrates/disappears fully as well.
In the introductory phase, the modular components for the refrigerator and freezer will come in classic 18, 30, and 36-in width dimensions and the wine cooler in a 24-in width. By combining refrigerator/freezer components, MasterCool appliances will easily nest inside the typical niches of 48, 54, 60, 66, and 72-in wide, depending on the products selected. An in-door water/ice dispenser is available on the 18-in freezer tower while ice makers are standard in all other freezer compartments (including freezer columns and bottom mount freezer.)

Kitchen Styles - Lifestyle Considerations

Nothing is more disruptive in a family's lifestyle than a major kitchen renovation project. Most family members spend a great deal of their time at home in the kitchen. This important room is used to prepare meals, for informal eating, and as a casual gathering place for family and friends. People soon realize how important the room is when its torn apart during renovations, even the simple task of making a cup of coffee becomes a major undertaking without a kitchen. It is therefore critically important that tear out and new installation are coordinated during the design phase to minimize down time. If you want a real life definition of angry, tell your family that the kitchen will be down another week because you forgot to order something or your dimensions were wrong and you have to re-build a cabinet.
Most experts agree that a kitchen renovation project will return almost 100% on investment when the property is sold. Surveys by the real estate industry show that a kitchen is one, if not the most, important feature with potential purchasers. Real estate agents have told me that the quality of the kitchen often makes or breaks the sale.
Kitchen design is very subjective, there are few hard and fast rules. A feature or layout that is perfect for one person is far from perfect for another. The issue of lifestyle and how it revolves around the kitchen is very unique to each family. In most cases, the family, usually the prime user of the kitchen space will have very definite ideas on what is needed and what the end result has to be to meet their needs. Often they have been looking through magazines, drawing rough floor plans, measuring, and dreaming about their ideal kitchen for quite some time.
During the initial look at your existing kitchen, research all of the information about new products and features on the market. Ask yourself questions about your requirements and put ideas on paper. Combine your notes and rough drawings along with accurate measurements and attempt to come up with two or three floor plans. I don't normally try to radically alter anything that will change a major feature that is important to me or my family; however, I will look at alternatives if I see something that is unsafe or very poorly designed. Try to incorporate the most important desires in alternative plans.
There are a few issues you should address during your initial look at the kitchen. Ask questions so that you understand all the needs. Consultants call it a needs analysis study, and although I don't go in for fancy titles, I think the term applies in this case. Discuss the existing kitchen space and layout with all the primary users of the kitchen in your household, listing the good and bad points of the design. Investigate the traffic patterns in and through the kitchen. Analyze the day to day meal preparation tasks. Try to formulate a "normal" daily meal preparation routine. Questions should be asked about your family's desire to do more in the kitchen. Is there a hobby or area of interest, such as baking, that you would like to do more of if the added space or facilities were available.
Do you feel that a lot of walking or movement is necessary during meal preparation? Ask whether or not cleaning up after meals seems to be a monumental task. You may not solve that problem, but it may be reduced by simple layout changes. You or your family might want to entertain more in the kitchen, and formally in the dining room, if the kitchen space and functionality of the room could be improved upon.
Discuss your family's wish list. If space or money was no object, what would you like to have in your dream kitchen? Discuss topics such as lighting, both area and task illumination, kitchen seating needs, as well as appliance upgrade needs. There are other areas that can be discussed which may surface during your investigation. I've found being a good listener and asking many questions to be the best approach.
Kitchen design is a difficult process because everyone's needs and desires are different. I've designed and built cabinets and workspaces for kitchen renovation projects that I wouldn't have in my own personal kitchen and I'm sure the reverse is true. Kitchen design is based on very personal and individual tastes.
Two design "rules" that seem to true in every case deal with color and illumination. Light color or natural wood cabinets tend to brighten and visually enlarge a space. Improved general and task lighting always enhances the project. Older kitchens seemed to have dark cabinets and poor illumination which gave you the impression you were in a cave. Yesterday's kitchen was simply a place to prepare the meal, clean up and leave the room. Today's lifestyle is very much focused on the kitchen as a gathering place for a wide and varied number of activities, the room has to be bright, seem large, be functional, and adapt to many of those activities. Take your time and investigate all the alternatives as the planning stage is a very important process of any kitchen renovation project.
There are many styles of kitchen layouts including the L Kitchen, galley, U shaped and Island style, which can present many human traffic problems. However most kitchen designers agree that the sum of all the legs in a work triangle in any style of kitchen, being the triangle formed by distances between the fridge to the stove to the sink and back to the fridge, not be less than ten feet and not greater than twenty-five feet. If the sum of the legs in the work triangle is too small, people will be tripping over each other and if too large, food preparation could be a very tiring task. I analyze this work pattern each time I design a kitchen layout and it's proven to be a valuable exercise.
If you feel intimidated by the kitchen design process you may want to investigate the possibility enrolling in design courses that are offered by some community colleges in your area. Investigate the possibility of seminars offered by local, provincial, state, and federal trade associations. There is a national Kitchen and Bath Association, listed in the phone book of most large cities that may have information.
Kitchen design is a very important function, so much so that there is a Certified Kitchen Designer certification program. These individuals that are certified usually specialize in this area exclusively which illustrates how vast the kitchen renovation field has become. There is a good living to be made with a great deal of satisfaction in the kitchen renovation field. However, like all specialized trades, knowledge comes from learning and the greatest teacher is experience. Read books (I buy and read every book I see on kitchen cabinetmaking and design), attend seminar and training programs, and analyze every kitchen you come across for ideas and techniques.
There are certain accepted standards associated with kitchen cabinetmaking. Counter height, space allowance between base and upper cabinets, cabinet depth, as well as the space required for refrigerators and stoves.
These dimensions are not cast in stone but are generally accepted in the industry particularly by accessory and appliance manufacturers. The width of the majority of stoves is thirty inches and most refrigerators require thirty-three inches for proper installation. Normally, a thirty-one inch space is designed into the plan for stove installation. This gives us one half inch on each side of the stove so that it can be easily removed and replaced during cleaning or repair.
Refrigerators are not quite as standard as stoves but a good rule of thumb is to allow thirty-three inches for this appliance. The norm on most fridges is approximately thirty-two inches; however, check the existing appliance, or the one you plan to buy, before building. I was a little embarrassed on one occasion when an off standard fridge would not fit in the thirty-three inch space that I allowed between base cabinets. This situation is rare but it's a reminder that you cannot take sizes for granted.
Kitchen design is one of the most critical components in a renovation project. Take your time, investigate all the options, and the end result will most probably meet all your expectations.

Granite Countertops and Your Health

By Matthew Marin
August 04, 2008 - With the increase in sales volume of granite countertops and more stone being imported from numerous countries, reports of countertops with elevated levels of radon, a radioactive gas that can cause lung cancer, are coming from the more exotic and strained stone varieties from Brazil and Namibia, The New York Times reports. Today, the National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) addressed concerns, stating that it has long recognized the carcinogenic effects of radon in the home and, as a result, recommends that consumers planning to remodel a kitchen or bath consult with an NKBA-certified designer.The Natural Stone Council (NSC) recently announced its support for granite as a safe, natural material for indoor use based on research including an independent study funded by the Marble Institute of America (an NSC member) and newly issued U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) statements reaffirming that granite poses no health risk. Makers and distributors of competing countertop materials have made allegations periodically over the past decade that granite countertops may emit dangerous levels of radon and radiation. The Marble Institute of America has disputed such claims, stating that granite contains uranium and other radioactive materials like thorium and potassium, but the amounts in countertops are not enough to pose a health risk.

INVENTIVE SOLUTIONS; Kitchens and Baths: Remodeling Strategies

LEAD: Kitchens and bathrooms are undoubtedly the most daunting rooms to remodel in any home, conjuring up nightmarish images of ruptured pipes and cracking porcelain. Not only must they satisfy the greatest number of personal and structural considerations, but modifying them nearly always involves disruption of daily living habits, the purchase of potentially expensive fixtures and materials, and delving into a homes most costly-to-work-on systems: plumbing, electricity and, sometimes, even heating and ventilation.

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