New! Summer 2012 Article in STUDIOS magazine!

I am thrilled to announce my article “Multifunctional Craft Space Fits the Family” is being featured in the Summer 2012 issue of STUDIOS Magazine.

This article describes the crafting/homework/office station we designed adjacent to an open great room-style kitchen. Like many Americans, my clients wanted an open floorplan since they felt that formal living and dining rooms are a waste of square footage that end up empty most of the time. Since the kitchen table would now become the only table, it was essential to create a space where the kids could color or work on homework projects without impacting dinner time or making the space feel constantly cluttered.

The new space is perfect for homework, gift wrapping, craft projects, and tracking the complex calendar of busy family life. For lots of ideas that could work in your home, purchase the magazine today. Side bar articles include “Adapting Kitchen Cabinets for Craft Studios” and “Craft Counter Materials”.

The article concludes:
“With the stairs, pantries, craft/homework station, phone, and mom’s calendar all in the same space, it is a family hub. It’s a place where the chaos of family life can be organized and contained, so that the kitchen/great room maintains its own function and is an inviting space for the family.”

Purchase your copy of Studios today.

The Truth About Trash

Trash Compactors seem like such a good idea – trash condensed to 25% volume requires fewer trips to the garbage cans or dumpster. One quarter volume saves space at the landfill. There are some downsides however:

• The longer garbage is in your home, the more likely there will be odor
• Old trash can attract animals and insects
• Bags can break when trash is compacted, especially with can lids and bottles
• Compactors are difficult to keep clean and sanitary because of bag leakage
• Compacted trash is 4 times as heavy to carry
• Compacted trash takes longer to breakdown in the landfill

My recommendation? A trash/recycle cabinet drawer next to the clean-up sink. These pull out on gliders and have two attached wastebaskets, one for recyclable materials and one for everything else. Enjoy those walks outside!

The Perfection of Convection

The Perfection of Convection – Expand Your Menu Options!

My clients often ask me about convection ovens. Sometimes, they have had a convection oven for years but never even tried the convection setting. Here is a quick tutorial about how these ovens can make your life easier.

Science snapshot: convection ovens have a third heating element that is wrapped around a fan at the back. Heat flows evenly over all the racks (unlike traditional electric or gas radiant ovens with heating elements just on top and bottom.)

Advantages:

• You can use ALL the racks simultaneously
• You never need to change position of the racks to ensure even cooking
• You can cook a pan of fish, a casserole of brussell sprouts, and a tray of cookies at the same time (as long as all items require the same temperature)
• The aromas and flavors will not mingle because the direction of the airflow is from the front of the oven to the back
• Reduced cooking time or temperature saves energy

Don’t worry about converting a recipe written for a conventional oven. It’s easy! Simply reduce the temperature by 50 degrees or reduce cooking time by 25%. When baking, use the lower temperature option so the dough has time to rise. That’s it, no formula necessary.

Imagine Thanksgiving – green beans, extra stuffing, sweet potatoes, and pies cooking at the same time on all the oven racks. You can add dishes sequentially for the right cooking time and have everything piping hot an ready at once. The convenience, time savings, and lower energy use is well worth the higher price!

To learn more, order Kitchen Appliances 101 at Amazon.com

How to Choose the Right Appliances:

Consider your maximum (not minimum) requirements. Ask yourself, “What is the maximum number of guests I would like to cook for? How many and what kinds of dishes would I like to make? Picture yourself making a celebration dinner with your favorite menu, easily, with minimum time required. This will help you decide key features:

+ How many burners will you need?
+ How close are the burners – do they accommodate your widest saute pan and your largest pot?
+ Do you need more than one oven – what size will work for what that perfect menu?
+ What about options like warming drawers, grills, steamers, or wok burners?
+ Would a convection oven expand your menu options?

To learn more, order Kitchen Appliances 101 at Amazon.com

 

Does your kitchen need a second sink?

Many kitchens today, especially large ones, are being designed with a secondary sink station. But it’s not enough just to have a second sink, where you place it is just as important. When placed correctly, a food preparation sink is incredibly beneficial. It literally doubles the functionality of a kitchen without adding to the square footage. It also allows multiple cooks to work in comfort simultaneously. And it prevents dirty dishes from getting in the cook’s way or forcing him/her to stop in the middle of a task in order to clean out the sink so it can be used.

Read More»

Great Design at Affordable Prices

Most of us have always made purchasing decisions—especially big ones—with a careful eye on getting value for our money. Intrinsic in the idea of value is the intersection between what something costs and what it is actually worth.

It used to be that design was only for the high end of the construction market. Affluent homeowners were clients, modest homeowners were consumers (with all the distinctions between service and product that that implies).

Read More»

Greening Your Remodel

“Green” is definitely one of this year’s big buzzwords. And for good reason—the environment has been used and abused without us paying much attention since the Industrial Revolution. It’s past time that we take care of the world that takes care of us.

Okay, enough soapboxing. You are doing a remodel and want to “green” the project. Recycled glass tiles and countertops have caught your eye. Low-VOC (volatile organic compound) cabinets are on the list. You’ve even looked at bamboo or cork flooring. Don’t stop there. Think about your demolition plan.

Read More»

“First we shape our dwellings. Then our dwellings shape us.” Winston Churchill

“First we shape our dwellings, then our dwellings shape us,” Winston Churchill.

For several months now, I have had the following quote as part of my email signature. I can’t remember where I first ran across it but it speaks to me of much more than just the pleasures of a beautifully designed space. As a designer those pleasures are, of course, very near and dear to my heart but this quote hints at the truth that within the oft-perceived “superficiality” of design is the very real affect an environment has on the people who dwell in it—for better or worse.

Read More»

Welcome

Welcome to my kitchen design blog. As a cook (since age 7) and kitchen designer (since 2002), I believe that kitchens should be both functional and beautiful. For others who like to cook and entertain in a space that works well and accomodates friends, I offer advice, tips, inspiration, and perhaps the occasional rant.

Thank you, Moorea Hoffman