Lights in the kitchen are very important. Most people consider kitchen to be a part of the house which does not need to be decorated, but on the contrary kitchen is one of the most important part of the house. A place where you daily meals are cooked need to be well lighted for the means to turn out good isn’t it.
Find below some of the important kitchen lighting tips
1. While planning a kitchen, take a look at what lighting is available in the market. If you like something, keep that in mind while designing the woodwork.
2. If you have a small kitchen, you can settle for just a central ceiling fixture. But when it comes to larger kitchens, you need task-specific and ambience lighting in different sections. For example, an under-cabinet light for the workstation or pendant lighting above the dining area.
* Durable and forgiving of scratches and blemishes (which can be sanded out because the color is solid throughout)
* Self-supporting — needs no underlayment
* Nonporous — resists mildew and stains
* Can be ordered custom-formed to hide seams; custom designs possible with contrasting inlays
* Available in many different patterns and finishes (some of which resemble granite, glass, or other stones)
Cons:
* No match for sharp knives
* Can discolor if hot pots and pans are left in place
* Best installed by a professional contractor
Another consideration:
* Plan to spend about $125 to $200 per running foot, installed
A design so logical it belies its status as wall art: the Glascia from Skope. An attractive wall mount towel warmer, the look is entirely contemporary. Focused on a winning combination of glass and stainless steel, the look is streamlined and up-to-date.
Glascia gives off a cozy heat that keeps your towels, but also your bathroom, dry and fresh. The modular styling of the radiator means that you can pick from one to four panels to make up the towel warmer. It’s a great choice for large or smaller spaces. A welcome choice that is both practical and aesthetically pleasing – the Glascia from Skope.
Cleaning up the kitchen is part of cooking. Not only is it easier to cook and bake in a clean kitchen, but clean surfaces and storage containers will keep your family healthier and safer. See Food Safety for more storage and cleaning tips. Take some time to learn these easy tips and preventative measures and before you know it your kitchen will be automatically cleaner and less cluttered. Make cleaning second nature and you’ll save time and money.
General Tips
* Have a place for everything. It’s much easier to use a utensil or appliance, clean it and put it away when it has a home. I use foil as an example in my kitchen. I have a special drawer that is used just for foil, plastic wrap and parchment paper. Those items are always easy to find, and are put away after each use because they have a special home.
* Don’t mix ammonia and bleach because it will create toxic fumes.
* Identify spots in your kitchen that accumulate clutter and take a few minutes every day to clear those spots and place objects in their correct homes.
* Try to end each day with a clean, empty kitchen sink. Run the dishwasher before you go to bed and unload it first thing in the morning.
* A sponge is actually a great way to spread germs. I prefer using paper towels, discarding them after cleaning each surface, to totally prevent cross-contamination.
Natural stone brings the Elica and Coda Pedestal Sinks from D’Vontz alive with the beauty of nature. Bold, contemporary sinks with geometric shapes, they boast a timeless allure. In using the sinks, the fine grain of the stone can be fully appreciated. Coda (top photo) is a pedestal sink with a deep hole carved all the way through the single piece of stone. This lends the sculptural sink a surprising lightness of form.
The technical grace of Elica (bottom photo) pedestal sink is unsurpassed – a delicate swirl twists through the structure. The free-standing stance of the sinks further elevates their status - Elica and Coda are art for your bathroom. Contact the US-based company D’Vontzfor more information on getting your hands on one of their natural stone pedestal sinks.
This versatile material is probably the most widely used countertop material.
Pros:
* Inexpensive
* Low-maintenance; easy soap-and-water cleanup
* Resists grease and stains
* Hides scratches and chips; edges can be routed for special design effects (solid-color types)
* Available in many colors, patterns, and textures as well as prefabricated lengths with built-in backsplash
Cons:
* Susceptible to damage from sharp knives and hot pans
* Dark lines (the laminate’s underlayer) may show at edges (non-solid-color types)
* Damaged areas difficult to repair
Other considerations:
* To keep laminate countertops looking new longer, reserve them for less-used areas of your kitchen where they’ll get less wear and tear.
* Locate any seams at corners. The stresses at unbroken corners can lead to cracking.
* Plan to spend $15 to $60 per running foot, installed.
Ceramic Tile
A beautiful choice, particularly for country-style kitchens.
Pros:
* Resists heat, scratches, and stains
* Damaged tiles easy and affordable to repair
* Available in many colors, patterns, shapes, and sizes
Cons:
* Grout can stain or collect food particles
* Tiles can crack or chip
* Can dull knife blades
* Abrasion more noticeable on high-gloss finishes
Other considerations:
* Patterned tiles cost more than solid-color types. To cut costs, use solid-color tiles and patterned tiles in combination.
* Epoxy and acrylic grouts are more resistant to stains. For other grouts, most stains will come out with scouring powder and household bleach.
* Plan to spend about $8 per square foot, installed, for solid-color tiles. Patterned tiles start at about $2 apiece.
Solid-Surface
Pros:
* Durable and forgiving of scratches and blemishes (which can be sanded out because the color is solid throughout)
* Self-supporting — needs no underlayment
* Nonporous — resists mildew and stains
* Can be ordered custom-formed to hide seams; custom designs possible with contrasting inlays
* Available in many different patterns and finishes (some of which resemble granite, glass, or other stones)
Cons:
* No match for sharp knives
* Can discolor if hot pots and pans are left in place
* Best installed by a professional contractor
Another consideration:
* Plan to spend about $125 to $200 per running foot, installed
Butcher Block
True butcher block uses end grain for the work surface, but most wood counters resemble the example shown here.
Pros:
* Warm, natural appearance of hardwoods such as red or white oak, hard-rock maple, and beech
* Ideal for cutting and chopping
* Relatively simple to install and repair
* Surface scratches easy to sand out
Cons:
* Requires periodic treatment with mineral oil (if left unsealed)
* Demands thorough, prompt cleaning after food preparation and exposure to moisture (if left unsealed)
* Protective surface sealers not always food-safe
* Humidity-sensitive, so not recommended over dishwashers and near sinks
* Scorches and dents easily
Another consideration:
* Plan to spend about $50 per running foot, installed
Stone
A high-end choice for serious cooks.
Pros:
* Elegant and durable
* Well-suited to baking centers for rolling out dough
* Easy to clean if sealed
* Impervious to stains (when sealed), heat, water, and knife cuts (granite)
Cons:
* Expensive, heavy, and often difficult to cut
* Requires frequent resealing (marble)
* Brittle, so thick slabs often required
* Expensive to repair
* Demands regular waxing and polishing to maintain sheen (granite and marble)
Other considerations:
* Save on materials costs by searching out salvaged pieces.
* Cut costs by using stone sparingly in combination with other countertop materials, such as just for the baking center.
* Plan to spend $120 to $200 per running foot, installed.
Stainless Steel
Perfect for a high-tech look.
Pros:
* Tough — impervious to stains and high temperatures
* Contemporary high-tech appearance
Cons:
* Shows nicks and scratches easily — avoid scouring powders
* Needs a solid, firm underlayment or will dent
Other considerations:
* Like tile, stainless steel makes sense around cooktops and ranges as a landing area for hot pots and pans.
The backsplash is definitely the front line in the battle against kitchen disasters — yet it’s also expected to help set the style for your kitchen and remain easy to clean. Fortunately, you have many options.
Many Choices Match Your Style
Backsplashes can be created in many styles and materials, including ceramic tile, copper, glass, tin, granite, laminate, marble, slate, solid-surfacing, stainless steel, wood, and mirrors.
Even the most commonly used materials, such as ceramic tile and laminate, offer a selection of colors, textures, and surfaces. You also can choose a tile treatment that reflects your interests. Novelty tiles can be found at tile stores and home-improvement centers.
Natural Materials
Marble, granite, and slate are more expensive than tile and laminate, but they impart a natural texture and feel to the room.
With a coating of polyurethane or similar protection, beadboard and other wood wainscot materials have no problem performing kitchen duty.
Reflected Glory
Glass and mirrors are good choices for reflecting light; mirrors also will enlarge a space. Countertop-level windows let in light without stealing storage space.
Stainless steel is perfect for a cool, contemporary look and can be brushed, burnished, or polished. Use copper when you want metal with a warmer hue.
Artistic Options Tile Mosaic or Mural
If you choose tile, consider painting a mural or making a mosaic pattern. Either treatment can be formal or funky. If the rest of your kitchen is subdued, consider a touch of whimsy on the backsplash.
A mosaic pattern can consist of various textures, colors, and shapes of tile. You may want to stick with no more than three selections from each category to keep your backsplash from looking too random. Or consider a mosaic of broken tiles; some people choose the colors they want and break the tiles themselves, or perhaps you have a collection of chipped or broken dishes you can’t bear to part with that could be used.
Custom-Painted Tile Mural
A custom-painted mural takes the most planning and will cost you more than ready-made murals available at tile and home improvement stores. Whichever type you choose, carefully sketch the area you want the mural to cover, noting the location of wall outlets, switchplates, or other items that could interrupt the flow of the scene. Work around such obstacles or run the pattern right over them, painting ceramic cover plates to match.
A tile artist can paint a design onto unfinished tiles in a studio, then glaze and fire them to protect the finish. If a design is painted directly onto an existing tile backsplash (or onto plain white tiles that have yet to be installed), it will need to be protected with polyurethane or a clear ceramic spray (the kind crafters apply to pottery creations).
Painted Canvas
Another option is to paint an image onto an artist’s canvas, then affix it to the wall with wallpaper paste. (Use acrylic paint, then three coats of matte polyurethane to protect the design from spills and splashes.)
1) Eliminate wasted steps. Think about how and where you use things most often in the kitchen. Store breakfast foods and bowls near the breakfast table. Duplicate frequently used spices and utensils so they are handy wherever you work. Keep wraps and plastic containers in one handy spot near a work surface for wrapping leftovers.
2) Add a snack bar with stools for an after-school spot for kids. A second microwave oven and a mini refrigerator positioned at the edge of the kitchen’s work center will keep snackers out of the dinner cook’s way.
3) Make recycling easy. Equip a cupboard with stackable wire baskets for glass, metal, and plastic items. A separate drawer can conveniently house old newspapers. If you have a basement, consider installing chutes leading from the kitchen to separate receptacles below.
4) Think short. Placing the microwave oven at a height where kids can use it safely will ease not only your mind but your workload. For the same reason, put the kids’ favorite dishes and snack foods on shelves they can reach.
5) Keep staples handy. Place a shelf beside or behind the range to keep cookbooks and cooking oils, a ceramic pot for utensils, and some spice jars handy. Place S hooks on the side of the range hood to hold frequently-used pots and pans.
6) Make filling pots easier. Tired of lugging water-filled stockpots from the sink to the cooktop? A swing-out tap installed near the cooktop fills pots where you heat them. Or install an extra-long hose on your sink’s spray attachment.
7) Establish a message center near the kitchen telephone so your family can communicate. Put a bulletin board or blackboard on the wall, and store a phone book, calendar, notebooks, pens, and tacks inside a nearby drawer.
8 Cut kitchen-cleaning time. Glass refrigerator shelves catch spills that wire ones let through. Flush-set or undermount sinks don’t have a crumb-catching rim to worry about. Matte finishes don’t show dirt as readily as high-gloss finishes do.
9) Hang knives on a magnetic strip tacked to the backsplash. This makes it easy to spot the right-size knife for a job and keeps sharp objects out of children’s reach.
10) Install power strips with multiple plugs all along the backsplash so wherever you’re working, you’ll have the power you need.
A leader in modern kitchen, Arclinea who incorporates the most in features and uses materials by today’s top designers including Antonio Citterio. It is interesting to see the interior designers and architects making use of the Arclinea collection and making the kitchens one of the more beautiful rooms of the houses.
See the entire collection that include modular kitchen storage in various woods and stainless steel for the modern, contemporary, or even rustic interior design.
Today’s high end consumer demands quality interiors in construction as well creative styles and the remote controlled carbon fiber Spherical Kitchen that also doubles as a soft intimate light when closed definitely qualifies.
Round and spherical is in fashion and very cool to look at.
The stainless steel “Spherical Kitchen” from Sheer offers all the features you need to cook and clean.
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