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Issue 231 – Kitchens & Baths 2012

On the Cover

Member Only

Spotlight on Textures

An Oregon contractor wrestles more function from his small vintage kitchen.

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The Magazine

California Kitchen

A cavernous kitchen is redesigned into a bright and bold new space.
Buyer's Guide to Cooktops: From Simmer to Sear

How to narrow the field and find one that works for you
Gas Cooktops: The Choice of Chefs

Gas is the serious cook’s benchmark fuel for its nimble heating response. The flame on a gas cooktop seamlessly adjusts from steak-searing high to chocolate-melting low and back again. The…
Wok Burners: The Power of One

Wok burners are popular standalone appliances and are available in gas or induction styles. The slim size of cooktops makes them ideal stand-alone units for specialty cooking. Gaggenau, in particular,…

Article

Radiant Cooktops: Sleek and Easy to Clean

Electric elements used to mean unattractive, inexpensive, hard-to-clean coil burners. Although they’re still used on entry-level ranges, they’ve largely been replaced with ceramic-glass-topped radiant elements. Electric cooktops are much more…
Induction Cooktops: Magnetism Gets Things Cooking

The coolest feature of an induction cooktop is that elements don’t generate heat. In fact, these cooktops won’t work unless an appropriate piece of cookware is on the glass surface…
New Kitchen, and Then Some

How a small addition improved an average ranch house with a new kitchen, a better dining room, a porch, a mudroom, and a bath.
The Stay-at-Home Spa

Splurging on an exuberant master bath was a lifestyle choice for a busy professional couple
How to Daylight a Bathroom

Three strategies for balanced and efficient natural lighting
Bathroom Reborn

How one bathroom was transformed from a dark afterthought to a bright, smart space, without changing the footprint.
Choose the Right Kitchen Sink

Follow these three steps to take your sink from a dingy dumping ground to a functional focal point
Linear Drains for Custom Showers

These sleek drains open shower-design possibilities, but at a cost.
A Stickley Fridge

A woodworker turned home-remodeler creates custom-refrigerator panels.
A Small Addition Transforms a Kitchen

Lessons in comfort, composition, and convenience
Renovating for the Right Kitchen

A tiny addition and more windows make a better space for period-appropriate cabinetry in a Craftsman-style home.
Carriage-House Kitchen

A pair of artists infuse innovative storage solutions with creative details in an open floor plan.

What is the Difference

What's the Difference: Bathroom Sinks - Seven Basic Styles

Kitchen sinks not only have to accommodate pots and pans but also have to withstand the beating that these items regularly inflict on sink basins (see Choose the Right Kitchen…

Drawing Board

Finishes for a Master Bath

In this "Drawing Board" article, architect Duncan McPherson shares his ideas for finishing the master bath in FHB's Project House. Believing that a bathroom should be a calming space, he…

Fixtures and Materials

A Supersize Sink

The Galley Manufactured by: The Galley 918-794-2700;TheGalleySink.com Cost: about $3900 Kitchen designer Roger Shollmier’s new sink, aptly named the Galley (TheGalleySink.com), resembles a small kitchen in itself. More than just…
Indian-Inspired Mosaics

Climbing Vine mosaic Manufactured by: New Ravenna Mosaics 757-442-3379;NewRavenna.com Cost: $34.50 to $200 per sq. ft. Although Sara Baldwin’s New Ravenna mosaics are handcrafted in Virginia, the company’s founder and…
Range Hoods You'll Remember

Sorpresa collection range hoods Manufactured by Broan-NuTone, LLC. 800-558-1711;BestSorpresa.com Cost: from $1500 to $3150 Last year, luxury range-hood manufacturer Best debuted its Sorpresa collection of Italian-inspired hoods (BestSorpresa.com). Named for…
Simpler than Stub Outs

Pull Stop Box Manufactured by LSP (800) 854-3215;PullStopBox.com Costs: $13-$15 When plumbing a bathroom, you typically need to install a stub out, a bracket, an escutcheon, and an angle stop…
Granite too mainstream? Try volcanic rock

Volcanic Rock Countertops Manufactured by Pyrolave, USA (919)788-8953; Pyrolave.com Cost: about $280 per sq. ft. Looking for something a little more exotic than honed granite for your new countertops? How…
Homemade Cement Tile

Villa Lagoon’s handmade encaustic cement tiles Manufactured by Villa Lagoon Tile 251-968-3375;VillaLagoonTile.com Costs between $12 and $20 per sq. ft. Villa Lagoon’s handmade encaustic cement tiles show surface imperfections, chipped…

Great Ideas

A Surprise Window in a Small Bath

Fitting the required amenities into a small bathroom can be a big design challenge. With limited wall space, windows and the valuable daylight and views they provide can easily find…
Kitchen Waste Station

Designing a small house for a large, busy family is a challenge, but it can be a fun one. Even reconsidering the mundane task of taking out the garbage can…
Double-Serving Shelves

The desire to bring more natural light into a kitchen is often compromised by the need for upper cabinets for storage. At the same time, conventional kitchen design and cabinetry…
Dining Set in a Box

I designed the Cube as a component of what we call our Hidden Kitchen, a collection of furniture pieces that encapsulate the functional elements of a kitchen inside simple forms…
Dressed up Laundry, in the Hall

When Jessica Helgerson (JHInteriorDesign.com) met with new clients, they asked that she move their laundry room out of the basement and up to the second floor as part of their…

Commentary

Lessons Houses Have Taught Me

After three decades of looking at houses for a living, I still can’t stop. If I see a realtor’s open-house sign, chances are good I’ll pull over and take a…