After having an entirely white kitchen I swoon over the idea of having a mostly black kitchen. While there are elements to this kitchen design that I am not *totally* crazy for – I did manage to tear it out of Elle Decor and place it in my kitchen inspiration file for three distinct reasons.

What I don’t love:
I think they are trying too hard to be “eclectic.” This kitchen is obviously NEW, made to look OLD and cobbled together.

1) The chandelier over the dining table is way too fussy for my taste (especially in combination with the pendant lights from an entirely different era) – To defend the designers choice, I do like how it picks up on the blue in the floor. It is just the shape which makes the kitchen feel contrived.

2) Combination of cabinets: I am not sold on the finish of the cabinets in combination with one another. I may have done the island in a rustic grey and weathered barn wood. Or possibly in a light completely distressed pine. It would have been very cool to install something antique or made to look antique. Do you remember the barn wood kitchen featured below?

You may think I am being picky or mean by pointing out things I don’t like about the kitchen in Elle Decor … but I have made my fare share of kitchen mistakes too! I am simply trying to figure out what works and what doesn’t. By collecting images that I like – it will help me along the next time I design a kitchen. There are things about the kitchen I designed in and had installed during 2007 that I absolutely would NOT do again.

Things I L O V E:
1) Minimal use of stainless steel. It always looks bad in person. Finger prints show. I hate to be a slave to finger prints. The first thing people do when they walk in and see stainless steel – Touch it. They touch it and say “Oh it’s gorgeous.” all while leaving a huge, greasy hand-print that will take me twenty minutes to polish out.

2) The built in Miele Coffee System – paid for itself over and over and over again. A perfectly brewed cup without running to Starbucks. What a delightful addition!

3) The under-mount, square bottom soap stone stink that matches the counter. Seamless. Gorgeous. Timeless. *I L O V E soapstone!*

4) Double height cabinets – so much storage space packed into a small space. However, I wish the cookbooks were placed lower for easy access! I adore having deep drawers on the bottom for serving dishes, pots and pans. I would most certainly do that again – only more of them!!

Things I would CHANGE:

1) More Freezer Space.
2) I’d get rid of the beverage center under the coffee system – maybe have refrigerator drawers.
3) Different under cabinet lighting system. I would want something with a lower profile. I don’t like that you can see it. This one also gives off a nasty fluorescent color. I would also put it on a dimmer.
4) NO DARK FLOORS – EVER AGAIN! Did I say that before? I really mean it – NEVER!
5) I would install a double oven. I want to be able to prepare dinner in one and dessert in the other. It makes me crazy when two dishes need to be at different temps.

The Bottom Line:
Our current kitchen has a traditional and timeless look -which I adore! But I have to say that after we put it in, it seemed to be everywhere. All the Food Network stars got white kitchen re-do’s. It was all over magazines. All of a sudden, my pretty kitchen was “The look of 2008!” and made me worry about re-sale in a few years. The good news is that we decided to sell -NOW- …and so… Hooray for being trendy! winkwink.

Next time, I will make an effort to do something less trendy and even more timeless with a rustic flair. I will also try to find something that is easy to maintain.

Posted by Amy Beth Cupp Dragoo / ABCD Design Inspiration and concept and Design and Dream Decorating and Interior Design as Inspiration and Nesting and Uncategorized