Scavolini's New York showroom is open for business

Scavolini opened its flagship US showroom last week and it's in a space that's better described as a gallery than it is a showroom. The 10,000 square foot, two story space is at 429 West Broadway in Soho.

I'll be in New York next week and believe me, Scavolini's one of my first stops when I get to The City.

Scavolini's showroom boasts 15 complete kitchens and a live, demo kitchen that features Karim Rashid's Crystal  Series and a full compliment of appliances from Sub-Zero/ Wolf.

Scavolini's cabinetry is 100% Italian-made and is available in over 500 door styles and colors. There's space in their new facility for independent designers and architects to meet with clients and anybody's welcome to consult with a Scavolini associate directly.

Scavolini worked with SpaCe Architects to utilize their new space and my pal Daniele Busca has been working non-stop for the last year to get this new facility open and ready.

Here's the link to Scavolini's New York showroom and if you find yourself in Soho, drop in and say hello to Daniele and his staff. Please tell him I sent you.

Here's another great ad campaign, this time from Merillat

Yesterday, I was Tweeting with the great Leah Thayer from Daily 5 Remodel. Leah interviewed me on Tuesday on part of a webinar series she's putting together about social media and the remodeling industry. Part of the sidebar conversation we were having on Tuesday dealt with remodeling industry marketing and advertising and we were continuing in that same vein on Twitter.

I have a relationship with a couple of Masco Brands, most notably Brizo Faucets and KraftMaid Cabinetry. In spite of that I can say without reservation that Masco Brands position themselves exceptionally well and as a whole they are in the forefront of whatever market segment those brands find themselves in.

Leah pointed out to me a video Merillat Cabinetry produced last year and one I'd all but forgotten about. The video in question is a fantastic example of a marketing video done right. Here it is.






Merillat made that video to introduce a contest they ran through 2009 called The Good Life Contest. People were encouraged to make a home video about what The Good Life means to them and the winner would be rewarded a complete kitchen makeover.

The contest went on for the better part of last year and the winning family ended up with the kitchen of their dreams. It was a pretty heart warming promotion.

But I keep coming back to this video. It's really great work and it does a great job of talking about cabinetry indirectly. Merillat's not a brand that's in the headlines very often but for this video and The Good Life contest the ought to be.





So what do you think? Is this kind of indirect marketing effective? Do you think it works? I don't have a dog in this particular race but I think it's an interesting topic. Is Merillat onto something?

Counters to go with the kitchen that Henrybuilt

Almost a year ago I wrote a post about Viola Park, a new semi-custom cabinet line from amazingly custom cabinet maker Henrybuilt. A year later and my fondness for Viola Park remains as does Henrybuilt's commitment to bringing great design to more people.

Recently, Viola Park has added a series of counters to go with their semi custom kitchens and by combining a counter order with cabinet order, it's possible for someone to streamline their renovation process and save some money at the same time.

Because the counters are made to go with the kitchen design at the Henrybuilt factory in Seattle, all of the edges can be finished and the overhangs calculated ahead of time. Any corners are also machined and ready to be installed upon delivery.

Most intelligently, the rear edges of the counters are left unfinished so that they can be scribed against an uneven wall in the field if need be.

The materials in Viola Park's counter program are part of the program due to their high quality and longevity but also due to their relative ease in installation.

It's a really smart idea and it's being executed very well.

Viola Park is only available from Viola Park directly. If you're interested in a Viola Park kitchen, I encourage you to contact them through their website. Viola Park's dedicated project coordinators are waiting to answer your questions and help you get started on their process.

As I said a year ago and so so again today, bravo Viola Park.

Martha Stewart commits another offense

The Home Depot just launched a new line of cabinetry and it has Martha Stewart's name plastered all over it. I mean that literally.

One of my favorite people in all of Bloggerdom is the ever delightful Raina Cox from If the Lampshade Fits. Raina likes to poke me with a stick through late night, one-line e-mails that she knows will get a rise out of me. Her latest arrived on Sunday night. The subject line read "Thoughts?" and the body of the message consisted of "Martha Stewart kitchens from Home Depot" and then she included a link to an LA Times article announcing the product launch. Predictably, Raina's message set off a flurry of internet searches and a round of back and forth messages that consisted of my bile venting.

Listen, I don't begrudge Martha Stewart one thing. In fact, I admire everything she's managed to do over the last 30 years. Our tastes diverge shall we say but aside from the taste thing I'm in awe her ability to turn every aspect of the character she plays on TV into another branded product.

With that said, she may have crossed a line here with The Home Depot.

From the LA Times:

Using her own utilitarian kitchen as inspiration, Martha Stewart has released her first special order line of cabinetry, hardware and counter tops.

Sold exclusively at the Home Depot, the cabinetry features clean lines and comes in 11 door styles and a variety of wood finishes. It also offers thoughtful accessories that show Stewart is in charge: cookbook pop downs, roll out shelves and pegged dish organizers.

From the sound of that press release regurgitation, somebody'd would be led to believe that Martha herself was very intimately involved in this project. That would be wrong of course.

Again from the LA Times:

Inspired from authentic all-American homes with enduring charm, these designs are rooted in classic styles and crafted expressly for the modern home.

Just like the Thomasville cabinetry sold at the big orange box, this is a licensing deal. Home Depot pays Thomasville and Martha Stewart for the use of their names. And just as is the case with Thomasville Cabinetry, Martha's are made by MasterBrand Cabinets. Masterbrand Cabinets itself is a division of Fortune Brands. This doesn't make them a bad product. It does however explain that they are a relatively inexpensive, mass produced cabinet. The brand names like Martha Stewart and Thomasville are there to distract people from the fact that what they're buying is not actually a premium although they're priced as if they are.

If you find yourself at a home center for cabinetry, and this pertains to a lot of people, just know what you're in for and adjust your expectations accordingly. Oh and by the way, cabinets aren't sold by the foot so don't believe the linear foot costs home centers like to scatter around their kitchen departments. real prices are somewhere between three and four times the prices on the signs.

Oh and by the way, the images scattered around this post are from Home depot's Martha Stewart Cabinets. The first photo's door style is called Mount Desert. It looks like a cheesy, home center, oak cabinet and that exactly what it is.

So whattya think gang, would you let Martha into your kitchen under these circumstances?

Medallion Cabinetry introduces custom colors

Have you ever wished you could have a lavender hutch? Even better, would you like that lavender hutch to be  Sherwin-Williams 6548 Grape Mist? How about Benjamin Moore 2072-60 Beach Plum? Or maybe you're a Pantone person and you're looking for PMS 257. What ever the source, Medallion Cabinetry can simulate that color as a painted finish.

It used to be that if you had a need for a special paint color on cabinetry, you'd order the cabinetry unfinished and then have it painted in the field. This method would sometimes get you where you wanted to be but just as often would leave you with something less than what you were expecting.

Medallion Cabinetry's new Expressions custom paint color process takes away the guess work and leaves you with a multi-step, catalytic paint that will look great and stand up to normal wear and tear far better than paint from a can ever could.

How it works is pretty straightforward. A client sends a paint swatch  or 3" x 3" painted wood chip to Medallion. Upon receipt, Medallion will analyze the sample with a spectrophotometer and it will then generate a formula for that particular color. Once they establish a color formula, they then mix up a test batch of the custom paint and prepare a sample. The sample goes through the typical stages of finishing (sanding, priming, painting, oven curing, top coating and oven curing again) only in a paint booth and curing oven dedicated to the Expressions program. At the end of that process is a full-size sample cabinet door.

The sample's compared to the original swatch and if it's a good match the sample door gets cut in half. One half sample goes back to the client for approval and the other half stays with Medallion.

Upon sample approval, the cabinetry goes into production. When the completed cabinetry ships a few weeks later, Medallion will cut its remaining half sample in half again and ship a quarter of the originally-approved sample with the order.

It's a pretty slick program and the costs involved are reasonable. Painted finishes are always a premium, and the custom Expressions program comes in at 10% higher than a stock paint color. Standard painted finishes cost an additional 14% on plywood constructed cabinets and 18% on furniture board construction. For Expressions custom color, the surcharge is 20% on plywood construction and 24% on furniture board construction. The benefit to approaching custom color this way is in the result of course. Having cabinetry painted in the field will cost about the same amount of money but there isn't a field-applied paint out there than can compare with a multi-step, oven-cured catalytic paint when it comes to longevity and resilience.

Medallion Cabinetry's sold all over the US and theirs is a product I've been selling proudly for the last five years of my life.

If you have any questions about this finish option or any of Medallion's offerings, feel free to ask it here or to send me an e-mail privately. So the next time the topic of custom kitchen cabinetry colors comes up, think of Medallion Cabinetry.

Something new under the sink

Somebody rethought the sink base. Check it out.

This is Merillat's new CoreGuard™ sink base. In a Merillat CoreGuard™, the door and frame of the cabinet are the species hardwood someone would expect, but the rest of the cabinet, the sides, the back and the floor are made from a seamless, water-resistant, engineered polymer.

What this means is an end to water leak and spill damage under the sink. Remarkable thinking Merillat.

CoreGuard™ made its debut at KBIS this year and will be available this fall. If you'd like to see one in person, Masco Cabinetry (that's Kraftmaid, Merillat and DeNova) will be at booth 2793 at the AIA show in Miami this Friday, Saturday and Sunday. If you're at the show, stop by their booth and report back on that sink base please. I saw it in Chicago and I was quite impressed. I'd love to get some other reactions. Good job Merillat!

How to sell kitchen cabinetry: my slide back into advertising part five

The fifth and final (for the time being) installment in my design stories is something called Grounded. To reprise:

I have a couple of sidelines, one of which is doing project work for an ad agency. Over the last year or two, I've been taking on some different things to see where I want my career progression to head next. Part of that is writing for this ad agency. Well as luck would have it, the agency happens to be the agency of record for the design studio where I ply my trade. I'd been unhappy with some of the copy that ended up in ads and on the website and as someone who's a pretty good writer and who has a vested interest in how a kitchen studio presents itself, having me write for the new website was a logical choice.

In January, I was in a brainstorming session with the ad folks and we were figuring out how to position the studio in the new website. Kitchen design's a curious thing in a lot of ways. Kitchen designers make their money from selling cabinetry but selling cabinetry isn't what I wanted to emphasize. Any monkey can sell cabinetry, and many of them do. It takes a real designer to build on that and to make rooms that capture the fundamental essence of a particular client.

I refer to my essence capturing as story telling. I work with my clients to have their homes tell their stories. Good design follows a narrative. Always.

I've been at this for long enough that I know that kitchen design as a business presents itself to the world by showing completed kitchens. These completed kitchens are terrific for portfolios, they tell a potential client what a given studio is capable of. However, these completed kitchen designs don't allow a client to project himself or herself into the image. Often times, these completed kitchen images are a barrier. Most people lack the vision thing. And when I show someone one of these photographs, I spend a lot of time guiding the person in front of me. "Imagine your home with something like this but not really like this." It makes for unnecessary confusion a lot of times.

Usually, I assemble a presentation board of finishes when I'm rolling out an idea rather showing a lot of completed projects.

So when it came to how to show the skills of a kitchen design studio on its website, I wanted to take my presentation board idea and make it a more fleshed out marketing position.

The result is something I call design stories.

We played around with this idea for a couple of months and then three weeks ago we booked a photographer and a studio. It was a collaborative effort but my resume claims sole credit for it. Resumes exist to toot my horn, right? And just for the record, none of this would have been possible without the great Amy Allen of Allen Harris Design or incredibly talented and patient photographer Chris Stickney.

Anyhow, we spent the day in the studio and assembled five still lifes (I was calling them Still Life with Cabinet Door) and shot all five of them in a single day.

The fifth one is called Grounded and my body copy follows.

Every room tells a story, and every room has a different story to tell. At Kuttler Kitchens, we consider it to be our top priority to help you select the finishes that tell your story.

To help you get started; here are five, very different color and finish palettes. Each one tells its own story and we call them Tranquility, Classic, Sustainable, Grounded and Energetic. Using these as a starting point, how can we help you tell your story?

Your home is much more than an investment; it's your anchor, your oasis. It tells the story of being grounded. Medallion Cabinetry's Trinity door in chestnut-stained cherry, earth toned paint colors and forged hardware from Schaub and Company declare your kitchen to be the nurturing refuge it is. The clock stops in such a kitchen and there's ample time for unhurried meals and heart to heart conversations. Authentic, unpretentious finishes and colors tell this grounded story.

And that the last of them for the time being. We're going to keep debuting a new palette, a new story, every month through the rest of 2010.

How to sell kitchen cabinetry: my slide back into advertising part four

My fourth installment is called Energetic. To reprise:

I have a couple of sidelines, one of which is doing project work for an ad agency. Over the last year or two, I've been taking on some different things to see where I want my career progression to head next. Part of that is writing for this ad agency. Well as luck would have it, the agency happens to be the agency of record for the design studio where I ply my trade. I'd been unhappy with some of the copy that ended up in ads and on the website and as someone who's a pretty good writer and who has a vested interest in how a kitchen studio presents itself, having me write the new website was a logical choice.

In January, I was in a brainstorming session with the ad folks and we were figuring out how to position the studio in the new website. Kitchen design's a curious thing in a lot of ways. Kitchen designers make their money from selling cabinetry but selling cabinetry isn't what I wanted to emphasize. Any monkey can sell cabinetry, and many of them do. It takes a real designer to build on that and to make rooms that capture the fundamental essence of a particular client.

I refer to my essence capturing as story telling. I work with my clients to have their homes tell their stories. Good design follows a narrative. Always.

I've been at this for long enough that I know that kitchen design as a business presents itself to the world by showing completed kitchens. These completed kitchens are terrific for portfolios, they tell a potential client what a given studio is capable of. However, these completed kitchen designs don't allow a client to project himself or herself into the image. Often times, these completed kitchen images are a barrier. Most people lack the vision thing. And when I show someone one of these photographs, I spend a lot of time guiding the person in front of me. "Imagine your home with something like this but not really like this." It makes for unnecessary confusion a lot of times.

Usually, I assemble a presentation board of finishes when I'm rolling out an idea rather showing a lot of completed projects.

So when it came to how to show the skills of a kitchen design studio on its website, I wanted to take my presentation board idea and make it a more fleshed out marketing position.

The result is something I call design stories.

We played around with this idea for a couple of months and then three weeks ago we booked a photographer and a studio. It was a collaborative effort but my resume claims sole credit for it. Resumes exist to toot my horn, right? And just for the record, none of this would have been possible without the great Amy Allen of Allen Harris Design or incredibly talented and patient photographer Chris Stickney.

Anyhow, we spent the day in the studio and assembled five still lifes (I was calling them Still Life with Cabinet Door) and shot all five of them in a single day.

The fourth one is called Energetic and my body copy follows.

Every room tells a story, and every room has a different story to tell. At Kuttler Kitchens, we consider it to be our top priority to help you select the finishes that tell your story.

To help you get started; here are five, very different color and finish palettes. Each one tells its own story and we call them Tranquility, Classic, Sustainable, Grounded and Energetic. Using these as a starting point, how can we help you tell your story?

Dynamic colors and finishes tell the energetic story of a life spent in high gear. Medallion Cabinetry's Bella door in a wheat stain combines with lively quartz counters from Silestone and  die-cast Marcel hardware from Du Verre to express the vitality of someone who's on the go and would have it no other way. Your life is active, dynamic, fresh, spirited and at Kuttler Kitchens, we can help your kitchen tell that energetic story.

How to sell kitchen cabinetry: my slide back into advertising part three

My third installment is a story I call Classic. To reprise what this is all about:

I have a couple of sidelines, one of which is doing project work for an ad agency. Over the last year or two, I've been taking on some different things to see where I want my career progression to head next. Part of that is writing for this ad agency. Well as luck would have it, the agency happens to be the agency of record for the design studio where I ply my trade. I'd been unhappy with some of the copy that ended up in ads and on the website and as someone who's a pretty good writer and who has a vested interest in how a kitchen studio presents itself, having me write the new website was a logical choice.

In January, I was in a brainstorming session with the ad folks and we were figuring out how to position the studio in the new website. Kitchen design's a curious thing in a lot of ways. Kitchen designers make their money from selling cabinetry but selling cabinetry isn't what I wanted to emphasize. Any monkey can sell cabinetry, and many of them do. It takes a real designer to build on that and to make rooms that capture the fundamental essence of a particular client.

I refer to my essence capturing as story telling. I work with my clients to have their homes tell their stories. Good design follows a narrative. Always.

I've been at this for long enough that I know that kitchen design as a business presents itself to the world by showing completed kitchens. These completed kitchens are terrific for portfolios, they tell a potential client what a given studio is capable of. However, these completed kitchen designs don't allow a client to project himself or herself into the image. Often times, these completed kitchen images are a barrier. Most people lack the vision thing. And when I show someone one of these photographs, I spend a lot of time guiding the person in front of me. "Imagine your home with something like this but not really like this." It makes for unnecessary confusion a lot of times.

Usually, I assemble a presentation board of finishes when I'm rolling out an idea rather showing a lot of completed projects.

So when it came to how to show the skills of a kitchen design studio on its website, I wanted to take my presentation board idea and make it a more fleshed out marketing position.

The result is something I call design stories.

We played around with this idea for a couple of months and then three weeks ago we booked a photographer and a studio. It was a collaborative effort but my resume claims sole credit for it. Resumes exist to toot my horn, right? And just for the record, none of this would have been possible without the great Amy Allen of Allen Harris Design or incredibly talented and patient photographer Chris Stickney.

Anyhow, we spent the day in the studio and assembled five still lifes (I was calling them Still Life with Cabinet Door) and shot all five of them in a single day.

The third one is called Classic and my body copy follows.

Every room tells a story, and every room has a different story to tell. At Kuttler Kitchens, we consider it to be our top priority to help you select the finishes that tell your story.

To help you get started; here are five, very different color and finish palettes. Each one tells its own story and we call them Tranquility, Classic, Sustainable, Grounded and Energetic. Using these as a starting point, how can we help you tell your story?

You've worked hard your whole life and now you've earned the right to have your home tell a Classic story. Medallion Cabinetry's Camelot door in cherry with an ebony-glazed amaretto finish joins floors in travertine and walnut announce a solid, stately elegance. Slate wall tile from Emenee and cast bronze Kelmscott Manor hardware from Schaub and Company add a period to the sentence, You've arrived. Classic kitchens tell a story of rarefied grace and sophistication.

How to sell kitchen cabinetry: my slide back into advertising part two

Yesterday, I wrote about my sustainability narrative. Today is all about tranquility. To reprise:

I have a couple of sidelines, one of which is doing project work for an ad agency. Over the last year or two, I've been taking on some different things to see where I want my career progression to head next. Part of that is writing for this ad agency. Well as luck would have it, the agency happens to be the agency of record for the design studio where I ply my trade. I'd been unhappy with some of the copy that ended up in ads and on the website and as someone who's a pretty good writer and who has a vested interest in how a kitchen studio presents itself, having me write for the new website was a logical choice.

In January, I was in a brainstorming session with the ad folks and we were figuring out how to position the studio in the new website. Kitchen design's a curious thing in a lot of ways. Kitchen designers make their money from selling cabinetry but selling cabinetry isn't what I wanted to emphasize. Any monkey can sell cabinetry, and many of them do. It takes a real designer to build on that and to make rooms that capture the fundamental essence of a particular client.

I refer to my essence capturing as story telling. I work with my clients to have their homes tell their stories. Good design follows a narrative. Always.

I've been at this for long enough that I know that kitchen design as a business presents itself to the world by showing completed kitchens. These completed kitchens are terrific for portfolios, they tell a potential client what a given studio is capable of. However, these completed kitchen designs don't allow a client to project himself or herself into the image. Often times, these completed kitchen images are a barrier. Most people lack the vision thing. And when I show someone one of these photographs, I spend a lot of time guiding the person in front of me. "Imagine your home with something like this but not really like this." It makes for unnecessary confusion a lot of times.

Usually, I assemble a presentation board of finishes when I'm rolling out an idea rather showing a lot of completed projects.

So when it came to how to show the skills of a kitchen design studio on its website, I wanted to take my presentation board idea and make it a more fleshed out marketing position.

The result is something I call design stories.

We played around with this idea for a couple of months and then three weeks ago we booked a photographer and a studio. It was a collaborative effort but my resume claims sole credit for it. Resumes exist to toot my horn, right? And just for the record, none of this would have been possible without the great Amy Allen of Allen Harris Design or incredibly talented and patient photographer Chris Stickney.

Anyhow, we spent the day in the studio and assembled five still lifes (I was calling them Still Life with Cabinet Door) and shot all five of them in a single day.

The next one is called Tranquility and my body copy follows.

Every room tells a story, and every room has a different story to tell. At Kuttler Kitchens, we consider it to be our top priority to help you select the finishes that tell your story.

To help you get started; here are five, very different color and finish palettes. Each one tells its own story and we call them Tranquility, Classic, Sustainable, Grounded and Energetic. Using these as a starting point, how can we help you tell your story?

Soft wall colors, subtle lighting and Medallion Cabinetry's Newcastle door in a Classic Paint color called Bliss can combine to tell a story of tranquility. Further additions like Schaub and Company's Montcalm hardware in antique nickel and back painted glass tile from Mirage Glass Tile add soft, nuanced layers to this palette. Tranquil kitchens bring to mind unhurried mornings where there's time and a comfortable spot to linger over a cup of Earl Grey.

How to sell kitchen cabinetry: my slide back into advertising

I have a couple of sidelines, one of which is doing project work for an ad agency. Over the last year or two, I've been taking on some different things to see where I want my career progression to head next. Part of that is writing for this ad agency. Well as luck would have it, the agency happens to be the agency of record for the design studio where I ply my trade. I'd been unhappy with some of the copy that ended up in ads and on the website and as someone who's a pretty good writer and who has a vested interest in how a kitchen studio presents itself, having me write the new website was a logical choice.

In January, I was in a brainstorming session with the ad folks and we were figuring out how to position the studio in the new website. Kitchen design's a curious thing in a lot of ways. Kitchen designers make their money from selling cabinetry but selling cabinetry isn't what I wanted to emphasize. Any monkey can sell cabinetry, and many of them do. It takes a real designer to build on that and to make rooms that capture the fundamental essence of a particular client.

I refer to my essence capturing as story telling. I work with my clients to have their homes tell their stories. Good design follows a narrative. Always.

I've been at this for long enough that I know that kitchen design as a business presents itself to the world by showing completed kitchens. These completed kitchens are terrific for portfolios, they tell a potential client what a given studio is capable of. However, these completed kitchen designs don't allow a client to project himself or herself into the image. Often times, these completed kitchen images are a barrier. Most people lack the vision thing. And when I show someone one of these photographs, I spend a lot of time guiding the person in front of me. "Imagine your home with something like this but not really like this." It makes for unnecessary confusion a lot of times.

Usually, I assemble a presentation board of finishes when I'm rolling out an idea rather showing a lot of completed projects.

So when it came to how to show the skills of a kitchen design studio on its website, I wanted to take my presentation board idea and make it a more fleshed out marketing position.

The result is something I call design stories.

We played around with this idea for a couple of months and then three weeks ago we booked a photographer and a studio and I directed the shoot. Actually, it was a collaborative effort but my resume claims sole credit for it. Resumes exist to toot my horn, right? And just for the record, none of this would have been possible without the great Amy Allen of Allen Harris Design or incredibly talented and patient photographer Chris Stickney.

Anyhow, we spent the day in the studio and assembled five still lifes (I was calling them Still Life with Cabinet Door) and shot all five of them in a single day.

The first one is called Sustainability and my body copy follows.

Every room tells a story, and every room has a different story to tell. At Kuttler Kitchens, we consider it to be our top priority to help you select the finishes that tell your story.

To help you get started; here are five, very different color and finish palettes. Each one tells its own story and we call them Tranquility, Classic, Sustainability, Grounded and Energetic. Using these as a starting point, how can we help you tell your story?

Renewable cork floors by US Floors, rich fabrics and Du Verre hardware inspired by a pomegranate can tell a story of sustainability. A modern door in sustainably-harvested Wenge or Zebrawood can bring a touch of the exotic to your home while honoring your commitment to a cleaner, greener planet. Sustainable kitchens tell the quiet story of organic, earth-friendly comfort and balance.

When I started this blog, about the last thing in the world I would have predicted as an end point would have been a slide back into advertising copy writing. Directing was a bonus. I'm insanely proud of this project and it's been a real blast to excel in an arena so far removed from what I do usually.

Reader question: Can I have three finish colors in my new kitchen?

The following question came from a reader with whom I've been corresponding for the last few months as she undergoes a major renovation of a historic home.

I was wondering if you might discuss the use of color in kitchen cabinets in a future post, especially multiple colors. When I Google the topic, I often just get black and white, or wood and white or wood and black, etc.

I just got color samples in from Timeless Kitchen Designs, and we are leaning toward a combination of three different paint colors for the cabinets. Walls will be a neutral I've yet to settle on,  the floors will be a nearly uniform gray slate, I'm getting hammered zinc counters and a Shaw's Original sink.

Upon showing certain people our color choices, I have heard the comment that we are breaking a few "design rules" by having 1) more than two colors featured in the kitchen and 2) featuring those colors on the cabinets instead of on the walls or as accessories. I believe the thought is that the room will be too busy, or perhaps we will tire of these colors one day and be unable to change them without a great deal of trouble, or if we need to sell (no plans to, ever) no one in their right mind would buy a house with these colors in a kitchen.

It is true that I am unable to google a kitchen with this combination of colors, or even many kitchens with more than two cabinet colors. However, this just makes me like it even more! So, from a professional point of view, are we making a mistake? Would you advise clients to tone down the colors, or get what they love regardless? We don't think we will regret it, but it is somewhat frustrating to feel so proud and excited and have people come in and say we should stick with all off-white, or something like that.

I obviously will get what I love regardless, and I did defend my choices, but was met with shrugs and 'well, okaaaays'....Are we just more 'out there' than the average kitchen remodeler? It's not like I'm picking lime green/magenta/day-glo pink, after all.

Thanks for the question and before I wade into an answer, congratulations on choosing Timeless Kitchen Designs. Kevin Ritter is an artist in every sense of the word and I cannot wait to see what he does in your home.

Now, onto your question. I searched the web for some multiple finish kitchens and as luck would have it I came across one by Kevin, so you're in good hands. If I believed in signs I'd definitely call it that.

Look! Three paint colors!

Here are some others using three finishes and all of the following rooms are by Medallion Cabinetry. I have their image library, so these shots were easy to come by.

See? The rooms shown above look fantastic and I encourage you to throw that in the faces of the naysayers who disapprove of your choices.

I hate it when I hear someone say that something breaks a design rule. Especially when it's being said about color combinations. Short of some technical rules about form and function, there aren't any real design rules. Whatever design rules exist are trumped by the Great Commandment (at least according to me). That Great Commandment is of course Be Intentional.

Generally, the people who tell you that you're breaking a design rule are getting this nonsense from HGTV or the Garden Web and I'd ignore their "advice" without hesitation. It sounds too like they're worshiping the graven image of resale value, another dead end when we're talking about a kitchen such as the one you're planning for.

But back to my Great Commandment. When your finishes follow a narrative and they make sense for the room they're in you're on the right track. Being intentional isn't so much a question of the finishes you're using, it's more about the motives behind them. Based on our conversations, your motives are spot on and you have terrific taste. So be confident and enjoy your multiple hues. When your renovation's completed, your naysayers will go home to their off whites and envy you. Go for it!

Beaux Arts reborn with Siematic

100 years ago, American architects flocked to the École des Beaux Arts in Paris to be schooled in the decorative arts. The ideas and inspiration they brought home spawned the Beaux Arts movement and they yielded what's arguably the most famous example of the Beaux Arts style in the US, 1911's New York Public Library.

The Reading Room

The Map Room

Now that is what my friend Tom would call a Beaux Arts pile.

The Beaux Arts movement of a century ago was the great amalgamator. Beaux Arts buildings and the Beaux Arts style borrowed heavily from the decorative styles that preceded it and combined everything into fanciful and exuberant buildings and rooms. Beaux Arts embraced the modern by absorbing the past.

Around 100 years later, Siematic teamed with superstar designer Mick de Giulio to interpret Beaux Arts for the 21st century. As was the case 100 years ago, Siematic's Beaux Arts honors the many forms that came before it and presents something utterly new.

Beaux Arts Flannel Grey

Beaux Arts Flannel Grey

Beaux Arts Magnolia White

Beaux Arts Magnolia White

Beaux Arts Magnolia White

Beaux Arts Salvia Green

Beaux Arts Salvia Green

Beaux Arts Salvia Green

That my friends is some amazing kitchenry. The photos above from the Flannel Grey kitchen pretty much do it for me. Bravo Siematic!