Wanda's Wonderful Kitchen

This kitchen remodel is part of a whole house remodel that we designed for our wonderful client Wanda Kristjanson.  With the help of our structural engineer John Nissen, we were able to open up the kitchen into the dining/living room, add vertical space and give Wanda the island that she always wanted.  We were able to remove the wall between the kitchen and the dining area and create a large island with seating for guests.  We also relocated a fireplace that had been inhibiting space in the existing kitchen (see before picture)  Acacia wood flooring coupled with horizontal grain bamboo cabinets are offset by a striking black mosaic tile backsplash.

Perfect for entertaining as well as daily living, Wanda's wonderful kitchen is a good example of how your surroundings can significantly impact your level of happiness.  Wanda is happy and that makes me happy!

 Before picture kitchen:

Small Luxuries Large Impact

A small bathroom can have the same luxuries found in large mansions.  Given a small footprint for remodeling a master bathroom condo, one of the challenges we overcame was making the room feel more spacious than the actual square footage.  Removing a wall between the sink and the toilet, floating the vanity cabinet and adding floor to ceiling marble tiles that continued to the end of the bathroom accomplished that goal.  

Floor heat on a programmable thermostat always keeps your feet cozy, while a washlet feature on the wall hung toilet provides the features of a bidet.  (Anyone that has traveled to Japan can attest to the wonderful features of the Toto toilet.)

A wave of your hand turns on the lights on the mirror while the built-in clock keeps you running on time.   There is a closeup mirror set into the mirror so you can keep the counter clutter free.

Want the luxury hand shower but don’t want the clutter of multiple handles and shower bars?  Check out Delta’s In2ition shower/hand shower fixture.  Available in multiple designs to accommodate many styles, this hand shower snaps into the center of the shower head and provides multiple showering options.  

Make sure that your shower remodel includes a ‘niche’ that is large enough to store your shampoo, conditioner and body wash containers.  These ‘niches’ are built into the wall so they do not take up space used for showering.    

Finally, don’t be afraid to use luxury materials such as marble or glass.  A SMALL amount of luxury materials will not cost much, but the impact can be LARGE. 

Award winning Kitchen!

Christine Suzuki, ASID, LEED AP  (me!), was awarded First Place for Residential Small Kitchen, in ASID's 2015 Awards of Excellence competition.  I love all of my design projects but it is nice when we receive confirmation that others love them as well!

This kitchen is in a small condo on Queen Anne hill. The original kitchen was a small rectangular room with two entrances, one from the hall, the second from the dining room. My role in this project was to create a space that looked and felt bigger, create an island with a breakfast bar and to add ‘a little bling.’  .  We removed the wall separating the dining from the kitchen and added an island with a breakfast bar.  We also bumped the back wall of the kitchen into the bedroom behind it giving us extra room to maneuver.  I like to minimize any protrusions into the space, so I selected the recessed finger pulls for the cabinetry.  

The opaque glass insert create a feeling of space as well.  The richness of the brandy stained cherry cabinets is balanced by the warm yellow color of the cork floor. We created a ‘feature’ wall behind the sink with glittering round metal tiles, centering the upper cabinets.  The hanging metal hood doubles as a light fixture.  All the upper cabinets are a double bi-fold tilt up style which makes it easy to access all items in the cupboards while retaining a clean horizontal line.  The large pantry cabinet to the left of the dishwasher is actually a 6” deep cabinet that is fit within the studs of the wall behind it.  

We also created an upper U shaped drawer for the sink cabinet to gain precious storage space.  The challenges for this project are typical of a condo, we needed to keep the drainage and venting in the same locations.  The cement radiant heat ceiling meant that we had to create a lowered ceiling with shallow recessed lights.  The old elevator was small and we were challenged in getting the granite counters up to the fifth floor.  The ending result, however, was outstanding and the clients have enjoyed this Seattle get away ever since.

Soft Modern Kitchen

What is soft modern?  Modern design without the ‘coldness’ of what we associate with modern.  Soft Modern incorporates ‘tactical’ elements to balance against smoothness, ‘friendly’ colors that are muted and relaxing.  Round shapes are allowed to associate with rectangular shapes.  I was happy to be selected as the designer for this Soft Modern kitchen.

 I call this kitchen ‘Earth Water & Air’ because of the materials selected and their relationship to these natural elements.  Usually, a design using ‘natural materials’ has a dominant color of browns which represent wood.  In this case, soft reflective gloss green cabinets remind us of water,  little globe lights bubble in the atmosphere.  Blue and green mosaic tile creates a sense of air or smoke going up the hood and the satin textured granite counters say ‘stone’ in the very basic sense of the word.  The granite has a very subtle color without normal busyness of granite patterning.  The ‘hand’ of the stone, a subtle but distinct texture, along with the color, was the basis of the entire design, providing our first strong relationship to nature.  The enlarged windows allow this family to be ‘one’ with the outside elements.

Take a look at all the pictures of this kitchen on our website www.christinesuzuki.com under portfolio/kitchens.  

With gratitude, Christine

Healthy Homes & Lifestyles

I am pleased to invite you to visit my design studio and gift store Healthy Homes & Lifestyles at the new Lakeview Yoga and Wellness Center, 7800 NE Bothell Way #155, Kenmore, WA. 

We are hosting an Open House to show off our new digs on Saturday June 7 from Noon – 3:00 PM.  Festivities include food and drink, gift bags for the first 50 people and gift packages that will be raffled off to our guests.  Kenmore Fitness is joining us in celebrating our move to the new facilities.  I designed both spaces and although they are polar opposites in the style (Relaxing Spa versus High Energy weight lifting,) both are equally successful in creating a sense of space that reflects their customers values and preferences.     

My obsession with locally made, healthy, sustainable and recycled materials had led me to provide these products for my clients.  Let me introduce you to some of the offerings:

Univera products have been a part of my life for a few years now.  Univera is a company that makes plant based supplements for your health.  Their headquarters is in Seattle and they ship out of Lacey Washington.  Of their many wonderful products I selected Xtra (for anti-oxidants), Regenicare and Regenifree (for body pain and mobility), Aloe (for moisturizing and healing cuts and burns) and Femme Vitale (for women my age).

Bio-Therapeutic Skin Care was created for professional aestheticians and we are lucky enough to be able to offer these products to the general public.  Specifically formulated for maximizing the health of your skin, all of their products are paraben free (paraben preservatives are linked to cancer) as well as being locally manufactured.

Bio Green Clean is an extremely effective cleaning solution that is made of 100% pure ingredients such as amino acids, minerals, leafy green vegetables, etc and is so healthy that if you accidentally drank it, you would be fine.  I have had professional cleaning services ask me where to purchase this cleaner because of its’ effectiveness and safety for use on all surfaces.

Bellmont Cabinets is a family owned company in Sumner Washington, and creates some of the finest cabinets I’ve seen.  Their plant is extremely impressive with ‘just in time’ manufacturing which allows customization of cabinets without extra costs or wasted materials.  They have a huge commitment to providing quality cabinets within a completely ‘green’ manufacturing plant which wastes not, protecting both the environment as well as their employees and customers.

Theo’s Chocolates – need I say more?  Locally made, the Nibs are extremely high in anti-oxidants, in fact I never knew that anti-oxidants could be so enjoyable to eat!

I look forward to seeing and talking to every one of you!  Come visit me at my new home!   Sincerely, Christine

BLING on a BUDGET or REDUCE REUSE RECYCLE

How can you get the BLING in your remodel while keeping within a limited budget?  By singing the REDUCE REUSE RECYCLE  song. Here are a few examples:

 We were able to save money in this bathroom remodel by REUSING the drain locations for the tub, shower and toilet.  Because this condo had a post tension construction floor, drilling new drain holes would have been costly.  We were able to use the savings to purchase more costly items such as the free standing tub.  

   Also, in the closet section of this remodel, we REUSED the existing cabinetry, giving it a new paint job and handles and cutting an opening for the cat to use the litter box in private.

This floating wood counter is a RECYCLED coffee table top.  (I like to call this UPCYCLING)  Purchasing a slab of wood with the ‘live’ edge and having it sanded & stained would cost considerably more for this home owner.

This living/entry area was spruced up with paint that accents the architectural features of the home creating interest and REDUCING project costs by not removing the wall.

 REUSING this sustainable cork floor

resulted in significant savings for this kitchen/dining remodel as well as bringing welcomed warmth to the Seattle condo.

Sometimes budget restrictions create wonderful unique solutions that we may not have previously considered.

As always, I welcome your ideas and feedback,  Think green and keep dry,  Christine

The Future of Kitchens

We are always trying to predict the future, with questionable success.  However, some trends are evident (as explained by Kitchen Distributors reference to the National Association of Homebuilders study  on kitchen design.)  The trend will be towards smaller homes.   With smaller homes comes smaller kitchens.  With smaller kitchens there is a bigger premium put on EFFECTIVE storage solutions;  replacing the walk in pantry with 24" deep pull out pantries, using every corner, every inch of floor space.    Even using the space INSIDE of the wall (yes we can build shallow cabinets that fit between the studs) so that you can gain storage without infringing into precious floor space. 

Many kitchens  double as a passage way to other parts of the home similar to this galley kitchen.  With space at a premium, kitchen designers use built in finger pulls on cabinets doors to eliminate protruding handles.  Space issues will also promote the open concept (no walls) between the kitchen, living and dining areas.  With some kitchens that means eliminating a wall and replacing it with an island.  With other kitchens it means eliminating the island. 

With openness comes exposure.  All the MESS needs to be hidden...somewhere.  Everything that is on the counter will be seen by everyone.  (Do you really want to see the rice cooker from the living room sofa?)  New openness will force us to rethink our storage/cabinet needs as well as our cooking accessory purchases.  Remember that brief trend that had garage style doors that pulled down to hide the kitchen?  Well, that may be a little extreme.....

Contact me with your thoughts! Ciao!

Why are kitchens layouts so Mid-Century?

Have you ever wondered why and who decided that all the washing of the dishes is going to be at the same location as where you wash and peel your vegetables, which is usually the same location as your garbage disposal, which is usually the same location as your garbage can (under the sink) ? I'm sure it made sense 50 years ago or so, but why do we continue with old traditions that do not work any more?

Is there a reason why the layout cannot reflect the way we prep, clean and cook in the 21st century? NO! Let's move forward with our lives! Let's make our environments work for us, not the other way around!

It makes sense to separate the 'prep' area from the 'clean up' area.  The clean up area can have the large sink, and dishwasher.  The garbage can should be in a 'pull out' by the clean up area NOT under the sink.  The pull out garbage unit should have TWO bins, one for regular garbage and a second one for recycling.

The 'prep' area should have it's own sink such as the Crevasse  from Kohler.   This has been my favorite sink (and an under appreciated one)since it came out a couple years ago.  You can scrape your scraps right off the cutting board into the narrow sink drain which is compatible with all garbage disposal styles.  Plus you can either center that sink on an island allowing access for two people across from another, or, you can pull that sink closer to you towards the edge of the counter.  You can also straddle the sink with the cutting board and toss your scraps off on the side into the sink.  All sorts of options! One push of a button and 'whoosh!' water flows down the angled sink, bring all the scraps into the garbage disposal.  Now that's progress!

Plus, I'm sure you Seattle-ites know that I didn't forget the composting garbage bin!  This type of garbage should be located by the 'prep' area NOT at the main sink.  Check out this model whose lid opens and the entire unit slides forward as the door is opened.  No more food marks on the lid!  As you know, the tops are important in order to contain the small of these bins.  The inner container has a built-in handle for easy removal.  All of these composting bins are necessarily small, because you just do not want to have that much food rotting in your house.

Now don't get me started on refrigeration!

Contact me (206) 517-4424 if you have questions or more solutions! Ciao!

Light & privacy-balancing the benefits

Natural light is a wonderful commodity.  It provides a sense of the outside  a connection to nature, and a peacefulness that settles our circadian needs.  Whenever possible, the addition of skylights or solar tubes in your home is the best investment for your interior health.  The light that comes through a skylight is significantly brighter and more expansive than the light that comes through a window.  The light that comes through a window is often shadowed by a roof overhang, or, gasp, it may be facing north and receive a dimmer light than the south side. 

Glass is commonly the material of choice to allow natural light into homes and offices.  Because of its transparency, the use of glass will make a space look and feel bigger.  Glass has its downside, however, generally in regards to privacy.  There are several options to consider:

1) When presented with the choice of having windows with natural light or looking into your neighbors bedroom, we chose a third option in this bathroom.  We added decorative film onto the windows, creating a 'light diffuser.'  To coordinate, we installed the same film onto the glass of the adjoining closet door.  

This decorative fim has a 'scratch' pattern to it, however there are many other choices, a popular one being the rice paper pattern. 

2)  The next picture shows upper cabinets with etched glass inserts.  We still get the benefits of glass, however the view through the etched glass is slightly diffused.   The apples were pulled forward in this picture to be seen.  Anything 3" back from the glass is seen as a blissful blur. (Do you want to arrange the interior of your kitchen cabinets?  I don't!)  Also, recent tests with AV equipment confirm that remote controls WILL work through etched glass.

3)  My latest favorite is the next alternative - Lumicor.  Lumicor is an architectural product  made of resin panels fused together with textural items placed between the panels.  In this case, there are reeds that are between the panels creating a very unique interesting texture.  Lumicor panels are also used as shower enclosures, light diffusers, inserts into french doors and counters.

4)  I recently founda 4th option from my colleague Tish Oye of Glassworks.

Glassworks designs, fabricates and installs kiln-formed glass, which “embosses” flat glass with interesting textures and patterns.  It can be made in clear glass or any color to match your interiors.  In addition, the glass inserts can be made of 100% recycled glass.  As with all Glassworks glass, it is inert, does not emit any VOC’s has a very long life and is easily recyclable, unlike acrylics and/or resins.  This picture shows the slumped glass option.  I hope you’ll keep this option in mind when thinking of using glass! 

Storage Solutions for Short People (and others)

I'm a short person, have always been vertically challenged.  I remember using a step stool to climb up onto the kitchen counters, stand on the counter and open up that top cabinet to try to see what was in it.  The problem was that you needed to climb down and stand back around ten feet to see what was inside and then you only got to see the items in front.  We were so intent on using every bit of space for storage that we lost track of the fact that if it is so difficult to get to and virtually impossible to see, then it is really not useable, it was trick we played on ourselves thinking that we were smarter than 'others.' 

I used to look at those sleek Italian kitchens with the skinny upper cabinets and laugh "Oh, look how much storage is wasted, look at that empty wall space above that cabinet!"  But, HONESTLY, is it really wasted if you cannot access it?  What is REALLY wasted is the money we spend to build/purchase cabinets that we cannot access, therefore cannot use.

Luckily, there are now 'options'  that will avoid future generations of 'short woman' complexes. Introducing the 'double tilt up door' that allows you to lift up the doors for the entire upper cabinet with one soft push of the handle.  Look, you can see what is inside without climbing onto the counter!  Now reaching some of the contents on the top shelf is another matter.  For help with that, we can add a 'premiere pull-down shelving system' that will safely bring the shelves (and the items on them) forward and down to counter level.

 What about pantry storage?  We all wanted 'deep' pantry cabinets so that we could store more food.  Getting the food into the pantry was one thing, getting it out is another.  Have you ever had to crawl into the pantry to get to the stuff in the back?   Admit it, how many of you have sent a small child in there? 

The truth is, those pantries are inefficient for the same reason as our ceiling cabinets, you cannot see the items, and you cannot easily retrieve the items.  And this time being tall doesn't help.  In fact you probably have a harder time crawling into the cabinet.   Voila!  Our storage solution is the tall pull out pantry.  24" deep, this cabinet can store a lot of food.  But the food comes to you, via smooth gliding hardware that pull the shelves forward to you.  Furthermore, you can view the pantry contents from both sides.  You will never lose another can of chicken and rice soup again!  Everything is visible and accessible.  You can even adjust the wire basket shelving up and down to accommodate both tall and vertically challenged people.  The same 'pull out' concept applies to base cabinets.  Instead of having shelving that you have to crawl into to find cookware, select large drawers that easily roll out for your search    One final 'show me the money' item is the pot filler.   This glorified faucet brings the water to me and my pot (located at the back of the cooktop) as opposed to making me walk tragically across the room to the sink. 

As always, let me know your thoughts, good and bad!  Happy New Year!!