Modern Kitchens

Modern kitchens have become more keen on their aesthetics and a little less on practicality. When looking at a modern kitchen everything seems sleek, crisp and clean. I would be lying if I said that modern kitchen are cheap because everything is highly function and expensive, especially when buying new shiny appliances and beautiful stone counter tops.

Modern Touches

• Can or Drop lights 
• Stainless Steel Appliances 
• Kitchen Island 
• Man Made Counter Tops 
• Granite 
• Marble 

 

 

Works Cited

"Modern-small-kitchen-design." Home Decorating Design Picture Ideas. Web. 28 Nov. 2011.  <http://themongrel.com/small-kitchen-remodeling-tips-and-ideas/modern-small-kitchen-design>.

 

Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://homefuturedecorating.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/05/Modern-Kitchen-Design-Ideas-to-Small-Kitchen-Design.jpg>.

 

Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.vendoluzes.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Interior-Design-Modern-Kitchen-for-Small-Apartment.jpg>.

Irish Kitchens

Like most other countries the kitchen in Ireland is said to be the heart of the home. It is the centerpiece of a house and the other rooms are strategically places. When looking at research there was not much elaborated on how to achieve a Irish inspired kitchen.

Here are a few basic elements to help move towards an Irish kitchen

• Rock/stone walls and floors 
• Pale greens and creamy yellows 
• Wood Furnishings 

 

Works Cited

Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmJ3FrA0H13Q_P-waPuRjSlQC9c7c8jWVqAiXko80fS3OGtd0ExFERf8qJ3PrTb6q1WqRHh4v1krLiiMvyoCntzBO9wo9qa14eyG2gdr0W8kNiFzYyaOpwzQdAiLQKBX7pdJZXefk5KKeb/s400/irishKitchen+Dining+Room+B.jpg>.

 

Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.hgtv.com/kitchens/traditional-pieces-center-an-irish-country-kitchen/index.html>.

 

Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.vendoluzes.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/Stone-Wall-Kitchens-Designs-Ireland.jpg>.

French Kitchens

French Kitchens are interpreted widely and are about a passion for cooking. A French kitchen can be defined as a mix of old and new farm houses. It is not uncommon that  a French kitchen will incorporate a stylized sense of glamor with shinny surfaces, rich in color, this gives off a distinctive and fabulous theme. Because the french have such a love for cooking, the cookware is often beautifully displayed.

To get the French kitchen theme try using the following:

• Stone Countertops 
• Rustic Beams 
• Concrete
• Curvilinear Elements 

 

                                                                                    

Works Cited

"Ideabook Design, Pictures, Remodel, Decor and Ideas." Houzz - Home Design, Decorating and Remodeling Ideas and Inspiration, Kitchen and Bathroom Design. Web. 28 Nov. 2011. 

<http://www.houzz.com/ideabook/61556/list/French-Kitchen-Style---Paris-To-The-Country-/>.

Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://cdn.freshome.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/07/fcountry_kitchen-e1279841728992.jpg>.

Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.kitchendesignersideas.com/images/french.jpg>.

Spanish Kitchens

Kitchens are the heart of the home, and this is especially true in Spain. When walking into the home of a Spanish family you would more than likely see: decorative tiles, cheerful colors, dark wood cabinetry and sometimes tiled vent hoods. Each home generally has a sort of combination of traditional Mexican decorative art and a type of representation of San Pasqual. He is the patron saint of cooks and kitchens. Color is a large part of the Mexican culture, and it only makes sense that it would largely be incorporated into their homes and kitchens. The colors of Mexico are derived from pigments of their surroundings like: minerals, vegetables, insects and seashells. These colors create warm yellow ochre, indigo blues, reds and icy purples. If you want to acquire the Spanish influenced home try mixing these colors together.

•  Terra Cotta Orange with Mediterranean Blue 
• Sunny Yellow with Cobalt Blue
• Creamy White with Brick Red 
• Pink, Orange and Blue 
• Yellow, Green, Turquoise and Orange 

 

Works Cited

Hacienda Home Style .com — It's All about Spanish Style Homes. What They Look Like, How to Paint, Decorate and What Types Include Hacienda Style Homes? Isn't It Time to Find How to Decorate Your Spanish Style Kitchen and Home? Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://haciendahomestyle.com>.

 

"Kitchen Decor and Decorating - Casual Kitchen Decorating Styles." Accents of Salado. Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.homedecor-online.com/CasualHomeDecorKitchen.html>.

 

Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.homedecor-online.com/images/homedocor/kitchen/CocinaSpanish400.jpg>.

Japanese Kitchens

Like most American kitchens, Japanese kitchens traditionally center around the stove in the room. The only difference was that instead of the stoves that we are used to in America, the people in Japan cooked their food over a Kamado, which is essentially a stove made of clay and the earth. In America we assume bigger is better, but in Japan space is not always an option. They are designed to occupy as minimal space as possible. In Japan the land is expensive and normally the plots are too small so multipurpose rooms have become very popular. So it is easy to say that Japanese kitchens do not follow the Modern design. Kitchens in Japan are very dominated by the color brown, and the use of wood materials. They use wood for cupboards, tables, chairs and they  even take the wood and make beautiful wood carvings sometimes.

 
There are many different types of dining room/kitchen furniture that they use in Japan, and the following website shows beautiful examples of them.

http://www.greenteadesign.com/dining-room-furniture.htm

Works Cited

 

"Japanese Kitchen Design." Interior Design Ideas, Interior Designs, Home Design Ideas, Room Design Ideas, Interior Design, Interior Decorating. Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.home-designing.com/2009/03/japanese-kitchens>.

 

"Modern Japanese Kitchen Design | Japanese Style Kitchen Design." Interior Design | Interior Design Ideas | Architecture | Furniture | Exterior Design. Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://hermonacasa.com/modern-japanese-kitchen-design/>.

 

Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://cdn.home-designing.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/japanese-interior-2.jpg>.

Introduction of Kitchen History and Design

Kitchen by definition is a place or part of a building equipped for preparing and cooking food. We can thank the evaluation  of the kitchen to the invention of the stove, electricity and the development of water infrastructures capable of supplying water to private homes. For the longest time a kitchen was a secluded place, in better sort of households. The kitchen was out of sight, where foodstuff was collected, cleaned, manhandled, mixed, spiced, cooked and essentially prepared. To most hardworking underclass mean it was the utilitarian realm. Since that time period kitchens have much since evolved.

If there were an updated definition of a kitchen it would be along the lines of the center of a home where people cook, clean, cry, talk, laugh even break things sometimes. The kitchen has turned into a symbolic place of the home, even with all the changes to a kitchen throughout the years the kitchen is still very practical place. Through study and observation people commonly spend more money refurbishing the kitchen than any other room in the home, mostly because kitchens were relatively smaller than they are today. Kitchens that were once small and dedicated to only cooking had become a multipurpose area. These renovations began taking place in the 1950's and 60's.

The color of kitchens even began to change with time. From the 1940's to about the 50's they used gauzy yellow, pepto pinks, mint greens and light turquoise's (and image all those colors with glints of metallic and chrome.) After the 50's though they added the inclusion of wood in the medium and earthy tones. Which personally I like a lot.

Kitchens have evolved a lot since the beginning and I doubt that it will seize to change. As of today though, kitchens are a center or attention unlike the very secluded  kitchens of the earlier times.

    

Work Cited

"File Not Found : The Colonial Williamsburg Official History Site." Colonial Williamsburg Official History Site. Web. 28 Nov.   2011. <http://www.history.org/foundation/journal/summer01/kitchens.cfm.>. 

Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://bigkitchenremodel.com/rotateimage.php>.

Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.dochara.com/ireland/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/kitchen-range.jpg>.

Publishers, Berg. "The Making of the Modern Kitchen." Home. Web. 28 Nov. 2011. <http://www.bergpublishers.com/?TabId=838>.

 

An Overview of My Blog

Hi I'm Samantha,

As you could see from my about me section, but i wanted to briefly explain what it is I want to accomplish through this blog. As a future designer in art school I'm extremely interested in house design. More specifically kitchen design. I enjoy the idea of families coming together to eat. For as long as I can remember now I've imagined what my perfect kitchen would look like, down to the wood type, the sort of back splash i want, including the color. I've debated if I want an Island or a breakfast bar.

With all the thought about the kind of kitchen I want when I move into my own house I started to wonder what other kinds of kitchen designs there are. Do certain colors in a kitchen mean certain things? Do families in China decorate differently? Through research that I plan on doing in the next 5-6 weeks I will learn what different countries kitchens look like, and also how the function of this rooms differs.