What's hot in the kitchen? New technology in home appliances.

A few of my clients are pondering remodeling their kitchen, so I thought I would take a ride over to Brook Valley to see what’s new in the world of home appliances.  Ken Ax took me for a spin through his showroom, explaining all of the latest in cutting edge technology. I felt like I was viewing a “world of the future” kitchen at Disney, except that it was here and now.

He brought me over to a stove with an induction cooktop surface.  These cooktops generate electromagnetic fields to heat up pots and pans so you must use cookware that has a ferrous material (iron). They are twice as efficient as traditional heating elements, with an instant on and off switch. You can touch it moments later without getting burned, a nice safety feature in a home with small children.  The heating element is below the surface so it is easy to clean.

Convection baking technology has been around for a while but it is worth mentioning for those of you who, like me, still have our old appliances.  Convection ovens use radiant heat to cook food by circulating the hot air, which provides a consistent temperature to all the surfaces.  Ken pointed out that the heat element was also below the surface of the bottom of the oven, leading to easier cleaning. If he could only see the bottom of my oven. Ugh. I can see the appeal.

Wall ovens have also had their makeover.  Now there are touchscreen key pads on the oven door to assist with your baking.  Maybe more than assist.  With their user friendly photos and easy commands, you type in what you are cooking, the type of pan it is in and it shows where to put the oven rack, the perfect temperature and more.  I could see beginner cooks loving this smart oven because it guides you through the steps of cooking without having to put in years of study in the kitchen, pouring over recipes and methods. You can even set up a build in meat thermometer to let you know when your roast reaches the perfect temperature.  It is light years away from my old meat thermometer that isn’t quite accurate anymore.

There are appliances for the real foodies out there.  The steam wall oven utilizes water vapor in the cooking process for a speedy and healthy dinner.  You fill a container with water and slide it in to the oven and the computer will monitor the appropriate amount of steam.  This is the home version of a restaurant steam table.

Ken’s eyes lit up as he walked me over to his prized possession, a beautiful caramel colored Aga stove looking like the classic British star that it is.  But behind the facade of a traditional stove lies a state-of-the-art wonder with a touch screen panel and remote handset.  He described it as a piece of furniture that cooks.  Indeed.

The Aga is going to be part of his big plans for the future. He is putting in a test kitchen to hold culinary events and maybe someday expanding to a cooking school on the premises.  Sounds like an exciting dream and a wonderful addition to our community.  I am looking forward to the future, or is it here now?

Is it the Mayan Calendar or the ending of one year and start of another? All I know is that change is all around.

Lately, almost all of my clients are rethinking their interiors to make way for a new phase of life.  It could be that most of my clients are of that ‘ahem’ certain age when the kids are grown up and gone and they are left with a quieter house.  It seems like they have a common thread of change: kid’s bedrooms are rethought to accommodate the occasional guest or two, living rooms are reconfigured to be a bit more glamorous for cocktail party entertaining, and rooms are repurposed to suit more lone pursuits such as reading or working in a home office.

Many of my clients in this phase seem to no longer have patience for clutter and disorganization that they may not have even noticed when the kids were around.  There is also a yearning for a simpler interior design plan. I knew I was making progress with one couple when the husband started to declutter his own bookshelves in a room we were turning into his home office/library without his wife and I asking him to.  Once you start the process of removing excess and putting thought into the way spaces are used, the house and everyone in it seems to breath easier.  It really is quite magical. 

The best way to get started is to walk around your house with the eye of a visitor.  Don’t think of the spaces in the way they are used now but try to see their hidden potential.  Next is to really see your belongings for what they are and try to briefly remove the sentimental attachment.  Ask yourself, “If that end table from Aunt so and so was in a consignment shop, would I have bought it?”  This is a very enlightening exercise.

Don’t be afraid to simplify by getting rid of things that you don’t use.  Picture yourself walking around your organized, tidy house where each object or furnishing makes you smile. A well thought out house is a tonic from a complicated world.

My husband and I have recently rethought and simplified our world. I have relocated my Design Studio to our Barn/Workshop on Route 30 in Dorset after much soul searching about ways to simplify our lives.  We will be amicably sharing the upper floor our our workshop to provide our clients with even more decorating options.  I am hoping to have more time now for gardening and day dreaming, which are both important things to do when you design for a living.  Inspiration is always needed.

I wish you luck with rethinking and simplifying your world!