A Kitchen with more than just Cabinets on the Wall

I absolutely love this kitchen. I found the image a while ago while searching google images for some inspiration. Recently, while reading through The Kitchen Designer blog I realized that the author, Susan Serra, designed this kitchen. I am a new daily reader of The Kitchen Designer blog and was so happy to find that Susan designed this kitchen.
I love the classic painted white cabinet with the inset door and the integrated refrigerator section on the right. The wood countertops make the space warm and inviting. The marble on the island is the perfect contrast to the wood. I am most fond of the legs on the island. I have never come across a leg quite like this. I love the simpleness of it, but that it still has a bit of detail.

In Susan's blog entry, she states a few things that she would have done differently. She talks about how she proposed not to do the wall cabinets on either side of the hood. I totally agree with her on this. The hood and tile work are both so substantial, that the wall cabinets kind of take away from it...I think. She also writes that she would have used a natural stone instead of the subway tile. I love how truthful she was with her design differences from her client. This happens to me with every kitchen I design. Designers will always have different ideas from their clients. It is the converging of those ideas and the designer's ablilty to listen to their client that make the overall kitchen design a success.

Check out Susan's blog about this beautiful kitchen. Click here to see some incredible before and after photos.

A Mysterious Chandelier

I feel so lucky to be able to lay my eyes upon this beautiful wonder each day. My boss inherited this chandelier from a house that he bought and flipped a couple of years ago. The owner of the house told him that it was from a castle in Europe, but no one at the time believed it. In fact, we all believed it was one of Julie Neill's fabulous creations until last week.
Shortly after we hung this chandelier in the new showroom, an antique dealer stopped in to let us know the story behind this historic piece. She actually owned the chandelier at one time and confirmed that it is indeed from a castle in Europe. She believed it should be be back in her hands and said she would pay a pretty penny for it! Well, thank god my boss does not want to sell it. I find myself staring at it all day long and day dreaming about the castle that it once resided in. Ohh, it is so exciting to think about the royalty that once looked at this masterpiece and now it is hanging above the most beautiful island in the city!

The Most Beautiful Hood and Range Combo

I am so excited about some of the pieces that will be arriving soon that I cannot keep them to myself any longer. The following beauties will be accompanying the marble and tile that I previously posted about. Below is a version of the hood that I will be using in the display. It is a Metallo Arts masterpiece. Metallo also makes metal countertops, ceilings, backsplashes, etc. Ours will not have the fleur-de-lis trim at the top and bottom and it will be ivory instead of gold. You may be wondering why, since the fleur-de-lis is a New Orleans symbol. I love fleur-de-lis, but felt that it was a little too busy for the display.

This will be closer to the color. Ours will have a bit more gold peeping through to match the range that will be below it.

This is the La Cornue Fe, the manufactured less expensive version of the La Cornue. (The blue La Cornue is going in another display---more on that later)

I am so anxious for these pieces to come in. I feel like I need to show everyone how beautiful this is going to be. Keeping them to myself is somewhat greedy. This display will also have a walnut countertop, a vintage finished island, and a surprise from a castle in France!

Tile that resembles Water

Our new location is across the street from Stafford Tile & Stone Company, one of the most fabulous tile stores in the state and the south for that matter. Stafford carries lines that include Walker Zanger, Artistic Tile, AKDO, Syzygy, Interstyle, & Oceanside Glass tile. Peggy and her talented staff are all lovely and fun to work with.

The picture below is of a Walker Zanger ceramic tile called MIZU. MIZU means water in Japanese. I fell in love with this tile the moment I first saw it and knew that it would be perfect in one of the displays I designed. We will be using the Field style, which is 2" x 5 1/4".

This beautiful Marble is called Alba Chiara and hopefully it will be the countertop used in the display. The colors are so serene and it looks gorgeous next to the tile. This display is going to be facing Magazine Street and a head turner I hope!

I will be writing about more of the pieces that make up this display soon! Have a wonderful weekend.

Kitchens - New Orleans Style

Welcome to The Art of the Kitchen! (My new kitchen design blog.) This will be the place to find beautiful kitchens, backsplashes, and appliances with a little New Orleans flair. With our showroom on the beautiful Magazine Steet nearing completion, I am beginning to become more and more anxious to get back in the groove of designing beautiful kitchens.

This will be my place to share countless pictures of current projects, kitchen trends, classics, tile, beautiful luxury appliances, etc. Also, if you happen to be in the neighborhood, be sure to stop by to see our beautiful showroom and for homemade banana bread, cookies, and other treats.

I know that I have posted about this beauty on The Four Leaf Clover, but I could not resist sharing this picture with you. The only difference in the La Cornue that will be making it's home at Artisan is that the trim will be copper. The contrast between the copper trim and summer blue is like candy to the eye. I get chills just thinking about it. Check back soon for photos of the showroom in progress.