Kitchen & Bath Design News is the industry's leading business, design and product resource for the kitchen and bath trade.
Issue link: http://kitchenbathdesign.epubxp.com/i/493213
32 | Kitchen & Bath Design News | April 2015 T he beginning of each New Year is an exciting time for designers interested in "what's trending" in style and home décor fashion. Major domestic and inter- national exhibitions fll our January calendar: the Kitchen & Bath Industry Show in Las Vegas, The LivingKitchen in Cologne, Germany, the Maison & Objet Show in Paris and the Toronto Interior Design Show. Color compa- nies release the "Color of the Year." Manufacturers launch new products, new styles and new innovations. In addition to aesthetic updates, market research information is released in the media. In the first quarter of this year, many sources have commented on the changing de- mographics of our 2015+ client. Our major industry publications are re- porting on specifc product launches. Let's have fun and focus on the look of the new rooms we will create this year! The foundation of the new style of these spaces is found in the shifting preferences of our clients, as they relate to how such rooms "feel." To be successful, design profession- als must distill such dreamed visions into the reality of an actual room with specifc products. For that reason, I will concentrate on the "feel" of a new kitchen or bath in this article – and then challenge myself and my colleagues to search out the needed details to create the "real" rooms in- spired by imagined spaces. DEFINING CONTEMPORARY Let's start with a perplexing question: What does the client really mean by "Contemporary" design? For the past three years, Contem- porary design has been reported as growing in popularity. However, the def- inition of Contemporary is quite elusive. At a recent meeting, one designer said it well when she commented her clients might really be requesting a very tradi- tional Shaker-styled room when they use the word "Contemporary." What they really want is a classic space – just more edited. She commented that what they really meant is they want to "close of, tuck away, put away, give away." Such de-cluttering leads to "contemporizing" any space in their mind! Designer's Notebook By Ellen Cheever, CMKBD, ASID, CAPS The recent whirlwind of international design shows provide inspiration for creating kitchen and bath spaces that distill clients' dream visions into reality.