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Designer's Notebook By Ellen Cheever, CMKBD, ASID, CAPS Smashing Splashes & Counter Designs By creating unique and exciting backsplash and countertop options, designers can showcase their talents and diferentiate themselves in a competitive and price-sensitive market. W ith the emerging interest in sleek, simple contemporary kitchens, as well as more tailored traditional ones, successful designers have realized they need to seek new ways to differentiate their proposed solutions from less sophisticated, price-sensitive competitors. A good product category to demonstrate your talent and expertise is surfacing – the products you select and specify for counter surfaces and backsplashes. Taking a fresh look at these hard- working parts of a modern kitchen can allow you to showcase your expertise and provide a beautiful focal point in the room. MATERIAL SELECTIONS These days, there's a wide variety of carefully engineered, Photo: The LivingKitchen Fair, Cologne, Germany, Stormer Kuchen Exhibition Ideas for functionally appropriate surfaces for counters and splashes. Most designers are very well-versed in using granite, marble and quartz surfaces. Some other possibilities include: • Three-dimensional, high-defnition laminate surfaces fabricated with elegant edges ofer a new take on the hard-working counter surface. • Crisp and clean variations of white solid surfacing material are elegantly appropriate for contemporary spaces. ← An island counter surface can become a focal point; here's an example of a uniquely Asian-inspired kitchen featuring a beautifully detailed island that conveys a great sense of a table. ↑The top surface of the island is as intriguing as the shape of the furniture piece itself. The working surface is one material, which is then surrounded by a wood surface. Photo: Courtesy of the design team of Kitchen & Bath Concepts of Pittsburgh, LLC and QCCI Cabinetry 58 | Kitchen & Bath Design News April 2013