{kate's great kitchen}
kate reads haus maus and told me today that she has finished her kitchen. it has white cabinets, yellowish walls, stainless appliances, and the same farmhouse style sink that i have my eyes on at ikea. oh and of course lovely open shelving! she installed the shelf recently and shared the photos with me from her blog. i had to show you. for fun, view her entire boston apartment here.
it inspired me because she did such a great job on that shelf install. as i embark on designing my own kitchen, i need all the inspiration i can get. i've never designed a kitchen or bathroom from the pipes up, so i'm quite excited to take this project on. i can handle the rest of the house but i must admit that kitchen design intimates me just a little. maybe i should hire the kitchen design master susan serra in new york. that woman is a kitchen dynamo. i've never laid eyes on a design portfolio quite like hers and given that she is from denmark she knows how to design a european city apartment kitchen. what's the difference you ask between a euro kitchen and a u.s. one? lately not much as you can now purchase jumbo appliances in germany. but the more common appliances are about 1/2-1/3 of the size of what we call standard in america and the plumbing and stuff is completely different. all of the lighting you can get in america will not work in germany because the wiring is different and so are the light bulbs. materials are also different, from brands to availability. in other words, take most of what you know about design (the technical part) and products you've grown to trust, move to a foreign country, and you are pretty much going to have to start out on kindergarten level. especially if you are me and have a hard time translating german into english when it comes to ingredients on labels -- especially in hardware stores. oh my god. my husband speaks fluent german (native) and english and can't even translate half of the cans i hold up when i ask him what this or that word would be in english. wish me luck.
so miss kate -- you've inspired me!
it inspired me because she did such a great job on that shelf install. as i embark on designing my own kitchen, i need all the inspiration i can get. i've never designed a kitchen or bathroom from the pipes up, so i'm quite excited to take this project on. i can handle the rest of the house but i must admit that kitchen design intimates me just a little. maybe i should hire the kitchen design master susan serra in new york. that woman is a kitchen dynamo. i've never laid eyes on a design portfolio quite like hers and given that she is from denmark she knows how to design a european city apartment kitchen. what's the difference you ask between a euro kitchen and a u.s. one? lately not much as you can now purchase jumbo appliances in germany. but the more common appliances are about 1/2-1/3 of the size of what we call standard in america and the plumbing and stuff is completely different. all of the lighting you can get in america will not work in germany because the wiring is different and so are the light bulbs. materials are also different, from brands to availability. in other words, take most of what you know about design (the technical part) and products you've grown to trust, move to a foreign country, and you are pretty much going to have to start out on kindergarten level. especially if you are me and have a hard time translating german into english when it comes to ingredients on labels -- especially in hardware stores. oh my god. my husband speaks fluent german (native) and english and can't even translate half of the cans i hold up when i ask him what this or that word would be in english. wish me luck.
so miss kate -- you've inspired me!
Comments
Boy, looking at the photos is really driving home how much I need to frame and hang artwork in there! I have a whole pile of amazing prints and posters I've been buying from people like Keep Calm (the tea print), Amy Ross, Wolfieandthesneak (I have to post a photo on my blog of how she packaged the poster, it was adorable), and Kate Bingaman-Burt. It's an embarrassment of riches and I can't seem to fit any of it in normal-sized frame (except the Amy Ross Manshroom, which is just languishing in my office waiting to be hung up). Anyway, *something* needs to go on that blank wall over the sink!
Thank you so much for your kind words! Your sunny Hannover kitchen will be darling once you've kitted it out. I adore that yellow wallpaper...
Thanks!