Youtube while microwaving your lunch?

Yes, it could be true. The creative minds behind the CastOven are seeking a way to make that concept true. What a clever idea, although myself I don't stand around the microwave waiting for the task to complete...but maybe now I would?

Whether this appliance comes to our real life kitchens or not, it's a fun concept worthy of posting. I am a huge fan of someone coming out with a microwave that can be paneled with cabinetry, so until that happens or until I invent that in my spare time (ha!), I think a youtube video will do.

Happy zapping!

Small but mighty!

Isn't cooking more fun when you actually have the space to properly prep and give food and family recipes, the attention it deserves?

Below is an island designed with "Medallion's" cabinetry and fitted with a John Boos wood chopping block. The best part of this design, is that this island could literally fit in 90% of all kitchens. It's not large, but what it lacks in size it quickly makes up in function. Can't you see this little beauty in your home? Think about it next time you are grunting about how little counter top space you have....and get this island in your home, in any color and any design!

Below is an insanely delicious sounding recipe from my new friends at "Beyond the Shaker" a local Michigan gourmet salt company. I can't wait to try this out, and thought you may enjoy it too! Many thanks to the guys at "Beyond the Shaker" for sharing this! I am a huge fan of their Truffle wet salt!

www.beyondtheshaker.com

Melange of Truffled Asparagus

For this recipe you really need to trust us as the result is absolutely phenomenal. Better yet, this is very easy to prepare and the presentation adds playful fun to any meal. This flavor combination is proof that experimentation in the kitchen by even the hobby-chef can yield unbelievable results. Eggs, truffle and salt are a gorgeous trio, but add asparagus and you have a side dish that will knock the socks off anyone that tries it.

COOKWARE YOU WILL NEED

• One large pot
• A non-stick skillet
• A heat resistant spatula
• A large bowl of ice water

INGREDIENTS

• 1 heaping tablespoon of Truffle Wet Salt
• 1/2 pound of green asparagus
• 2 extra large eggs
• A dollop of butter (you know what we mean)
• Cracked pepper

DIRECTIONS

1. Wash your asparagus and trim off the thickest part of the stalk so that each piece of asparagus is of relatively uniform length.
2. Boil unsalted water (I know, insane, but you will understand why in a moment) in the large pot making sure your large bowl of ice water is closely standing-by. Add the asparagus stalks to the boiling water and watch until they become deep green (about 1-2 minutes at the most).
3. Promptly transfer the asparagus to the awaiting ice bath to stop the cooking and seal in the color and crunchy texture of the blanched stalks.
4. Remove the stalks from the ice bath and individually dry them with paper towel. Place them lengthwise on two small white plates and smear on top a generous amount of the Truffle Wet Salt.
5. Add butter to your skillet and place on medium heat. The goal here is to make two perfect sunny-side eggs that have very runny centers. If you can cook two eggs at once in the skillet, go for it. The key is to give each egg plenty of room, so the larger the skillet, the better. Crack open the eggs and let them cook until the whites turn solid but take care to keep the yolks uncooked and runny.

SERVING SUGGESTIONS

Presentation is part of the fun with this dish that serves two, so gently place each egg on top of the asparagus and add a little cracked pepper over it. When serving, instruct your guests to break the yolk over the asparagus and truffle salt to let the flavors combine right before eating. You will be amazed at the glorious melding of flavor components. For a fun and spicy twist, add some of our Hot Habanero Blend to the outside edge of the plates, or use Tabasco as an alternative.

Copyright 2009 Beyond the Shaker, LLC
www.beyondtheshaker.com

Casual seating with grand appeal

This beautiful photo is from our "Medallion Cabinetry" line.

I find the casual comfort of the bench seating so appealing, and simply love the storage of the symetrical hutches that flank it.

Personally, I adore this Islander color and the orange pillows and rattan accents just pop off of it. I think every house should have a room, or section, that has an ocean feel to it.

It brings such calmness in.

If you like this look, call for a design consultation to see how it will fit in your home!

Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving, is my personal favorite holiday!

I love the no-gift-giving pressure, quality family time, the madness of sales, and of course- the food!

It's such a warm, cozy time of year filled with smiles.

Looking through my "Medallion cabinetry" photography on their website, I thought I would post this lovely kitchen.

I think it looks quite ready for Thanksgiving, don't you? I know I would enjoy prepping my family's recipes in here.

The different tones of mixed woods throughout the space, create such warmth.

Below is a table setting I saw online created by Ina Garten. I thought it would be so beautiful for Thanksgiving. It's quite feasible to do and find all the items needed while shopping for your Tday food list.

An odd cluster of orange/salmon hued tulips, plates of clementines, highlighted by the pumpkin hued napkins...beautiful.

This is my personal favorite wine that I think accompanies the Turkey-day dishes extraordinarily well. It's a Zinfandel by Ravenswood and as a shopping fyi, I've often seen it available at Trader Joe's. It's extra delish with brussel sprouts...yes, I love brussel sprouts.

So speaking of that, here is a delicious recipe from Ina Garten, of Food Network!

Hope you enjoy, I pasted it as recipe card for easy printing!

Or here is the link : BRUSSEL SPROUTS mmmm

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

1999, The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, All rights reserved

Prep Time:

10 min

Inactive Prep Time:

hr min

Cook Time:

40 min

Level:

Easy

Serves:

6 servings

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds Brussels sprouts
3 tablespoons good olive oil
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Cut off the brown ends of the Brussels sprouts and pull off any yellow outer leaves. Mix them in a bowl with
the olive oil, salt and pepper. Pour them on a sheet pan and roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until crisp on the
outside and tender on the inside. Shake the pan from time to time to brown the sprouts evenly. Sprinkle with
more kosher salt ( I like these salty like French fries), and serve immediately.

Copyright 2009 Television Food Network G.P., All Rights Reserved

Here's to enjoying this special time of year!

Legs and Feet

When thinking of your kitchen design, feet may not come to mind.

Well, maybe it should...

When they come in these beautiful forms, you may reconsider. Both Quality Cabinets and Medallion Cabinetry offer many varieties of feet, legs, posts to be used in furniture type applications for your kitchen or bath, or any room design with cabinetry.

Bun feet

Post leg detail

Turned leg detail

Symphony foot

And many, many, maaaaannny more available!!

Removable cooktop increases countertop space

What a cool new product that I could see working so well in a small but highly functional kitchen spaces! You can create your work triangle and when needed, remove these cooking plates for additional counter top space.

So clever!

I would love to see this product live and try it out in person. Maybe try my hand at searing a piece of salmon, or creating a stir fry in one of these.

Lotus is a wireless cooking system that offers an elegant alternative to the conventional static hob. Each piece is specifically designed for various cooking styles and meal types. There is a tepan yaki plate, a wok hob (the bowl like piece), a grill plate and induction plates. The pieces are powered using resonant induction. There are transmission coils hidden beneath the counter top and receiving coils in each of the pieces. Power can be transferred to one or all of the pieces at any one time.

Clean up is a cinch since you can dunk the plates in water. Although many avid cooks argue nothing beats the flavor and efficiency of a meal cooked by fire, home chefs like myself prefer flexibility and easy clean up. Safety is another huge advantage here. The heat ferrous directly by creating a magnetic field causing edding currents in the metal to heat up. Therefore they always remain cool and are safe to pick up almost immediately after cooking. Of course there are handles just to ease the minds who are hardwired never to touch anything hot.

Designers: David Barry & Laurence Finnegan

Cool casters in candy colors!

I just love pops of unexpected color, especially when it comes to these cool casters by Mockett.com

Green is my personal favorite color, so this caster immediately grabbed my eye! Love how there is a 'brake' too so you can lock it into place.

The red caster with it's slim line is so chic!

What a creative way to design a small island to put on casters, or a custom coffee table, or a desk unit with a movable section to allow different spacial layouts! The possibilities for these cuties are endless!

"Medallion Cabinetry" Promotion

For many of my clients, friends, etc looking at "Medallion" for their project's cabinetry, there is a great COUPON being offered until 11/20/09!

For orders of 12 cabinets or more:

INSTANT REBATE!!!

$750 off for PLATINUM

$500 off for DESIGNER GOLD & DESIGNER

$250 off for SILVERLINE

Click here for the COUPON located on Medallion's website in the upper right hand corner, and contact me so I can process it correctly for you!

Don't miss out on these limited savings!

Warmth in a Laundry room

On these cooler days of Fall weather is there anything better than feeling cozy? How about while doing the mundane daily house chores of, oh I don't know... laundry, having a beautiful room like this to do it in.

Now, it's no secret, I'm not a fan of doing laundry but with this design below, my inner Martha skills of wanting to fold/iron/steam and clean wants to come out and get busy.

I just couldn't resist snapping some photos yesterday while driving out to one of my clients to measure for their new kitchen. What an amazing Indian summer day we had yesterday, it was sunny and almost 70 degrees with explosions of colors stemming through the trees.

How couldn't I be creative with a day (actually a week) like this? I do love the Fall.

Uniting different tones of cabinetry

Using different tones of cabinetry in your home is quickly becoming more than a trend, it's becoming a masterpiece style of design.

Below are some amazing examples done with our line of "Medallion Cabinetry"

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Seen here are three examples of color: A painted maple cabinet, with accents of a red Pinot Noir stain and the island in an onyx stain. Breath taking isn't it?

Here is a lighter example of combining a Hazelnut tone in an Alder rustic wood with a painted finish that lends to a cool oceanic feel.

Below, cabinetry turns more towards a furniture look with a free standing armoire piece in a cherry stain. The beautifully designed island showcases a medium tone Pecan stain in cherry, hugging around the Coastal stain in yellow. Using different finishes in different door styles creates a more furniture finish and one that is definitely unique to your home.

In a more classic approach, the image below boasts a beautifully clean white painted in Divinity with gentle darker hues of maple cabinetry. The chestnut tones of the darker wood really bring out warmth and balance the cooler white cabinetry.

Done in a more contemporary vibe, this kitchen below, is not afraid of some eye popping color. The natural maple cabinetry fades back to allow the red painted cabinetry to step forward and demand some attention. Creating different heights and depth in your cabinetry, allows your space to work better and creates a dynamic design.

Hope this inspires you to get creative with all the fabulous choices we have to offer!

Warm hues make this kitchen so inviting

This remodel kitchen design was done for such a sweet family, I was happy to be part of the project to make their kitchen function better for their everyday needs.

I suggested moving the sink to the opposite side of the kitchen and creating the diagonal angle looking out toward the backyard. The sitting/overhang area behind the peninsula is now in a better position, being on the opposite wall, which before, blocked the traffic flow from kitchen into family room.

The lovely "Quincy" door style in Maple-Biscotti stain is the perfect soft sand tone of Maple.

I increased their storage immediately by taking the upper cabinets up to the ceiling. Visually, it makes the kitchen ceiling look taller as well.

Notice the small satin nickel button in the granite countertop by the sink? It is an air touch garbage disposal button.

Below is a perspective shot from my initial concept to their reality, above. This design is done on CAD 20/20 to design and implement quick changes as we progress thru the designing phases of a remodel.

Below is the "BEFORE" shot and the kitchen design that really wasn't working for their family. Long gone now!

The new laminate is here..first in Michigan on display!

From my last posting, I was raving about the new laminate products from Formica.

We put this new product on our showroom island, come see it for yourself in person.

It is knock-out beautiful and guess what...it is also a green product!

Ogee edge treatment

Up close ...can you believe this is laminate?!

Looks amazing doesn't it, just like stone!

And below, was the "Before" shot of the older Formica laminate that was to look like granite. I have to say, they have come a long way and I'm very impressed! Good job Formica!

If you like the way this new top looks, we make custom tops in this new finish at our facility. Call for more information to see how we can help you in your design.

The Suite Life

This beautiful remodel was actually done inside a private company suite at the Palace of Auburn Hills. This suite went from year 1983 to 2009 quickly by updating everything from cabinetry, counter tops, flooring and furniture accents.

Although the blinds are drawn in the photo below, the Pistons were actually practicing that day I measured the space out. It helped with the design concept; knowing the main attraction of this room is what will happen through the glass. A great 'suite' is one that flows nicely and works like your own personal restaurant/bar but with the warmth of home.

If you look closely, you can see the client added their own touch by attaching an cool metal plate, labeled "trash" indicating where the pullout is. Love the personal additions.

In any space, having a new kitchen and powder bath to make family and guests alike feel at home is more than necessary...it's 'suite.'

BIG news in laminate

I have to admit...laminate counter tops are not my first choice for top materials. I love the look of natural stone and I never thought laminate companies quite got that 'look.'

Until now...

Check out this INSANELY beautiful new laminate exclusively from Formica and I'm happy to say, that we will be the first showroom (and only so far) in Michigan to be featuring this product. We are exchanging out the old laminate top on our selection room Island, for the new Formica 108fx in "Blue Storm" shown below.

Come check it out for yourselves at my showroom, in a couple of weeks....I'm anxious to have it, it is a show stopper and is bringing laminate out of the 1980's for good!

Not to mention how budget friendly laminate is and is winning over Eco-friendly fans nationwide!

A Cottage home remodel

When I went out to measure my client's cottage home, I was gearing up for a four-five hour drive. However, this cottage, is only about 45 minutes away from their Birmingham home, located in Linden, MI. I couldn't help but think, how wonderfully convenient and how much this family must use and enjoy their 2nd home.

Below is the finished remodel I did for their kitchen area, in our "Quality Cabinetry" line, using the white thermofoil 'Nantucket' beaded door style.

This 2nd sink area shown below, can be used for bar/entertaining area or as another wonderful prep area.

I adore the staircase that walks right into the kitchen. How inviting is that?

Cozy and quaint with a corner sink view of their lake, who wouldn't want to escape to this lovely home?

Design your dream kitchen with our Silverline-Budget friendly

Crisp, clean, timeless and classic.

A few choice words that come to mind with this design below done in "Medallion Cabinetry's" budget line of "Silverline." Yes, I said budget. It is possible to create a gorgeous kitchen without breaking the bank. Take a look at this one below, done in North Carolina by one of their local designers, using our line of "Medallion Cabinetry"

Very popular with my local clients, is the darker island used in combination of a white or lighter perimeter. It makes your island look more like a found piece of furniture; this island is done in our "Carriage Black" painted maple cabinetry. The white cabinetry is Maple wood painted in the "Divinity" color. Just lovely.

I love how the homeowners used contrasting granite/marble for their counter top choices. The white farmer's sink becomes a focal point set in the dark granite. The island's marble done in a soft white with grey veining looks like the perfect area to try new recipes at.

***

Below are three custom bookcases to match in kitchen cabinetry. It ties in seamlessly and offers storage below and great display above for family photos, or travel treasures.

To view more stain color choices and paint colors are available in this beautiful door, please click on this: "Lancaster"

and set up a time in our showroom to view more in person.

Hutches beware, chic storage is found!

This wall unit was designed for maximum storage use, and having it centered on the wall close to the dining room table, it also serves as a large buffet area while entertaining.

Vertical lift storage with frosted glass keeps this wall unit functional as well as gorgeously chic. Having six drawers (three shallow for silverware, etc, and three deep for dishes/platters, linens..oh my!) creates instant organization and keeps with the horizontal flow of the design.

Shown below is the stone. We used a beautiful remnant piece of millennium cream granite here, for under $600 installed. By being flexible on our color choice and choosing a chic 3/4" material, we were able to save about $1,275.00 for stone alone.

Below is the "Before" shot...

Doesn't your stemware and entertaining dishes deserve a better home?!