Lori's Weekly Bella Bling- The Knife Drawer

We are starting a new series of accessories this week and turning the focus to knife storage. 

My choice for the 1 carat rated knife storage is the carved knife insert from Dura Supreme. You order the wood insert and then the knife set. It is a good quality knife set – J.A. Henkel’s 8 piece Twin Four Star II knife set, but the insert lacks flexibility.

 What if you already have a favorite chopping knife? – will it fit in one of these already carved out shapes?  What if one of these matching knives goes missing? You will have to buy another one that fits into its “shape”.  I am not a gourmet cook by any means and I own 15 knives (a set of steak knives is included in this count), so this accessory would not work in my household. But, for that very neat, orderly person, the knives all match and have a “place”. This set made it on my “bling” list because of its great quality and a great way to organize in one convenient drawer. 

 

Next week we will move on to the 2 carat rated knife insert.  Again, it is one that fits into a drawer.

Diagnosis from the Kitchen Doctor

Ever notice how it’s the small things that bother us the most?  My world is designing spaces (especially kitchens) that work for the people that use them.   

The best place to start?  Letting clients tell me what they don’t like, what isn’t working for them. These answers give great insight into the scope of the project that can make a difference for them. In some cases it may be a brand new addition with a kitchen remodel, other times a new counter top makes the grade, but in many cases their issues can be addressed with some simple fixes. I had a recent client that didn’t like the hollow sound her cabinet doors made when they closed. Her problem was solved with a nominal piece of hardware she had no idea was available--total project under $100.

What’s bugging you? Poor lighting on a work surface, a door that doesn’t close, a drawer that doesn’t open (or is completely falling apart), your favorite pan that doesn’t fit, or the “Tupperware” cabinet…I won’t even go there. Maybe it’s organizing the spices, silverware, utensils or recyclables. We don’t have to throw out the baby with the dishwater.

Low profile LED under cabinet lighting can be installed to illuminate work surfaces. Cabinet doors can be retrofitted with soft close feature hardware, drawers can be replaced with glides that perform and give full access to the contents. Think you’re limited to the existing hardware pull sizes? Even laminate counter tops feature undermount sinks now. Decorative backsplash tile, new stools and maybe a glass accent door can round out your look. 

Don’t suffer in silence, see the kitchen doctor, make your kitchen the space you want to go home to tonight.

written by Dondi Szombatfalvy

Lori's Weekly Bella Bling

This week I am reviewing tray storage with a 3 carat rating. These dividers are very universal and can either be factory installed or job site installed.  When ordering, you can specify to Dura Supreme Cabinetry how many dividers you want, the spacing of the dividers and placement in the cabinet. Since these dividers can be installed at any time (available in kit form), it is very easy to retro-fit them into an existing kitchen. The partitions can go in a wall cabinet (shown in the photo), a base cabinet, or in the upper door area of a tall pantry cabinet.   

Added to this, the dividers can be placed in the entire wall cabinet above the refrigerator – which is usually a useless cabinet for storage. Put the dividers in, and you have an organized, useful area for all your trays, boards and platters.

This accessory has ENDLESS possibilities for flexibility in the amount of dividers based on the cabinet size and type of items you can organize in it.  Large platters, thicker muffin pans, thinner cookie sheets, jelly roll pans, cutting boards, serving trays and broiler pans to name a few.  OK, here is the icing on the cake; the dividers can be installed in a U channel that allows them to be removed for ease of cleaning.

Next week we will be moving on to accessories for knife storage.