Kitchen & Bath Business - September 2016 - 14

Trends

LEFT "I had a client who want-

ed a work sink for washing up,
cleaning shoes, filling a small
bucket, but they didn't want to
see [those things]. We created
a sink and countertop behind
a set of live-edge wood doors.
The window behind the doors
projects light between the knot
in the wood." - Dave Stimmel,
Stimmel Design Group. Photo
by Bela Fodrovics.

everyone in the family and is strongly subject to the way kids think, rather
than adult sensibilities," said Osborne. "As much as we wish we could turn
11-year-old boys into tidy humans, it really won't happen."
She suggests keeping the space under the countertops open for baskets,
pet bowls and crates, rather than using base cabinets for convenience and
flexibility. If the client wants a bench, leave it open underneath so children
can kick their shoes beneath.
"You will be more satisfied with your space if there is a designated location
for piles to accumulate,rather than thinking children will separate the dark blue
jersey and the white football pants into cutely designed, color-coded hampers,"
said Osborne, adding that designers have to keep in mind that families change
continually, and the design needs to save room for those life changes.
"Countertops at two heights might be a good plan if you have room,"
said Board, explaining that a higher counter over the washer and dryer and
a standard height around the perimeter accommodate all different heights
and sitting or standing positions."If your laundry room is too small to achieve
two counter heights, and your client is not short, the higher raised counter
over all surfaces is a win."
Designer Michael Winn, owner and president of Falls Church, Va.-based
Winn Design + Build, found that simply containing all of a family's "stuff "
was a challenge, let alone personalizing it.
"Try to curate your clients'belongings in the room to include only the items
used daily, or at least weekly," he said, adding that seasonal items should also
be rotated out. "It's often better to keep gardening attire and kids' athletic
gear in a garage organizer.This will help keep odors and a lot of the mud out
of the house."
BUILT FOR WEAR

Despite attempts,a busy family will always make a mess out of the mudroom or
laundry room. Using products that are durable and easy to maintain is essential.
"Take the title seriously: a mudroom is going to take abuse,"said Williams.
"Tile or vinyl will adapt to wet dirt more easily than hardwood for long-term
exposure to the elements that people and pets track in."
Since most laundry/mudrooms will boast cubbies, open shelving and cabinets for dirty laundry or muddy shoes and installing wipeable materials will
help the design last. Avoid soft woods, such as pine, and instead opt for oak,
cherry or another hardwood with a natural finish or light stain since painted
finishes eventually require touch-ups. Where paint is needed, semi-gloss
options are the easiest to clean.

"One finish/color I wouldn't recommend for
this room, which is really popular right now, is
white - especially for benches," said Stimmel,
instead recommending wooden benches, which
conceal age better and can be refinished. "White
takes a pretty picture but doesn't wear well."
White, however, is an option for countertops
as long as more durable products like quartz or
laminate are used. Often a stone or quartz remnant
can be found at the fabricator's remnant yard and
bought for not much more than a laminate counter.
"My caveat to using laminate is to make sure you
pair it with a tile backsplash,"said Board."A fun tile
backsplash is just the thing to add a pop of color.
It's those little things that make your client smile."
STAYING POPULAR

Mudroom and laundry room renovations probably will always be the sidekick to kitchen and
master bathroom redesigns, but the trends on
social media and Houzz show they aren't shying
away anytime soon.
"A mudroom area is one of the most asked
about spaces in homes these days," said designer
Wendy Sorenson of Columbus, Ohio-based Dave
Fox Design."Having a place for everyone to hang
coats, bags and backpacks is always desirable."
Stimmel has also started seeing bigger laundry
rooms - a trend driven from higher-end homes
down to the affordable home market. He believes
mudrooms will follow close behind.
"We've already seen requests in expensive
homes for larger spaces like this, but the economy
isn't there for the average homeowner quite yet,"
he said.
By the time the larger laundry room trickles
down to the average home market, it is also
likely to be full of more technology. Smart
washers and dryers, along with charging stations and accessories, are likely to make their
way into these areas, spurred on by the smart
home products now being popularized in
kitchens and baths. Additionally, the idea of
highly organized, more casual rooms for creativity and functionality appeals to today's society of busy individuals - and the trend for this
appeal is still growing.
"Laundry/mudroom designs will continue to
become more creative as catch-all spaces that have
become indispensable,"said Williams."Originally
designed for convenience, they have moved beyond a space to drop things off and keep the rest of
the house cleaner - they've become a focal point,
with tuck-away nooks for every member of the
family, right down to the pets."


Kitchen & Bath Business / SEPTEMBER 2016 / KBBONLINE.COM / The official publication of KBIS (KBIS.com)

The Robert A.M. Stern Collection for WALKER ZANGER
draws inspiration from the
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come in a multitude of colors,
shapes and textures for an
elegant look.

The ELECTROLUX Front
Load Perfect Steam Washer
with LuxCare Wash offers a
thorough clean by combining
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sensing. An additional Sanitize
Option makes it easy to kill and
remove 99 percent of bacteria
and 95 percent of allergens.

http://www.KBBONLINE.COM http://www.KBIS.com

Kitchen & Bath Business - September 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Kitchen & Bath Business - September 2016