Simple Advances

 Apple Wood Kitchens & Bath is a division of Apple Wood Construction Company. We primarily focus on remodeling. We also build new construction, if that is your interest or need.. What does "remodeling" mean to you?  In New England the construction business is unique. Out West, Civic Development Departments plan whole communities. Typically, building new homes to be included in these "planned communities" is more of a focus there then it is here in So NH. Here, homes sell and change ownership.  New England's homes span from the 1600's to now. Some of them were built when the street were basically horse and buggy paths. The neighborhood populations grew. Roads widened as the generations passed.  Planned Communities were not considered, at least until fairly recently. It is one of the reasons homes and commercial businesses can be next door to one another. Obviously, older homes need updating. Remodeling is an art form especially needed in our beautiful New England cities and towns. The historical specifics of  how building developed in New England accounts for much of it's charm.

I just finished reading the last two posts I wrote recently about technology. I find myself amazed actually at the leaps into the future that are becoming common place. There is more to write regarding technological advances for your future consideration.  However, reading the last few reminded me of some simple practical developments cabinet manufacturing has implemented over the years that has truly benefited homeowners. These features have been around for some time now. Although  they are not "new technology", I think they deserve to be mentioned in our discussion.

I'll begin informing you of two more accessories you do control remotely, window coverings.The
rest of this post will be dedicated to less "exciting" developments, yet very popular conveniences. Window treatments are much simpler, yet still cutting edge where convenience is concerned. This is especially true in the kitchen or bath when clean hands make a huge difference. The twenty some years of remotely controlled window coverings being available has made life easier, neat, and clean. Even white or light colored shade fabric remain pristine and free of stains when you do not need to touch them as you operate them. Skylights are perfect for bringing more natural light into a room. However, sometimes glare becomes a nuisance. Remote controls to operate roman shades on skylights is perfect.

When we find a previously owned house we love and buy it, there are always changes we want to make. Typically, the kitchen and baths need updating. What an opportunity to put your personal taste on the new home! Today the possibilities for customizing your project are basically endless. Externally, your ability to add your personal touch through the styles and finishes of the cabinets makes a powerful statement. Yet, more than the design style, your selections of internal accessories to place in the cabinets truly create function that will make your life style so much more enjoyable.

These accessories may not all be "technology" like that discussed the past two weeks. Yet, the practical and pleasurable experiences they afford will definitely make your life easier. Years ago, cabinets with doors and drawers were the norm. Custom internal accessories did not exist. A trip to the kitchen department of a variety store might help equip you to function better in your kitchen. Custom made accessories were not available.

Cabinets have three categories basically. Wall, base, or tall cabinets are designed in various configurations when a kitchen or bath is remodeled. You still have the options of purchasing ready made cabinet and drawer accessories. However, today the potential to utilize every square inch of space by adding custom made accessories to the cabinets has revolutionized the industry. I want to discuss some of these in this post.

Let's begin with the cooking/creative area of your kitchen. Whether you have a cook top mounted in the counter top or a stove Base Drawer "Pots and Pan Drawers" are wonderful. Typically they have three drawers, a shallow one on top to hold your cooking utensils and two deep drawers below that hold pots and pans. No longer do you need to open a base cabinet door, bend over and search for the right size pan. Just open the drawer in one move to select the perfect one.

You can also add Orga Plate Holders or Wooden Dowel Plate Posts in these Drawer Bases to corral your dinnerware. A decorative Plate Rack Cabinet that displays your beautiful dishes is a charming design element in a kitchen. Both choices are popular and how convenient!

Spices! What would we do without our spices while cooking? The possibilities to surround yourself creatively with all the storage needed for spices is exciting to me. Simple wooden interior drawer racks fit inside the drawer near your stove perfectly! What if you love gourmet cooking and love to entertain. Most likely you are going to need larger storage to organize all those exotic flavorful spices. Let me begin with my favorite combination of cabinetry to accomplish this. Picture a focal in your kitchen setting the atmosphere yet completely functional and amazing! your very own " Hearth "
creative cooking station. How, you say? Well....................

Your stove is 36 to 60 wide, generally a commercial style. Above it is a massive hood made of  Stainless Steel or Wood cabinetry matching the style and finish of all the other in your kitchen.
Both the Stove and the Hood are bordered with vertical column cabinets that organize your spices and cooking utensils within "hand reach" distance. The construction of these vertical columns can be varied as well. You can select either Apothecary Drawers, Pull Out Spice Cabinets / or Base Pantry Cabinets 6 to 12 inches wide that will keep everything you need close. If you do not have a large room for your kitchen, yet still want the look, 3 to 6 inch Pull Out Filler Cabinets accomplish the same thing on a smaller scale. All of these specialty cabinets are available in wall or base cabinets to frame your Hearth area. It is STUNNING! One of the most wonderful accessories to add here is a
wall mounted Pot Filler. What is that? Wait for it!........................Have you ever filled a BIG pot with water and wrestled it over to set on the stove? Heavvvvy!  A Pot Filler is a special faucet plumbed into the back splash area over your stove top. It has a jointed collapsible arm so it can be pushed flush to the wall when not in use. However, the beauty and wonder of it is setting your empty pot on the stove, then filling it is place! Yes, it's TRUE! I want one someday!

I am going to save other interior accessories you will find intriguing for a future blog post.
However, I want to cover one of the most challenging topics in kitchens for decades. That Black Hole where everything disappears has been so irritating for decades. The "Corner Base Cabinet". You know the one you try to only put stuff you rarely need in on the top shelf hopefully because you have to be a contortionist to retrieve anything?  This cabinet is physically large. In fact it is usually the largest base cabinet in the kitchen. Functional? NO! Annoying? YES! Boy, do I have good news for you! Cabinet Manufacturing engineers finally tackled this age old problem. The first solutions were Corner Lazy Susan Cabinets. They were a good solution. They remain a popular solution if space allows. Now,  with engineering and practical technology interior shelving has been created that allows full use and access to the "Black Hole". Our true Custom Line , Plato Cabinetry , has a cabinet called the "Blind Corner Magic Corner". The shelves are equipped with a system of stainless steel shelves set on wheels and gliders. The first top and bottom shelf system is attached to the cabinet door. When you open the door these shelves partially project our into the kitchen. When they do the back top and bottom shelve's contents become visible. To access any item on these back shelves, you just slide them forward into the convenient space with in hand's reach to grab any item you want.
Problem SOLVED!

I hope you enjoyed learning about these practical designs and developments our industry created for your satisfaction and practical needs.



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