Cool furniture, design objects and desiderata

[twistoffat]

Lava tops are very expensive and as they are only rock with an enamel veneer there are not worth it IMHO. As a person who loves to cook I am totally convinced that the best tops are either stainless steel or Wood or MDF with an artificial veneer. They are all very functional and the Wood and MDF tops are at least cheap enough to change when they are showing signs of wear. We all agree that its usually the people with the exorbitantly priced kitchens that actually never really use them.

 

[SkinnyGoomba]

I find the idea of a stainless top enticing, but would probably only ever chose wood.

 

[Find Finn]

I'm 100% with you on the stainless part, I don't cook a lot and I work with design, so I'm a lost cause.


Like I said I was primarily looking at it for a dining table top, had an idea about a really simple rectangular metal frame table with a lava top, I saw one like it just with a marble top and it look cool.

 

[SkinnyGoomba]

Could be pretty cool looking, much like a granite industrial work table.

 

[foodguy]



Do you have the Grillevator model? Coolest thing ever, even though I've never used it

 

[foodguy]



I find the idea of a stainless top enticing, but would probably only ever chose wood.

stainless is probably the most sensible choice, but a lot of these decisions aren't functional but emotional. how do you see yourself as a cook? are you a surgeon preparing mgm-type works of art with tweezers? or are you a home cook scooping stuff out on platters?

 

[SkinnyGoomba]

Somewhere in between. The most important thing to me in the design, much like a workshop, it must have intuitive layout and storage. The material choice should be durable, cleanable and avoid being harsh to the user or the tools.

 

[foodguy]



Somewhere in between. The most important thing to me in the design, much like a workshop, it must have intuitive layout and storage. The material choice should be durable, cleanable and avoid being harsh to the user or the tools.

there you go being sensible again. but seriously, within those general guidelines, you can have anything from an operating room (I still see MGM in a mask, with one of those full-face magnifiers on, applying drops of sauce to a plate), to my kind of ramshackle warm materials.
Storage is a big deal and the biggest thing I want to do in my kitchen (other than allow a little more space for traffic flow) is replace cabinets with drawers. I've cooked in a couple of kitchens with those and the access to tools is SO much better.

 

[SkinnyGoomba]

I certainly agree, for me it would be wide drawers below the counter and cabinets above. I find cabinets below to just get crowded with things. I'd probably end up with warm materials for cabinets and the main part of the counter tops and save stainless for where draining is required.

Using wood would make it easier for me to do something like make most of the backsplash into a knife block. I'd probably surround the sink in stainless steel counter tops so that I could let a butcher block drain directly into the sink while cutting meat.

 

[foodguy]

that sounds great SG! i could see wood for counter tops with 2 feet of SS on either side of the sink. and while we're on the topic of sinks ... some dear friends (and great cooks) went with one of those huge single sinks rather than a double because, they reasoned, "why do you need two sinks when you have a dishwasher?". Warning: Do you have any idea how long it takes to fill one of those monster sinks? as they found out.

 

[Find Finn]



Could be pretty cool looking, much like a granite industrial work table.

Something like it, the picture I saw (which I can't find now) had caster wheels.

 

[UnFacconable]



Marble, granite, and butcher block all require maintenance to look their best. I'm going with quartz because it's zero maintenance and durable as hell (other than high heat).

I have white ceasarstone and hate it. It isn't stain proof and chips rather easily and when it chips it looks terrible. You have to baby it. Previous to that I had granite in 2 prior homes and never had a single issue - basically seemed bulletproof. Marble looks nice but is just not as practical in a kitchen. My sister has honed white marble and after 6 months it's already a bit of a mess with scratches and shiny spots, etc.

From a distance, white marble and light colored quartz look great, but if chips, stains, etc. bother you, go with dark granite.

 

[NorCal]



All told I think that granite is the better option because you can sit hot things directly on it. With all wood counter tops you would need a healthy supply of trivets.

A little carbon burn adds character.

 

[SkinnyGoomba]



that sounds great SG! i could see wood for counter tops with 2 feet of SS on either side of the sink. and while we're on the topic of sinks ... some dear friends (and great cooks) went with one of those huge single sinks rather than a double because, they reasoned, "why do you need two sinks when you have a dishwasher?". Warning: Do you have any idea how long it takes to fill one of those monster sinks? as they found out.

Do you use your dishwasher regularly? I always end up just washing by hand unless we have a big party.

 

[twistoffat]

I use my dishwasher all the time. Its more efficient environmentally friendly and energy efficient. I have a load of cutlery and plates and load it full.
Every three days it get started.