Tidal Pulls

Top 10 Trends from the 2010 NKBA Design Competition

2010-08-11T13:11:00.000-07:00

Limitless thinking produced the Top 10 trends found at this year’s National Kitchen and Bath Design Competition:

1. Concealed Kitchens

The challenge in designing a concealed kitchen is to create a space with a distinctive identity that still fits into the overall aesthetic of the open living area. David Heide, designer of the concealed kitchen at the left, says he attributes some of his approach to a European influence and the subtle orderliness inherent to European des ign.

2. In-Home Coffee and Wine Bars
Today’s homeowners are being sensibly selective and focused on their preferences when embarking on a kitchen design. And, coffee and wine bars are often seen as more the norm rather than the exception in today’s kitchens.

3. Scaling of Elements

Designer Kristi Wolfe has created natural boundaries and geometrically defined spaces, giving this bathroom a pleasing sense of purpose and comfort in its balanced sense of scale.

4. Color With Energy

In today’s kitchens, neutrals can still be seen they are playing a lesser role to their more vibrant counterparts. When fearless colors are introduced artfully with the counterbalance of stainless steel and shimmering lights, the result is perfection.

5. Soft Geometry

Rounded hearth and ceiling arches, along with curved bar and countertop edges, give this kitchen a circular appeal, while also softening the angular aspects of the room.

6. Space Subtleties

Suspending the vanity gives the illusion of spaciousness in the small bathroom area.

7. Design Framing

Framing of the soffit and wall surrounding the cabinetry is used in the design of this kitchen to highlight a portion of the room and define the space

8. Varying Heights

Island tops, counter tops, and partial walls are being customized to the task performed and to the needs and lifestyle of the homeowners. Functional needs, such as a catch-all area for keys and cell phones, were addressed with a lower cabinet, separating it from the cooking and prep area.

9. Japanese Influence

Japanese design reflects clean lines, open spaces, and neutral color palettes with bold splashes of color

10. Art Integration

The introduction of a homeowner’s favorite piece of artwork as the basis for design creates challenges, but it can also offer guidance and solutions for color and material choices. The personal nature of art to the owner introduces an intimate quality to the room.

2010-02-18T15:19:00.000-08:00

Sunny skies and a hint of warmth brought a reminder of spring time to me today. And, thankfully with spring comes more outdoor activities - I am so tired of the cold weather! One of my favorite outdoor activities is having friends and family over and grilling the freshest of seafood, and an outdoor kitchen is the perfect venue. Chris Mordi from Kalamazoo Outdoor Gourmet is hosting what looks to be an interesting webinar on March 2 titled Outdoor Kitchen Design Best Practices. For more information go to http://www.kalamazoogourmet.com/webinar

Here's a recipe for the grilled mussels shown in the picture above. Easy to cook in your outside kitchen. Yum!

2.5 lbs mussels, beards removed and washed well
2 tbs olive oil
1 cup dry white wine
4 tbs unsalted butter
1 garlic clove, crushed
Juice of ½ lemon
½ cup roughly chopped parsley
½ cup shredded basil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ Sourdough baguette

Heat up the grill to medium and when hot add the mussels. Grill until they open, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, place a medium size heavy-based saucepan over medium heat and when hot add the olive oil and garlic and cook until soft. Remove mussels from the grill, discarding any that have not opened and transfer to the saucepan, keeping the juice. Add the butter, white wine, and lemon juice to the saucepan. Cover until butter melts, shaking the saucepan occasionally. Season to taste, then garnish with parsley and basil. Serve with sourdough baguette.

2010-02-04T10:43:00.000-08:00

Look how good Tidal Pulls complement these bamboo kitchen cabinets!

2009-10-28T06:33:00.000-07:00

If you are planning an outdoor kitchen and live near the water, consider the effects of galvanic corrosion. Galvanic corrosion is a process in which one metal corrodes when in contact with a different type of metal in the presence of an electrolyte such as salt water.

For example, if you have aluminum outdoor cabinets and install stainless steel Tidal Pulls, you could experience corrosion of the metal unless certain steps are taken to prevent it.

If the aluminum is anodized the galvanic reaction will be minimal. As an alternative, you could coat the aluminum or stainless with an epoxy paint in order to minimize the amount of moisture between the two metals and to keep the electrolysis at bay.

Metals - Tin, Aluminum and Chrome

2009-09-14T10:01:00.000-07:00

Tin is a silvery, malleable metal that does not easily oxidize, so it is commonly used to coat other metals to prevent corrosion. Because tin is corrosion-resistant, it is used in food packaging to plate steel cans, which become our ubiquitous “tin cans.”

The word “tin” is often improperly used as a generic term for any silvery metal that comes in sheets. Most everyday materials that are commonly called “tin”, such as aluminum foil, beverage cans, corrugated building sheathing and tin cans, are actually made of steel or aluminum (although tin cans do contain a thin coating of tin to inhibit rust.)

Aluminum is a soft, durable, lightweight, malleable metal with appearance ranging from silvery to dull grey, depending on the surface roughness. Aluminum is remarkable for its ability to resist corrosion and for the metal's low density.

At Tidal Pulls, we appreciate the fact that aluminum is 100 percent recyclable without any loss of its natural qualities, but because it is such a lightweight metal and can detract from that feeling of quality, we do not use it in the manufacturing of our pulls.

Chrome, or chrome plating, is a technique of electroplating a thin layer of chromium onto a metal object. The chromed layer can be decorative, provide corrosion resistance, ease cleaning procedures, or increase surface hardness. It is most often seen in cars and motorcycles.

Metals - Nickel and Pewter

2009-09-14T09:46:00.000-07:00

Nickel is a silvery-white metal with a slight golden tinge that can be highly polished. Nickel is corrosion resistant and is hard and brittle, so it is commonly used for plating metals such as iron and brass.

Most of the kitchen and bath items you see that are described as brushed nickel or p olished nickel are not pure nickel. They are usually made from a brass base and then plated.
Because of the limitations of nickel, and the similar look to stainless steel, Tidal Pulls does not make cabinet pulls with a nickel finish.

Pewter is a malleable metal, usually between 85 and 99 percent tin, with the remainder commonly consisting of copper, antimony or lead. Copper and antimony act as hardeners while lead is common in the lower grades of pewter, which have a bluish tint. Pewter has a low melting point, around 170–230 °C, depending on the exact mixture of metals, and is commonly used as a casting metal. Articles made of pewter need to be handled carefully, since it is a soft alloy that can dent easily. Tidal Pulls does not make cabinet pulls with pewter.

Metals - Copper

2009-09-14T09:40:00.000-07:00

Copper is one of the few metals to occur naturally in pure form. Pure copper is rather soft and malleable, and a freshly exposed surface has a pinkish or peachy color.

Copper does not react with water, but the oxygen of the air will slowly at room temperature form a layer of brown-black copper oxide. This has a protective effect against further corrosion. On old copper roofs, a green layer of copper carbonate, called verdigris, can often be seen.

Tidal Pulls can be made from copper, however, we recommend a hammered surface rather than a smooth surface, so that scratches and dents resulting from a demanding kitchen environment are not as visible.

Metals - Bronze and Brass

2009-09-14T08:18:00.000-07:00

Bronze is a combination of copper and tin, usually 88 percent copper and 12 percent tin. Commercial bronze, or brass, is generally 90 percent copper and 10 percent zinc. Bronze only oxidizes on its surface, and once the surface oxidizes, the thin oxide layer protects the underlying metal from further corrosion.

Bronze is generally 10 percent heavier than steel while being softer and weaker. It better resists corrosion and metal fatigue than steel, and also conducts heat and electricity better. Oil rubbed bronze features a surface that was chemically darkened to simulate aging bronze. This finish is very dark and can vary from a deep chocolate brown to a dark gray, and it usually has copper undertones.

There is a wide variety of coloration of the oil rubbed bronze finish. To ensure the bronze cabinet pulls Tidal Pulls delivers are right for you, please send us a color sample so that it can be matched.

Metals - Stainless Steel

2009-09-14T07:39:00.000-07:00

Growing up amid a family of sailors, I have always been aware of the benefits of marine-grade stainless steel - a higher quality alloy that is much more resistant to the pitting corrosion of salt water than household stainless steels and aluminum. As a result, I chose to design and make Tidal Pulls using marine-grade stainless. During my research for Tidal Pulls, I have learned more about many other metals in our environment, both those occurring as basic elements (e.g. nickel) and those that are combined together (alloys) to form other commonly known metals, and I wanted to share that information with my customers.

Stainless steel differs from carbon steel by the amount of chromium present. Carbon steel rusts when exposed to air and moisture. This iron oxide film (the rust) is active and accelerates corrosion by forming more iron oxide. Stainless steels have at least 11 percent of chromium present so that a passive film of chromium oxide forms to prevent further surface corrosion and block corrosion from spreading into the metal's internal structure.

Stainless steel’s resistance to corrosion and staining, low maintenance, relatively low cost and familiar luster make it an ideal base material for many applications. The alloy is formed into coils, sheets, plates, bars, wire and tubing to be used in such things as cookware, cutlery, hardware, jewelry, watches, surgical instruments, appliances, industrial equipment and construction material in large buildings, such as the Chrysler building shown here.

Storage tanks and tankers used to transport orange juice and other food are often made of stainless steel, due to its corrosion resistance and antibacterial properties. This also influences its use in commercial kitchens, food processing plants, and hospitals as it can be steam cleaned, sterilized and does not need painting or application of other surface finishes.

Commonly, there are different grades and surface finishes of stainless steel to suit the environment to which the material will be subjected. Grade 304 is the most versatile and commonly used stainless steel. It offers good corrosion resistance while still maintaining its form. Typical applications include tanks and containers for a large variety of liquids and solids in the food and brewing industries. It is also used for sinks, coffee urns, stoves, refrigerators and milk and cream dispensers.

Grade 316 is the second most common grade. It is also known as marine-grade stainless steel due to its increased resistance to harsh environments. It is commonly used for marine applications, pumps, valves and chemical equipment. Tidal Pulls uses grade 316 in the manufacture of its pulls.

Grade 410 is more wear resistant than the 304 and 316 but does not offer as good corrosion resistance. It is commonly used in cutlery.

For a more detailed description of the different metal grades, go to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAE_steel_grades

Another quality of stainless steel is its thickness or gauge. The gauge of sheet metal ranges from 30 to about 8 gauge. The higher the gauge, the thinner the metal. Tidal Pulls uses 16 gauge metal for its pulls, which translates into a thickness of .0625 inches. The pulls can be made with a different gauge upon request.

As consumption in developing countries increases, supplies of most metals are becoming scarcer and prices continue to climb. Stainless steel is 100 percent recyclable, and we at Tidal Pulls encourage the use of stainless, not only to help you make a positive economic choice, but also to help reduce the impact on our environment.

Kitchen seen at San Francisco Decorator Showcase

2009-05-08T14:26:00.000-07:00

San Francisco architect Jennifer Weiss designed this fresh, clean-lined kitchen which has been a focal point at this year’s San Francisco Decorator Showcase. We love that she used cabinet and drawer pulls similar in look to Tidal Pulls to give her design a very sophisticated and clean look and feel. Check out J. Weiss Designs for more of Jennifer's projects, especially the Russian Hill remodel. She has great "before" and "after" project pictures which showcase her design ability.

Outdoor Kitchens

2009-05-06T13:33:00.000-07:00

At the KIBS show in Atlanta last week, we saw a wonderful line of custom built outdoor kitchen cabinetry at Atlantis Cabinetry. The cabinetry is made of an extremely durable polymer material, Perma Panel, which will not warp, crack or deteriorate over time and has been developed to be used outdoors. Everything in the cabinet is weather resistant and can be cleaned with a garden hose and a scrub brush, a nice feature to have during hurricane season.

We really like that Atlantis offers Teak and Cypress doors for their Perma Panel cabinets, giving these outdoor cabinets a more sophisticated look. Teak is known for its usage in boat building, cabinetry and marine applications, and teak and stainless steel are often found together in high humidity environments. The natural oils in Teak wood and the rust proof nature of Tidal Pulls makes a sensible combination for any outdoor kitchen.

2009-04-27T10:49:00.000-07:00

Even though this idea has nothing to do with Tidal Pulls, I love this look and had to share it. What a great way to hide all those things that seem to clutter up your house!

Kitchen from a Whidbey Island Barn Renovation

2009-04-27T10:37:00.000-07:00

Seattle-based Shed Architects recently converted a Whidbey Island barn into a living space that supports a variety of activities and guests. The architects made use of salvaged cedar siding for the interior wall surfaces as well as for the drawer and cabinet fronts in the kitchen. According to Shed, “The barn was turned outside in, and then wrapped in a new cedar board-and-batten skin that will weather and show its age well."

Welcome!

2008-11-15T14:14:00.000-08:00

Welcome to my Tidal Pulls blog!

First, let me tell you a little about my kitchen remodeling experience. My husband is a banker, but underneath that dignified and serious exterior is a latent architect/kitchen designer. When we finally couldn't take the tackiness of our 1980's white Miami Vice kitchen anymore, my husband was quick on the draw with the pencil, paper, and ruler. He measured out everything to the millimeter (he probably has some engineer in him, too!) then he sketched out an awesome first layout. After a few minor revisions, we started on the cabinets, plumbing and electrical (whew! we really blew our electrical budget!)

My role in this whole process was to choose all the cool stuff such as appliances, backsplash and cabinet pulls. Here's where it got tricky. I couldn't believe, after searching thousands of websites, that I couldn't find the cabinet pulls I had in mind for my kitchen. I mean, have you ever done a web search on "cabinet pulls" and seen how many sites come up? Thousands! After weeks of searching, and breaking lots of fingernails trying to open the pull-less cabinets, I gave up and decided to design my own.

Take a look at them on this website http://www.tidalpulls.com

Inspired by my kitchen remodeling experience, my main goal is to share home improvement ideas with a focus on cabinet hardware and kitchen and bathroom redesigns.

So, stay tuned, and in the meantime, consider this quote from Mark Twain ... "Whoever is happy will make others happy, too.”