The Latest Kitchen Trend: Mixing Metals - GE Café Appliances
Gone are the days of matchy-matchy kitchen metals. Yes, it’s ok to mix metals in the kitchen—especially with hardware, lighting, fixtures, and appliances. Rules? There aren’t any hard and fast rules, but a few design suggestions will ensure you achieve balance and keep it from looking unintentional. Before you grab those brass candlesticks and that copper bowl, review our design tips to make your kitchen shine with your own personal style.
The Temperature of Your Palette
Are the base colors of your room warm, cool, or neutral? The metals you introduce into your kitchen can have a dramatic effect depending on the overall tone of your room. Think about the color temperature of your current kitchen space and what you may want to add to spice it up.
If you have a cool gray or blue kitchen with stainless appliances, a few gold or copper accents around the room can add needed warmth. Try adding brass light fixtures or change out your cabinet and appliance hardware with copper knobs. You’ll gain visual interest and balance out an otherwise seemingly cold room.
For a warm room with buttery yellows, adding brushed stainless appliance hardware and aluminum bar stools can cool it down and balance the kitchen space. A white neutral kitchen might need a mix of metals sprinkled across the room to create drama and visual appeal.
Photo by Carley Page Summers
Add Texture with Metal Accents
Metals can also bring in interesting depth and texture. Pewter and gunmetal drawer pulls and handles are understated, yet bring an aged feel to cabinetry. Pewter faucets are more matte, but have a more satin appearance. Bring in gunmetal light fixtures or other accents for a warmer, worn feel. These cooler, gray tones provide balance to warm kitchen colors. They also ground and lend visual substance to a lighter feeling, minimalist kitchen.
Choose a Dominant Metal
To keep your kitchen from looking overdone, choose a base or dominant metal first. Most likely, your cabinet and appliance hardware are in one set color. Add one or two other accent metals all around your kitchen. For example, if your room is filled with brass, adding one copper pitcher won’t cut it. Add several touches of copper in various places around the room so it looks intentional and well planned.
If your kitchen faucet is shiny stainless steel, you can even add some brushed metal pieces around. Play with metallic elements like picture frames, vases, spoon rests, and pendant lights in a variety of metals and with different textures. Just be sure to stick with one or two metals in addition to your dominant tone.
Bring in a Pop of Color with Metal
If your kitchen needs a punch of color, try adding a few bright, shiny metal accents around. Brass, copper, and shiny silver tone pieces can draw your eye to an area or just bring in a new color to a neutral room. Aged brass or copper with a patina can really bring in new colors, too. Mix shiny copper with some aged copper accents to keep the warmth but bring in interest.
Don’t be afraid of mixing it up. You don’t have to just consider your cabinet hardware when you want to try out a new metal accent in your kitchen. The Café Matte Collection allows you to customize your kitchen appliances with a choice of additional hardware colors. Choose from Brushed Bronze, Brushed Copper, Brushed Stainless, and Brushed Black handles and knobs to create your own personal kitchen style.
SALE! Going on Now!
The Best Slip Covers
They’re high style, versatile, and always fresh….slipcover sofas are having a real moment of glory in 2020. Slipcover sofas were once considered a bit old-fashioned, available only in limited options and rarely in contemporary styles. These days, many of the slipcovers on the market are chic and tailored, allowing sofas to be the superstar of any room. At Rowe, we prioritize fit and style to bring you the best-looking pieces on the market, and many of the sofas, chairs and even ottomans in the Rowe and Robin Bruce lines are available in slipcovers. Want to know the best options to suit your style? You know we’ve got you covered!
Top Reasons to Choose a Slipcover Sofa
Easy to Clean – For those who don’t want to sacrifice style even with kids and pets in the house, choose any look you want (hello, crisp white sofa) knowing that you can unzip the cover, throw it in the wash, and keep it looking its best. Slipcovers can be ideal for high traffic spaces like a family room in a busy home, or even a hospitality setting like a resort, hotel lobby or restaurant lounge.
Change, Change, Change – Have you rethought your style? Want to swap colors for the season? Purchasing a new slipcover is a lot easier than buying all new furniture. Likewise, if the unthinkable happens and your cover is ripped or otherwise damaged, it’s a lot easier to replace it than to have your sofa reupholstered or replaced.
Sleek and Chic – Gone are the lumpy, poorly-fitting slipcovers of the past. Today’s slipcovers fit like a well-tailored suit, hugging the curves and angles of a sofa in all the right places. Does your style run more to the casual end of the spectrum? A slightly looser cover (think perfectly drapey, not baggy or oversized) in a natural blend like linen or cotton can put a space at ease, making everything just a bit more easy & breezy.
Good to Go Green – A good slipcover (or even a series of slipcovers) increases durability and can extend the life of your sofa or chair dramatically, helping to keep large pieces of furniture in use for many, many years to come. Keeping what we have for longer is always a green choice!
Moreau Slipcover Sofa
The sleek lines, slightly flared arms and bench cushion seating of Moreau look perfect dressed in a slipcover, like a simple linen sundress on a summer day. Want to change with the seasons from linen to velvet? Swapping slipcovers is as easy as trying on a new dress!
Derby Slipcover Sectional Sofa
Family-friendly decor, meet chic uptown style. Derby combines the comfort and ease of a sectional sofa with a structured look and a slipcover that’s so tailored, you’ll never even guess it isn’t upholstered.
Nantucket Slipcover Three Cushion Sofa
Nothing says “take me to the beach” like crisp white paired with comfy cushions, so Nantucket is a natural favorite for coastal styles. When combined with a perfectly tailored but easily removable slipcover, life is just a bit more relaxed & breezy!
Laney Slipcover Sofa
Laney is a classic beauty whose transitional style makes it a versatile, family-friendly and attractive option for just about any look. Whether you choose a fresh (and easy to care for) white as seen here or something a bit more dramatic, Laney is sure to turn heads.
Design: The LifeStyled Co
Sylvie Bench Cushion Slipcover Sofa
Sylvie is one of our top sellers for a reason! This sofa is a streamlined and versatile beauty, looking crisp and lovely dressed in a slipcover for an organic-meets-modern style.
Questions about the Rowe Fine Furniture & Robin Bruce Lines. Call us at 773.525.1797
Sectional vs Sofa
Pick a seat, any seat!
When it comes to your living space, you’ve got to offer your family and friends a variety of seating options…but which to choose? When you’re deciding on sectional vs sofa and everything in between, there is a world of options to choose from. Are you looking for something elegant and formal, or for a chance to cut loose a little more in your design style? Remember, the more pieces in your space — a sofa and an assortment of chairs, say — the more opportunity you have to play with color and pattern. By contrast, a sectional is a great way to showcase one special fabric that you’re truly in love with over a larger area. Think of how you use your living/entertaining spaces the most: do you throw lively parties or intimate book club gatherings? Is your living room the family entertaining hub? Thinking about how your space will be used will help determine what size, shape and style will best suit the room.
Ethan Sofa | Design: @stjamesdesign
The original sofas and couches were just simple wooden benches piled high with cushions and blankets, but home furnishings have come a long, long way since then! Let’s walk through three simple scenarios to help work out the sectional vs sofa question once and for all…
Sofa & Chairs Combo
An absolute classic is born! Perfect for those who entertain, and designed around conversation and physical flow, this combo provides lots more walking-around space for all those cocktail party moments. When it comes to the decision of sectional vs sofa, this is possibly the most flexible design, since it allows you to easily rearrange the space to fit the occasion — especially if those chairs swivel! This is also one of the best looks for a small space, since the chairs can cozy up to the sofa from an intimate distance…but it can also be customized for the largest living or family room, just add a few more chairs, swap chairs for loveseats, or even add an additional sofa!
Ethan Sofa
The beauty is always in the details, and Ethan’s crisp button tufting and wooden base are the kind of details that make this piece stand out like a well-tailored suit. The Ethan Sofa is the star of any room it is placed in, and would make an attractive centerpiece in your own living space!
Thermador Interviews Lindsey Brooke Design
The incredible Lindsey Brooke Design (@lindseybrookedesign) is teaming up with Thermador for the Kitchen Design Challenge. Lindsey’s sharing her expertise when it comes to designing functional, beautiful, and timeless luxury kitchens for clients, establishing a client’s vision, what to splurge on, and design rules she loves to break!
T: 1. Can you tell us about your favorite project you’ve designed in the past year? What makes it stand out?
LBD: Our North Ranch project we just started to reveal has been a big favorite. It’s so hard to choose one, but this one is for some very near and dear friends of mine and we put a lot of passion into the design. We all (LBD team and the clients) pushed our boundaries with the design and I think that shows.
Photos by Amy Bartlam.
Design by Lindsey Brooke Design.
T: 2. How do you work with a client to establish their vision? What questions do you ask to ensure the final product will be what they’ve always imagined?
LBD: We have a very detailed homework assignment for each client that helps us define their style/needs/wants. It starts with a questionnaire about what kind of lifestyle they have, where they like to shop, things they like to do, colors and patterns they love etc. Then we have them fill a Pinterest board up with inspiration pictures and comments to what they like in each photo. We have lot of open dialogue with our clients to make sure we know exactly what they are wanting for their home.
T: 3. What three words come up most often when clients are explaining their vision?
LBD: Bright, livable, timeless.
T: 4. Is there a design rule you love to break? Can you give us an example?
LBD: I love breaking rules all the time! Mixing metals, and patterns are my favorite! Also using a room for a different purpose then its intended for is really fun. We once turned a formal dining room into a music room because they had a large eating area off the kitchen. I say do what works for you and make it functional for your lifestyle as long as it will still make sense.
T: 5. If you had one piece of advice for someone starting a reno or remodel, what would it be?
LBD: Take your time in the planning stages, get all design work done first so you can get accurate bids from contractors and then make adjustments after if needed. It’s always easier to edit down than to add later.
T: 6. How are you seeing clients incorporate connected appliances and features in the home?
LBD: People love the latest and greatest. I think if it can make their life easier, they want it. We all need some extra help and I think it’s great to incorporate them into the things that will help you with everyday things. Smart TV’s, lights, faucets, refrigerators. If I can tell my coffee machine to make my coffee from my phone and that could save me 5 minutes in the morning, then sign me up!
T: 7. What’s the biggest trend you’re currently seeing in the kitchen space?
LBD: Paneled walls for sure are a trend we are seeing in kitchens more, also creative ways for storage rather than just cabinets. Especially for the upper cabinets. Whether it’s open shelving, steel shelves, glass, I think the European/French look is very big right now. People want their spaces to feel unique and special and feel less formal.
T: 8. Is there a secret to balancing new trends with timeless design?
LBD: I think just a healthy mix. You have to know where to draw the line. We like all our big pieces to be timeless UNLESS doing something more trendy will make a big impact on the design. We always want to be cautious of how long that trend will last though. Some trends have lasted 5 or more years and are turning into timeless trends, so we aren’t afraid to then use them in more permanent ways
Lindsey is so incredibly talented! For more exceptional design inspo, follow Lindsey on Instagram: @lindseybrookedesign
This blog post was written by Stephanie More and shared with us by @Thermador.
https://blog.thermador.com/lindsey-brooke-designer-spotlight/