Made in America

Without getting on a political soap box and touting the virtues of buying American and growing jobs, I thought I’d talk a little about some really cool products that are made in America that will make you WANT to buy American! On the appliance side – GE has just invested over a BILLION dollars to bring production back to the US! Bravo! Their new spring 2012 catalog has a little icon that designates which products GE is currently assembling here in the United States and availability begins this month (May) and gets into full swing by August. The GE Café line has really taken hold. It has a really cool industrial vibe without the traditional really high industrial price tag. On top of the affordable price tag – GE is currently offering a rebate of up to $500 on the purchase of 4 new appliances (GE Café or GE Profile™). It might be time to think about upgrading your kitchen often referred to as “the heart of the home”. It is the most used room in the home and truly the best investment you can make in your home. Kitchen remodels typically provide an 80% to 87% return on your investment! Visit www.geappliances.com . If you are looking for a more robust commercial range or oven – take a look at the American Range line. This one of my new favorite product lines. Their heritage is rich and stems from true commercial kitchen appliances. They have gorgeous single and double French Door wall ovens in both gas and electric configurations. American Range also makes a unique “step-up” range. American Range ovens come with their Innovection™ convection system with two convection motors and louvered side panels to provide for the most thorough flow of air. Their appliances also can be finished in a wide array of colors to match your décor. Visit their website at www.americanrange.com . On the plumbing side or as I like to call them “water appliances”, take a look at Waterstone products! These faucets are as high in quality as they are in style. Waterstone has an astounding number of finishes (31) to coordinate with any existing finish you may have in your home! Another thing that I LOVE about Waterstone is that they have a FULL line-up of kitchen products that include single and dual air-gaps, filtration faucets (hot and cold), air switches, soap/lotion dispensers and some of the most unique faucets you have EVER seen. While not for the faint of heart, the gantry faucet is a piece of art for your kitchen. It comes in either a “traditional” or “contemporary” style. Another innovation from Waterstone is their posi-lock pull-down faucet. They recently added a traditional style pull-down. These faucets are great because they stay put and don’t just hang like other pull-down faucets. Finally – they have recently added cabinet hardware to their repertoire. This takes the kitchen to a level of complete coordination. Take a look at this hidden American gem at www.waterstoneco.com . I hope you love it as much as I do! My final product to blog about today is cabinet hardware. I refer to this as “cabinet jewelry”. Cabinet hardware is functional, but also complements the cabinetry just as one might complete their outfit with jewels! One of the companies I would like to highlight is Top Knobs. They have a superb collection sure to meet any criteria from simple to rustic to over-the-top. They even have a new collection titled the Passport Collection which is inspired by various architectural icons around the world including Italy’s Trevi Fountain and China’s Great Wall. Visit Top Knobs at www.topknobs.com. More to come on my Made in America series.

The Queen has spoken!

How To Theme With The Queen

One of the most common questions that comes up is can you mix and match appliances and will the stainless steel finishes go together? I generally tell customers that I will very willingly give opinions on functionality and reliability, however, I remind the customer it is their home and they need to look at the appliances and live with them on a daily basis. For the most part, true stainless steel finishes even between manufacturers, will blend nicely. Sometimes within a particular manufacturer’s line-up, the direction of the stainless steel grain on the different appliances (horizontal vs. vertical) can cast different shadows and look dissimilar depending on the lighting, whether it natural or artificial. If you are looking for a whole kitchen, oft-times the manufacturer offers kitchen or laundry “package rebates” which incentivizes or influences the purchase of a suite. If that is not the case, tell your appliance sales person your needs and let them show you the products that most closely suit them. When I am selling kitchens, I try to obtain as much information as I can about the way a customer is going to use the product, and then I try to educate them on the pros and cons of the various brands we discuss. There are so many aspects to consider. When putting a package together, I ensure the products complement one another, but the appliances that fit the customer’s needs best, may not all be from the same manufacturer. It is the same with plumbing fixtures. Most satin nickel or stainless steel finishes will blend with one another even though they are not a perfect match. Other finishes such as oil rubbed bronze are a completely animal and warrant a separate discussion! Also, there are some brands that do not offer an entire line-up of kitchen plumbing fixtures including soap dispensers, air gaps, air switches, hot-cold filtration faucets etc. and one is forced to mix and match. Your sales rep again should point you in the right direction with respect to style and of course budget. With that in mind, you should really try to get appliances and plumbing fixtures that best suit you functionally and aesthetically, regardless of brand. 


Never just settle! You will no doubt be much happier with your choices in the long run.


The Queen has spoken!