December 2009
Issue 8

                                  
The Design Dish
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Keeping you updated with the latest and greatest information in Kitchen & Bath Design, Cabinetry, Plumbing, Lighting and Accessories!

Hello Friends,

We hope you enjoy our Holiday filled newsletter, including some wonderful recipes, gift and
decorating ideas.

We wish you and your family all the best this holiday season and a fabulous New Year!!!

Susan & Jenn

Warm Floors & Towel Bars

 

It's cold outside and there is nothing like having a toasty warm floor to come home to!

The warmth of radiant heating systems in bathrooms, kitchens, family rooms, or any room in your home makes for a more comfortable and inviting living space.

Warm floors are designed for easy installation under tile, natural stone, carpet, hardwood and laminate.

The WarmlyYours Company also has a line called Tempzone which is an electric radiant floor heating system that is designed to install under most other popular floor covering choices including cork, bamboo, vinyl, and linoleum.

 

How Under Floor Heating Works
 
Any type of gas fueled boiler can be used to provide the heat for a UFH system. Pipes are usually run underneath the floor surface and the heat from the water passing through the pipes transfers directly into the floor.

A warm floor creates warm air convection and this in turn heats the surrounding living space. Under floor heating is an exceptionally straightforward but highly effective way of providing a comfortably warm indoor climate with an even distribution of heat.

Five Reasons to Choose an Under Floor Heating System for your Home
 
There are many benefits associated with Under Floor Heating and these include:
 
1. Comfort
Heat radiating from the floor upwards is far more evenly distributed than heat that emanates from wall mounted radiators. Heat from wall mounted radiators is confined to a small area and rises upwards. This means that the warmer air stays around head height which does not tend to create the most comfortable feeling. Additionally, compared to traditional radiator systems there are no irritating noises arising from expanding and contracting pipes.
 
2. Cost effectiveness and energy efficiency
Under floor heating systems can give you a 15-40% energy saving over traditional heating methods.
 
3. Health
Under floor heating helps to keep moisture content levels low which means that house dust mites can be reduced. This will benefit anyone with asthma or breathing difficulties or any other allergies.
 
4. Ease of control
With a UFH system, the temperature of each room can be controlled individually. Being able to adjust temperature settings in each room of the house is a major benefit for any family.
 
5. Space and Aesthetics
Under floor heating saves space and offers heightened visual appeal in a home by eliminating the need for wall mounted radiators. Additionally, wet floors dry more quickly and décor is maintained due to a lack of damp walls.

Heated Towel Bars

Heated towel bars are not just for Hotels and Spas - and though they sound like a high-end product made only to indulge and pamper, they also serve more practical purposes. And if used in the right way, they can even help you save some money on energy bills.

Practical Purposes
Although it's certainly nice to have a warm towel when you get out of the shower, especially on those cold winter mornings, a heated towel bar can produce more than its fair share of real work. These units are extremely energy efficient and safe, so most of the time they are left on 24-hours a day (though they come with timers and on/off switches, of course). Why do this? Well, it costs about the same as lighting a light bulb. But the real beauty is that they can act as a low-impact heating unit for the home. They're great for warming up cold bathrooms, which tend to chill off quickly with their tile and porcelain surfaces. And heated towel bars can also dry out the humid air in these otherwise damp areas.

Another Dryer?
These products don't just warm up
towels. They're often used as passive clothes dryers, saving you money and effort on unneeded laundering. Put a heated rack in the kitchen for wet dishtowels. Put one in the laundry room for extra clothing that won't fit in the dryer or for those delicate fabrics. Plus, they're perfect for rain-drenched socks, snowy hats, and mittens, or bathing suits that need quick drying. They're not fully waterproof though, so watch out that you don't overwhelm or immerse the racks.

The Technology
There are two basic models of heated
towel bars: electric and warm-water hydro systems. Electric models simply plug in anywhere, though they can also be hard-wired into your home's electrical system so that they begin working whenever your furnace does. The metal rods are filled with oil, so when turned on, a filament slowly heats this oil which then heats up the metal (it takes about 15 minutes for optimum temperatures, and about an hour to fully warm a towel). But another option is hydro-heated systems. Connected directly to your home's plumbing, these units are warmed by your water heater, which makes them easy to use and energy efficient, although they will have to be permanently mounted in your home.

The Variety
The selection is unlimited. You can choose any material (brass, chrome, nickel, etc.) and they come in almost any size and design to match your interior décor. For versatility, buy a portable free-standing scaffold. Save floor space with wall-mounted rods or horizontal shelving. You can even purchase sturdy, floor-mounted racks that connect directly to your home's plumbing or wiring.

FX Architectural Tree 3 Bar

 

Villeroy & Bach


Zehnder

 

The Best Cookbooks of 2009




 

It's a daunting task to choose the best cookbooks in any given year. To pore through hundreds of titles and come up with a list of just a handful of "best" designations in a few categories isn't always so clear-cut. After all, what qualifies as a top pick? First, the author must be a trusted authority with real-world experience, otherwise it's just a collection of recipes. Second, a theme needs to run from cover to cover in a clear and engaging voice. And third, design is key: Better books boast lush photos, intuitive organization, and typography that suits the particular topic and author. But the ultimate requirement that needs to be met? The book needs to be accessible to you, the home cook, whether you're just getting started in the kitchen or consider yourself a serious amateur. We're confident that any one of these exemplary cookbooks will make for a thoughtful gift that will entertain, educate, and nourish you and your loved ones for years to come.

New American Table
by Marcus Samuelsson (Wiley)
Recipe to try: Corn Bread with Tomato Chutney

Chef Marcus Samuelsson's cookbook is more than a paean to America and her cuisine: It's a loving tribute to the diverse people, cultures, and foods that make America so great. Samuelsson's own immigrant experience-born in Ethiopia, raised in Sweden, star chef at Aquavit, and a naturalized American citizen-offers him a perspective that is unique amongst many of his American culinary peers. Through the photos, we see the diversity that Samuelsson loves. Through the recipes-some from personal friends, others from neighborhoods and regions across the country-we taste America as it tastes to our fellow countrymen: Empanadas with Peanut-Mango Sambal, Sour Chickpea Soup, Jerk-Spiced Catfish with Green Papaya Salad. Samuelsson points out that "American food will never be one easy-to-define thing-there is an endless opportunity here for food to morph into something new and different and exciting." The book's celebration of colliding, enmeshing, and re-creating dishes truly captures the beautiful spirit of the new, modern American table.

How to Roast a Lamb
by Michael Psilakis (Little, Brown)
Recipe to try: Beef Stew with Leeks

Michael Psilakis, the culinary force behind Kefi and Anthos, has almost single-handedly elevated Greek cuisine to fine-dining status in New York City. With his first cookbook, he aims to familiarize the rest of the country with the cooking that stirs his soul and makes critics and diners alike swoon. The captivating story of his personal and culinary evolutions as a Greek-American is told through essays, family photos, and recipes. Psilakis emphasizes that most of his recipes are for the home cook: "If using water instead of stock and store-bought peppers instead of homemade will get you into the kitchen to cook recipes from this book, I'm all for it." Cooks who like a challenge won't be disappointed by the seven recipes that reinterpret classic Greek ingredients or dishes, such as grilled octopus getting the treatment as Smoked Octopus with Fennel Purée, Lemon Confit & Pickled Vegetables.


Ad Hoc at Home
by Thomas Keller with Dave Cruz (Artisan)
Recipe to try: Leek Bread Pudding

It's natural to assume that Chef Tomas Keller, the man behind the country's two most celebrated fine-dining restaurants-French Laundry and Per Se-is a strict, humorless perfectionist churning out elitist food. But read his latest cookbook featuring family-style meals served at his casual eatery of the same name, and you may reconsider those severe impressions. For one, Keller smiles throughout the book. More importantly, these recipes are accessible. Intended for sharing with friends and family, this cookbook features familiar and homey recipes: Green Beans and Potato Salad, Chicken Potpie, Apple Fritters. A teacher at heart, Keller offers up "lightbulb moments," sharing tips that stem from "years of restaurant cooking that apply equally well at home." Sample advice: Use the pasta machine to roll other doughs "into thin, even sheets, such as flatbread." These recipes aren't always the ones you'll turn to after a long workday, even if "no immersion circulator is required," but by stressing quality ingredients and applying precision to your own repertoire, Keller's already helped elevate what may have been a mundane meal into something special.

The Conscious Cook
by Tal Ronnen (William Morrow)
Recipe to try: Gardein "Chicken" Scaloppini with
Shiitake Sake Sauce, Braised Pea Shoots, and Crispy Udon Noodle Cakes

Vegans have always lived on the edge of the culinary scene, but Chef Tal Ronnen's book may help steer the outsider image away from counterculture and toward the mainstream. Best known for preparing vegan meals for Oprah Winfrey's 21-day cleanse in 2008, Ronnen wasn't always a vegan, much less vegetarian. In his book he states "I didn't abandon my taste buds [by becoming vegetarian]. I took them with me." His emphasis on taste and texture-and even on the visual-gives his recipes a unique spin. A good portion of his recipes call for Cashew Cream as a dairy substitute, and for his Artichoke Ricotta Tortellini with Saffron Cream Sauce, he reveals that using red palm oil gives the pasta "a yolky color." The elegant plating of the dishes shows that vegan dishes can be as beautiful as they are healthy and delicious. The ultimate testimonial: Many recipes will have even meat-eaters salivating.

Featured Products

Jenn-Air Wall Oven with Glass-Touch Screen

A new Jenn-Air wall oven collection includes an oven that claims not only the best performance in the industry, but several other exclusive features, including the only touch screen control with an image-enabled cooking guide. The new high end wall ovens belong to the most advanced and luxurious Jenn-Air appliance line, and have just become available. By combining greater precision and consistency with intuitive controls and a visual guide that helps with timing and temperatures, the new Jenn-Air wall oven gives you an edge that can make the difference between good results and extraordinary ones.

The 7-inch, glass-touch screen is the largest of its kind and features Touch Anywhere technology, ensuring that your Jenn-Air wall oven is extremely easy to use.
An interactive, menu-driven Culinary Center helps you achieve desired cooking results by considering a range of details such as the food category, food type, desired doneness and even the type of pan used. Color images illustrating desired doneness levels combined with exclusive visuals showing how and where to insert the temperature probe for variety of dishes offers cooks further assurance that their dishes will be cooked to their specifications.

 

AEG Electrolux coffee maker

 

The new fully integrated AEG-Electrolux coffee maker, PE3810-M makes coffee making easy with its electronic touch controls, pre-programmed coffee selection, LED display and halogen light. Finished in fingerprint proof stainless steel, the PE3810-M provides an endless supply of quality espresso, cappuccino or your preferred style of coffee. This coffee maker has a hot water dispenser for coffee drinks, hot chocolate or tea making and steam spout for frothy milk drinks too. The multi-cup option gives up to 6 cups of coffee in one go and its telescopic shelf runners make cleaning and filling a breeze. It uses fresh coffee beans for truly authentic, delicious tasting coffee. Shown with the co-ordinating accessory drawer, PKD6070M which keeps everything stylishly close by. All accessories of the new AEG Electrolux coffee maker are dishwasher safe. Available in the end of December 2009.

Decorating for a "Green" Holiday Season

For as much as we enjoy the holidays, they certainly can create a ton of waste. It turns out some things can sans scraps, and you can certainly waste less if you make a few changes to your routine. Check out these tips to help you cut your debris and celebrate the holidays as green as can be.

Remember the days when the house on the street with the most of lights and décor was considered the best on the block? Times have certainly changed, and nowadays those homes are viewed as energy guzzlers. Holiday lights, simply put, cannot be considered waste free. The energy they use is not necessary for day to day living, so using them means that you're always "wasting energy." But they are so festive! So, there are certainly ways to decrease the amount of energy you use/waste when using twinkle lights.

In the last few years holiday LED lights have hit the market and proven to be quite popular. LED lights use 95% less energy than traditional Christmas lights and can be used both indoors (on a tree) and outdoors. Over the month a string of 500 traditional holiday lights would cost about $18.00; if you are using LED lights instead, the cost is only be $0.19. Clearly there is a big savings. Another perk about LED strings is that the whole string won't die out just because one bulb calls it quits.

Reduce Energy Waste
LED lights are available almost everywhere these days. Even big box retailers like Target are carrying them. We like the selection at Holidayleds.com, which carries a full selection including pink or purple. Plus it's got replacement bulbs and the lights come with a lifetime warranty.

Solar LED lights are even more efficient. They use solar power to recharge batteries that power the lights for up to six hours each night. We found a nice selection here.
www.eartheasy.com

Save Energy, Even With Incandescents

Now, what to do if you already have a set of working incandescent or traditional holiday lights? We advise you use those first before switching to LED. Buying LED lights still means creating production and manufacturing waste (watch the Story of Stuff if you have any questions). www.thestoryofstuff.com So use up what you've already got before you go out and buy new.
There are additional things you can do to save energy even with traditional twinklies. For starters, don't leave them on as long; definitely don't leave them on after everyone has gone to bed. Second, consider downsizing your display. The fewer lights shine, the less energy you guzzle.
As with all electronics, once you can no longer use your lights, do not throw them away in the trash en route to the landfill. Contact your city or county to find out where your local hazardous waste drop off location is to be sure you dispose of them properly.

There has been a longstanding debate over which is the more environmental
alternative between real trees and artificial versions.

Reduce Your Waste:
Buy Local and Organic If you're going the fake tree route, be sure to buy one made in America. Not only are you supporting the local economy, you will lower the emissions from transporting it while decreasing your risk of having chemicals and other toxins in your yuletide. If possible, buy a used American-made tree so you're not adding to the production waste chain. If at any point, you need to dispose of this tree, try to donate it to charitable organizations. Most of them are not recyclable so once they are discarded they'll just rot in the landfill.
If you're going for the real deal, look for a tree that was grown organically and as locally as possible. You can also buy a "living tree" and plant it after the holidays to enjoy year after year. Once the holidays are over, be sure to take your tree somewhere it can be recycled.  Most communities have a compost or mulching program.

For some, the beautiful gift-wrap is just as important as the gift. However when the gift-wrap is made from virgin trees and chlorine bleached paper it's not so pretty after all. There are a lot of post consumer recycled paper gift wraps available on the market, but why not consider using what you've already got, whether it's old newspaper, magazines, shoe boxes or event gift-wrap you received from the year before. There are tons of ways to be creative about how you present your gifts.

Waste Free:
Try to save the gift-wrap, bows and ribbons you receive from the year before (or other celebrations) to use next year. Often if you remove the wrapping carefully enough you can get a second or even third use out of it.
You can also try thinking small: sometimes a simple holiday ribbon is all you need to wrap a box or a set of books.
See what paper and other scraps you've got lying around: old fabric, shopping bags, maybe even a canvas bag you don't really use. Add a little flare with rescued ribbons or get creative and color or paint!

 

Spacial Design is on Facebook!!!

Social media more than ever is the new way to communicate with past, present and potential clients.

 We will be featuring client project photos, as well as upcoming seminar information.

Become a fan today by visiting...
www.facebook.com
search for "Spacial Design"

Special Offer

We appreciate all of your wonderful referrals to family and friends and now we want to give back to you. By referring a friend to Spacial Design... we would like to offer you a gift! That means for any referral that leads to a retained Kitchen or Bath client OR a kitchen cabinetry sale, we will send you a $200.00 gift certificate to your favorite restaurant, Spa or retail store.

Warmly,

Susan

Susan Lund, AKBD
Spacial Design