DESIGNER GOES AGAINST KITCHEN CONVENTION IN HER OWN HOME

Photo courtesy of Shauna Beltramo, The House of Silver Lining

The black sink highlights the geometric tile while vividly contrasting against the deep green cabinets.

Colorado Springs, Colorado-based Interior Stylist and Blogger Shauna Beltramo of The House of Silver Lining recently completed the stunning build of her family’s custom dream home located in Colorado. Her new home, which she refers to as the Forest Modern, sits on 5 sprawling acres and features an open and airy feel. Shauna’s dream kitchen includes an attention-grabbing granite composite sink. She discusses the design process here.

What was your inspiration for the design?

For me, design is definitely a mood or feeling that I want the home to evoke. I believe one’s personality should be reflected in the style of his or her home. I love studying fashion design and actually gather some of my best design “visions” from a piece of wardrobe. My first step is to look in my own closet. What colors am I drawn to? Is there a lot of pattern or more simple and chic pieces? Most often, I’m comfortable in black, white, and gray. So, from there came the inspiration for the color palette throughout our new home. Pops of moody colors in cabinetry and feature walls were added to break up the monochromatic tones.

What challenges did you face?

In building this home, we faced many challenges. Every day was a new challenge. What matters most is that we learned how to problem solve and fight through until we got it right. Is it all perfect now? Absolutely not, but perfection is boring and way over rated. Don’t ya think?

What would you consider your design style to be?

It depends on the space I’m designing! I love many different styles, from traditionalism to ultra modern, Scandinavian, urban industrial, and even vintage. I love blending pieces of all those elements together throughout a home to add that personality!

What is unique about your design?

I like to incorporate the “unexpected” into my designs; a “conversation element” that causes guests to pause and ponder. As I designed our new home, The Forest Modern, I made sure to add those unexpected elements into the design. A good example is how I went with a deep green cabinetry in our laundry room against a whimsical patterned tile floor, even going with a black sink when the latest craze is all about white farm sinks.

What is your favorite part of your new home?

All of it! This home has been a true labor of love, and at this point, I can’t separate one space that I love the most. Every single room took careful design planning and is special in its own unique way.

Photo courtesy Michele Alfano Design

The modern sink has left behind the former color restrictions of stainless steel or white porcelain. Today, a wide variety of designs, sizes, and colors allow professionals to create the perfect kitchen, no matter what the style.

Removing Design and Welfare Boundaries with Color

Color can be useful in so many ways: from its simple aesthetics to its impact on mood, its ability to reflect personality and style, and its implications for health and welfare. Color is powerful, and design professionals—and the market itself—are increasingly recognizing and harnessing this power. Forecasting an annual color has become big business; nearly every paint company now names its color of the year. In a survey of paint companies, most of the colors of the year for 2019 are unsaturated, light colors. Clariant, a world leader in specialty chemicals, predicts that “colors become muted as consumers come to grips with a complex world and never-ending distractions. As people feel that things are spinning out of control, focusing on single tasks is critical. The color palette is simple: serene, soft, muted, and minimal colors.”¹³ These annual colors and associated palettes also help people “consider colors they may not have found on their own or felt confident enough to pick for their next paint project.”¹⁴

The modern sink has left behind the former color restrictions of stainless steel or white porcelain. Today, a wide variety of designs, sizes, and colors allow professionals to create the perfect kitchen, no matter what the style. Kitchens can now maximize an occupant’s style through a cast of colorful sink options that bring personalized design front and center. Intelligent color palettes reflect and support the people and activities within a structure.

Yet color plays not only plays a role in aesthetics and mood, as it also offers as an important means of integrating safety and functionality. While color can certainly create a visual celebration, it also enhances welfare and safety by defining workspaces and crafting optical clues that enhance occupant welfare. A contrasting sink color alerts occupants to a shift in work surface and establishes clear work zones. Using color in the kitchen enhances welfare and safety for aging-in-place and multigenerational homes, particularly as the dominance of open floor plans removes traditional work-zone transitions.

Color also has a role to play in sustainability. Though color is often regarded as a shifting trend, thoughtful selection of a palette enables a kitchen sink to offer an aesthetic highlight while also providing design longevity. A classic, neutral color scheme acts as an investment, allowing clients to avoid buyer’s remorse and ensuring an interior design that will never grow old.

Amanda Voss, MPP, is an author, editor, and policy analyst. Writing for multiple publications, she also currently serves as the managing editor for Energy Design Update.

END NOTES

¹“Survey Results: Trend Stories in Kitchen Design & Color.” Frank Advertising. 2018.

²Houzz Research. “2019 U.S. Houzz Kitchen Trends Study.” Houzz. 16 January 2019. Web. 29 March 2019.

³Little, Shelley. “Why Neutral Colors Are Best.” Freshome. 21 October 2014. Web. 29 March 2019.

⁴Moses, Nalina. “Environmental psychology: Building with feeling.” The American Institute of Architects. 14 December 2012. Web. 29 March 2019.

⁵Sethares, Bill. “Blue Sky Science: Why do some colors make you feel emotion?” Wisconsin State Journal. 25 July 2018. Web. 29 March 2019.

⁶O’Connor, Dr. Zena. “Colour in the built environment: Beyond aesthetics.” Resene Continuing Professional Development. Web. 29 March 2019.

⁷“Aging in Place Guide for Building Owners: Recommended Age-Friendly Residential Building Upgrades.” Mayor Bill de Blasio, NYC Department for the Aging, AIA New York, and Age Friendly NYC. July 2016, revised September 2017. Web. 29 March 2019.

⁸Hunter, Susan. “Design Resources: DR-01 Architectural Wayfinding.” IDeA Center, University of Buffalo. 2010. Web. 29 March 2019.

⁹Evans, G. and McCoy, M. “When Buildings Don’t Work: The Role of Architecture in Human Health.” Journal of Environmental Psychology. 1998.

¹⁰“Aging-in-Place Remodels Taking Off.” Behr Pro. Web. 29 March 2019.

¹¹Weisman, J. “Evaluating Architectural Legibility: Way-Finding in the Built Environment.” Environment and Behavior. 1 March 1981. Web. 29 March 2019.

¹²“Aging-In-Place Remodeling Checklist.” National Association of Home Builders. Web. 29 March 2019.

¹³Dreamstime. “Trending Colors for 2019.” Medium. 29 January 2019. Web. 29 March 2019.

¹⁴Stewart, Jude. “The Big Money Behind Naming A ‘Color of the Year.’” Fast Company. 13 November 2017. Web. 29 March 2019.