Kitchen & Bath Design
One of the last kitchens I designed at Kitchens by Contardo in 2006
My first design job out of college was as a sales associate at Ethan Allen in Spokane. I learned a bit about drapery, fabric, and furniture quality, but did not feel challenged or engaged. I lasted about 3 months at Ethan Allen before I moved on to Kitchens by Contardo.
After Kitchens by Contardo, I moved on to design schools, tenant improvements, restaurants, and ended up back where I started with kitchens. It was in my last kitchen position that I realized that I did not want to design kitchens the way we are trained to in kitchen firms, but how I was trained as a designer.
Kitchen (and bath) designers are typically trained to work with cabinet manufacturers, learning their product. They are provided a catalog, and offer the design (usually “free” or at a very low cost), then sell the cabinetry to the homeowner making their money with the mark up of the sale.
In design school, we are taught to abstract the goals and needs of the client, then assemble an ideal solution. Product was introduced AFTER the development of the design. I found that working with local, custom cabinet shops, my imagination had no limits.
I developed a relationship with a fantastic cabinet shop. I have tried out a few others, but none have come close to the level of quality and service I receive from this one.
Today, our kitchen and bath design process is about developing a space for you that functions in the way that you live and is not limited to the parts and pieces that were per-conceived by others in an order book for mass-production.
Our kitchen & bath design process:
We start with the interview. Typical questions we ask:
What prompted you to remodel your kitchen/bathroom?
What are your goals in this remodel?
How many people use this space at one time?
What is not working for you today?
What is working for you today?
Site Documentation
We visit the site, take photographs and measurements. While we measure the site for design purposes, and may come back to verify, we also ask our cabinet shop and additional trades to site verify. Remember the good old rule- measure 2x, cut once?
Schematic Design
The schematic design is a loose look at the concepts behind your space. We never start by simply plopping cabinets into your space to see how they fit. Our first step is always to look back at those goals and how we can achieve the feeling we want to attain.
We look at the home’s plan, the views, and the lifestyle of the person (or people) using the space. We break the ideas down into abstract principles and elements of design, establishing an artistic approach to the design.
We then put it all together, applying the reality of a kitchen space to the art of the design. We do not look at any products during this time.
Design Development
Now it is time to look at the function of your space. A zoning plan is provided with a suggested layout for the uses of your space. This layout creates a flow in your space, from preparation, to cleaning, to storage, to cooking.
The cabinets that have been laid out are placeholders and do not have a purpose yet. We generally give a bit of homework during this phase, asking our homeowners to provide us with a list of the items they use, quantities and frequency. A simplified “inventory” of your kitchen.
We use this inventory to develop proper storage for the items used and stored in your space. Only now do we begin looking at the product and loosely. Rather than making the need fit the product, we will find the product to fit the need.
Construction Documents
During this phase, the product selections are finalized.
We often send our clients to meet with our reps at designated showrooms. These are the reps we have vetted over many years to develop a great relationship and understanding as to how we work and our expectations.
The technical details are developed, applying the products to our needs for the space, and the application documented in a way the builder can use to assemble the space.
Construction Administration
During this final phase, we visit on a weekly basis to ensure that the documents we have provided are answering all the contractors questions. We adapt to the needs the space throws at us when we open the walls and find that a light fixture will no longer fit or that a detail needs altering.
Because we do not order the products, and only specify- our clients are not limited by what is available from products we represent. We do specify healthy, sustainable products, free of formaldehyde and FSC-certified. We do not make any money from the products sold and selected, so our only influence is your best interest and our honest desire to add another beautiful space to our portfolio.
We measure as demo happens, and when the drywall goes back in, to verify the drawings will still work, and make adjustments as-needed.
All adjustments are applied to the final drawing set to ensure that once the project has been completed, you have an accurate as-built drawing set.
When all is said and done, we come out for one final visit- the photo shoot!
