The kitchen is one area of the home that homeowners always wish was fancier, no matter how well-off they are. Well, almost. I’m sure that there are about five percent of owners who either have custom kitchens the size of my whole downstairs or are slackers who just order pizza every night, neither of whom are complaining. But if you are stuck in the rut of a galley kitchen with shelves that are too high to reach without a rickety stepladder, not enough counter space, and very little glam, then an aspirational kitchen is a common fantasy. After all, the kitchen is the heart of the home. We cook there, we eat there (maybe only certain meals), and we celebrate there. If you’re embarking on a fancy-kitchen journey, there are some fixtures and elements that will take your cooking space from “eh” to “WOW.” Read about them here.
A pot-filler over your stove
You know what sucks about food prep? Lugging heavy pots of water for pasta or soup from the sink to the burner. Imagine, if you will, a fixture that eliminates the trip: a faucet on a pivoting arm that fills your pans right on the burners! This mind-blowing luxury will set you back several hundred bucks before installation, but man is it dreamy.
A cushy warming drawer
We all know the struggle of trying to serve a multi-course meal when hosting holiday dinners - you can only do so much prep work ahead of time, because otherwise the first-done food will get cold. Enter the warming drawer. Costing about two thousand smackers, this appliance has the power to change your life. Imagine prepping dessert and having your popovers staying hot and crispy while you serve dinner! Or stashing coffee cups so that they are ready for a comfy cuppa whenever the mood strikes. You can also proof yeast and slow-cook in such a device. Astounding!
A baseboard vacuum
It’s a certifiable crisis when you drop toast on the floor… even if it’s not buttered, crumbs are going to scatter everywhere. And is there possibly any greater PITA than trying to scoop up the dregs into a dustpan? SO annoying. If you have the scrilla to spend, however, there is such a thing as a “toe-kick vacuum.” Set into the baseboard of your kitchen, maybe under the sink, all you have to do is sweep up the mess, kick a hidden button, and - voila! - sweep the detritus into a powerful vacuum slot. You empty it by emptying a bag. What will they think of next?
A faucet that listens
Does anything stink more than having dirty hands and having nobody nearby to turn on the faucet for you? Somehow, you will end up with bread dough or raw chicken effluvia or clingy broccoli floret leavings all over the fixture, leading to a contaminated mess. How about a voice-controlled faucet that turns the water on FOR YOU, at the right temperature, when you need it? And, when you have wet hands, you can turn it off the same way. This is a smart faucet, which you can also instruct to dispense a certain amount of water, whether in ounces, cups, or gallons. The only thing it doesn’t do is load the dishwasher for you!
