Kbdn

With Earth Day Tuesday, and Arbor Day Friday, it was appropriate to post the audio files describing the kitchen and master bath of The (25th Annual) New American Home because it was the first show home to be certified by the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) new Green Building Program, launched on Green Day during the 2008 International Builders’ Show (IBS) in Orlando, FL.The New Southern Home, which was also on display during the IBS, was built with plenty of eco-friendly building and design techniques and products, as well, so it’s also appropriate to post the audio files describing the kitchen and laundry room.Both homes featured Timberlake Cabinetry, which has also received certification by the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association’s (KCMA) Environmental Stewardship Program on its entire line of products.Now, some hard-line environmentalists wonder how such large homes can be eco-friendly, while many other industry experts maintain that a home does not have to be small and austere to be green and efficient. It can be large and luxurious and still be environmentally friendly. Christine Todd Whitman even said that during her keynote speech during the 2008 Kitchen/Bath Industry Show & Conference in Chicago, IL.

Shown here are the exterior, kitchen and master bath of The New American Home, on display during the 2008 IBS in Orlando, FL.

 To hear Connie Edwards, CKD, CBD and director of design for Timberlake Cabinetry, talk about The New American Home: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download
 To hear Connie Edwards, CKD, CBD and director of design for Timberlake Cabinetry, talk about The New Southern Home: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This year, everything seemed to be coming up “green” on the Kitchen/Bath Industry Show & Conference (K/BIS) show floor, and the 2008 Design Showcase was no exception. Now while many displays and products were green because of their environmentally friendly design, the Design Showcase highlighted “green design” quite literally.Indeed, the project’s principal designer Ingrid Leess was inspired by CaesarStone’s Apple Martini shade of natural quartz surfacing material. Leess, of New Canaan, CT-based Ingrid Leess Interior Design, started with color as her guide, and because of that green hue she saw last year, green became the theme of this year’s Design Showcase, which was sponsored by Woman’s Day Special Interest Publications (WDSIPs) and Merillat, which supplied the Merillat Masterpiece and Merillat Classic cabinetry for the combination kitchen/drop zone/mudroom/luxe master bath retreat.According to Leess, green is the color that “sets the tone,” and she used a variety of vibrant, yet complementary shades, including Apple Martini, which appeared on the perimeter of the kitchen. Mixing greens with an emphasis on organic shapes and a variety of materials, the designer was able to create, in her words, a “fresh” transitional style.

Shown is the 2008 Design Showcase kitchen. Photo Credit: John Gould Bessler

The National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA)/Meredith Corp.’s Design Idea Center (DIC) returned to 2008 the Kitchen/Bath Industry Show & Conference for its third year.Dubbed “Your Kitchen and Bath, Your Way: Designs for Every Lifestyle and Life Stage,” the 10,000 sq.-ft. DIC showcased eco-friendly design ideas, aging-in-place options, integrated technology applications and organization and storage solutions. The DIC also featured products, appliances and materials from a variety of manufacturers and designers, including sponsors Armstrong, DuPont Surfaces, Kohler, KraftMaid and Sub-Zero/Wolf.Here’s a “glimpse” of each vignette that was on display at the NKBA booth in the South Hall:

Though the second day of the 2008 International Builders’ Show in Orlando, FL was Valentine’s Day, the most prominent color at this year’s show was green. Indeed, the second day was called Green Day and dedicated to environmentally friendly education and programs for kitchen and bath designers, builders, remodelers and other allied professionals.

Around every corner of the show’s more than one million net sq. ft. of exhibit space, there were green products such as low-flow showerhead technology from companies such as Delta and Alsons that are designed maintain the integrity of the shower experience, and energy-efficient and water-saving appliances from Bosch, Thermador and Gaggenau, and displays such as Whirlpool’s sustainable kitchen.

Outside in the Show Village there was a green model home along with a high-tech home and a “comfortably affordable home.” There was also the NextGen Home, whose theme was “Ultimate Value” and included features and amenities that made the home very high-tech, very green and still very affordable, three keys to the ailing building market right now. Off site there was the Vision 2008 all-green home along with The New American Home (now in its 25th year) and The New Southern Home, which were built with plenty of eco-friendly building/design options.

In addition, the NAHB not only emphasized green building as the right thing to do, but also as a way to survive and thrive in an economy that’s been affected by the subprime mortgage market across the boards.

In fact, during the press conferences to launch its Green Building Program and unveil its Green Building Standard, it was asserted that while it may cost more upfront to build and remodel green, buying and building eco-friendly, energy-efficient homes will yield consumers a great deal of savings on utility bills later and during the course of homeownership.

Thus, encouraging consumers to make more energy-efficient and environmentally friendly choices for their homes can be portrayed by building and design professionals looking to sell the homes they have on the block, and those they will design and build, as a value proposition: invest in green building/remodeling options now, and reap the savings.

This value proposition was driven home by the fact that the NAHB’s Green Building Program was defined as one that is flexible (builders can choose from a host of green building options that fit the consumer’s budget, taste, location and house style) and affordable.

“Our belief is that these programs have to retain affordability to [appeal] to consumers,” explained Bob Jones, NAHB v.p./secretary. “The program allows all builders to build green in a cost-effective way. Builders, or their clients, can choose from a menu of green options so they can select those features that make the most sense for… the consumer, their budget and a location or a style or a home they want to live in. The most visible new feature of our green building program is a green scoring and certification technology that will be administered by the NAHB Research Center [and found at www.nahbgreen.org].”

Jones added: “As an association we believe that voluntary programs [like this one] and incentives are the best way to encourage the growth of dynamic new business practices.” (To hear more of what Jones said, click here.)

For more 2008 IBS news, and upcoming K/BIS Chicago news, go to www.KitchenBathDesign.com. Be sure to sign up for the site’s annual trio of K/BIS eNewsletters.

For more breaking news also visit the Top Headlines and Live Events sections.

Bob Jones, NAHB v.p./secretary, called the association’s new Green Building Program voluntary, flexible and affordable.

In support of the building industry’s, as well as the kitchen and bath design industry’s, drive toward green design, Whirlpool Corp. created this Sustainable Kitchen. It’s made with all eco-friendly products, noted Mark Johnson, FAIA, CKD, architect and senior manager of architecture and design marketing for Whirlpool.

This year The New American Home was not only set apart by the celebration of its 25th anniversary, but also by the fact that it was the first show home to be certified by the NAHB’s new Green Building Program, which was launched on Green Day during the 2008 IBS. In addition, the cabinetry was provided by Timberlake Cabinetry, which has also received certification by the Kitchen Cabinet Manufacturers Association Environmental Stewardship Program on its entire line of products.

The New Southern Home was built with plenty of eco-friendly building and design techniques and products. In addition, the cabinetry was also provided by Timberlake Cabinetry.

Palm Harbor Homes’ Green Home was on display at the Show Village at the 2008 IBS. Measuring only 30 ft. wide and less than 68 ft. deep, it was designed for a family using all green building techniques and products.

Palm Harbor Homes’ ‘Comfortably Affordable’ Home was on display at the Show Village at the 2008 IBS. Just 15-1/2-ft.-wide, the two-story home features three bedrooms, 2-1/2 baths and porches on both levels. It was built with the first-time homebuyer in mind using green technologies and products.

Palm Harbor Homes’ High-Tech Home was on display at the Show Village at the 2008 IBS. Featuring three levels, the home offers such high-tech amenities as a high-end sound system in the bath and shower areas, a touchpad-controlled lighting system, a tankless water heater and a home theater with a projection screen.

The NextGen Home, whose theme was ‘Ultimate Value,’ included features and amenities that made the home very high-tech, very green and still very affordable, three keys to ailing building market right now.

The Kitchen & Bath Confidential blog will feature live reports from the 2008 International Builders’ Show (IBS) Feb. 13-16 at the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, FL.

Starting the week of Feb. 13 and throughout the show and educational conference, we’ll be posting audio, pictures and text, live from the show floor. Check back here each day for show sights and sounds and analysis of the latest IBS product and design trends. And don’t forget to check out our Live Events and Top Headlines sections for up-to-the-minute news and event details, all live from the show floor.

For instance, the blog, along with the Live Events and Top Headlines sections, will contain details about the show’s emphasis on green design and building this year, which will culminate in the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) recognition of the phenomenal growth of green building as it celebrates Green Day on Thursday, Feb. 14. On that day the association, which hosts the show, will officially launch the NAHB National Green Building Program, and will unveil the new Certified Green Professional educational designation for home builders, remodelers, kitchen and bath designers and other industry professionals.

The day will also include a full slate of green educational seminars on topics ranging from market trends and consumer research to innovative design and new products. Information about the 10th annual NAHB National Green Building Conference will also be available. Noted green architect and educator William McDonough is the featured speaker Thursday morning, and will also conduct an in-depth session on “Cradle to Grave” environmentally and ecologically efficient building practices.

Four press conferences will highlight the new NAHB National Green Building Program, the National Green Building Standard and green trends, and will also offer a detailed look at The New American Home, NAHB’s official showcase home, which is celebrating its 25th anniversary. It’s also the first show home certified by the NAHB National Green Building Program.

With all of that going on and more at this year’s IBS, we hope you’ll join us online – it’s the next best thing to being there!

The 10,000-sq.-ft. Design Idea Center (DIC) explored the idea of home as the perfect mini vacations from daily living at this year’s Kitchen/Bath Industry Show (K/BIS) in Las Vegas and featured five innovative kitchen and bath design concepts that captured the theme of “getting away” without leaving home.

The DIC’s “Everyday Getaways” were the result of the collaboration between the Hackettstown, NJ-based National Kitchen & Bath Association (NKBA) and five of Meredith Corp.’s consumer publications – Kitchen and Bath Ideas, Better Homes and Gardens, Country Home, Traditional Home and Midwest Living. Each magazine created a vignette reflecting the theme based on the individual magazine’s core readership.
Upon entering “Everyday Getaways,” visitors were transported to five, distinct, serene and relaxing atmospheres:

• Kitchen and Bath Ideas: Gourmet Traveler At Home was designed for the adventurous couple that loves to discover food and wine while they travel across the globe. Inspired by the trend of combining passions for cooking and traveling, everything in this gourmet kitchen was created to evoke the feeling of past trips, and was positioned for the ease and enjoyment of cooking, such as countertop cut-outs in the prep island and next to the range designed to hold a series of metal bins filled with everything from spoons and spatulas to seasonings. A wine room, which served as an extension of the kitchen, was ideal for those who wished to participate in the burgeoning trend of at-home wine-tasting parties.
• Better Homes and Gardens: A Gardener’s Kitchen brought the outdoors inside via a kitchen designed to act as an oasis in the midst of one’s hectic life. Created for those who think of their garden as the ultimate get-away, this kitchen opened onto a back deck with a container garden and potting table nook. Playing on the trend of multi-functional living, this kitchen’s spaces were designed to be used for cooking, dining, gathering or just unwinding. For example, opposite the range was a dual-function laundry center whose long counter was also perfect for setting up a buffet for relaxing get-togethers.
• Country Home: Big Little House in the Woods was designed as a 525-sq.-ft., two-room cottage that offered a low-key alternative to the massive spaces that have come to dominate home building today. Perfect for empty nesters or the newly single, this tranquil get-away incorporated big design ideas and inventive space solutions in an intimate setting. The cottage, inspired by Minnesota’s wooded cabins, was a cozy get-away featuring a combination dishwasher/sink, a built-in bed alcove and a soaking tub.
• Traditional Home: Natural Inspirations was a kitchen inspired by the sea. It served as a comfortable entertainment space, as well as a high-tech cooking space. Evoking the casual lifestyle of coastal living, the efficiently designed kitchen used soft, earthy finishes and glass mosaic tile to bring the Pacific Northwest environment home. Bringing the party into the kitchen, this space encouraged guests to participate in preparing meals. A large island and four distinct cooking stations made the kitchen very functional, whether one person was cooking or an entire crowd was.
• Midwest Living: Back to Basics was created as a relaxing weekend retreat, featuring a “back-to-nature” kitchen and bath space. Pairing the Heartland’s agricultural heritage with contemporary cabinetry and appliances, the converted barn was designed to relax and enhance the weekend get-away experience. The space played on the growing trend toward more outdoor living, as the entire structure opened to nature with an 8′ entrance flanked by barn doors, an outdoor shower and a screened porch with a daybed.        Look for more information about this in the upcoming 6/07 issue of Kitchen & Bath Design News. And log onto Live Events, as well.  

   (Be sure to log onto KitchenBathDesign.com for Kitchen & Bath Design News’ coverage of the 2007 Kitchen/Bath Industry Show & Conference (K/BIS) in Las Vegas. Log onto the home page to visit the Live Events, Top Headlines, Project Spotlight and Consumer Resources sections, and Product Gallery. And don’t forget to sign up for our eNewsletters that will cover other upcoming industry shows.)

Shown are the kitchen and the wine tasting room from the Gourmet Traveler At Home DIC vignette. Photos: Greg Scheidemann
Shown is the kitchen from the Gardener’s Kitchen DIC vignette. Photo: King Au
Shown is the kitchen from the Natural Inspirations DIC vignette. Photo: Michal Venera