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Sawhill Client Blogs About Her Kitchen Project

February 24, 2011

For The Sawhill Sampler:

BEFORE PICTURE:

My completed kitchen is a dream-come-true. Every time I’m in it, I am delighted at the ease of working there. More over, the process of getting it done was satisfying with minimal upset and misunderstanding. I had some good ideas myself and knew how I wanted to use this space. HOWEVER, for the overall process from design to completion and my joy at the smallest details done right, I credit Sue Palmquist without reservation. Sue made my kitchen wonderful beyond what I could have imagined.

Sue and I share a friendship with a wonderful interior designer, Martha Nichols, who passed away just as the kitchen was completed in August 2010. Martha had been telling me for years that Sue was the best space planner she’d ever known. Literally, Martha had told me this at least 30 times in the many years I knew her. I’d done a kitchen with Martha’s help, but mostly with my own initiative. It turned out nicely, but there were details that just weren’t right because I didn’t know what would make them so until it was done and too late. There were door pulls that were put on at the wrong angle and an empty space that would have been better used as a cupboard. The pantry I chose had a four-shelf lazy Susan that took up tons of space and didn’t offer much storage in return.

Further, I’d had a bathroom/laundry area done using a skilled crew who did nice work, but with whom I didn’t communicate well. Martha helped me with some crucial decisions and agreed with most of mine. But, again, there were details that I couldn’t have foreseen and didn’t know how to handle. One of those was simply how to work with a construction crew most effectively. When the house is a mess and things go not exactly right, the homeowner doesn’t always think of tact and the big picture. I was left with a funky open space with exposed pipes only partially covered by the washer and dryer, the wrong solution for a structural issue in the basement, and the wrong wall color in the laundry space.

This time, in this kitchen, I was determined to do the right thing, listen to Martha’s wisdom, and hire Sue Palmquist and Sawhill. But, I thought I had a better idea for the construction crew than did Sue. As the process evolved, the crew worked pretty close to schedule and were satisfactory, even terrific, in most ways. But, whenever there was a problem, I found myself turning to Sue: “How shall I handle this issue with the electrical?” “The carpenters want to put the door pulls here. Does that seem right?” “The tile isn’t even or straight. What do you recommend?”

This is my top six list of what I learned working with Sue and the Sawhill staff:

6. Sue not only advised me when I had concerns, she worked directly with the contractor, and sometimes with members of his crew, always keeping her eye on the big picture and making sure that the details were done right for the best result.

5. Sue goes far beyond the call of duty. But, it seems like doing things right from the beginning means fewer problems to fix later.

4. Sue knows which appliances are best in which price category. She can advise where it may make sense to cut back and where to splurge. When we started I was thinking maple cabinets. She brought a sample of alder and I loved its warm color. Then she told me it was less expensive than the maple. She said, sure, use the 10-year old range I had. “Replace it when the time comes later,” she said. I saved money ordering the plumbing fixtures and the tile myself, advised by Sue which products would work the best and why. Within my budget, I chose some a beautiful hard-surfaced countertop and the coolest tile I’ve ever seen. Savings in one area contributed to making a more expensive choice in another.

3. It’s financially daunting to do a kitchen remodel. I was so tempted to find less expensive cabinets and take the time to cut $ corners wherever I could. Sue told me frankly that it’s the cabinets that make the difference as to whether their business is profitable or not. I knew the contractor sold cabinets, as well; he was disappointed that I didn’t buy them from him, but took the project anyway.

Ultimately, when there were problems, I found myself regretting that I hadn’t simply worked with a Sawhill crew, because, I was relying on Sue to solve the contractor-related concerns, anyway. It seemed unfair to both the contractor and to Sue and Sawhill. I’m not at all sure I saved $ either, because some things had to be redone, costing time and unpleasantness that could have been avoided.

2. There will always be problems, even in the best circumstances. There are almost unlimited variables present in remodeling an existing house or starting from scratch. The key is how the problems will be solved to get the desired result. Sue had more ideas and ways to do things than I had problems or concerns. The result is absolutely wonderful!

1. The staff at Sawhill Kitchens isn’t perfect, but they are fantastic!

2011 Schedule of Sawhill Samplers

We have another series of Sawhill Samplers planned for 2011. The Samplers are educational seminars along with an opportunity for you to sample food prepared by the Sawhill Team in our fully functioning display kitchens. Check out this link for the schedule, and we hope to see you at one, or all of the Samplers. And don't forget to invite a friend!!

LED Me To The Light At The End Of The Tunnel

No I’m not that bad of a speller. I know how to spell lead, but that’s L.E.D or Light Emitting Diode. And LED lighting is, and has been, the light of choice for many kitchen designers in the past few years. Originally LED lights where used only for accent lighting in cabinets or to illuminate the area above cabinets in a room. But as technology has increased, so has the use of LED lights, as have the benefits of LED lighting!

Originally the light output of the small individual “diode” (LED lamp, or bulb) was much less than incandescent, florescent or halogen light sources. But now the diodes have a much higher Lumen output so the LED light fixtures can easily replace traditional fixtures. Oh, you may be wondering what lumen means? Lumen is a unit of measure of the power of light perceived by the human eye. And that’s as technical as we’re going to get for this Blog.

So why would we want to lead you to LED lights? Well, LED lights will last longer than traditional light sources. Typical incandescent bulbs last 1,000 to 2,000 hours, but LED lights tend to last from 25,000 to 50,000 hours. When a manufacturer says that an LED lamp will last 25,000 or 50,000 hours, what the company actually means is that at that point, the light emanating from that product will be at 70 percent the level it was when new. There seems to be no industry standard for determining at what time span the LED is only transmitting less than that 100% so the industry engineers chose 70%.

And there’s no question that LED lights will use a fraction of the power used by standard incandescent bulbs to produce the same amount of light. But some wonder if more energy is needed to produce an LED lamp or fixture than the equivalent amount for a regular light bulb? Well according to the researchers at Carnegie Mellon University, the answer is NO! LED lights cost less to manufacture and they use less energy to run.

Carnegie Mellon calculated the amount of energy needed to manufacture and then run a light source for 25,000 hours. The results: the energy needed for one of these light sources ranged from 1,500 kilowatt-hours for the standard incandescent bulbs to 320 kWh for the compact fluorescent and 280 kWh for the LED light source. You can get more information about this study by going to the University’s website at http://www.cit.cmu.edu/media/press/2009/06_09_epp_lighting.html

OK, so the lights last longer, and are actually more energy efficient. What else? LED lights are much cooler and generate virtually no heat. Anyone who’s ever stored chocolate on the bottom shelf of a cabinet with a halogen undercabinet light below will know why that’s important. Even fluorescent lights give off heat, but halogen is the worst. Many years ago my first experience with halogen lighting was trying to remove a halogen bulb that had just burned out. I knew it might be “warm” but I didn’t expect to get burned! Literally.

One complaint about LED lighting is that in the past you had to replace the whole fixture in many cases, not just the LED “lamps”. Now 25,000 hours is about 20 years, but OK it’s true that it would be more difficult to replace an entire LED fixture than an incandescent bulb. Until now!! Some LED strip light fixtures have small removable lamps. So the strip holding the lamps can stay in place and you can simply replace any lamps that have started to dim. You can even change out the lamps with different colors for the different holidays or seasons!!

Another complaint about LED lights is the upfront cost for the fixtures and lamps. The fixtures are expensive, but the cost is coming down. And when you amortize the cost over a 20 year span there is always going to be a cost savings with LED lights. You don’t have to take my word for it, go to http://eartheasy.com/live_energyeff_lighting.htm to see comparisons over a ten year span in a commercial building. So in the long run LED lights will actually cost you less money. Even over fluorescent lights.

LED lights are the wave of the future so if you’re looking for the light at the end of the tunnel you better let us LED the way for you!!

Remodel, Recondition, Mini-Maker Over, Tune-Up, Spruce-Up, Touch-up…

Call It What You Want, But Just Call Us

So what word best describes what you want to do with your kitchen? Remodel? OK, but what does that mean to you? Do you want to do a full remodeling project where all the cabinets & countertops are removed and replaced? Maybe walls are removed, or even an addition is a possibility.

Well for many people, “remodel” simply means that they want to give their kitchen a “facelift” or any of the other words used above. Sawhill has always done these types of projects, though we just simply call these projects – “Partials.”. But “partial” doesn’t mean much to most people, and many people don’t realize what a great investment these types of projects can be. Yes, even in this current economy and housing market.

So what do some of these projects involve? Let’s take a Kitchen Mini-Makeover or Kitchen Facelift for example. These could mean just some new countertops and some new cabinet knobs & hinges. Or maybe just new cabinet doors and drawer fronts, or just refinish the existing cabinets. Is that all you want done? No problem Sawhill Kitchens has the resources to get this done, and manage the project for you.

New countertops certainly make one of the biggest impacts when doing a kitchen facelift, but don’t forget about the backsplash area (the wall space between the countertops and the bottom of the upper cabinets). There are so many great possibilities to select from - ceramic tile, porcelain tile, stone, even metal. Our designers can help you select just the right product to coordinate with your countertops, cabinets, flooring and walls.

These projects can sometimes involve new flooring too, or new appliances and plumbing fixtures. Maybe you want to add an island, or modify some existing cabinets for some new appliances. How about also adding a wine rack, spice rack or even replacing a few doors with glass inserts? And don’t forget lighting. Our Sawhill designers are happy to help with design, selection process and project management of any of these projects.

Another popular service that we offer to our clients is a tune-up or reconditioning of their kitchen that maybe is only a few years old or older. Just like your car needs a tune up, so do kitchens at some point in time. Our designers can arrange to have one of our craftsmen adjust doors, and drawers, and other cabinet related adjustments or minor touch-up. We also have specialists who can come in and take care of more major touch-up or refinishing of the cabinetry. And don’t forget your countertops. Corian and other solid surfacing countertops are wonderful products, but they can scratch and even look stained. Did you know that we can have those countertops re-sanded, and “buffed-up” so they almost look new? Minor chips can sometimes be filled too!

These days natural granite and stone is the probably the most common countertop material used. These are beautiful products, but do require some maintenance. We can arrange to have those granite countertops re-sealed, and maybe re-caulk the joint at the backsplash area. Sure, you could do this yourself, just like you could probably change the oil in your car. But when’s the last time you did that? Let a professional rejuvenate those beautiful countertops!

You see there are a lot of ways to Spruce-Up your kitchen, but we’re not limited to just painting the walls or ceiling. But we can do that too! So if you need something done in your kitchen, don’t worry what to call your kitchen remodeling project, just call Sawhill and speak with one of our designers. They’ll be happy to explain how we can help. Oh, and what about repair work on appliances? We’ll be happy to just get you the telephone number of the factory authorized service agent, even if you didn’t purchase the appliance from us. That’s just another example of Sawhill’s commitment to Unrelenting Service.

Tolman Kitchen Featured in Minneapolis Star Tribune!

Check out this article about a kitchen designed by Sarah Michalowski, for one of Sawhill's Blog followers Rod Tolman. Rod and Sarah teamed up to create a beautiful and extremely functional kitchen for Rod. Congratulations to both of them for a job well done!!
http://www.startribune.com/homes/99172119.html?elr=KArksUUUoDEy3LGDiO7aiU

Vote for Your Favorite Recipe

OK, here are the finalists in our Grilling Recipe Contest. Send us a reply via Facebook, or Info@SawhillKitchens.com. And good luck to the contestants!!!

• Gwen's Entry:
  Grilled fish recipe is easy to prepare and ideal for coho and chinook salmon, catfish, and trout.
  
  Mix together the seasonings, add the fish, and allow it marinate for about eight hours and grill.
  Prep Time: 15 minutes
  Marinade time: 8 hours
  
  Cook Time: 10-12 minutes
  
  
  Ingredients:
  2-4 fish fillets
  marinade:
  1/3 cup peanut oil
  1/4 cup soy sauce (preferably those made for sashimi)
  
  3 cloves garlic, finely minced
  3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
  3 tablespoons sesame seeds
  2 tablespoon sesame oil
  1/2 teaspoon red pepper
  1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  1/8 teaspoon ginger
  
  Preparation:
  Place fish fillets in a resealable plastic bag. Mix remaining ingredients in a small bowl and pour over fish. Seal bag and place into refrigerator for about 8 hours. Preheat grill for medium high heat. Remove fish from bag and discard marinade. Place fillets on grill and cook for 10-12 minutes, depending on thickness, turning once. Once fish flakes easily with fork, remove from heat and serve with Asian flavored vegetables and rice.
  
  

  
  
• Nicole's Entry:
  

  4 ears of sweet corn
  6 Tbs (3/4 stick) butter
  2 Tbs minced fresh parsley (or dill, basil or tarragon)... See More
  1 clove of garlic, minced
  Coarse salt and black pepper
  
  1. Set up grill for direct grilling.
  2. Fashion husk of each ear into handle and remove silk.
  3. Place butter, parsley and garlic in mixing bowl, whisk until smooth and creamy.
  4. When ready to cook, brush each ear with mixture.
  5. Grill corn until kernels are browned (8 to 12 minutes).
  6. Turn as needed and apply remaining mixture and add salt and pepper. Red pepper is also great.
  
  Bon appetit!

  
  
• Marilyn's Entry
  

  Jerk Ribs
  1tsp. allspice
  1/2 tsp nutmeg
  ...1/2 tsp cinnamon
  1/2 c. scallion... See More2 scotch bonnet peppers, or 4 jalapenos:
  use more if you like it hotter
  1/2 c white vinegar
  1/2 c. soy
  sauce 2 T. Oil 1 tsp.
  salt garlic powder, blend 2 mins, and marinate ribs with sauce for 3 hours. Grill They are to die for

  
  

• Sarah's Favorite Hamburgers
  
  Yes- I know I'm not eligible to win, but thought I'd share a recipe anyways! I don't measure when I cook, so they're a little different every time... :)
  
  1 lb ground pork (sometimes I buy flavored sausage and take it out of the casing)
  1 lb ground hamburger
  2 eggs
  1 egg yolk
  about 1/2 cup of grated Pecorino cheese
  1 package dry onion soup mix
  a generous squirt of ketchup (or spicy bbq if you want a little kick)
  a generous squirt of your favorite mustard
  a few shakes of worcestershire
  and finally, enough bread crumbs to get the mix to the right consistency- usually 3/4 to 1 cup
  
  Mush all of the above ingredients together by hand- this is the messy, but very important part! :) I usually buy fresh baked buns- the larger ones. And I'm known for making huge hamburger patties that fit the bun- I get about 5 or 6 burgers out of the above amounts and usually can only eat 1/2 a burger. The combination of pork and beef make these burgers super tender and juicy- not to mention the flavor. The Pecorino adds a wonderful salty cheesiness... My favorite topping for these burgers are mushrooms sauteed in Marsala with a little bit of salt and pepper... delicious! If you have another addition or combination, please share!!