JULY 2021 • LONGISLANDPRESS.COM 59
INSIDE JOB
THE KITCHEN
HEART OF THE HOME
Courtesy Giovanni Naso Interiors
Ceiling-high
cabinets match
White-quartz
island is smartlooking
and
durable
counters
BY ARLENE GROSS
If you’re looking to add some pizzazz to
the room that your family and guests
spend the most time in, you’ll want to redo
the kitchen, the lifeblood of every home.
Start with a wish list and assess your
needs, recommends Giovanni Naso,
owner of the eponymous Bellport-based
Giovanni Naso Interiors. Next, hire a
designer who’ll draw up floor plans and
elevations so that you can visualize the
space.
Some questions to consider: How much do
you cook? Do you need spice drawers? Do
you have lots of pots and pans and need
rollout drawers? Do you boil a lot of water
and need a waterspout over the stove? Is
your style modern, traditional, or shabby
chic?
OPEN FLOOR PLAN
If your kitchen is closed off from other
rooms, consider knocking down walls
wherever possible, as an open floor plan
is ideal for traffic flow and keeping family
members together while entertaining,
Naso advises.
“It also has proven to bring better resale
value to your home, should you sell it,” he
adds.
COUNTERS, CABINETS AND
CENTER ISLAND
Counters in white or white with light grey
veining are trending now, as are hues of
grey and blue, notes Naso.
“Quartz takes the place of porous marbles
or Carrara that stain and are not user
friendly when it comes to serving red
wine and leaving lemons on the counter,”
Naso says.
Cabinet colors should match or complement
the counters; choose from flat panels
for a modern look with wood veneer
in high -shine or satin finish. For a more
traditional look, go with Shaker style.
“If you have taller ceilings, having a taller
cabinet displays elegance,” Naso says. “If
your ceilings are soaring, then it’s nice to
have a tall cabinet with some space above
because soffits are dated.”
Naso always encourages adding an island
if the kitchen space can accommodate one.
“It allows for additional storage and doubles
as a place to sit and serve,” he says.
“Three stools look great to the eye and if
you have a smaller island, groups of three
work best.”
FLOORS AND LIGHTING
Naso recommends commercial grade
12-millimeter luxury vinyl tiling for
kitchen floors. The tiling, which comes
in many tones and textures, is practically
indestructible, water resistant, scratchproof,
and comes with whisper technology
underneath, which helps soften the
sound and adds comfort when stood on
for hours.
To light up the room, use a combination of
recessed lights on the ceiling and pendant
lights over the island or a chandelier for a
more luxurious look, Naso advises.
APPLIANCES AND HARDWARE
If appliances are outdated or broken and
need to be replaced, stainless steel is a
good neutral option.
“The more modern kitchens we design
have everything tucked away and hidden
to provide a seamless cabinet facing so all
disappears in a blink of an eye,” Naso says.
Hardware is the jewelry of the room and
should be chosen to add a finishing touch
to cabinets, he adds.
“We choose elegant and understated
combinations of pulls and handles that
complement one another, usually matching
them to the faucet and or dishwasher/
refrigerator, if they don’t have cabinet
doors.”
One more tip from Naso: For greater
efficiency, store utensils in a two-level
stacked drawer.
Luxury vinyl
floor in wideplank
birchwood
finish
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