Kathy Stillwell is gushing, just a little. Who can blame her? She’s just overseen Harway Supply, Inc., under the direction of Carla Throndson, Certified Kitchen Designer (CKD), execute the final touches on her brand new, state-ofthe- art kitchen and entertainment area in her renovated and expanded Texas home. Kathy and Gary Stillwell added 6,000 square feet to their living space, where they entertain their large family and friends regularly. “We had a small, inefficient kitchen,” says Stillwell, “and my brother and I love to cook for large groups of 16 or more.” Stillwell also started a gourmet cooking club for ‘the girls’, so the need for a new and improved kitchen was looming. “We even added a dining hall,” Stillwell points out.

“The kitchen,” explains Stillwell, “has four, turbo-chef commercial, speed-cook Wolf ovens, where a rack of lamb is done to perfection in four and a half minutes, and a 12-pound turkey only takes twenty-five. “ Because the Stillwells are hotel owners, Kathy Stillwell always had her eye on the expansive commercial ovens in the hotel kitchens. “Now, people can have them in their homes because Harway has made what was once only sold commercially available to all its clients.” The ovens are computer generated convection, electric and microwave combinations that incorporate fans to generate computer-operated power. The units are computerized allowing the systems the ability to determine what elements to use while cooking, delivering regulated temperatures resulting in even cooking. They also include warming drawers, a must for keeping prepared foods ready for serving. Speed-cook ovens are currently being made by most manufacturers from the high-end Turbo- Chef to the Advantium offered by General Electric.

Stillwell says that the Harway team, with Throndson at the helm, totally understood the concept of usage, not just aesthetics. The kitchen, with an adjoining hearth room complete with a bar area, was designed with a dramatic cooking wall as the focal point, and an expansive nine foot wide oven hood paired with a 60” Wolf Professional range serves as the centerpiece in the kitchen. Ranges as centerpieces are au courant, and are being designed as such. In modern or contemporary spaces, the range hood has become more and more sculptural and homeowners order them in custom colors to further enhance the drama of a kitchen’s look. In traditional kitchens, the hood is the focal point and becomes the hearth, effectively adding warmth and interest.

Having two dishwashers is another must-have in an efficient kitchen today. Stillwell’s kitchen boasts two Miele dishwashers, each with three racks, the third one specifically designed for china, crystal and sterling. Having two sinks in a kitchen is also becoming standard, as one can be used for prep work, the other for cleanup. “Creating zones and workstations that differentiate tasks helps families and friends cook together more easily,” explains Throndson. “A typical kitchen could include a baking station, a coffee station, a computer workstation, the cooking wall, the clean-up area, and the butler’s pantry or dirty kitchen. A butler’s pantry might connect the kitchen and pantry to the dining room, thus creating a staging area for serving and entertaining.” Designing with entertaining in mind is key in kitchen and dining area layouts. SubZero refrigerators with paneled doors are constructed to give the illusion of oversized furniture, and bottom drawers as freezers are back in fashion. Built in icemakers and trash compacters hidden within cabinets add to a streamlined, less cluttered look.

Mixing various types of metal and materials is another current kitchen design trend. Manmade materials with quartz, like Caesarstone, Silestone and Cambria, are top countertop choices, as they are easy to care for and come in a wide variety of colors and matte finishes that create a placid horizontal surface. The use of one of a kind tile work by local artisans is an attractive, personalizing feature, and stainless steel, carbon and even platinum appliances, are becoming more common, as are unique finishes for hardware. Wood is still the most popular flooring style for kitchen owners, but largesized tile flooring also has some popularity today, according to Throndson.

Since the kitchen is typically a favorite gathering place for friends and family at all times of day or night, it’s becoming common to make that place more like a living space and less institutional and cold. Cathy Stillwell points out, though aesthetics are important, nothing should take the place of common sense and smart, utilitarian design when there’s usually more than one person serving as chief cook and bottle washer in today’s modern kitchens!

Learn more about Wolf appliances at www.wolfappliances.com and visit www.harwaykitchendesign.com to learn about current trends in modern kitchens and different manufacturers of the most state of the art kitchen accoutrement.