Sometimes design inspiration is found where you'd least expect it. Sure, the Home Depot is
the destination for all things home, but it's doubtful you'd draw inspiration on your interior decor from the aisles of the local hardware store. While choosing paint colors for a clients kitchen last week, we found ourselves chatting about the myriad of counter top choices while waiting for our paint. My client is a busy woman, loves to cook for her large family and considers her design aesthetic to be clean, simple and modern. She hates granite, doesn't want Corian and thinks tile is pretty bile. Then, right there under our noses, came my best selling point. I had mentioned the idea of stainless steel counter tops in part of the kitchen, but she worried her kids would destroy them before the paint on the walls dried. As the Home Depot employee slammed our paint cans onto the counter in front of us, It proved how durable the material is...if it can withstand the employees of the paint department and a very rough public, then certainly it could shine in her kitchen! Stainless steel is for more economical than most counter materials, is incredibly easy to work with and lasts forever! While I wouldn't recommend a kitchen designed entirely of stainless steel (unless you live in a submarine or aboard the Star Trek Enterprise), small applications make a huge impact!
QUICK TIP: If you are thinking of using Stainless Steel but afraid to commit, purchase a small piece of it and use it on an island or as a chopping block. Spill wine on it, rough it up a bit and see how it takes a beating but keeps on looking beautiful! Also, ever had the smell of garlic stuck on your fingers for days? Simply rub your fingers on anything stainless and the smell goes away instantly!
