I love glass serving bars. One of our very first projects with Dreamwalls Color Glass was a large serving bar – in bright orange –  and it’s a terrific kitchen solution; with or without color.  The differentiated height of a serving bar helps designate a different task area, defines space, and gives you guests and family an area for congregation; and the sheen of glass still gives the space an open feeling.

Precision Glass & Shower - Kitchen Bar

Glass is incredibly practical for kitchen serving bar areas. Here are some of the reasons why:

1. Guests can set down their drinks without coasters so you can focus on cooking rather than water rings
2. Acidic foods won’t stain it no matter now messy the buffet-style serving might get
3. Clean up after a late night (or after a rushed family breakfast) is so easy
4. There’s never any maintenance with  sealing or waxing

Precision Glass & Shower Curved Serving Bar

Poggenpohl showroom

Curved, straight, elevated or lowered,…what do you think of glass kitchen bars? Any concerns we can address about them, just contact me (Mandy), or any of our sales staff at 1-800-334-7267 and we’ll be happy to review the design with you.

Strawberries and blueberries; the official red and blue berries of North Carolina. Photo Credit: superbwallpapers.com

Friday has finally rolled around again and I’m looking forward to a fun-filled weekend spent with family and friends. May 20th is National Pick Strawberries Day, so on Sunday I plan to visit a local  farm with my mom and pick some delicious strawberries! Strawberries, the first official fruit of spring, are also one of North Carolina’s official state symbols; they are our state’s official red berry. According to the North Carolina Strawberry Association, NC is the 4th largest producer of strawberries in the country and almost all of the ones we grow here are also eaten right here in the state. Farmers here set out around 17,500 plants each fall, which can yield around 20,000-30,000 pounds of strawberries each season!

The season normally lasts 4-6 weeks here in North Carolina. Strawberries begin ripening in early April around the coast, late April in the Piedmont and then finally in late May up in our mountain region. Although our state’s strawberries are some of the best around, the NC Strawberry Project hopes to make them even better! The project is a partnership between students at NC State University and students at Johnson & Wales University. By combining their knowledge and skills, they hope to be able to breed an even better NC strawberry. Sounds good to me!

Yummy color palette! Photo Credit: bestwallpaperr.com

Over the past year, I’ve been eating a lot more fruit, and strawberries have become one of my favorite foods. Not only are strawberries a delicious snack, they’re also very healthy for you. They can boost your immunity to certain diseases, they’re great for your eyes, fight against bad cholesterol, help to regulate blood pressure, and they can even help fight against cancer. (Best Health: 10 Health Benefits of Strawberries)

Oh…and I also love strawberries because they remind me of one of my very favorite songs by (the best band ever) Coldplay, called Strawberry Swing. And on that note, I’ll leave you with this fun video to help make your Friday even better!

Have a great weekend everyone!

Holly

Wet bars are unusual little nooks of the home. That’s exactly what makes them so perfect for using mirror and glass. Let’s face it, when your back is to your guests mixing drinks, it’s so nice to be able to glance up and still be a part of the action. Here are some winning examples of wet bar designs to which I shall raise my glass to those who designed and installed them:

Design by Ashley Whittaker - via Savvy Home Blog

But if you think it’s only a traditional look, think again. In this example, instead of using the mirror behind the bar, the mirrored surfaces come front and center.

via Dezeen blog

With this effect, don’t count out using bold pattern and color to create some visual playfulness. Mirrors can enhance this effect while lightening the mood.

Saddle River, NJ Show House 2010 - via Preppy Player blog

And lastly, use antique mirror in this area to soften reflections while still adding light to what could otherwise be a dark, dreary area. Beautifully done.

Installation by More Than Glass - Mechanicsville, VA

Vintage Shutters and Hardware Dreamwalls Backsplash Installation - Prep

Vintage Shutters & Hardware in Raleigh, NC specializes in top grade finishes and “after-paint” touches that make the difference in a home and a home of distinction; shutters, showers, mirrors and hardware. Recently, Vintage worked on a project that incorporated a custom color of Dreamwalls Color Glass with mirror to create a kitchen backsplash that gives the cook color and views at every turn.

Vintage Shutters and Hardware Dreamwalls Backsplash Installation - Before

The “before” view above shows the wall prepped, the old backsplash adhesive scraped for removal, and shims in place to keep the glass from making direct contact with the granite countertop. The light fixtures aren’t finished at this stage – so they’re dangling in preparation for final installation.

Vintage Shutters and Hardware Dreamwalls Backsplash Installation - After

The “after” view shows the reflective beauty of the finished product and the light that opens up the space thanks to the addition of mirror to act as a “window”. The matching outlet covers allow the eye to smoothly gloss over the expanse of the color-matched Dreamwalls Color Glass in SW #6615 “Peppery”.

Vintage Shutters and Hardware Dreamwalls Backsplash Installation View 2

Great job to everyone involved in this project. While these are only “in-process” pictures, you can see how the spicy color adds a layer of warmth and personality to the kitchen. The way the glass and mirror keep the space light and lively with reflections made me realize that this would be a truly awesome kitchen to enjoy with family and friends without missing a moment of the action.

Vintage Shutters and Hardware Dreamwalls Color Glass Installation

In today’s busy world, it takes everyone in the family helping to keep it on track and on schedule. We all have to pitch in, lend a hand, and pull our weight to keep things from getting frantic. You should expect the same thing from the hardworking surfaces in your home. Low maintenance surfaces that are easy to clean are a must. But is that enough?

Back-painted glass, like Dreamwalls Color Glass, is definitely easy to maintain and clean. The lack of grout makes a surface that doesn’t absorb stains or mildew. The smooth surface allows any food or mess to be cleaned off easily. But glass does something other surfaces do not,….it helps you stay on track and communicate better with your family,…really!

You can write directly on glass with dry erase markers. The markers won’t stain or ghost, and the backsplash is a great place to jot down grocery lists so they’re easy for everyone in the family to see or amend.

Dreamwalls Backpainted Glass Backsplash Grocery List

When backpainted glass is used as cabinet inserts, you can write reminders at eye level, so every time you reach for the coffee or cereal it’s front and center.

Dreamwalls Color Glass Back Painted Glass Message Reminder

But glass is also fantastic for recipes and checklists that can easily be erased or marked through as each step is completed. Wouldn’t it be a good way to have a chore board – so the kids can erase tasks themselves upon completion?

Dreamwalls Backpainted Glass Recipe

But who says it only has to be about tasks, chores, lists or “to-dos”? Back-painted glass can also be used for those little notes of support, gratitude and love that can mean the difference between an early start and a GREAT start to your day. And every family member can use more of that.

Dreamwalls Color Glass Backpainted Glass Note of Support

Photo Credit: Our State Magazine

After days and days of rainy and dreary weather, we’re finally seeing some much needed sunshine in our area–and not a minute too soon. Over the past few days there has been some damaging flooding in the state and our thoughts go out to all those affected by the heavy rainfall.

Even though the weather has been a downer here lately, the theme of this week is a happy one! It’s National Wildflower Week, and just like the welcomed sunshine has brightened up everyone’s mood around here, our state’s highway wildflowers have been brightening up traveler’s rides ever since 1985.

Photo Credit: Wallcoo.net

Each year wildflower beds are planted and maintained in each of our 14 highway divisions by the NC Department of Transportation’s Roadside Environmental Unit.  The DOT is committed to NC highway safety and beautification, & more than 100 different varieties of flowers are planted each year to ensure that the roadways are kept colorful from spring to all the way to fall, even though keeping up a 1,500 acre state “flower garden” isn’t always easy. Each of our regions can pose differing challenges. The coastal highway soil can be too sandy, the mountain region too rocky, but the DOT does a fantastic job of making it all work! In an Our State article, Dan Lee, roadside environmental engineer for the NCDOT says “We soften the blow of what concrete does to the landscape. There’s an art to it.”

Beautiful Black-Oil Sunflowers. Photo Credit: Our State Magazine

And what beautiful art it is! We have everything from black-oil sunflowers along our western roads to Lance-leaf Coreopsis growing in the east. In order to maximize showtime, the flowers are planted in shifts so that there’s always a bright and welcoming feel to our roadways. The wildflowers have become somewhat of an attraction, with tourists calling the DOT to find out the most “flower-heavy” routes.  It’s just another thing that makes North Carolina such a special place to live and visit and we thank the DOT for all of their hard work!

Here’s hoping your weekend is as bright and happy as the flowers!

~ Holly

In yesterday’s post, I shared some thoughts by Jen Renzi, author of “The Art of Tile“. I was lucky enough to attend her talk that she gave at Coverings 2013 entitled, “Trends in Tile: Boundary-Breaking New Looks, New Innovations, and New Materials for Indoors and Out“. There’s some interviews first on this video segment from Coverings, so look for an exerpt of Jen’s talk to begin around the 7:24 mark. You don’t get to see her slides, but you do get the benefit of her unique expertise. It’s definitely worthwhile.

JenRenzi_Coverings2013

“Glass is such a chameleon”

- Jen Renzi (Coverings 2013)

I love that line of truth from the expert in tile. So why was there so little glass at Coverings 2013? I didn’t understand it. But to be fair, Dreamwalls Color Glass didn’t have a booth there. But the overall amount of glass was paltry on the show floor. Why? All I can think of, is as consumers and installers understand glass’ properties more, it will be used with more confidence in the tile industry. As Jen Renzi said after her seminar at Coverings, ultimately right now, there is more limit-pushing in other materials. But the same water jet cutting  and digital printing advancements apply to glass as well, even if in some cases they’re slightly modified from the traditional tile materials of ceramic and porcelain,…and even concrete.

Glass is the perfect material for tile opportunities. It brings in light;….not just light penetration into the tile, but also brings it into the room overall; adding dimension like no other material can.

• Backpainted glass is able to be painted custom colors to match any cut into custom sizes.
• Backpainted glass can be custom cut into new, unique shapes using water-jet cutting technology.
• Back-painted glass happily adapts to large format and panel sizes. Your design, suited for your project.

But there was some glass shown at Coverings.  Below are a few really lovely glass opportunities at Coverings that used glass in unique ways:

T. Davlin

This craftsman focused on using real precious metals transfered to glass for a glass module like none other.

TDavlin_OroGlass

Glass Tech Surfaces:

Eco awareness is still going strong, and these translucent glass panels are made of 90% recycled materials, in a variety of finishes that seem to glow when backlit. Lovely.

GlassTechSurfaces_RecycledGlassTransluentSlabs

Charisma Tiles:

Mixing patterned, glossy glass, and matte glass pieces within one mosaic sheet made for a mosaic with more interest than the ordinary sheet found at the local home improvement center.

CharismaTiles_Symbol_Glossy

Everstone:

Showcased how water jet cutting capabilities allow glass pieces to fit together like refined puzzle pieces. Mixing matte, and shiny, marble and glass all within the same focal wall creates amazing visual interest.

Everstone_BloomGlass Mosaic

And 3-D formed glass,…that was backpainted for beautiful effects.

Everstone_Passion