What's Cooking in the Kitchen?

By Rick Murnane
Designer
Interprint, Inc.

Contemporary kitchens are all about sleek functionality, but all the ergonomics and high-tech appliances need to be matched with warm, familiar, recognizable surfaces. We're not saying the surfaces have to be real stone or wood, however. Obviously, laminates have been at home in the kitchen for decades now. But even when the real thing is there, laminate has a part to play. Real wood cabinetry looks great when paired with a classic abstract laminate design, or else one which adds some additional natural texture to the decor, be it a granite-look or an industrial metal effect. Similarly, bright metal surfaces look terrific when combined with durable laminate woodgrains, especially when done up in dark, contrasting colors. Here are just two of countless possible combinations, illustrated by four of IP's designs.

This pairing combines Interprint's Shagbark Hickory, a pore-filled domestic species, with our Cauldron design, an abstract that can be reminiscent of either a deep dark slate or a heat-treated or oxidized metal. In this version, the counter and cabinet woodgrain is colored with a mid-century limed effect, and is matched with a dramatically rich dark countertop.

This combination finds our Heirloom Maple, a natural with some knots and obvious planking left in, paired with Interprint's Texmetal abstract, an elegantly simple design evocative of hammered or rippled metals. Here we've colored the wood as a saturated, perhaps exotic, colorway, while keeping the metallic surface bright and silvery.