Learn about this week’s featured Student Design Competition winner. By Loren Kessell
The NKBA Student Design Competition gives student members the opportunity to flex their creative muscles and create spaces that are both beautiful and functional. The 2020-2021 competition, sponsored by Fisher & Paykel, featured the challenge of blending cultures in an Upstate New York cottage for a fictional couple named Owen and Deepa. Each week we’ll highlight one of the winners.
Elma Kim, a student at Cañada College, created a warm and charming kitchen that is combined with the dining room and accessible to the entire family when their elderly parents visit. Kim emulated the energy of India with burnished copper, terra cotta floors and peacock blue lower cabinets.
Submissions for this year’s Student Design Competition are open through Monday, June 6. Click here to submit >
There is a baking station for Deepa featuring a Fisher & Paykel 5-burner dual fuel range with a double oven, a griddle for Owen and a microwave below the counter within easy reach. Wide walkways and work aisles and an expandable dining table are some of the additions that cater to the family’s needs.
Accessibility and ease of use were the goals during space planning. Kim designed the space so that the kitchen was at the front of the house with the dining table toward the back closest to the deck side so any food prepared outside could be easily brought to the table. An appliance garage means no more hauling larger appliances like the stand mixer up and down.
Kim’s space also features sustainable elements including:
- Energy efficient LED lighting.
- French doors and enlarged windows for natural light.
- Deck flooring made from reclaimed wood.
- Kitchen Cabinetry Manufacturers Association, Environmental Stewardship Program (KCMA ESP)-certified cabinetry.
Submissions for the 2021-2022 Student Design Competition are open, and students must submit their projects here by Monday, June 6.
