By Donna Heiderstadt
As anticipation grows for KBIS 2023 in Las Vegas, kicking off in celebratory style with The Kitchen & Bath Design + Industry Awards, the top three finalists in the Large Kitchen category have been chosen. The Awards show will be the start of NKBA’s year-long 60th Anniversary Celebration and will feature a BIG surprise celebrity guest that will kick off our Opening Party, which directly follows the Design Awards.
The winning projects – whose designers will receive $5,000 for first place, $2,500 for second, and $1,000 for third — won’t be revealed until the awards ceremony on January 30, in the Encore Hotel’s ballroom at the Wynn Las Vegas. However, we want to celebrate the top three designs for kitchen spaces over 300 square feet. So read on to get a sneak peek at the top three finalists for the Large Kitchen category!
Marla Nazzicone, Marla Nazzicone Design Inc., King City, Ontario: “Oakville Kitchen”
As a self-described “visionary with a strong point of view and a contagious passion for interior design,” Marla Nazzicone recognizes that clients require individual solutions. “The best designers know how to marry beauty and practicality, recognizing the importance in the balance,” explains the designer and principal of King City, Ontario-based Marla Nazzicone Design Inc. “Luxury and attractiveness are crucial in any space, but if your home isn’t practical for you and your lifestyle needs, then none of that matters.”
For “Oakville Kitchen,” an integral space in a new custom build in Oakville, Ontario, Marla discovered that the home’s owners had differing visions: One preferred traditional and opulent, while the other tended towards the simplicity of modern Scandinavian design. According to Marla, this “positive friction” resulted in a unique Art Deco-modern style achieved using luxurious materials that included walnut and brass cabinets in sleek, modern profiles with a La Cornue CornuFé range and La Cornue brass hood providing a bold focal point. For the countertops, black-and-gold leathered Belvedere granite used on the island and servery contrasts with the light Arebescato marble used for the perimeters and pantry. The result is modern luxury, “the perfect contiguity of opulence and grandeur with simplicity and modernity,” Marla says.
Lori Kurnitsky, Bluebell Kitchens, Wayne, PA: “Villanova Urban Elements”
When consulting with a client on a design, Lori Kurnitsky, a senior project designer at Bluebell Kitchens, based in Wayne, PA, approaches the project with balance in mind, giving equal weight to pleasing aesthetics, safety, and function. So, when a client in Villanova, PA, hired Lori to update the look and feel of her kitchen to match the rest of the recently renovated house, the Drexel University-trained designer focused on achieving harmony while also giving her client a visually impressive space. “While the two-story vaulted ceiling over part of the kitchen created a challenge, it wound up complementing the smaller, impactful details that were layered in, creating a beautiful statement space for the house,” she says.
The centerpiece of the design, “Villanova Urban Elements,” is custom cabinetry in contrasting natural and dark-stain finishes, paired with Stone Tech countertops displaying bold veining detail and textural backsplash tile, and all behind a streamlined Wolf cooktop. All other appliances — an oven, microwave, and warming drawer by Wolf, a Sub-Zero refrigerator, and a Cove dishwasher — are seamlessly integrated into the cabinetry, while a Franke undermount sink, Brizo faucet and industrial-inspired pendants complete the kitchen’s sophisticated, urban-inspired look.
Lori Kurnitsky, Bluebell Kitchens, Wayne, PA: “Black Tie Affair”
The senior project designer at Bluebell Kitchens, Lori Kurnitsky, has been busy with large kitchen remodels, including her “Black Tie Affair” design for a client in Moorestown, NJ. With this particular project, she says the goals were to “create a space that more closely aligned with the client’s style and to optimize the space for both everyday function and entertainment.” The problem? The kitchen area is interrupted by a primary path of egress to the rest of the home.
The solution was to create a comfortable, functional kitchen on one side of the egress and an entertainment area on the other. “This allowed the space to feel more intimate and scaled-down,” Lori explains, “while keeping it large enough to entertain guests.” The design again relied on Bluebell Kitchens’ custom wood cabinetry, but this time in a flat, modern finish with bold brass-and-leather pulls and Stone Tech countertops in Belvedere leathered quartzite, topped off with a Blanco sink and Brizo faucet. Appliances include a Wolf cooktop and microwave, GE Monogram side-by-side ovens (plus a Monogram Hearth pizza oven), a Sub-Zero refrigerator, and a Cove dishwasher. Brass bar stools and striking modern fixtures over the two large waterfall-edge islands complete the polished, contemporary design.
Winning Announcements Coming Soon
The Kitchen & Bath Design + Industry Award winners for each category will be announced on January 30th at KBIS 2023. Shaping up to be an event not to be missed, the first, second, and third place winners will be formally announced in each of the six categories, as well as awards for Best Overall Kitchen, Best Overall Bath, and the new People’s Pick award. Over $100,000 will be awarded in total. If you cannot attend, check our newsfeed to read all about it. The award show will be the start of NKBA’s year-long 60th Anniversary Celebration and will feature a BIG surprise celebrity guest that will kick off our Opening Party, which directly follows the Design Awards.
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