Visiting Danver Stainless Steel Cabinetry at KBIS 2011
19 May 2011
“Come the Revolution”
It has been my experience that outdoor kitchens range in size-and budget-from the very modest to the holy-smokes-are-you-kidding-me! The latter, by the bye, is featured at the top of this blog. All of the pictures in today’s blog, though, are courtesy of the manufacturer, namely Danver Stainless Steel Cabinetry, one of the many companies I was privileged to meet while at KBIS. Over the last ten years they have become an industry trendsetter, in large part, I think, because they have consciously posited themselves on the cutting edge of outdoor kitchen design. The field they are working in is not just outdoor living, but outdoor living as it has evolved.
It started as just that, simple outdoor living, which can really be not much more than some outdoor furniture. Well, show me someone who’s got some chairs outdoors, and I’m sure to sure to show you someone who has, at an absolute minimum, a barbecue, and from that it’s just a step to outdoor kitchens. And now we are seeing a move towards complete outdoor rooms, and Danver is there to lead the way.
One of the changes that Danver has noticed is a shift from the traditional barbecue island to one of those glorious setups of modular cabinets inside a three-sided stone surround, not unlike the one at the top of this blog. Danver cites that as one of the biggest changes in recent years. People have come to think of their yards as outdoor living and entertainment centers. In looking at what Danver has done with outdoor living areas in recent years I’m not sure which came first, their cabinetry or the demand for it, but it is very much a fact that what they have developed at Danver brings to these areas luxury, convenience and, surprisingly, an element of cost effectiveness.
In the past people designing elaborate outdoor kitchens relied heavily on masonry, but the bulk of a Danver outdoor kitchen is their own stainless steel cabinetry, which requires much less time on site because so much of it is prefabricated. And time is always money, both when the structure is built and when Nature, if it can, goes to work on what has been built.
That brings me to the second picture in this blog, because what looks like a series of wood cabinets is, instead, stainless steel cabinets from Danver which have been given one of several painted finishes available to consumers. All of their products are stainless steel, which makes them virtually maintenance free and the ultimate freedom. Install them once. and enjoy!
The cabinets themselves range from 12 to 48 inches wide, and they even have a line of wall cabinets for an added air of luxury in one’s backyard. They also have what they call an “easy-alignment” design system which allows quick, precise installation with less labor than typical indoor cabinetry-and this despite the fact that it’s stainless steel! It’s because each cabinet stands alone, but has quick connect features like access holes in key locations for plumbing and electrical installation.
But the other thing-the main thing-is that all of this is a far cry from the backyard I grew up with. This is not just a hammock under a tree now; it’s the lap of luxury, an outdoor living space that is just that. A place where you can store everything that is needed for your backyard entertainment, making it better for both guests and hosts, as the entertainees (today’s new word; you cannot entertain without people to entertain, the entertainees) get a chance to see something more than you just running back and forth with things, which sadly, has always been the way of it when we entertain outdoors. By the time I finally sit down to eat, everyone else already has! Outdoor living areas like these don’t make a difference as much as they make a revolution.
Joseph
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2 Responses to “Visiting Danver Stainless Steel Cabinetry at KBIS 2011”
May 19th, 2011 at 8:47 AM
Great looking kitchens! I would have never known from the picture that the “wood” cabinets were actually painted stainless steel. Very interesting.
May 23rd, 2011 at 11:38 AM
Wow! I never though stainless would look so good! It’s refreshing to see new and innovative ways to transform a kitchen. Thanks for the post.