It’s All About the Crema
Cappuccino Conquers the World
Monday, March 17, 2008
European kitchens have sprouted a new appliance. The cappuccino machine. Whether in city condominiums or farmhouses, grand villas or modest apartments, there’s a cappuccino maker on the counter.
Germany, Switzerland and Austria have really embraced the tradition. And even though the French have their own coffee traditions, they’ve also joined in. But unlike Italians, everyone drinks cappuccino throughout the day, not just in the morning.
Perhaps it’s part of globalization, or maybe it’s just all those George Clooney commercials-- his ads for a particular brand of espresso are ubiquitous in Europe. The Clooney coffee is a ready-to-brew version—one need only insert a small packet into the machine and presto, fresh espresso. The downside is that only that brand of coffee can be used. If you want to try a different bean or a different roast from what is offered, you’ll have to buy a different machine.
But not to worry, there are plenty to choose from!
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Egging Them On
Easter Traditions Go Oval
Monday, March 10, 2008
Have you put up your Easter tree yet?
German and other European families are visiting the Easter markets in town squares, shopping for goodies: twig baskets with feathered chicks hiding among daffodils and tulips; small wreaths holding greenery, tiny eggs and black speckled hens with bright red combs; and, of course, edible bunnies.
But the star of the show is the egg. Most families paint eggs at home, especially the children, but eggs of all sorts are available at the markets and in stores. One store in Salzburg specializes in Easter eggs—shoppers can choose from a mind-boggling assortment of offerings in two rooms. Sophisticated, traditional, glittery, appliqued, painted, patterned, freestyle, multicolored or painted to a theme, there are eggs to please everyone, each with a colored ribbon, ready to hang.
The “trees” themselves are usually small interestingly shaped twigs or some sort of catkin-bearing tree. You’ll see Easter trees in homes, bank lobbies, on stoops and in shop windows. In other words, everywhere. It’s a delightful tradition and one that deserves to travel!
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Fire in the Hole
Where You Never Expected It
Sunday, March 02, 2008
Don’t have a chimney? Have one chimney but want two fireplaces. More? No problem.
The Concept line from Planika will have flames dancing in any room you like. The secret is in an eco-friendly fuel based on ethyl alcohol. It’s smokeless and odor-free. Only water vapour and carbon dioxide are emitted - in proportions similar to those contained in the air exhaled from the lungs.
You can put a fire in your coffee table, in a wall unit, on the wall or in a sculptural form. The Coffee Fire Long is a sleek coffee table with aluminum legs into which is set a cyliner for your fire.
It’s easy to set up—the company promises that within 10 minutes, you’ll have a fire blazing!
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A Roll in the Hay
Spas Find a New Medium
Friday, February 22, 2008
Europeans are hitting the hay in greater numbers as the popularity of the “hay cure” increases.
Found most prominently in the Alpine regions, the hay cure makes use of a plentiful local resource—the flower and herb-filled grass that grows on the surrounding Alpine meadows. The hay comes from meadows between 900 and 1000 meters (it’s the same hay that the famed Alpine milk cows eat in winter—a dried version of the fresh grass and plants they graze on throughout the summer.)
These high meadows are filled with wild herbs and flowers—on average there are 85 different medicinal herbs in one square meter of meadow! The ground cannot be chemically fertilized and modern harvesting technology is banned, largely because the machines cut the grass too short and the little plants can’t grow tall enough to seed. So farmers manually reap the hay with scythes.
Light and airy, medium green in color with a marvelous aroma, the hay is sewn into natural linen cloths. The spa guest wraps herself in the cloths while moist warm air frees the aromatic oils in the hay that are absorbed through the skin. And the aromatherapy from the hay is not only good for breathing problems, but is said to be helpful with depression.
In any case, it smells wonderful and feels wonderful. No wonder European spas are making hay!
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Localizing the French Kitchen
The French Way
Sunday, February 17, 2008
As promised, more on French kitchens. While contemporary reigns, you’ll find regional influences widespread. In Provence, you see lots of stone, both the material and the color, primarily a honey-colored limestone. In Alsace and Savoie, with ample forests, you’ll see wood for walls, floors and cabinets. In Brittany, stone again, but with the cooler colors prevalent in the region, including a silvery granite. Each region maintains the tradition of using local materials to create a unique and recognizable style.
Translating this approach to the Central Coast, means that even though we might have a contemporary, or Tuscan or Mission kitchen, we can localize it. Our local limestone resembles the stone of Provence, and would add a wonderfully warm accent to a kitchen—perhaps a backsplash, an accent around an archway or in a wall or floor. Oak, although not plentiful, is common on the Central Coast, so oak cabinets or accents would reflect the materials of our region. Iron cut-work celebrating our ranching heritage, a set of olivewood spoons or other kitchen accoutrements made from old vines would create a sense of place.
The French sense of style relies on confidence. Take a page from that stylebook and bring the region into your home in your own way!
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New Europe
Contemporary Style Rules
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Our reports for the next few months will be coming from France, Switzerland, Germany and Italy. The Dream Spaces editorial department spares no expense to bring the latest in home and lifestyle trends to the Central Coast. Well, okay, the editor is in Europe, so let’s make hay while the sun shines.
The twice-yearly sales are on in France until the end of next week. And the French are shopping! Even big-ticket items like entire kitchens are on sale, with up to 70% off. Kitchen design in France, as in most of Europe, tends toward contemporary (with a few regional exceptions).
Yet even though the lush spreads in design magazines show unadulterated surfaces and kitchens where surgery could safely be performed, in people’s homes, kitchens are invariably warm and welcoming. Regional influences work their way in, from the olive green and yellow pots of Provence to the linen and red color scheme of Alsace. And of course, everything is designed to maximize space, with innovative drawer arrangements, pull-out pantries, under-cabinet utilization and built-in appliances. Cooktops are computer-controlled electric (I confess that while visiting a friend in Switzerland, it took me a minute to figure out how to work, i.e., program, the stove!) Unlike American cooktops, European models have for many years used a seamless heating system from low to high, so that it’s possible to simmer a sauce on a very low heat with superb control.
You’ll still see stainless steel, but less so on refrigerators and dishwashers, where facing material is used to blend these with cabinets. Muted marble countertops are common and again, everything is designed for ease of cleanup, with no joins or overlapping edges where debris can get trapped. Contemporary design is as prized for its functionality as its style.
More on kitchens in our next post.
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