INSPIRED IDEAS

Accomplished designers share their approaches to kitchen and bath design.

Q: Architect Charles Rennie Mackintosh is a big influence in your designs. How did you become interested in and inspired by his work?

A: One day, a client pointed out that my designs looked like something he had seen I before, and it turned out to be Mackintosh's work. He was one of the few architects who designed everything - down to silverware. His sense of balance and dimension still had decoration but was not as busy as the Victorians. He loved patterns and squares. The Mackintosh signature is a stack of squares. My personal style is very Craftsman-oriented, but also very contemporary. It celebrates the handcrafted tradition. I like natural materials, like natural-colored stone - not polished. Things that I choose have to be practical. Since I love to cook, I know what works in a kitchen. For example, limestone is too porous - and therefore does not work as a countertop.

I make a point of not foisting my own personal style on my clients. I think the designer's job is not to impose his or her own design onto a house, but rather to reflect the owner's style and dreams.