Construction And Interior

Microwave ovens by Samsung, LG and Sharp that do more than one job For people struggling with the space crunch in small kitchens, multipurpose appliances can come in handy. They do more than one job, eliminating your need for other appliances, and they take up just a single spot in your limited square footage. Savvy! These three multipurpose microwave ovens from Samsung, LG and Sharp do just that. Besides reheating food, they also grill, roast and even bake! We took them for a test run to see if they get to earn a spot on your kitchen countertop. LG 25L Smart Inverter Microwave Oven (MH6565DIS) Recommended retail price : $399 Capacity : 25L Cooking functions we tried: Grill-Combi, Roast and Defrost-and-Cook The grill-combi function on the Smart Inverter allows us to cook and grill our food in just a single setting. We did chicken wings, which came out a tad over-grilled because we over-estimated the time needed to cook them. However, they were cooked thoroughly with a brown c...

Artist Katy Garry’s beach house renovation in Long Island includes a garage conversion for lounging “ After ” photos by Lena Yaremenko for Sweeten My Sweeten Story  | Sweeten homeowner Katy A house flood sets off a new start Sometimes you can spin a disaster into an opportunity. That’s what happened with Hildreth Place, our house in the Hamptons. We used a devastating flood as a prompt to create a happy, modern home where family and friends can meet.  Hildreth Place has been in the Garry family for more than 40 years, and my husband and I have owned it for 10. The house is in Hampton Bays, New York, 50 yards from Meschutt Beach, where families gather to swim in the bay and live music plays every night at Tiki Joes. The house was originally built in 1970 , in a traditional Cape style. We have long used it with family, shared it with friends, and also rented it . Two years ago, a pipe froze and burst. After discovering eight feet of water in our basement, ...

For those who cook often, an open concept kitchen might seem like a really bad idea. The grease and smells—made worse if you like frying fish or making your own sambal—permeating the rest of your home doesn’t seem like a good trade-off for the popular open kitchen. So for practicality’s sake, you decide to go with an enclosed one. But if you think an enclosed kitchen is only second best, you might want to think again. These beautiful enclosed kitchens below show that closed concept isn’t always an inferior choice, and in most instances, it offers the functionality needed in a hardworking kitchen PLUS the added bonus of being easy on the eye. Modern dark grey cabinets juxtaposed against the rustic faux brick backsplash, the latter offering a certain country charm to warm up this cooking space. The highlight of this enclosed kitchen? The cabinet-matching sliding doors that conceal the service yard behind. 2. Mid-century mood The warm medium-toned wood cabinets (part of which featu...