Like many modernists on a budget I am dreaming of four Bertoia stools for my kitchen island but given the price tag, I’ve found new favorites to consider–those under $200. That was the general search criteria but the kitchen also has some decorative factors to consider: butter-cream walls, stainless-steel appliances, white island base and honey-colored wood in the floors, cabinets, and butcher block. That palette is pretty neutral but in picking these counter stools, the question is: What is the best element to pick up on and how much we want to buck the style of this traditional kitchen.
This is the kitchen the counter stools will reside in and above is one of the styles in the running. From West Elm, its the most modern of the group but the feminine lines soften the look. The stainless steel and darker wood would also blend nicely with the kitchens materials.
Scoop Back Counter Stool, $149; WestElm.com
Though the kitchen has enough wood for one room, this stool in a darker brown could create a nice contrast with the floors and cabinets honey tones. It has a Danish modern quality about it that would give the kitchen a subtle edge.
Madison stool, $199; Crate and Barrel (just went off-line, available in select stores)
No wood involved, aluminum chairs will tap into the look of the kitchens one modern feature: the appliances. Rather than trying to match with the island, I like that this option reaches out to the look of the kitchen as a whole.
Delta Counter Stool, $139; CrateandBarrel.com.
I’d love your help in narrowing the choices down but get your say in soon, I’m sick of standing.
Like many an editor, contractor, and faucet salesman, I spent last weekend in Chicago at K/BIS (the premier Kitchen and Bath Trade Show in the U.S.). I saw so many amazing water-conserving toilets, multi-head showers, and plasma-screened refrigerators–and I’ll tell you about those–but first, I have to tell you about the most gorgeous tiles I saw at 
I can’t even imagine the time that designer Robert Kuo’s team puts into chiseling these stone panel designs, but whatever the man-hour . . . it was worth it. With the kind of detail in the Kuo Carved Collection, one ledge, one threshold, would make a whole house.
I don’t really know what to say except, I want this wall in my house. This mosaic curtain of teardrop leaves by Ruth Greenberg is the perfect balance of timeless and modern.
