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Designing A Wine-Inspired Kitchen

by on Aug 26, 2018

This post is sponsored by BLANCO. Pictured here: The BLANCO EMPRESSA Bridge faucet

There’s a lot happening in kitchen design these days, and everything from countertops to cabinetry to faucets are at your fingertips. While I love trendy kitchens, what I appreciate even more is a timeless kitchen that feels like the people who use it.

We don’t often think of kitchens as having a “lived in” feel, but I think they should, and I’m especially smitten when they do. One of the best ways to achieve the look – even with a brand-new state-of-the-art-bells-and-whistles kitchen is to focus on the details of the small finishes. Faucets are a perfect place to do this, and I recently found a gorgeous line that excels in this kind of design.

BLANCO has a new line of faucets inspired by vintage European wine presses – which are completely classic and impressive. The line is called EMPRESSA, and the faucets it features are especially gorgeous because they work with almost any style and strike a perfect balance between vintage feel and a modern function.

While these faucets would be a great choice for a bar, I love thinking about how I’d incorporate them into a kitchen. Here are some inspiration rooms paired with the faucets I love the most from the Empressa line. 

The Bridge Faucet

Blanco Empressa Bridge Faucet
BLANCO EMPRESSA Bridge Faucet

A farmhouse-style kitchen highlights the best of the style. It’s inviting and cozy, and layered with a variety of different styles, making it feel eclectic and homey. The photo at right would make the perfect home for the BLANCO EMPRESSA Bridge faucet because of its traditional look and clean lines. I love it in the polished nickel finish because it’s warm and bright, and the bridge gives it vintage feel, but the pull-down faucet head is modern magic.  

Farmhouse Kitchen

Photo: HGTV

The Bar Faucet

Blanco Empressa Bar Faucet
BLANCO EMPRESSA  Bar Faucet

This faucet’s sleek profile would be perfect as part of a sweet wet bar tucked into a kitchen nook; the perfect place to store wine and spirits.

I love the bar nook design because it’s tucked away and unassuming, yet gorgeously accented with gray tiles, glass shelving, a narrow sink space and artwork.  

The BLANCO EMPRESSA Bar Faucet would be right at home in this bar nook because it has a low profile that’s packed with high-function (like a pull down head with dual spray that comes in several finishes).

Wet Bar

Photo: Eric Piasecki 

A Modern Wine-Inspired Kitchen in the home

Above – the BLANCO EMPRESSA pull-down faucet, with a dual-spray head, makes cleaning and rinsing dishes a breeze.

The Semi-Professional Kitchen Faucet

Blanco Empressa Semi-Professional Faucet
BLANCO EMPRESSA Semi-Professional Faucet

I’d place the Semi-Professional faucet in a space that’s sleek and clean, with warm wood cabinetry and furniture to make it feel unexpected, personal, and styled.

The BLANCO EMPRESSA Semi-Professional faucet would fit seamlessly into this space because it’s sleek and sculptural. It comes in four different finishes, each one highlighting that gorgeous black arm.

Modern Kitchen

Photo: Luc Remond

A white kitchen island sink with a black no touch faucet in a skyscraper dining room.

Pairing Kitchen Accessories for Wine Lovers

One of the most interesting parts BLANCO’s new line of faucets is the wine press inspiration. When working a theme into your design, it’s important to keep subtlety in mind. I think it’s fun to think about some wine details and accessories that could be worked into any kitchen to play on the wine inspiration. Here are some of my favorite accessories for the wine-lover’s kitchen:

Wine Accessories for the Kitchen
Marble Chiller / Geo Wine Charms / Wooden Stoppers / Brass Corkscrew / Herringbone Wine Rack / Decanter

How to Incorporate Your Passion for Wine Into Your Kitchen

Wine isn’t just a complement to a good meal. For many, it’s a full blown passion that evolves over time, as you develop your palate and learn the ins and outs of wine making and its history.

If you’re really serious about wine, you’re going to want a wine fridge in your kitchen. These days, you can get a wine fridge in almost any size or configuration. A freestanding wine cooler works well for spaces that weren’t designed with one in mind. But if you’re planning a kitchen remodel, consider building a wine chiller into the design.

A wine rack is another feature you may want to consider adding. While the bulk of your best bottles may be stored in a cellar, out of sight, it’s nice to have quick and easy access to bottles you’ll be cycling through regularly. 

Here’s a rustic-leaning table-top wine rack that could pair well with the EMPRESSA BRIDGE faucet (without going too heavy on the farmhouse vibe)

Bottles of wine set up in vee shaped wooden holders.

Source: Wayfair 

Neat kitchen sink with chrome handles and wooden sink

EMPRESSA BRIDGE 

This simple, contemporary wine rack design is perfectly subtle. It’d go nicely with the EMPRESSA SEMI-PROFESSIONAL faucet:

A well lit kitchen area with white walls.

Source: Behance 

A black and silver kitchen sink faucet in front of a sunny window.

EMPRESSA SEMI-PROFESSIONAL 

Need even more space for your bottles? Consider adding a clever toe-kick wine bottle storage drawer, like this one:

The bottom drawer of a long white dresser is full of wine bottles.

Wine-Inspired Colors for Your Kitchen Remodel

Want wine on your walls (not literally!)? Pantone has you covered with their color called “English Sparkling”:

A person holding a card with a wine glass cut out of it.

Like something a little bolder? Here’s a nice, deep, red-wine-inspired palette from Sherwin-Williams:

A kitchen nook with red and purple colors.

Wall Decor Ideas for a Wine-Inspired Kitchen

Don’t let the theme lead you astray here, folks! Just because you want to incorporate wine, doesn’t mean you have to get too cheesy! (Get it? Cheese? Wine? Wine & Cheese?)

Wine-themed wall decor triggers visions of horrible stock images and bad thrift-store oil paintings of grapes. Just don’t go there, ok?

You can key in on the perfect wine note without going overboard. For example, I love this vintage poster for a sleek, modern kitchen:

Small wooden table pressed up against a white while with a black picture frame hanging over top of it.

These wine press patent diagram posters would complement a more traditional styled space:

Six black and white abstract drawings hang on a wall.

Or, if you’re into something really classic, go for one of the old masters, like this Vermeer:

johannes vermeer paintings in the room

Learn more about the BLANCO EMPRESSA line of kitchen faucets:

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of BLANCO. The opinions and text are all mine.