Cooking With Steam - The Benefits of a Steam Oven
Published February 21, 2017 2428 Views
What's the first thing you think of when I say steam oven?I think if you've even heard of one, you might be inclined to say that it's a great way to cook things like vegetables and rice. You may also be aware that cooking with steam is recognized as a very healthy way to cook because the ingredient...
Concept II + Quartz Plus, True Partners in Rochester, NY
Published January 31, 2017 2272 Views
You have many options when it comes to choosing a countertop for a kitchen or bath remodel. We find that most of our customers are deciding between granite and quartz for a solid surface.In the Rochester, NY area, we have a great resource in Rocky Mountain Granite. The showroom on Basket Road in Web...
Rochester, NY Kitchen & Bath Remodeler Expands with Custom Closets Line
Published January 16, 2017 787 Views
ROCHESTER, NY, January 4, 2017 -- Concept II, known for its innovative kitchen and bath remodeling and tile store in East Rochester has established a new subsidiary focused on the design and installation of custom closets. The custom closet line features custom designed storage solutions for spaces...
Concept II Of Rochester, NY Awarded Best Of Houzz 2017
Published January 6, 2017 772 Views
Over 40 Million Monthly Unique Users Nominated Best Home Building, Remodeling and Design Professionals in North America and Around the World Rochester, NY, January 17, 2017 -- Concept II of Rochester, NY has won "Best Of Design, And Customer Service" on Houzz®, the leading platform for home remode...
Cemented in My Heart - The Use of Cement Tile
Published January 4, 2017 770 Views
Have you ever been to our tile showroom? I only ask because if you haven't shopped for tile lately, or if your experience is limited to the big box chains, you aren't seeing the whole picture in tile. One of the most exciting developments is the supply and demand for encaustic cement t...
Arabesque Affection - The Use of Arabesque Tile Design
Published November 30, 2016 749 Views
arabesque noun ar*a*besque Simple Definition of ARABESQUE: * a complicated decorative design made with many lines that curve and cross each other * a ballet position in which the dancer stands on one foot and holds one arm forward while the other arm and leg are held out...
Wood You Tile? The Use of Porcelain Tile that Looks Like Wood
Published October 26, 2016 815 Views
Have you ever been told to go to "your happy place"? Maybe it was at the end of a yoga class, or in those countdown seconds before a surgery? Well this is image you see above is mine and you are welcome to use it anytime. I look at images of tile all day long, som...
The Devil is in the (Brass) Details - the Resurgence of Brass Hardware
Published October 5, 2016 911 Views
Be still my heart. When this brass hardware re-awakening started showing up on the pages of my favorite design magazines I think I cried a little. We needed this! I know I speak for designers everywhere when I say that everything had gotten a little (read: a lot) cold. ...
Floating Ideas... Floating Bathroom Vanities
Published September 26, 2016 3584 Views
I chose these three bathroom vanity images for the title banner because the first thing I want to do is dispel the myth that wall-hung or floating bathroom vanities are exclusively contemporary. Wildly different in feel, the above bathrooms are all benefiting from the use of wall-mounted b...
The Absence of Color - The Use of White Kitchen Cabinets
Published September 16, 2016 1858 Views
Did you say you want a kitchen design that is guaranteed to endure? While it's true that interior design trends are fluid, and always changing, there is one thing that is ALWAYS going to be popular. White! And since you're looking at a kitchen and bath design blog, we're talking about white kitchen...
Muddie... Designing the Mud Room
Published August 16, 2016 1145 Views
Ahh.... the suburban American mud room, often it's a casual (usually secondary) entryway to the house. It is typically intended as an area to remove and keep footwear and other outerwear. As well as providing storage space through the use of well-designed cabinets, a mud room serves to inc...
Chasing (Tile) Waterfalls
Published June 22, 2016 1174 Views
The waterfall, as a tiled shower design, termed tile waterfall, is a reaction to the widely used horizontal decorative tile band that has been around since Roman Bath houses. Sometimes called a listel (French) or listello (Italian) this has been a go-to way to add color/design/sparkle/motif to...
Spa Day: Pebble Tile for a Spa-Like Bathroom
Published May 31, 2016 998 Views
Maybe it's because I'm going to the beach tomorrow, or maybe it's because we just picked up a great new stone tile dealer, but I've got pebbles on my mind. Is the pebble stone tile look for everyone? No, it definitely is not.But if you're looking for a casual, comfortable, natural bathroom design...
Trends in Kitchen Design
Published May 13, 2016 752 Views
Like fashion, the world of interior design maintains its classics, but is always progressing, often in the form of trends. Concept II kitchen and bath designer, Derek Pino is frequently confronted with the question "what's the latest in kitchen design"? Grey Is The New White Whit...
Walking Around, Looking Down
Published May 4, 2016 556 Views
This drives my family and friends crazy. Everywhere we go, I'm looking at the floors. I could tell you about the tile flooring in every restaurant and store I go to. My brain is noting and cataloging every surface, for better or worse. Of course this goes for hardwoods, carp...
The Evolution of the Niche
Published April 20, 2016 961 Views
Niche, nitch, notch, it doesn't matter how you pronounce it, just make sure you mention it as a "want" when prioritizing your next remodeling project. I can't think of a space that wouldn't be improved by having one. The best examples of the usefulness of a niche i...
Size Matters
Published March 30, 2016 985 Views
Every year the tile manufacturers come to the tile convention trying to outdo each other with bigger, and bigger tile.They are doing it for you, because you made that face, and complained about the grout. (There are other reasons, more on that later.)Let's take a trip, back through time, and look a...
Mighty Marbles
Published March 23, 2016 871 Views
I don't love to clean. I know that some people really enjoy it. I appreciate clean, and the ability to maintain clean, but that has not been a priority so far in my busy life. I accept that daily cleaning is not one of my strong suits, but I can also say that I will be the first to volu...
LIGHTEN(ed) UP(pers) - Exploring the Open Shelf Concept
Published March 3, 2016 1444 Views
Some friends of mine were house hunting last year. They spent every weekend going to open houses, looking for the perfect one. They were really excited about one in particular, it had a good location, two bathrooms, a big garage... let's just say it ticked off all their boxes. The...
Defining Timeless Tile Design
Published February 17, 2016 753 Views
During the last ten years of working in this field, one of my greatest pleasures has been the observation of the evolution of design vocabulary. I've even kept a little notebook of popular words and phrases that clients use to describe what they want. I could probably write a blog on each one... m...
Making Tile Selection Stress-Free
Published February 5, 2016 734 Views
Just one section of the tile showroom at Concept II When people walk into the Concept II tile showroom for the first time, they often have the same thought, "How do you pick?!" I know this is true because as a Tile Designer at Concept II, more often than not, I hear it sai...
Best of Houzz 2016 Award Winner
Published January 15, 2016 585 Views
We are pleased to announce that this past Tuesday, January 12, for the second consecutive year, Concept II was awarded a Best of Houzz 2016 award for Customer Service. This is due in large part to our clients' on-going support and positive feedback.An annual survey and analysis of the Houzz communit...
Concept II's Virtual Showroom Tours
Published January 13, 2016 1132 Views
Get an inside look at the Kitchen, Bath, and Tile Showrooms at Concept II through our new Virtual Showroom Tours. In these virtual tours, you'll see examples of our kitchen and bath design and remodeling work as well as our extensive tile selection; one of the largest tile showrooms in Rochester.The...
On the Leading Edge of Kitchen & Bath Design & Remodeling
Published December 21, 2015 625 Views
Concept II is not an ordinary kitchen and bath design and remodel service. A boutique design firm located in Rochester, NY that began over 40 years ago, we've evolved into a specialty home design and remodeling studio that is focused on our clients' wishes and needs.What sets us apart from the compe...