Sinkology: January 2020

Friday, January 31, 2020

We Care About Every Family’s Kitchen

At Sinkology, we are on a mission to make unique, high-quality kitchen, bath and home décor products that inspire real people to find beauty in their homes and lives. We believe in what we do and stand by every product we produce. In fact, we back all of the work we do with the Sinkology Everyday Promise.

This promise to our customers goes beyond the lifetime guarantee that we offer on every product. It extends to our system of values that we uphold within our Sinkology team as well as within every interaction with our customers and throughout our greater community. This is why we developed Sinkology Cares: a giveback program that enables our products and our brand to impact our neighbors in need.

About the Sinkology Cares Giveback Program

The Sinkology Cares Giveback Program is dedicated to providing care to families and organizations that align with our mission and vision, which is why we’ve partnered with Community Housing Solutions, a nonprofit organization that brings home repairs to homeowners. This giveback program provides the resources needed, from materials to interior design, to help bring a much-needed kitchen to low-income families. This in turn saves Community Housing Solutions time and money while bringing a beautifully designed, fully functioning kitchen to those who need it most.

It is our vision to change the lives of families in need in the best way we know how: creating the heart of the home—the kitchen—with high-quality, beautiful products and thoughtful design. We’re partnering with industry experts, like our amazing 2019-2020 Cares Designer, Janna Allbritton of @YellowPrairieInteriors, to create each kitchen design for Community Housing Solutions. Our Sinkology sinks are set in countertops by Hardwood Reflections, are surrounded by cabinets by American Woodmark Hampton Bay Collection and are completed with faucets by Pfister. These partners, and many more, help us make each family’s kitchen dreams a reality.

The Fall 2020 Sinkology Cares Interior Designer

The Sinkology Cares Giveback Program was created to inspire happy, healthy homes and help bring them to life—and we’re beyond excited to share that the Fall 2020 Sinkology Cares interior designer has been selected from a pool of applicants who submitted their names and passions to be considered for the Sinkology Cares giveback program at the 2019 Haven Conference.

We are very excited to announce that Brooke Cribbs (@cribbsstyle) will be joining our team to help continue our efforts to provide families with a functional and beautiful kitchen for the heart of their new home. You’ll see a lot more from both of our Cares Designers in 2020 as we continue to grow with our community and support this cause.

We’re currently working on our very first home for a deserving family in need. We can’t wait to see the end result this coming spring! Stay tuned on our blog and on Instagram @Sinkology to keep up-to-date on our projects and how you can bring the Sinkology Cares Giveback Program to your community.

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If you have any additional questions during your search for the perfect copper, fireclay farmhouse sink or granite sink, our Sinkologists are here to help. Contact us or follow us on Facebook, Houzz, Pinterest, or Instagram for more helpful tips and design ideas.

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Goat Cheese Fondue

Sinkology is proud to present Emily Schuermann, our food-loving guest blogger who runs Food for a Year. Emily is here to share some recipes she has created exclusively for the Sinkology blog that reflect her view of a copper sink: simple, timeless, affordable, and beautifully rustic.
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February is national foodie month! Not really, but between Super Bowl Parties and Valentines festivities there really is a lot of food going on. And Super Bowl always has my full attention! For the 6 weeks leading up to the “big game”, I’m on the hunt for the star of the show in the snack department.

It has to be EASY and NO FUSS and DELICIOUS and EXTRAORDINARY and INEXPENSIVE. That’s a tall order, wouldn’t you agree?!

Well, after a lot of pondering and planning – I’ve got the perfect recipe for your Super Bowl 2020 party and it only has 1 ingredient!

I first discovered this goat cheese fondue at a little restaurant last summer and the chef kindly shared his trick for super smooth, creamy goat cheese fondue. And the trick is tightly wrapping the baking dish in foil to trap in the steam and baking at a low heat for a ‘long time’ (an hour or so).

Sure enough – it’s a no fail fondue. Warm and creamy, super smooth – almost like it’s been whipped it’s so fluffy.

Once it’s done baking, spread it out to fill the baking dish and garnish with your choice of toppings. Toasted nuts, pickled onions, marinated artichoke hearts, spicy sweet chili sauce, capers, onions… the possibilities are limitless!

I loaded up my graze board with all my favorite crackers and a few topping choices and let my guests dig in. Here are a few suggestions for dipping –

Veggie sticks, carrots, celery, bell pepper etc
Beet chips
Seedy crackers
Butter crackers
And my current fave – torn, toasted wheat baguette*

*Torn, toasted wheat baguette adds a pretty texture to your board and is hearty enough to hold up to this fondue. To make it simply tear bite-sized pieces off of a wheat baguette and evenly place on a baking sheet. Toast for 4 minutes on 400°. The bits of bread stay chewy on the inside but have that perfect crunch on the outside – even my kids loved this part of the graze board!

I hope you take this recipe and run with it – it’s sure to make your Super Bowl Party ‘simply’ spectacular!

Goat Cheese Fondue

1 10 oz log goat cheese, halved

Garnishes (optional)

2 T capers
2 T diced red onion
4 T toasted chopped hazelnuts
olive oil drizzle

Preheat oven to 250°. Coat a 6” cast iron skillet with oil and place goat cheese in the skillet. Completely wrap skillet in foil (top, bottom, handle as pictured). Place in preheated oven for 1-1.5 hours.

While baking, prepare garnishes (optional) such as toasted hazelnuts, capers, finely diced red onion, diced red chili peppers, olives etc. Toast bread, arrange crackers, prepare veggie sticks. Arrange to serve with goat cheese fondue.

Remove from oven, gently spread the creamy goat cheese fondue to fill the skillet.

Top with desired garnishes. Serve with toasted wheat baguette, crackers, veggie sticks etc.

Serves 4

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Your 2020 Checklist: Big, Bold, and Beautiful

By now, the reality of resolutions is likely settling in. With January comes fresh starts—and equally fresh reminders of how quickly time goes! Can you say… “Hello, February!” Did you make big, bold resolutions? Did you promise yourself that you’d make changes this year? Sinkology has your back with a reminder that your 2020 resolutions can be fun and exciting, and we’re here to help!

Bright With Possibility

The all-new VIBE Collection of colored fireclay farmhouse kitchen sinks is the answer you need to making big, bold changes in your life. This beautiful collection of fireclay sinks was built with you in mind: the makers, the creators, the people who aren’t afraid to be bold! The VIBE Collection features a growing range of colorful options for the beloved Josephine QuickFit fireclay sink and Bradstreet II classic farmhouse fireclay sink:

Inspired by Real Life

The VIBE Collection was inspired by YOU—our customers, friends, and family who lead real, colorful lives. We still swoon over a beautiful crisp white sink, but we know that every family is unique and every home deserves to find its own unique VIBE. With that in mind, we channeled those moments of real life—like summer nights and morning lattes—to craft a line of bold fireclay sinks. And because they’re made for real life, they come with the Sinkology Everyday Promise lifetime guarantee.

Now’s the time to go BOLD for 2020!

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source https://www.sinkology.com/blog/vibe-collection-checklist/

Tuesday, January 28, 2020

DIY Kitchen Renovation with Concrete Countertops & Brooks ll

Our friend Bryan over at diydaddysocial on Instagram recently renovated his kitchen and was kind enough to share about how it went. Not only did he install the Brooks ll, he created some gorgeous concrete countertops.
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We’ve had big plans for our kitchen ever since we purchased our home nearly five years ago. Aside from the wall oven that didn’t work, the kitchen was fully functional but very dated. We knew from the start that the dark wood color had to go, along with the old appliances, laminate backsplash and countertops, and old vinyl floors.

One of our biggest dreams was to replace the stainless-steel sink with a large, white apron-front kitchen farmhouse sink. For us, a Sinkology All-In-One kit was the clear choice for our family of six.

Speaking of being a family of six… as you can imagine, trying to use a kitchen for family needs while it’s also being renovated is quite a challenge. From the very beginning, my objective was to remodel the kitchen in phases instead of it being completely torn apart.

It has taken me longer to complete the renovation, but I refaced and painted the cabinets and poured my concrete countertops in sections to minimize the disruption. By far, the biggest challenge to face was the sink renovation.

First, removing a kitchen sink for any amount of time is not exactly a pleasant experience in a large family! For us, no sink also meant no disposal and no dishwasher. Our main bathroom tub became our temporary kitchen sink, and because of this I was extremely pressed to complete the project.

The situation was twice as complicated for me because it wasn’t just a matter of switching out a sink; I also needed to build a whole new sink base cabinet with a platform for our new Brooks II Fireclay kitchen sink to rest on. Add to that the new concrete countertops and terribly out-of-level kitchen and you have a recipe for quite a few sleepless nights.

Thankfully, the sink/countertops renovation phase has come together beautifully. Leveling and measurements for the sink platform, cabinet base, new plumbing, and countertops had to be executed perfectly for everything to work properly. I am sleeping much better now that the calculations and measurements are finally out of my head.

Taking on and conquering these challenges, DIY style, has brought a satisfying sense of accomplishment and has created a more welcoming focal point in our home. And at the center of our shiny new kitchen is our crowned jewel: The Sinkology INSPIRE Collection Brooks II white fireclay farmhouse kitchen sink, paired with the Pfister Zuri faucet. By the way, that faucet was a dream to install! From start to finish, Sinkology and Pfister made this project much easier to handle with clear instructions that made sense and were easy to understand.

We now have the kitchen sink of our dreams that looks beautiful and meets the needs of our large family. As you can imagine, we constantly have large pots and toys to wash, and the dual sink sections are large and deep enough to handle both.

The Sinkology family is proud of the products they make, and our family is proud to have their sink in our home.

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source https://www.sinkology.com/blog/diy-kitchen-renovation-with-concrete-countertops-brooks-ll/

Tuesday, January 21, 2020

Winter Cherry Berry Cobbler

Don’t you agree? It really is the best time of year for desserts, right? And nothing is more simple and comforting than a homemade berry cobbler. No tricky candy-making, no homemade crust, no 2-hour baked fruit cakes!

A few little tricks ensure the simplicity of this recipe. First, a yummy blend of frozen berries and cherries is key! Not only are they an economical ingredient, they also allow for berry desserts to be a year-round occurrence! Second, the crumble topping is a perfect replacement for pie crust, adding a crisp texture and even more flavor to this cobbler with none of the hassle of pie crust. In all, this recipe comes together start-to-finish, in under 45 minutes!

To make this cobbler, you’ll start by combining the fresh cranberries, frozen cherries and berries, orange zest, spices, butter and sea salt in a medium (3-4 qt) saucepan over medium heat.

While this cherry berry mixture is coming to a low simmer, in a small bowl, combine the cornstarch and water to make a slurry. Stirring continuously, add cornstarch-slurry mixture to the simmering berries. Allow to simmer 1-2 minutes until mixture thickens slightly. (Tip : When you can run your finger down the juices on the back of a wooden spoon and the traced line remains, turn off the flame.)

Pour berry mixture into a prepared baking dish. A 10″ x 10″ or 8″ x 8″ dish will work perfectly. (I used 4 – 6″ round bakers.)

Next, prepare the crumble topping by combining the topping ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Using a fork, pastry knife or your hands, combine ingredients into pea-sized bits. Sprinkle crumble topping over the cobbler. (*This may make more topping than you’ll need, so you may have some left over for your next crumble.)

Place the cobbler on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet (to catch any cobbler juices that may bubble over during baking). Bake at 350° for 20-25 minutes, until the cobbler is bubbly and the crumble topping is crisp and light golden in color.

All of the warm spices, that ginger and cinnamon and nutmeg, mixed with the refreshing aroma of orange zest add a coziness to this recipe that pairs perfectly with the tangy sweetness of cherries, berries and cranberries. And just look at that beautiful vivid berry magenta color?! It’s a must for every holiday menu for sure!

And speaking of vivid colors, have you seen Sinkology’s new VIBE fireclay apron front sink collection? Newly released matte and gloss finishes in white, gray and black — and a gorgeous blue! Check them all out HERE.

Add a little color to your menu with this Winter Cherry Berry Cobbler and a little color to your kitchen with a beautiful Sinkology VIBE sink!

Winter Cherry Berry Cobbler

1 lb frozen whole cherry berry blend
6 oz fresh cranberries
zest of 1/2 orange
1/2 t sea salt
3/4 c sugar
1 1/2 t ground cinnamon
1/2 t ground nutmeg
1/8 t ground ginger
2 T butter
1 1/2 T cornstarch
6 oz water

Crumble Topping

2 c flour
2 c sugar
2 sticks butter
zest of 1/2 orange
1/4 t sea salt

Preheat oven to 350°. In a 3-4 quart saucepan, combine first 9 ingredients. Bring to a low simmer, stirring frequently.

While berry mixture is coming to a simmer, make a slurry by combining cornstarch with water in a small bowl.

Once mixture is at a low simmer, add cornstarch-slurry mixture to the simmering berries while stirring continuously. Allow to simmer 1-2 minutes until mixture thickens slightly. When you can run your finger down the juices on the back of a wooden spoon and the traced line remains, turn off the flame.

Pour mixture into a prepared (non-stick sprayed) 10″ x 7″ or 8″ x 8″ baking dish. (Or 4 – 6″ round bakers, as pictured)

To prepare crumble topping, combine the crumble topping ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Using a fork, pastry knife or your hands, combine ingredients into pea-sized bits.

Sprinkle crumble mixture over the top of the cherry berry filling. (*This may make more topping that you’ll need, so you may have some left over for your next crumble.)

Place the dish on a parchment-lined rimmed baking sheet and bake until bubbly and crumble topping is crisp and slightly golden in color, approximately 20-25 minutes.

Allow to cool 5 minutes before serving.

Serves 8

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Tuesday, January 14, 2020

Our Kitchen Remodel Series: Sinkology + Pfister

Our friend Mariah.Shealy recently renovated her outdated kitchen with the Bradstreet ll in the new Summer Night matte black finish from the VIBE Collection. She was kind enough to share about the whole renovation process.
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YOU GUYS! Probably my most favorite blog post to date! If you have been following me for awhile then you know that I wanted to renovate our kitchen when we moved in. If I am being honest, it wasn’t something we could afford or had the time to do once we moved in. So we decided we would wait several months until we were a little less busy to undertake the renovation.

Now keep in mind that our kitchen was renovated about 9 years ago by the previous homeowners but it was still outdated. The countertops were corian, the sink was faded, and the cabinets were pretty just not the color we wanted.

First things first, I HAD to create a design board to help my mind think a little bit better. I like to create design boards before I start a renovation project because it helps me have a clear vision for the entire project.

Mainly, my vision for the kitchen was to do the following:

Paint the cabinets (white for the cabinets on the wall and black for the island)
Cut our island down to make it all one level
Change out our hardware
Replace our sink with a farmhouse sink
Change out our faucet
Replace the light fixtures above the sink and island
Replace our countertops with quartz countertops
Add backsplash

For todays post, I am sharing all about our sink and faucet! I searched near and far for the perfect farmhouse sink. Did I want a farmhouse did I not? Our current sink was a standard white porcelain sink and I hated it. It wasn’t very deep and it had 2 separate bowls. Now yes, the sink was very old but it was chipping and staining so bad. We had to give it a deep clean just about every single week. So when I was searching for a sink I knew I wanted something bigger than what we had currently. I had been looking at farmhouse sinks ever since we moved into our new house. Upon my searching, I stumbled upon Sinkology, an online company that provides premium sinks for kitchen and bath. Sinkology has now branched out to offering their products in Home Depot, too! And I was absolutely in love with Sinkology’s sink designs. Everything looked so beautiful and sleek. Now for me to decide upon the color. I almost went with the white sink (y’all know ya girl is an all white lover) but something inside of me was telling me to do something different. I had already decided upon the white countertops and white cabinets so I decided to go with the matte black.

The final sink I decided upon was the Bradstreet II Farmhouse Sink in Matte Black. And shipping on this sink was FAST! It was at my home within the next 5-7 days! And when I opened the box for the first time, I got so excited! It was like all of my kitchen dreams were coming true.

For our faucet, we really didn’t have a huge preference. We just knew we wanted something black to match the sink. Our current faucet was a stainless steel pull down style, but it was about 10 years old and definitely needed to be replaced. I love the pull down function when I am washing dishes so I knew this was a must. I heard about Pfister Faucets through one of my design friends and Sinkology spoke really highly of them so I decided to check out what they have! Let’s just say – I will be using Pfister for all of faucet renovation needs!

They provide a wide array of bathroom and kitchen faucets! We decided to go with the Kai faucet. I love it’s sleek design and am so glad we chose that style. We got the faucet in very fast and the install was very easy! Wait until you see these after photos!

Overall, I am so happy I decided upon a Sinkology sink and Pfister faucet! They were both amazing companies to work with and made the process that much easier! If you are about to take on a kitchen or bathroom remodel – CHECK THEM OUT! You will not be disappointed!

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source https://www.sinkology.com/blog/our-kitchen-remodel-series/

Tuesday, January 7, 2020

Meditate at the Sink

We can all agree that a beautiful copper or fireclay sink is the best centerpiece in any kitchen. But does the action of actually working at the sink put a damper on the basin’s beauty?

Whether it’s simply the (seemingly excessive) amount of time it takes to wash the dishes or the fact that you’re taking care of the entire household’s dishes every breakfast, lunch, and dinner, this chore isn’t typically seen as an enjoyable task. But there’s one opportunity we can all take advantage of the opportunity of those small moments to ourselves:

“Every moment can be a meditation. You just have to be present in the moment.”

Let’s keep it real though. You might be saying “Yes, but what if I have three kids tugging at my pant leg simultaneously?” Or “What if I have a million other things that need my focus?” Or even “I don’t really want to be fully focused on the grime I’m cleaning.”

The idea of maintaining mindfulness with a regular meditation practice is definitely ideal. But a universal challenge to busy households is to actually find the time to practice. But what if we worked in that meditation practice into the at-the-sink task of washing dishes? Can this chore clear our minds as much as the dishes themselves?

No matter if you love the action of dishwashing or you find it to be a total bore, any time you hand wash a dish can be a perfect time to incorporate a bit of mindfulness practice. It might be easier than you think!

Plug your drain and turn on your faucet to a comfortably warm temperature.
Cup your hands beneath the water, taking note of the temperature and sensation of each drip.
Then, add some soap to the water. Swirl your hands in the bubbly water, observing the sensation of every swirl.
Dunk a dirty dish in the sink and grab a soapy sponge. Make rhythmic circles to scrub away the grime.
Rather than curse your kids for not clearing their plates, use that time to send that person well wishes – from good health to a newfound sense of personal responsibility.
Or, with every circular brush, imagine wiping away things that have accumulated in your own life, from pressures at work to stressors at home.
Take your time in the final rinse.
Let the clean stream of water symbolize washing away all the things you’d like to leave behind. This can be the exact opposite of what you filled up with at the beginning. As you rinse away the remaining grime, picture all the emotional junk you’ve been stuck with leaving you, too.

If you’re more of a dishwasher kind of household, you can still bring your meditation practice to the sink. Your bathroom sink, that is. For this practice, simply incorporate the following in your morning or evening routine of teeth brushing or face washing, or any time you wash your hands:

Picture the plaque buildup, dirt, or oil as a representation of stressors, fears, or past hurts that have built up over the years.
With every scrub, you break the tension down. You can even give your face or hands a little massage mid-wash. This will work the product into your skin better and target trigger points.
The physical action of cleansing will reinforce a clearing of your mind.

When possible, create the ideal environment for any cleansing meditation. Shut the door, light a candle, and play music that is most soothing to you.

Give it a try and you’ll see how a clearer mind – and sink – will bring you peace.

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