Hi Caroline:

I agree with you wholeheartedly. Seeing how you "veterans" have your kitchens equipped and how you actually use them has been extremely helpful to me in my planning process.

I hope that you can keep such threads on this side where everyone will see them and benefit from them.

Erika

Caroline - you go girl! Those threads are NOT OT and in fact have been quite informative as I continue to improve upon my own finished kitchen's accoutrements!

SO, GW moderators, you might consider interpreting the parameters of the board according to the ways it is defined and accepted by those of us who actually use and frequent the boards. OT threads are those that talk strictly about OT topics such as parenting issues or medical problems, they are NOT threads that even resemble the KIA threads (which are directly related to and about KITCHENS!). You'd be silly and remiss to take away such great resources as the KIA threads.

I like the threads. Most people who are into their kitchens and equipment and foodies by default. It's fun to see the kitchens actually being used. And there's not so many of these threads that anyone who wasn't interested should be bothered. Anyhow, that's my two cents.

I support the KIA threads on the Kitchen Forum. As one who has yet to complete her project, I view them as inspiring reminders of why I've chosen to get involved in this madness called "kitchen remodeling" in the first place! After all is said and done, our kitchens are the places where our meals are prepared. Shouldn't we able to share and celebrate such end results on this Forum?

I love seeing the Kitchens in action. It is certainly kit related and sharing equip and gadget ideas. It is also good for morale for the people in the middle of the stressful turmoil of remodel.

I totally support the KIA threads on this side of the forum. Seeing how the kitchen works, how prep, cooking and cleanup flow (and getting great recipes) really helped me develop some of my ideas.

I say keep it here, we'll move back a few paces and show more of the kitchens in our photos if you want (and less of the cute puppies that accessorize them LOL) and let those that benefit and enjoy them continue to do so.

For the most part, they are NOT OT just finished WORKING kitchens.

Ya'll are a GREAT bunch. It will be such a pleasure to continue the threads. If we keep them on target and talk about the equipment more and larger pics of more action then I think there won't be any problem. We can do a knives episode for ex and pans too....best dishcloths and towels and why ....OK gotta go get on with this....:)

THANK YOU ALL ! c

Kitchens in action is an extremely valuable development of this forum, and I've been very grateful to those contributing this dimension to our discussion. After all, kitchens are workhorse rooms and best understood by evaluating them in use. Even though I haven't contributed yet (summer's gardening fun, not cooking, time for me), I've been hoping--and would like to expect--that showing kitchens in action will be a permanent part of this forum.

As said, recipes and more than, say, one closeup of mouthwatering ingredients and dishes could be posted elsewhere. :)

As some have suggested, what would make them a bit more helpful for me is to see a bigger picture--literally. I am tripping over myself (and my 2 children) in my little kitchen, so I love to see how more experienced cooks manage to juggle ingredients, counterspace, timing of dishes, etc. So, please show me the mess on the counter, and how you keep all the peelings, etc. from mucking up your mise!

:-)

francy

Keep it up Trailrunner. Love your posts and appreciate you passing on the Corn Chowder recipe.

You go girl! LOL

(hope I don't get sent to D-land for supporting such a radically subversive character as you Caroline!)

While the KIA threads are enjoyable, they're not really the meat & potatoes of kitchen design. Not sure why a simple click to Conversations is such a bad idea. You might also consider participating on the Cooking forum. A lot of Kitchen "graduates" gravitate over there.

Here is a link that might be useful: Cooking Forum

That wouldn't work, Natal. I agree that recipes would be more appropriate there, but showing just how a magnetized pullout knife storage and a 30" butcher block prep area function for their owner isn't what's done over there. This is the place for KIA.

I had originally suggested we keep this KIA thread going
as I do believe its helpful to a lot of us in the planning stage.

I had also suggested some shots zoomed out from the lovely dishes
so that I could see how the entire space is working. Maybe that
would be the answer...real action shots!

I do really appreciate and support this thread, thanks Caroline!

i also like the threads and certainly don't mind them in here, but i also agree that it doesn't seem like all that big a deal to have to click over to 'conversations' in order to read them.

i'd honestly like to see more postings over in 'conversations'. i think one of the reasons no one goes there very much is because people hardly ever post in there. if the pace picks up, more people might be motivated to click over there.

KIA is great inspiration. I love it! What is this thing called, "Conversations"? I looked and looked and just can't find it.

I love reading the KIA threads and wouldn't find it if it were relocated. It would help in terms of planning the kitchen for usability if some of the pictures were from a wider angle (though I love the artistry of the close-ups.

Hmmm...does no one read the "Read Me" thread (just kidding...well sort of)? The Read Me thread tells you where to find both Conversations & Gallery.

Look at the hit list of threads. Just above the first thread you'll see:

On-Topic Discussions [Switch to: Gallery : Conversations]

Click on the desired link.

Yoyo, on the Kitchens forum main page under Messages are links to the Gallery and Conversations forums.

Rosie, from what I've seen of four KIA threads they're more a pictorial of cooking. Perfect for Conversations or the Cooking forum. Where are the threads you mentioned?

The Read Me thread tells you where to find both Conversations & Gallery. ... and so much more!!!

It's a shame that the powers-that-be still refuse to post some of the links that you provide in your thread. Those are the type things that are most helpful when creating a new kitchen or embarking on a kitchen remodel. Been there ... done that.

I don't understand WHY the KIA thread is considered to be off topic, the way that the kitchen is going to be used is certainly an important factor in kitchen planning.

I would comment...but I've received an email telling me not to :oP But Caroline...you're a rebel girlfriend!!! Keep it up. Really, its helpful to see how folks USE their kitchens so you can say "sheesh that doesn't work..or it does" which you don't always get from just seeing the photoshot ready finish pics.

There is a conversation thread? I think everything we do here is a conversation whether or not it is about planning a kitchen or making a working one better. You go girl!

I agree with all the comments! More substantive info in the paragraphs preceding the pic as to why this is helpful to the forum in planning the kitchen or use of the kitchen. Then the precise photos that display that topic. Being more informative seems to be the main issue.

Maybe we were getting a little to photo happy ! I know I was .

I also was out of line in a previous post and have apologized. Foot in mouth and not thinking before speaking resulting in hurt feelings is inappropriate. I am sorry. c

[knocks self on head] ok, how could I have missed that this whole time? LOL

I had to go and read the KIA threads ; I have to agree with IV to move them to conversations, recipes and such will be fun to have over there and an advantage is that it moves less quickly in conversations so it will be easier to keep the thread alive with add-ons.

The cooking forum has a popular thread called "what's for dinner", food is discussed as well as thoughts on the day; on the conversation side of the kitchens forum, it could be called "WFD in your new kitchen".

When I first read the word KIA in a subject line, I thought someone couldn't spell IKEA.........lol..........

I like it myself.

Natal (and others), no actual pictures, I was referring to an evolution of KIA threads away from so much focus on food itself to the use of the kitchen in preparing the dishes, although definitely retaining some seduction and spice sprinkled in here and there to inspire and energize.

Really, a picture is worth a thousand words, and KIA discussion might range from showing a dinner party for 20 prepared on a 30" stovetop opposite a 30" island, to a day's worth of family droppings on an ill-placed counter, to 2 cooks chopping and stirring in a 1-fanny aisle. It would also tend to bring back more people with finished kitchens to share their experiences using them.

I enjoy the KIA threads. I think they're inspirational for people in the early planning stages - puts to mind how the space will be used, not just how pretty it will look...And those of us with "almost there" kitchens see things - utensils, small appliances, cookware, backsplash close-ups - that we might incorporate into our final plans.

I like having them in the Kitchens forum. It's easy enough to scroll over the thread if it isn't of interest, and I don't think there are so many that they interfere with presenting the nuts and bolts elements of the forum. I'll miss out on them if they're moved. I just don't think I would be inclined to hop around to multiple forums on a regular basis.

Really lovely to see so many supportive responses. I believe the "ayes" have it. So let's keep helping each other in the best way we know how....our experiences shared as openly as possible with all the insight and generosity this site inspires ! c

I am making a fresh corn quiche tonight. Have to go get DH first and then see how it evolves :) that was a LOT of corn !

Okay, so I am "thick headed"....what does KIA and OT mean. I figured out that OP is original post...right?
Thanks.

Kitchen In Action

OT: Off Topic
OT: On Topic

So I guess it depends on how you look at it LOL (laugh out loud) :) (smile)

Oh, good grief! How could a thread devoting to using a kitchen for what it's intended possibly be considered off topic for a kitchen forum?! That has to be the most absurd things I have heard all day--and I have been in some incredibly ridiculous meetings today!

The purpose statement at the top of the forum says "This is the spot to share experiences with remodeling, decorating and maintaining kitchens..." The KIA thread is absolutely related to ALL of these things, but particularly obvious is how it relates to maintaining the kitchen. What is there to talk about a kitchen being maintained unless it is in the context of how it is being used? So what if part of it becomes an exchange of recipes?!

Perhaps most important, though, is how that thread and others like it have kept this forum's most valuable asset--people who are finished with their remodels--engaged and posting. If the people who have been through it all don't stick around, the forum becomes much less valuable to people at the beginning of the remodeling experience.

Wow Holligator...that is one of the best defenses. I hadn't even read the purpose statement...duh. You are right. If all you have are newbies asking questions of other newbies then where is the help in that ? Thank you for such a well-stated argument for the continuation of the thread on this forum. c

Ok, I'll bite. Was going to post this last night but was too tired. I have to admit that Caroline was the biggest influence on me as far as getting a Caldera cooktop and I am very happy with it, indeed (except for the little rubber feet that keep falling off the grates - but that's a detail). Aside from all the raves, it was the only cooktop I found that not only has 5 burners in 30", it has the big burner on the right front (stage right, if you will).

I'm left-handed so that's the main burner I cook on and I didn't want the simmer burner there.
Here's dinner from the other night: moules marinière made with fresh Maine mussels. My Cuisinart stainless pot on the Caldera cooktop. When we redid the kitchen I treated myself to pots that actually matched! They were priced right and I'm very happy with them.

No real recipe - I just sautee'd onions and garlic in olive oil, threw in some white wine (per Julia Child I always use dry vermouth as my cooking wine), thyme, salt - put the cover on my pot and steamed for 5 min or so, till they were all opened. I put them in the fridge and later, at dinner, I reheated them and threw them into a casserole and onto the table.

More KIA later.

OOOHHH yum ! What time tonight? I am looking for new pots so I am glad you like the Cuisinart. I will look into those for sure. Thank you for the Caldera plug. It is a wonder ! I love mine too. c

Good gosh! How ridiculous! GW- lighten up! I am in total agreement with Holligator.

Well, I think part of what may have done it was that there were a whole slew of kitchen in action threads - KIA this and KIA that - being created. Every thread pushes another thread off. It might be more acceptable to have one and add to it until it reaches the max (150) or gets so many photos that it is getting too slow to load.

Also, am I the only one who finds the acronym in poor taste? Every time I see it I think "killed in action". I expect that there are some reading these boards who have family or friends who have been killed in action and have painful associations when they see that acronym. Can we think of something else?

Never thought of that acronym...but it makes sense

how about Kitchens At Work KAW or Working Kitchens WK?

Well, I avoid your KIA threads because I get jealous. Just kidding. Kind of. As someone who has made some appliance choices based on (your!) helpful posts here, I really appreciate that those things are still holding up under actual use. I would like more "Two-years after remodeling--how it actually functions" threads around here. They all look good new. What do they look like after some use? How do they actually work?

Totally on topic. And very helpful.

THANK YOU mary!

Cloud swift...very good point I am most sensitive to that as my boyfriend was killed in Vietnam in 1967. As to letting them grow to 150...well we can try. There are so many folks who still have "slow" computers and we don't want to eliminate them. Also the topics are different...as I posted this AM , before I saw your thoughtful comment, it was about multiple users. So we will evolve and see what works. I am sure a lot of weeks there will be no posts at all and then a flurry of them.

Vic GREAT suggestions ! We'll do it. Kitchen at Work...KAW !!

fori I am so glad that you have gotten good suggestions. You are right on when you ask so how is it working after 2 or 3 years and most of all what have you changed or adapted during this time? So we can certainly address that. I added an island a few months ago and posted it to the thread just now on "multiple users".