Ok, so far some things in this thread are not true. I spoke with Miele about this two months ago before I got my Diamante. The 4 year extended warranty on the Miele dishwasher is $249, not $150. (Where did you get a $150 price from?) http://www.mieleusa.com/miele_care/miele_care_indepth.asp?nav=400&snav=490&tnav=492&oT=230&benefit=88&page=2&menu_id=30 If you have a non-Miele-Authorized installer do the work, you then get the 1 year standard warranty. Within that 1 year (12 months) you can then decide to buy the Miele 4 year extended at $249, but after the 12th month it can not be purchased. If you have a Miele-Authorized installer do the work, you get the 1 year standard warranty + an extra 1 year courtesy warranty (for a total of 2 years coverage). But here's the thing....you can still buy the 4 year extended warranty ($249) but it has to be purchased by the 12th month (not by the 24th month like someone else said). That means that during the 13th-24th month, both the courtesy warranty and extended warranty run together. My delivery and installation using a Miele authorized installer was $149, which means I get the 2nd year of courtesy coverage. I have within the first 12 months to decide if I want to buy the 4 year extended warranty. If I do, that means the 2nd year (13-24th month) it is covered by the courtesy warranty and extended warranty. But then on the 25th month (and for 3 years) it is covered by the extended warranty. So in this case, I'd really be spending $249 for 3 years of extra coverage, since I'd have 1 year standard and 1 year courtesy. Hopefully you were able to understand this. If not, call Miele and have them explain it, since you can ask them questions directly.

some additional details of my kitchen: my home is an apartment in an 125+ year-old 11 story brownstone landmark building that has a traditional and complex exterior. i chose traditional cabinets in spirit of the building's original design and chose pearl white as the base to contrast my other aspirations for the modern and efficient. i had a tough but fun time researching and purchasing everything myself (down to the Hubbell electrical receptacles). it was not easy settling on the statuary white marble and i kept worried about staining and etching. to the full credit of discussions in the Garden Web kitchen forum, i've gained enough confidence and courage to go for what i really want : ) the Emeco Kong stools were love at first sight for me in a furniture store. they are military grade and almost entirely handmade of recycled aluminum. i wasn't sure how they would complement my kitchen. but being the reckless hothead that i am, i bid the bullet...as the whole apartment renovation was a dizzying dose of self-indulgence.

It is SO nice to see a small kitchen designed so beautifully! It is wonderful! I was always a "wood" girl, but in the last couple of years have gotten so tired of my old oak cabinets (but have no budget for replacement) that I think I'm going to paint them. Either a creamy white or a light gray/green. Most people (including a good number on this site) have no idea how small some real kitchens can be! Mine is barely 9'x10' but because the adjoining dining room is also small it really leaves no room for a proper island. Unless I do THAT room over too and that's not going to happen! But maybe I need to brainstorm to find a way. Thanks for the inspiration!

@purpleplume. I'd fill the rinse aid resevoir for sure. The machine is made to work with rinse aid and it helps all drying. Also, check the little dial. I believe 3 is default but your machine is newer than mine so start with the default setting in the book. Sometimes this gets adjusted; sometimes not. Depends on the water. I would use NO salt until I'd tested the water and verified with Miele on the hardness cut off. I've had 2 machines now with no salt (in NYC it wasn't needed and in our house we have a whole-house softener.) Salt may not be needed at all. I've got pre-1900 through 1960s Rorstrand with blue pattern and gold rim. I do those on china/crystal. My machine doesn't have heated drying so I had no issues with the gold rims. But no idea about Lenox. Didn't worry though as initial rinse cycles are cold and the china cycle is 115 (with cold hook up) which is basically water warm enough to proof yeast. It's not even as hot as some tap water. But I'd ask about the temp of the final rinse as that may be hotter on the cycle. Waterford bowl was fine; Riedel is fine as is all the 19C American glassware. But with those, too, very little soap unless it's a really full load. I haven't used the new Miele tabs. I loved the old ones and still have some. Those were definitely safe for all the older china and crystal (I was using half until I noticed some residual left in the bottom of the machine which is when I went to using none on the good stuff -- there's so much rinsing and the cycle is so long it works). So if you have the Miele tabs I'd try cutting one in half when you're ready to wash crystal. But most important is not to have water that's too soft and too hot with more than minimal detergent. That's the combo that causes problems. Going step by step and testing is key. The one thing I don't regularly put in the DW is my Buccellati sterling. The plate is vintage Carnation and it didn't like the DW soap at all. Haven't tried it again with a no-soap china/crystal loads. I think it depends on the silver. I'd check with the Cristofle as their plating will be way better than a vintage set like the Carnation. BTW, we have switched out a lot of cookware so everything goes in the DW. I've put in All Clad, Demeyere and Sitram which are all SS with SS handles. 1 Quantum tab does a fabulous job with those on Pots & Pans. Do you have Express?