Lofty Ambitions
Stove hoods are reaching new heights in style and practicality.
By: Carla Jordan
Like dependable worker bees, range hoods methodically
go about their job day in, day out. Ridding the kitchen
of stale air filled with grease, odors, smoke and
moisture, these oft-overlooked plain Janes of the
appliance family have taken a backseat to fabulous
fridges and sexy stoves—until now. Stepping
into the fashion spotlight is a bevy of stove hood
beauties that redefine the phrase “high style” and
redirect the design spotlight up, up, up.
“The kitchen is no longer just a functional
space. People spend more time there with family and
entertaining friends, so they want everything in
the room to be visually appealing and to express
their own personal taste,” notes Alex Snow,
founder and president of Zephyr, a range hood manufacturer.
“As a result,” Snow says, “the
range hood has really come into its own as a design
element, not just a utilitarian appliance. Today’s
hood is an aesthetic object and canvas for self-expression.
The hood as it ‘comes out of the box’ is
only the beginning.”
More Than Just a Pretty Face
According to a study by the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), there’s growing scientific evidence
that air within homes is more seriously polluted
than outdoor air. Inadequate ventilation is cited
as a primary cause, and a kitchen ventilation hood
as a helpful solution. The study also reveals people
spend approximately 90 percent of their time indoors—an
eye-opener for any homeowner aspiring to live healthier.
It’s no wonder industry experts agree picking
a handsome hood is just the first step. Using it
every time you cook is the key because that’s
the only way to protect your home from the effects
of moisture, carbon monoxide, smoke and grease buildup.
“A range hood is a very important tool in
maintaining indoor air quality and protecting the
home,” explains Brian Wellnitz, kitchen ventilation
product manager for Broan-NuTone ®, a range hood
manufacturer. “Grease particles, when vaporized,
can be 100 times smaller than a human hair and when
permitted to flow from the cooking area can stay
suspended up to 72 hours in the air, depositing themselves
on anything nearby such as wall coverings, drapery,
upholstery, pot racks and kitchen counters.
“Lingering odors and smoke are easily absorbed
into fabrics and walls. Moisture that escapes the
cooking area and travels throughout the home will
increase humidity and the likelihood of mold and
mildew; it also deteriorates cabinet finishes.”
As the smoke continues to clear over indoor home
health issues, the timing has never been better to
upgrade the kitchen with a fashionable and updated
functional range hood.
A Handsome Hood
Why just vent when you can vent in style? “The
range hood is at the line of sight in the kitchen,
so even if you just make a slight change in its fashion,
it alters the whole look of the kitchen,” observes
Blake Woodall, director of sales, Vent-a-Hood ®. “Designers
know this, so we’re seeing some incredibly
ingenious and beautiful designs for canopy exteriors.”
Lovers of contemporary design will swoon for hoods
in curvaceous, clean-lined shapes that mimic modern
art. Commercial-look stainless chimney hoods suspended
over island cooktops create an instant focal point
while blending with coordinating appliances. Metal
hoods, seamlessly welded without visible joints,
look sculptural and as if honed from a single piece
of metal.
A striking asymmetrical hood features a flue that
cantilevers to the far side instead of down the center.
An out-of-this-world cone-shape hood seems to hover
above the cooktop. Especially trendy are glass canopy
styles with slender telescopic flues to accommodate
even the highest ceilings. Velvety-smooth brushed
stainless, cool copper and matte aluminum finishes
mimic kitchen design elements like faucets and cabinetry
hardware. Colorful enamels in race-car red and true
blue infuse bold shots of color onto a mostly gray-toned
stainless palette.
For traditionalists, half-barrel-shaped canopies
add surface relief and intricate detailing. Classic
country French hoods feature shapely oversize canopies
of cast stone or painted stucco. Less boxy, more
organic formed hoods are on the rise. Verdigris faux
finishes and luxe metals of silk-brushed brass, antiqued
bronze and hammered copper create an acquired to-the-manor-born
sensibility.
Custom hoods offer the ultimate design freedom
because the ventilation system is hidden beneath
a decorative canopy that creates a contrasting focal
point. Often the hood is faux finished or embellished
with showstoppers like tile or ribbed glass.
“Customization is an emerging trend,” Snow
adds. “For example, if you have a kitchen designed
in a Tuscan motif, you can use Venetian plaster or
mosaic tiles in an array of colors to make the range
hood part of the total kitchen design. If you have
a weekend home in the country or at the seashore,
materials like laminated wheat or shimmering glass
make the range hood reflect its environment.”
High-Tech Savvy
Some stove hoods may do more work in the kitchen
than family members. These smart suckers have automatic
temperature controls that monitor cooking conditions
and adjust the blower to appropriate ventilation
levels, return the fan speed to its last setting
via a blower memory and have filter-cleaning reminders
and easy-to-clean dishwasher-safe filters. Downdraft
ventilation systems no longer require you to press
a button to make them disappear; instead, you operate
them like a computer, with a mouse.
Extra! Extra!
For cooks who prefer a little something extra,
some hoods have hidden storage compartments to house
spices and herbs. Others even feature rails to keep
cooking utensils organized and within reach. So whatever
your style, there’s a vent hood waiting to
take your kitchen design to a whole new level.
Carla Jordan is a Dallas-based writer for several national decorating magazines who’s always on the hunt for a kitchen appliance so good-looking that it detracts from whatever may be burning on her stove.