17 February 2010

MOLTEN GOLD - Handy Dandy

Brizo's new Dish Towel Hook won't revolutionize the faucet industry. You can't even really call it a game changer. What put it into the MOLTEN GOLD category of hot new products for me is its charming practicality. It takes a popular wall accessory and gives it a much-needed new purpose. OK, so maybe it is kind of a game changer.

From what the brand bunch at Brizo told us in their New York Fashion Week presentation, one of their engineers came up with the towel hook idea. He was tired of seeing damp dish cloths hung over his cleverly-designed faucets and thought of a more attractive alternative. Thus, an innovation was born.


Shown here in Venetian Bronze with Baliza pull-out faucet and soap dispenser


I love the Sensible Style of this concept, and would specify one in a New York minute! It's pretty... And it's pretty practical. Those are my criteria for good design. The hook comes in four finishes and coordinates with Brizo's traditional Talo and Baliza faucets.


Here's the hook in chrome with the stately Talo faucet


Since those are both one hole installations, you can have a soap dispenser and towel hook and still keep your sink back looking uncluttered. If you're swapping out an older four-hole faucet that no longer works for you, you can plug the fourth hole with one of Brizo's coordinating Bud Vases. How cool is that? Floral inspiration meets kitchen utilitarian!

Brizo's coordinating Bud Vases, shown here in Brushed Bronze for Baliza, add charm to a faucet set


The Brizo Brand

Brizo is Acura to its parent company Delta Faucet's Honda. It is a premium brand sold through kitchen showrooms and higher-end plumbing supply houses, rather than stocked at your neighborhood big box store. Brizo sponsors Jason Wu, the young fashion designer who created Michelle Obama's Inauguration Ball gown.


Fluid beauty: Fall 2010 Collection gown by Jason Wu
from Woman's Wear Daily Fashion Week runway coverage



They do so because they believe that faucets, while employing the latest water-saving and ownership-enhancing technologies, should also be "fashion for your home." This is what inspired them to bring 19 design bloggers to New York last Friday for Fashion Week and Wu's runway show there. I was proud and grateful to be among them.


Disclaimer

Since Brizo did fly us all to New York City, put us up in grand style, tote us around town in limos and generally treat us like design royalty, you deserve to know that there was an indirect financial benefit to me in reviewing their new products.

I can assure you, though, with all the integrity implied by not one but two J-school degrees, that I would not have written about this product if (a) I didn't believe in its worth to my readers and (b) wouldn't hesitate to specify one for myself or my clients.


The Facts

Warranty: Lifetime

Pricing: List Price $157.65

Website: Brizo.com

3 comments:

  1. The hook and vase are also great for when you replace one of those old air gaps.

    I've been trying to think of other skinny things that could go in the vase. I thought of a skinny bottle brush but that's not as pretty as a flower.

    ReplyDelete
  2. I love the accessories too! As well as the Venetian Bronze, which was even prettier close up in person! I wonder, would silk flowers be a bad idea in the bud vase, given that it is near the sink?

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  3. How come it took so long for someone to come up with this fantastic idea?! Ever since we installed a gooseneck faucet in our kitchen, I'm at a loss for what to do with the dish cloth. Wish I'd known about this little hook sooner -- I would have gone with a Brizo faucet just so I could have the hook!!

    Kelly

    ReplyDelete

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