Coastal Design: A Floridian Staple

Coastal Design: A Floridian Staple

by | Aug 23, 2018 | Design, Uncategorized

What comes to mind when you imagine the perfect day at a Florida beach or shoreline of any type? Do you envision the multiple shades of blue in the water and sky, or the bounty of pastel colors in the shells that lay among the sand? Now, imagine that serine feeling translated into your home’s interior design with neutral tans, vibrant greens, deep rich wood and light airy window fabrics, all loosely arranged and casually outfitted to evoke a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere.

You don’t need to live near the ocean or have a beach house to love, or implement, the Coastal design aesthetic. It’s all about an admiration for the coastal atmosphere and natural splendor of the outdoors. The design style has many branches; Nautical, Beachy Chic, Bohemian, Beach Cottage, and if these don’t fit your personal taste this article from Houzz can help narrow it down to a style you may want to adopt. Of course, when designing and decorating your own living space you can do whatever your heart desires, and if you like what you see here…your heart desires the ocean!

Bring That Florida Feeling Inside

The term Coastal is another way of saying “elemental decorating”, where everything brought inside has been somehow affected, or inspired, by the elements outside. Using tough and organic materials such as sea-grass, jute, and straw, in the forms of rugs, furnishings, and accessories brings a natural warmth and texture to coastal inspired interiors. Fabrics used are simple and unassuming, e.g., linen slipcovers and cotton rugs.  If you are feeling a little overwhelmed with pure white, a washed-out pastel or tailored striped piece will also suit the Coastal feel. You can also go bold with bright floral throw pillows to break up any monochromatic elements and add a little pop of personality to your space. Many people like to incorporate re-purposed materials like driftwood, shells and antique items in their coastal designs as accent art. We especially like the painted wood accents in the example to the left from HGTV.

Wait…What about the appliances?

Slate Appliances by GE

Well, you can approach the Coastal design look from two angles when it comes to choosing a finish for your appliances.  You can go for contrast using darker tones, or adopt a more seamless look with panel ready (or similar toned) appliances.  It’s all a matter of personal taste and neither is a right or wrong choice. If a contrasting look from the white (or light pigmented) cabinetry of the Coastal style is your choice, one of our favorites is the Slate finish by GE Appliances.  The sleek, almost stone-colored finish, offers a strong presence of contrast while maintaining a soft feel.  Think of it as a piece of black sea glass that has been worn perfectly smooth by the ocean waves…strong and delicate at the same time.

Panel-Ready Refrigerators by SubZero

If the contrast is too much, or you are looking for a more seamless look in your kitchen, you could use panel ready customizations like those offered by SubZero, to completely blend some appliances (refrigerator, dishwasher) into the surrounding cabinetry. This is also a great way to incorporate some personalized touches like custom knobs, drawer pulls and even some unique pieces like faux crystal studded shells or brightly colored sea glass. Keeping the stainless steel handles on your paneled appliances can also add a little touch of sophistication, a shining contrast that catches the eye just as a jeweled pull would.

The Coastal design style is all about comfort and relaxation akin to your favorite seaside vacation destination. It’s about keeping it light and open, with a good flow for family and guests to just kind of float through the space, uncluttered and carefree. We hope you have found some inspiration or direction for any current (or future) home renovation projects and if you need any visual aid, feel free to check out our Pinterest Coastal Design board. 

Header image from HGTV

It’s National Rum Day!

It’s National Rum Day!

by | Aug 16, 2018 | Recipes

Yes, you read that right, It’s National Rum Day!  So in honor of this day, we are sharing three of our favorite Rum Recipes from the Captain himself…Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold Rum that is.

 

Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold Daisy

Before it was a Margarita, it was a Daisy. CookingLight Magazine explains that The Daisy dates back to the 1800’s and is known as a “refreshingly tart cocktail with lightly sweet undertones.” In its humble beginnings, The Daisy was made with Rum or Brandy and lemon juice, simple syrup and Curacao (a heady orange infused liqueur).  Starting to sound like a classic Margarita right!? During the 1930’s Gin made its way into The Daisy which later on inspired drinks like The Cosmopolitan and Sidecar.

Here is a Daisy recipe that combines a subtle mix of spice, sour and sweet.

Ingredients:
  • 50ml. Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold
  • 10ml. Sugar Syrup
  • 25ml. Lemon Juice
  • 1wedge Lemon
  • 17.5ml. Grenadine
Preparation Method
  1. Fill a cocktail shaker with ice cubes.
    2. Using a jigger, measure 50ml Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold, 17.5ml grenadine, 10ml simple syrup and 25ml lemon juice into the shaker.
    3. Shake the mixture vigorously until the surface of the cocktail shaker feels chilled.
    4. Using a strainer strain the cocktail into a highball glass over ice cubes.
    5. Garnish with lemon wedge.

 Spiced Mojito

The First historical appearance of this refreshing drink was in the 1500’s when Sir Francis Drake landed in Havana Cuba in search of gold. Instead, he found a tonic the local South American Indians created for his crew who were suffering from dysentery and scurvy.  This magic elixir consisted of Aguardiente de Cana (a type of sugar cane brandy), mint leaves, limes, and juice from a sugar cane. It quickly, and aptly, became known as “El Draque.” But, it was author Ernest Hemingway’s discovery of the drink in a small restaurant/bar in Havana (named La Bodeguita del Medio) that thrust it into the world spotlight.

Ingredients

  • 50ml.Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold
  • 100ml. Soda Water
  • 25ml. Sugar Syrup
  • 2 Lime Wedge
  • 7 Mint Leaves
  • 1piece Mint Sprig
Preparation Method

1. Place 7 mint leaves into a Collins glass. Using a knife cut a lime in two on a chopping board and place in the drink.
2. With a jigger, measure 25ml sugar syrup into the glass.
3. Using a muddler, rolling pin or large spoon, press down on the mint, lime and sugar to extract aroma and flavor.
4. Half-fill your glass with crushed ice.
5. Using a jigger, measure 50ml Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold into the glass and top with soda water.
6. Stir, add crushed ice and garnish with mint.

 

 Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold & Orange Juice

One of the many things we love about living in Florida is the access to fresh oranges! This delicious drink is super simple to make and even easier to enjoy.  Not to mention the outstanding spice to sweet ratio.

  • 50ml.Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold
  • 125ml. Orange Juice
  • 1 slice of an Orange
Preparation Method

1. Fill a tall glass with ice cubes.
2. Using a jigger, measure 50ml Captain Morgan Original Spiced Gold and 125ml orange juice into the glass.
3. Garnish with an orange slice or twist of orange peel.

 

And there you have it Florida (and beyond) friends! Always remember to drink responsibly and be sure to take care of your appointed designated driver! Feel free to check out the recipe page on our website for ideas to create your celebratory menu. Remember to keep subscribe below for more how-to’s, appliance spotlights and fun recipes! Happy #NationalRumDay!!

Home Water Filtration: Good for the Body and the Environment

Home Water Filtration: Good for the Body and the Environment

by | Aug 11, 2018 | Appliances, Uncategorized

Point of Use Water Filtration = Less Single-Use Plastic Waste

Recycling has become so ingrained into the worldwide culture that it is difficult to remember a time where separating our plastics from our food waste wasn’t a standard practice.  There’s no doubt that recycling is still a valuable tool in the environmental landscape. But, have we now become so reliant on plastic, single-use, containers that the recycling movement is no longer enough to keep up with our consumption of bottled water? But what can we do?  Well, without delving too far into the overall environmental debate we thought back to a great lesson from the classic Schoolhouse Rocks…Reduce, Re-use, Recycle! More specifically, we want to focus on one way we can reduce our reliance on single-use water bottles through the use of home filtration products.  A home filtration system, combined with an eco-friendly reusable water bottle, is a great step towards reducing your environmental footprint (find a current list of eco-friendly bottles here: https://www.ecokarma.net/best-water-bottles/).

Besides the environmental benefits, clean drinking water will help your overall health and well being. Studies show that bottled water can contain chemicals from the plastic, plus filtering your own water is cost effective and will make things like your morning coffee, hot tea, and general home cooking taste much better.

So for this post we are going to focus specifically on Point of Use (POU) water filtration products.  As opposed to Point of Entry (POE) filtration systems which treat water as it enters the home (think water softeners), Point of Use filtration focuses on the water you use for specific tasks like cooking, drinking, and even bathing.  POE systems create an overall better quality of water and work great in conjunction with POU systems to create a total solution for your home.  However, our hearts (and stomachs) here at Milcarsky’s are still fully invested in the home kitchen and this is where a POU water filtration product can truly “sparkle”.

Many of the top appliance brands offer excellent POU home filtration products.  Still, we are going to focus on a true pioneer of the industry.  Everpure has been in business since 1933 and their products are found throughout the hospitality industry and offer this same technology in their residential line.

With that being said, let’s take a look at a few of Everpure’s product offerings to see how you can improve your health, cooking and environment all while receiving better quality water. Not everyone wants, or needs, extensive purification of the water coming into their home.  Despite the fact that drinking water can be tainted in many areas, most of the United States has drinking water that is well within legal limits.  But legal doesn’t always equate to good tasting, nor does it always mean it is free from impurities that you simply would rather not ingest.  The Environmental Working Group offers a great tool that allows you to see exactly what contaminants to look for in your local tap water.  You can search by zip-code to see just how “clean” your municipal water is. We’ve also provided a great video from the EWG at the bottom of this post that explains what exactly can be lurking in your local water.

 

Great Water Straight From The Tap

The EF-6000 can be hooked up to any faucet in your home.

Changing our habits as consumers is vital in making progress towards cutting back on single-use plastic use.  But let’s be honest, changing a daily habit that we consider healthy (drinking water regularly) is going to be very difficult. So, probably the most important factor in cutting back on plastic use, while also making sure your water is safe and healthy, is going to be convenience.  What can be more convenient than having access to purified, drinking water straight from the tap? The Everpure EF-6000 is a great choice for anywhere you want fresh, clean tasting water, and since it does not require a separate faucet the applications are truly wide ranging.  You can use it in the kitchen for cooking and washing your fruits and veggies. Or, connect the filter to your wet bar faucet, ice maker, or even your built-in coffee maker to make all your beverages taste their best.  The removal of impurities also helps prevent lime and scale build-up in your drip coffee maker and all other appliances that use water.  Finally, you can enjoy piece of mind in having drinking water that is purified but still retains all natural occurring vitamins and minerals.

 

Reverse Osmosis: The Definition Of Clean Water

Think of Reverse Osmosis (RO) Systems as the ultimate in eliminating those water impurities that you can’t see like fluoride and other unwanted (or even dangerous) elements.  Though we can all benefit from cleaner water, some households are in need of a “deep” clean to get rid of dangerous impurities like arsenic.  When you absolutely need (or just desire) a thorough filtering process Everpure’s ROM-IV Reverse Osmosis water filtration system is top-level. However, one of the biggest issues people have with water filtered through the Reverse Osmosis process is the fact that RO removes all natural occurring vitamins and minerals.  These vitamins and minerals are not only beneficial to the body but also make water more palatable.  As you can see from the product image to the left, a Reverse Osmosis system also requires a separate faucet and takes up more space than a plumbed-in filter like Everpure’s EF Series. There are truly a lot of factors to condisder. Luckily,  Everpure offers a nice, succinct, comparison of the pros and cons of Reverse Osmosis vs. Carbon Filters. 

A Few Benefits Received From Home Filtered Water

  • Cost Savings:
    • The Everpure EF- 6000 can filter the equivalent of 45,443 bottles of water;
    • The Rom-IV Reverse Osmosis system’s bottled water equivalent is 37,850.
    • At a conservative estimate of $6 for a 24 pack of water, each bottle of 17 oz water costs .25¢. Whereas a home filtered equivalent can cost as low as .007¢. Even if you are a heavy user of water and change your filters out 3-4 times a year, you will save a significant amount of money.
  • Convenience:
    • You can add a filter throughout your home (kitchen, wet bar, even the bathroom) giving you easy access to clean water.  It also cuts back on the need for repeated trips to the store to replenish your bottled water supply.
  • Emergency Readiness:
    • Everyone in Florida knows what it is like as a hurricane approaches.  The first thing to leave the store shelves is bottled water.  Well, with home filtered water you can have a bounty of excellent water for your family, friends and neighbors.
  • Piece of Mind:
    • Improving the quality of water you drink improving your overall quality of life.
    • Knowing that you are doing your part in not contributing to the single-use water bottle pollution problem.
    • A recent study showed that 93% of the bottles tested contained some form of micro-plastic contamination (Mason, Welch and Neratko, 2018).
    • So, not only does filtering your own water cut back on plastic waste, it allows you to better control what goes into your body.

Want More Info? We Can Help

There are many other brands involved in the water filtration segment of home appliance products.  Contact Us to learn more on the specifics of the above mentioned filters or any others that you can find in the filtration section of milcarsky.com.

Sources:

Mason, S., Welch, V. and Neratko, J. (2018). SYNTHETIC POLYMER CONTAMINATION IN BOTTLED WATER. [online] Orbmedia.org. Available at: https://orbmedia.org/sites/default/files/FinalBottledWaterReport.pdf [Accessed 5 Aug. 2018].