Janice Anne Costa: Kitchen & Bath Expert
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In the kitchen and bath industry, Janice Costa is best known as long-time editor of Kitchen & Bath Design News, as well as author of Grand Master Baths and co-author of the humorous yet practical guide to kitchen remodeling, Everything and the Kitchen Sink: Remodel Your Kitchen Without Losing Your Mind. Among family, however, she is better remembered for such childhood kitchen disasters as setting her first Easy-Bake Oven on fire and melting socks in the microwave during a broken dryer emergency (who knew that socks could actually melt?).
But despite a few early kitchen mishaps, Janice has developed a deep and abiding respect for the role of the kitchen as the true “heart of the home”. Good design isn’t just a luxury, she’s quick to point out; it’s something that vastly improves people’s quality of life. In fact, for those who think design is merely superficial, she is quick to cite a worldwide kitchen survey, which showed a direct correlation between people’s satisfaction with their kitchen and their overall happiness. Recognizing this, she has made it her mission to help others find their design bliss.
As editor of Kitchen & Bath Design News, the industry’s leading kitchen and bath design magazine, she is uniquely keyed into the design world, thanks to an intimate rapport with her monthly readership of design professionals — a readership that encompasses more than 55,000 kitchen and bath dealers, designers, remodelers, architects, and builders.
Janice has been interviewed about trends in the design industry by CNN, HGTV.com, USA Today, the LA Times, U.S. News & World Report, the Chicago Sun-Times, Woman’s Day, the Wall Street Journal, the Chicago Tribune, the Washington Post, the New York Times, and a host of other publications.
A well-known writer, editor, speaker, and industry presence for over a decade, Janice has spoken at regional and national industry events, home shows, and educational forums. She has served on a variety of industry trend panels and product manufacturer advisory boards, both in the U.S. and abroad, addressing design, product, and color trends. She has acted as a judge for both national and international kitchen and bath design contests, including Woman’s Day "Best New Kitchen and Bath Products" competition, Delta Faucet’s “Just Say Wow!” contest, and London’s Bathrooms & Kitchens magazine “Designer of the Year” competition, among others, and has edited numerous design books developed by the National Kitchen & Bath Association.
Janice has also written on a variety of lifestyle topics from wine to fine chocolates, and her work has been published in Cosmopolitan, Good Living, Changing Homes, Qualified Remodeler, Newsday and numerous other publications. When she’s not writing, Janice is active in the Therapy Dog program, training and certifying therapy dogs to visit hospitals, libraries, nursing homes, hospices, and other venues. A Cornell University graduate, she lives in New York.
But despite a few early kitchen mishaps, Janice has developed a deep and abiding respect for the role of the kitchen as the true “heart of the home”. Good design isn’t just a luxury, she’s quick to point out; it’s something that vastly improves people’s quality of life. In fact, for those who think design is merely superficial, she is quick to cite a worldwide kitchen survey, which showed a direct correlation between people’s satisfaction with their kitchen and their overall happiness. Recognizing this, she has made it her mission to help others find their design bliss.
As editor of Kitchen & Bath Design News, the industry’s leading kitchen and bath design magazine, she is uniquely keyed into the design world, thanks to an intimate rapport with her monthly readership of design professionals — a readership that encompasses more than 55,000 kitchen and bath dealers, designers, remodelers, architects, and builders.
Janice has been interviewed about trends in the design industry by CNN, HGTV.com, USA Today, the LA Times, U.S. News & World Report, the Chicago Sun-Times, Woman’s Day, the Wall Street Journal, the Chicago Tribune, the Washington Post, the New York Times, and a host of other publications.
A well-known writer, editor, speaker, and industry presence for over a decade, Janice has spoken at regional and national industry events, home shows, and educational forums. She has served on a variety of industry trend panels and product manufacturer advisory boards, both in the U.S. and abroad, addressing design, product, and color trends. She has acted as a judge for both national and international kitchen and bath design contests, including Woman’s Day "Best New Kitchen and Bath Products" competition, Delta Faucet’s “Just Say Wow!” contest, and London’s Bathrooms & Kitchens magazine “Designer of the Year” competition, among others, and has edited numerous design books developed by the National Kitchen & Bath Association.
Janice has also written on a variety of lifestyle topics from wine to fine chocolates, and her work has been published in Cosmopolitan, Good Living, Changing Homes, Qualified Remodeler, Newsday and numerous other publications. When she’s not writing, Janice is active in the Therapy Dog program, training and certifying therapy dogs to visit hospitals, libraries, nursing homes, hospices, and other venues. A Cornell University graduate, she lives in New York.
REVIEWS
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If your spouse spends so much time in the “throne room”, you're thinking of investing in an eject button, you might want to skip this article. If, on the other hand, you'd like to make your bathroom more comfortable and inviting, read on.Read More »
While the toilet may not be the first thing you think of when glamorizing your bath, with the newest advances in technology, comfort, and style, the best seat in the house could very well be in your bathroom. That's because the latest, greatest toilet seats are padded, heated, lighted, and scented, and feature everything from self-closing properties to padded arm rests and back rests to bidet action. You can even find seats with a built-in candle holder, drink holder or ashtray.
Here's a look at some of the most luxurious and innovative toilet seats on the market today. -
As a child, I loved singing in the shower. In a house with six people and assorted pets, privacy was a rare and glorious thing, and the shower was the one place I could be alone and sing my heart out… at least until the hot water ran out.Read More »
As a result, long before American Idol made bad a capella-singing, prime-time family entertainment, my parents got to experience my waterlogged but enthusiastic renditions of Air Supply, Bon Jovi, and Heart, punctuated only by the occasional yelp when someone flushed the toilet in the upstairs bathroom.
Little did any of us know I was ahead of the times. Indeed, today's hottest shower systems not only facilitate singing in the shower - incorporating speakers that hook up to iPods, mp3 players, or computers to provide full surround sound on par with a concert auditorium - but they also offer everything from hydrotherapy and skin care benefits to tanning properties.
New technology has also taken the "yelp" out of showering, with programmable pre-sets and thermostatic valve technology that keeps the temperature constant, even if someone flushes upstairs.
Showers are also getting personal, with multi-jet shower systems and showerheads that can be customized by water droplet size, flow intensity, temperature, and more.
Here's a look at some of the hottest showers on the market today. -
Today's refrigerators have come a long way from your grandma's ice box. Sure, they still keep food cold. But new technology has all but re-invented this classic appliance, making it every bit as cool as that new phone you spent six hours online waiting to buy for your twelve-year-old daughter (who loved it for three weeks before she decided she wanted the candy-bar-shaped one instead, and accidentally-on-purpose dropped it in the sink!).Read More »
But while technology may be giving refrigerators a new lease on life, great looks, energy-saving features and flexible designs are equally important in choosing just the right model.
So what makes a refrigerator truly cool? Look for great technology, flexibility (in terms of size and internal storage options), multi-tasking abilities (after all, YOU have to do all kinds of stuff, so why should you expect any less from your refrigerator?), energy-efficient operation and the ability to provide healthful extras, such as filtered water, or purified interior air to keep food fresher.
Here's a look at some of the most exciting and innovative refrigerators on the market today. -
It used to be the world had two kinds of people: those who Really Cooked, and those who Microwaved. The people who Really Cooked were perceived as organized, domestic, and family-oriented, making healthy meals for their families with smug, Donna Reed-like industriousness.Read More »
The people who Only Microwaved, by contrast, were said to be unhealthy, lazy, and obsessed with instant gratification: if it couldn't be made in three minutes or less, they couldn't be bothered.
For many years, I belonged to the latter group. In fact, when my first microwave died the year after I graduated college, I sat at the kitchen table and cried. What would I do, I wondered. How would I eat?
Although my cooking skills have improved a bit since those days, as someone who frequently gets home from work at 9 p.m., I understand the lure of the three-minute meal. But that doesn't mean I want to eat salt-laded, preservative-laden frozen dinners that could easily be mistaken for the cardboard containers they come in.
Even when I do take time to cook something elaborate, I value my microwave for its ability to heat things up fast, keep things warm or soften butter.
Fortunately, the latest, greatest microwaves have come a long way from the 1970s models that made everything taste oddly gummy-flavored. In fact, not only have microwaves improved in terms of taste, but many also offer the ability to steam vegetables, make crisp bacon, bake cookies, broil a roast and more, along with the standard heat, reheat, and defrost modes.
Enhanced styling, decreased noise, and greater design flexibility also help define the newest crop of microwaves. Here's a look at some of the most exciting and innovative microwaves on the market today.
