All I wanted to do was find an oven without bells & whistles that didnt take too long to preheatÂmy googled question took me to this wonderful website that not only answered my question, but led me to learn about new appliances, to meet new people, to learn about kitchen planning and to go to places I had never heard of before!

First, the answer to my question about the stove: even if there are dials on the ovens, everthing is digital, to you might as well have a touch panel for oven controls and one of the faster preheat times is with the Thermador 301ES(I only have convection in my upper oven). I just timed my preheat to 350 and it took only 10 minutes.

My Bluestar rangetop and Liebherr refrigerator were not even under consideration before I found the website, but after reading all of the posts, I felt compelled to look at these appliances. At the time I was planning my kitchen, there were no Bluestar ranges available in the Raleigh-Durham area. In response to my queries, I was led by a fellow Gardenwebber(who turned out to have a child attending the same school as my son), to Connie in Lexington, NC who had recently installed a Bluestar rangetop. She loved her stove so much that she invited me to come to her home and give it a "test drive"Âso I drove to her home, an hour and a half away, with my wok and all of my stir fry ingredients and cooked dinner on her stove! I loved the way the wok seared the chicken and how quickly I was able to prepare the food. I left dinner for Connie and her husband and then moved on to Charlotte to prepare the same meal on the Wolf rangetop. There was no comparison. The wok simply couldnÂt get as hot as it did on the Bluestar. The food was good but didnÂt have the lovely sear that I found with the Bluestar.

My next destination was Eurostoves in Boston! Honestly, I didnÂt go to Boston to look for appliances, but I had some extra time when I was in the area and I had heard so much about Eurostoves that I just had to visit the store. I met Trevor and he couldnÂt have been more helpful. He gave me wonderful advice about the Bluestar and then showed me the Liebherr refrigerator for the first time. It was love at first sight. Up until that time, I thought I would get a Sub-zero since I wanted a built in refrigerator with panel inserts. I loved the Liebherr because of the configuration. There is lots of room in the refrigerator to store large capacity items and trays. The doors are much more lightweight than the Sub-zero and the refrigerator is very quiet. The bonus, which I couldnÂt see in the store, but now enjoy, is how well the produce stays fresh. I love to show my friends the strawberries I purchased a week ago that look as fresh as the day I bought them! The other thing I just discovered yesterday is how well the refrigerator is insulated! We just lost our power for 15 hours and not a single ice cube melted!!!!(I canÂt say the same for the Kitchenaid refrigerator in our mudroom)

When it came time to order our appliances, some local retailers were carrying the Bluestar, but not only did the salespeople quote me a sales price much higher than what Trevor had quoted me from Eurostoves, none of them seemed to know much about the stove itself. My contractor was wary of me placing my order out of state, but I felt confident of my decision, based on the service and consideration Trevor had given me. I did agree to order my refrigerator locally since my contractor was concerned about installation issues for such a big item. I received the stove along with the Prestige hood from Eurostoves without any problems. When the rangetop was first installed, I smelled gas even after it was turned off. Trevor listened to my concerns and put me in touch with Pete Bloodgood who set up an appointment with a local certified repairman. Once the stove was serviced Âan igniter was replaced (possibly damaged during installation) there have been no further issues and I continue to love my stove. Trevor was always available to help with any of my questions and Pete was very responsive to my call. I canÂt recommend Eurostoves or Bluestar more highly.

Other trips took me to Home ExpoÂin Naples, Florida, Downers Grove, Illinois and Vernon Hills, Illinois. At last I found a showroom that had high-end appliances, cabinets, hardware and plumbing fixtures all under the same roof! They had an incredible sale while I was at the Vernon Hills store, where I ordered a bathroom sink, all of my kitchen and bath hardware, a water filter and lots of other stuff. The sink arrived broken, but I had no problem exchanging it for another one. I canÂt say enough good things about the help I received particularly at the Vernon Hills storeÂgood place, great products. If you donÂt have a Home Expo near your home, it is worth the trip to travel somewhere to see all the products under one roof.

We moved out of our house last September and rented a house that was vacant, but on the market. We moved back into our house in January and love every inch of itÂespecially the kitchen! I promise I will post pictures as soon as I can. Thank you Gardenweb!