I would say no, because jumping the shark usually implies that it has been taken to some inappropriate, unlikely extreme. The essential SGG kitchen is a white kitchen with dark counters and while versions of it have been taken to extremes of size and expense compared to the prototype and people have tried to put this sort of kitchen in some unsuitable houses (it doesn't look great in a strong mid-century modern or a log house, for example) --really a white kitchen plays pretty well in a lot of typical houses. It's not something that is going to assault the eyes like some trends will in the future. People may still call it dated, but I don't know if it will be in the "whatever were they thinking when they did this?" category.

White Shaker, dark soapstone (?) counters, white subway tile backsplash, dark wide plank hardwood floor, the faucet, upper glass cabs, big island, built-in SS fridge, SS chef gas range, ... sounds familiar?
The only thing that I don't see these days, is the 4 inch countertop backsplash.

What about the "It's Complicated" kitchen?

That kitchen was a revival of earlier styles and color schemes, so it's less likely to look really "dated" for a long time. As opposed to, for example, the "Tuscan" style.

1880s ... dark soapstone counters, white painted shelves, white painted free-standing cupboards, dark slate floors

1920s ... hygenic white-painted cupboards, linoleum floors, often brightly colored linoulum counters

It's over into classic territory

Nope. Jumping the shark is when a decline in quality is beyond recovery...Tuttie-fruity chicklet glass backsplash is a shark jumper now that it is in the dollar store in peel-and-stick sheets made out of plastic.

"...White Shaker, dark soapstone (?) counters, white subway tile backsplash, dark wide plank hardwood floor, the faucet, upper glass cabs, big island, built-in SS fridge, SS chef gas range, ..."

Functional working comfort. Goes way back to servants kitchens with big open space, big farmhouse table, then a butlers pantry where finishing touches and service began. It still exists today and the tradition has never tired. It is the central machine of the home. Cabinet makers used traditional methods of construction. Stone counter for baking bread, wood surface for chopping.
(no box store chipboard cabinets, ogee-edged granite, stainless as thin as card-stock paper)

Nice to see an on-going occasional up-date to fit a more modern family that should last much longer, rather than following a KD magazine fad and ripping it out every ten years. That kitchen style has existed many years before the movie when a wealthier crowd started putting restaurant stoves in their homes. My grandmother had a big farmhouse kitchen with a big glass fronted two door sliding fridge and 8 burner stove with griddle in the late 60's. (not wealthy as she ran a diner). It was the best kitchen ever and she knew how to cook.

Like mentioned above, when it becomes a desired look with a giant island and all the bells and cheap quality whistles are crammed into the wrong homes without a home cooked meal in sight because they lost the basic functioning triangle running around and bumping into each other....

Was the SGGK responsible for honed countertops becoming more popular than polished countertops?

It seemed like polished granite countertops were what you did when you got new countertops, but now polished countertops are dated and honed countertops are in. And, I'm just curious when all this happened.

I had no idea that the kitchen in this film had a cult following :)

If you google it, there's a whole research industry around it (in addition to the kitchen industry).
I tried to inject another kitchen, i.e. from "It's Complicated" into the discussion (open shelves, more industrial/artsy look).

"It seemed like polished granite countertops were what you did when you got new countertops, but now polished countertops are dated and honed countertops are in. And, I'm just curious when all this happened. "

Honed are not in where I live, although I have seen them. (I have leathered cambrian black granite, so that counts, I suppose.) EVERY person who comes in my home asks what my counters are made of, so I'm fairly confident the masses are clueless. I'm also confident I would need to leave a sign on the counter saying "they're granite!!" if I ever sell the house..

What part of the country does this forum represent? What part has white kitchens on trend over the last decade? (It's not anywhere I have lived in the Pac NW..... is it New England states? For the record, I do have a white kitchen... it's just not what most ppl have in my area.)

I am tired of the formula, but in my neck of the woods it has been done to death for the last 9 years and done cheaply with lowes subway tile and stock cabs for the last 4years. Honed counters have been the norm for at least 6 years on the ct shoreline as well and I am seeing more polished again now in our showrooms, Homedepot and Lowes in our area have always done polished tho. I think there is more sheen to everything lately and a more polished look instead of the homey feel of last decade. This could just be the tail end to the glass tile trend that may have come later to ct since everyone in this state was doing the "classic" white kitchen while the middle states were doing the wood glass tile thing:).

It might be interesting to take the responses in the "Where Are You From?" thread and stick pins in a map, at least of the US/Canada.

I know that some of the inhabitants of this board may be tired of the white kitchen trend/cliche (not I), but the reality is they are simply not that much in evidence in most homes in my neck of the woods (SF Bay Area). I don't live in the sticks either...San Francisco is less than an hour's drive, and we have a very free flow of information and ideas in these parts. I wish my counters were honed, but I think most of my friends and neighbors would give me a wha??? look if I mentioned it. The folks across the street from me are refinishing their golden oak cabs (and more power to them!) but will not be adding any hardware because the wife thinks her husband is too clumsy to use them. Seriously.

I'm in the DC area, and the classic white kitchen is still in although now the trend is towards more transitional. This doesn't mean that the lower end (think

Here is a link that might be useful: 2013 trophy kitchen

This link has been given before (I found it here, I think) but I think it is fun and on topic. It is a blog with a section on famous movie houses, including SGG, which is #1 in popularity in terms of views.

I think the prevalence of white kitchens also has to do with the style of homes and/or their general age. A new Tuscan style home in a California suburb won't really be equipped with a white kitchen... unless the whole facade changes. But in my neighborhood in NorCal, the white kitchen variant are in 50% of the homes, as they were all built in the 1920s to 1940s. (Knotty pine exists, too). I've seen the SGG kitchen variant in a few remodels. However, there is still way more polished stone on offer than honed. Honed in the warehouses in NorCal seems to be restricted to black granite, marbles,soapstone and lighter quartzite.

Here is a link that might be useful: Hooked on Houses Movie Houses

I don't think this is a white kitchen area either.

2013 kitchen link. Is that photo supposed to be the new smaller kitchen of 2013 - now with soul? Everything is relative! Who comes up with these things. Who follows. I see it as nothing more than marketing, marketing, marketing. And pay little attention unless I see something I like that grabs and holds my senses. People I know seem to want to be original around here, too. Don't want what everyone else is doing. Whoever/wherever the herd mentality types are, lol. I guess I've seen that more with fashion and hair.

This post was edited by snookums2 on Tue, Jun 11, 13 at 16:09

Well, if you look at many of the kitchens unveiled here on GW, we do follow these trends. On one hand, we want to be original, but on the other hand, quite honestly, a lot of the kitchens look very much the same, and we want to go with the trend.
If you think about it: People eat out more often and/or buy read-made or prepared foods, so how many people really "need" a high-powered 6-burner range, prep sinks, double ovens, and whatever gadgets? I've seen plenty of gourmet kitchens that were pristine because nobody really cooked or baked in them.
And while I now will duck and cover, let me say that I've had a white kitchen for 20+ years and still would go again for a white kitchen. (But I sure wish they were less ubiquitous.)

The thing about ubiquity. It's not like clothes or hair or even a car where you go to a party and everyone looks alike. When I'm in my kitchen (or yours), I can't see another kitchen, so I don't really see how it matters if they're the same kitchens up and down the street, as long as you like what you have.

I've worn Levis my whole life, always will. So do millions of other people, some at the very same time. Doesn't make me love 'em any less.

I think people are starting to move towards wood kitchens again (unpainted) and maybe a combination of wood and painted. White kitchens and soapstone (or marble) can be beautiful, but I think warmer colors are showing up more in the magazines. Just my two cents...

Sometimes I think people are too into resale. As long as you love your kitchen, who cares what anyone else thinks. I love the SGG kitchen, and my own kitchen remodel reflects that. I think white kitchens are lovely and timeless.

I think that the traditional white kitchen is a kind of archetype that pre-dates SGG and will continue to exist in the future.

I do not live in the US but in Paris. "Something's gotta give" is not a well known movie here (in fact I had to do a Google search as I had never heard of it), but I do see many kitchens with white panelled doors and dark countertops (laminate or quartz, as soapstone is not available here and granite is not a popular choice).

The white panelled doors/dark counters/white subway combo is the only traditional kitchen style I see in local stores and magazines (other kitchens are contemporary with slab doors.)

Shaker or New England have no meaning here and most locals would simply name this style "ÃÂ l'ancienne" (=old fashioned)

IKEA is the leading kitchen manufacturer here (with a market share over 30%) and this combo has been featured in their catalogs for as long as I can remember, long before SGG.

What I mean is that these elements are design staples which are popular in any western country, like the little black dress, blue jeans or white sneakers.

"Well, if you look at many of the kitchens unveiled here on GW, we do follow these trends. '

GW seems like its own separate island, to me. It does seem to follow trends. That makes sense, being a decorating community, to be visually saturated with the colors and looks that are being shown. GW doesn't correlate to my real life experiences though, at all. It has been an adjustment. And I seem to be more interested in decor than others I know. Have yet to see someone do gray yet that's the go to color online. I don't know what hardcopy magazines are doing anymore.

I've nothing against white kitchens. I've had one for decades and have always admired them. But I tend to steer away from a certain look when I see everyone online is doing it. I don't want it anymore, lol. And there are some things I've daydreamed about for many years, or loved since I was a child. Now they're popular. So it's, drat, and it starts to get old already because you see it so much. But I don't know anyone offline that has done it, so that's some relief.

This post was edited by snookums2 on Tue, Jun 11, 13 at 18:08

So why is lulumom asking this?

am I the only person who opened this thread to find out what the expression "jumped the shark" meant?

Remodelfla, "To jump the shark" is in reference to the Happy Days' episode where fonzie jumped over sharks on his bike in an attempt to create higher ratings...The show had seen happier days:)

Jumped the shark by definition? No. Been around the block and no longer the "it" choice? Probably. However white cabs still seem to be the most common color in the national design mags I pick up, or maybe they're just the ones I'm attracted to.
Don't know about the white cabs with dark counters though. Seem to notice more white with light counters. 5 years ago a variety of soapstone was common in the slab yars, not I rarely see it anywhere and there are few black granites too.

I love white cabs, always have, grew up in PA with white cabs, but they've never been popular where I live in S CA. There is rarely a white kitchen shown in the local home and garden magazine or in the ASID kitchen tours I go to every year. Cherry used to be popular then came espresso and now colorful and eclectic seems to be the rage in both.

When I last remodeled in 1999 I succumbed to the designer steering me away from white and it's still hard to find someone who works with quality white cab, but I'm not settling for less this time. I won't be trying to mimic the traditional white with dark counters from that movie though. Maybe if I had that house in that setting, but not here.

Until very recently most people saw only the houses of their neighbors or friends and a couple dozen others IF they got design magazines. Now we can look at 100 a day if we want. It changes our expectations and perceptions.

Around here, white isn't necessarily popular, but I'd say 20-30% of kitchens have white cabinets. I've yet to see a new home with a white kitchen, although I'm sure a handful exist. Many are from the 20's and 30's, and then another bunch are metal from the 40's and 50's, and the rest are an attempt to brighten up dark kitchens. The strong majority are cathedral golden oak, including some very new, very expensive homes by the lake. That puts this area about 30 years behind the times.

roarah - is that really the origin of the phrase? I knew what it meant but had no idea how it came about.

I just learned my one thing for today!

I don't think the color white can really get old. I mean, it's white! You can say that nothing is truly classic, but white really does go with everything, doesn't it? And dark counters/floor, well, that's just contrast. The SGG kitchen has some traditional touches (totally appropriate to the architecture of the house) but it doesn't look at all dated to me. I think it's as close to a timeless look as you're going to get.

>GW doesn't correlate to my real life experiences though, at all.

I would have to agree with this. In my part of FL, wood kitchens have been the trendy thing to have since the mid-90s. I've never seen a Something's Gotta Give kitchen around here. At the low end everyone does wood because the cheap stock white cabs available at HD and Lowes are the cruddiest of the lot while the wood finishes give a superficially okay look, and at the higher end wood is considered a richer look. White is mostly only in ultramodern pseudo Henrybuilt kitchens or real Poggenpohl.

I've been in two designer showhouses in the past couple of years that had more traditional white cabinets, but both had spotty tan granite, not soapstone. Don't think I've ever seen soapstone around here. A friend almost bought a house with white beadboard cabinets, but it had multi-colored slate floor tiles for counter and backsplash. That's as close as I've seen hereabouts.

My KD was talking to a scout for kitchen magazines (didn't know that job existed), and she told him to send her photos of his recent kitchens -- except the white ones. She said she couldn't sell a white kitchen to any of the magazines she works with. He didn't know if it's because white kitchens are "over", but it may be. In real life, white kitchens will keep chugging along, I'm sure.

The reason for the scout looking for "anything but white" is that magazines have to keep showing different styles to attract advertisers and readers

"Another white kitchen" on the cover after several years of mostly white kitchens is not going to get them ads or readers.

The SGtG kitchens aren't quite "shop worn", but they aren't fresh or exciting anymore. In the right house they are the best possible choice if you want light and airy and classic looking.

I associate them with the old farmhouses where I grew up: white cabinets and walls, dark floor, dark counters and a big worktable ... vintage and classic.

Here is a link that might be useful: Jumping the Shark ... origin

I hardly ever see new kitchen remodels, but I finally managed to dredge 3 from my memory. None of them are white. One had traditional cabs in a light-toned wood with uba tuba granite. One was a minor remodel that added cabs but kept many of the old cabs which were--can you guess?--cathedral golden oak, and I think they put in uba-tuba or something similarly blackish-green. The last one was in an Old Tudor that also kept a lot of the old (original) Douglas fir cabinetry and had more built to match. I think they also have a similar granite. Oddly, it's the old homes that have the white shaker cabs, and typically those are original cabs that have been repainted 1000 times and are currently white. They are often paired with lamiante or tile, though, not any kind of stone. I'm in the SF Bay Area.

Yeah, Chiefy, that is really the origin of the phrase. It started out being used for TV shows when people felt the quality of the show had taken a turn for the worse and was headed toward cancellation. I guess it is used more generally now.

I don't think white kitchens are as ubiquitous in the articles design mags as they once were, but I still see a lot of them in kitchen advertising. They do tend to photograph well.

What would a kitchen designer/fashion/lay-out/furniture/magazines,etc do if we stuck to classics? Out of work! Toss out last years clothing? Rip out a kitchen and replace with the new trend? and then you say a few years later, "what was i thinking?". What a super plan and so horrendously wasteful. Levis and a good linen shirt is something that will last for years.

My home is a delight and original from '62. Custom teak cabinets, entry is cork, kitchen floor is terrazzo.
The rest is patina wood, the few walls are clear vertical cedar but mostly glass like a treehouse spa in the forest. It is appropriate for my custom home to live as the original architect intended.
I have only replaced appliances for a more efficient living 'machine'. I'm sure he would approve. Neighbors have ripped out and trashed and re-configured and should have purchased another style home it they wanted something other than this. But really it is what one wants for their own needs. Who cares. Just follow your gut and cooking style. If you need a fridge that holds frozen pizza boxes, lol, get it. Clearly the planet needs processed food seeing the frozen food isle at the grocery...me don't do that myself. I'm a levi jeans, cook organic from scratch gal. Keep it simple, chop, create, and enjoy.
I don't need the new fashion shoe or color or the 'new' and greatest backsplash or counter. That is just marketing and fashion police for followers, not independent thinkers.
I never saw the movie but i know the designer. It fits the characters and the story line.

Is my kitchen white? nope. But the best kitchens i have seen here at GW are solid representations of their architecture. Not at all a passing fad. I would do the same if it seemed appropriate.

Of everyone I know and of whose kitchens I have visited, only three of us have white kitchens. Two of us have granite, and the other has wood counters with a marble-topped island. Every other kitchen is wood, and most of them are oak. If there is granite, it is usually not a dark one, but is most definitely polished. White kitchens here are just not that popular. I don't feel that it is over done here at all and most certainly not the SGtG kitchen aesthetic, which I desired before that film was even made. Apparently I was ahead of the curve. Go figure. :D