I love those colored ones from Blue Star. Every color of the rainbow it seems! Including...wait for it...wait for it...WHITE!

For electric in colors, Aga has a few and they're gorgeous and only kinda expensive. :)

Viking does colors.

Maybe an induction cooktop and electric oven?

I have an old victorian cottage. In our new kitchen remodel I decided the 40" stainless steel range needed to go. I wanted something less industrial to fit the period of our house. I fell in love with an Italian range manufacturer, Ilve. Their ranges come in several colors with only stainless steel accents. I felt this was much more appropriate for our home's kitchen. When we were ready to order it, I was told it would take 16 weeks because the plant shuts down in August. As luck would have it, I found a 40" Ilve range in the Antique White with chrome trim (exactly what I wanted) on ebay. I snatched it up.

Before I considered the Ilve, I also looked at Fratelli Onofri and Bertazonni. Both of these manufacturers make colored ovens in more of a vintage style and a more modern style. Bluestar also makes ranges in colors. I'm not sure if any of these manufacturers make an all electric range or not, but at least you could get an idea of the colored ranges.

Viking and AGA definitely make an all electric range.

If you can't have gas or propane even for the cooktop part of the range, have you considered separate ovens and cooktop? Thermador and GE Monogram make a mirrored induction cooktop that is just absolutely sexy. IKEA makes a mirror finish MW and oven that would be a nice complement to it, if you don't mind mixing appliance manufacturers. I don't know if that would be too modern for you.

Good luck in your search!

If I didn't have gas I would want a sleek, flat ceramic electric or convection cooktop. It's almost the polar opposite in look from the giant stainless gas range, but I like both looks.

I think Jakadedy meant "Induction" not "convection" cooktop.

Check the Appliance forum for a lot of information about induction. It's very efficient and doesn't heat up the kitchen the way gas does, but has an equivalent amount of power and control. Most induction cooktops are black, including the ones in the induction ranges (there aren't that many of them on the market yet, because induction is just flowering in the last five years here, even though it's been around for twenty years more than that. It's very popular in Europe and Asia). There are a few white ones, and the couple of reflective finish ones that were mentioned up topic.

What you've been seeing in the magazines is just the standard in ranges nowadays. As others have mentioned, quite a number of high end manufacturers offer colors, but most are stainless. There may eventually be more colors available in induction, but right now it's mostly Henry Food--any color you want as long as it's black. Just the way it is. There are a few induction ranges. They're all stainless with black top and accents. You can also do an induction cooktop built in over an oven, which gives you a rangelike installation, but using separate units. Generally, these should be from the same manufacturer. A lot of us prefer raised wall ovens, but that's a personal choice.

Check the Finished Kitchens Blog for most pictures of different kitchens with different ranges and cooktops, and more individual kitchens than you'll see in the magazines.

NYes, but maybe bored is a better term for me. And I have
one. So this could be why I am bored by it. Always thinking
what will I do next.

I love the Red, Blue, Green, Yellow, Ivory and Burgandy
ranges out there. All lovely.

But for now, I am keeping my SS and wearing rose colored
glasses so it looks rosey.

~boxerpups

Not bored yet.

Once you find the best what is there to be bored about?

Many magazine kitchens are all about what they neighbors have and are used only for microwaving leftovers. However, for those that do cook, stainless gas ranges will remain a highly sought after choice.

A craftsman chooses the best tools he can afford to populate his workshop. Style is secondary. It's why someone who frames houses for a living has a magnesium worm drive circular saw versus a plain cheap Ryobi.

Gas ranges are foremost about performance, not style. You just don't get the equivalent performance in an electric range unless you go with and induction cooktop and separate oven. A cheap $500 radiant electric range uses the exact same technology and cooks exactly the same as a $5K Viking electric range. Not so with gas ranges. A $500 gas range and a $5000 gas range will be worlds apart in capability. This can make a difference in the quality of the meals you are able to produce for your family. It won't make you into a Cordon Bleu cook instantly, but it can ignite a spark you didn't know was there and can make a good cook even better.

The choice of stainless is certainly driven some by popularity, but it's also a functional choice. Stainless is non reactive to acids or bases and has been the choice in pro kitchens and labs for decades for a reason. It too is a functional choice. I'm not saying that colors wouldn't be functional, but they are often more expensive and date themselves quickly. Someone spending a hefty amount for an item they hope to never buy again wants an item that will look "current" for as long as possible. I LOVE color! If I could afford it, I'd have a "range of the week" warehouse and change them out as my mood dictated. BUt, I'm a low paid slob, and that stainless gas range will look great for a long time with just a change out of kitchen towels and mixing bowls from lime green to cobalt blue to that flirtation with shocking magenta.

So, no, I'm never bored with functionality! I just wish that appliances were designed from the beginning so that you could change out a couple of panels and change out to different colors. Sort of like getting a new cover and keyboard surround for your laptop lets it be all new again.

I did mean induction -- not convection. Where is my mind? Clearly not in the kitchen. I blame it on putting prices on tiny stickers for a yard sale Saturday.

Thanks plllog!

Somehow, I doubt the massive numbers of stainless steel ranges sold everywhere from high-end showrooms to Sears were all purchased by Mark Bitman groupies. Stainless is a fad. A house is not a commercial kitchen, it does not have sauciers to reduce demiglace or a grill station to fire steaks, it does not serve 2000 tops a night, nor does it have a staff to scrub it down after closing until 1 a.m. while doing bong hits and Tequila shots. And it has no need for a commercial look unless its owners want one or think it will be a status symbol.

None of the actual chefs I know have stainless steel high end ranges in their homes.Not one. A craftsman is not defined by his toys.

If you like the way it looks, and don't mind cleaning it, buy it. If you don't, there are other choices, but you do kind of have to dig for them.

Not at all, I like the look of stainless appliances, though I do like a stainless/black combination, too. In my price range, there aren't any colors that are done well, certainly not black or white. I much prefer the clean, practical look of stainless appliances. Even inexpensive appliances can look decent in stainless.

I like 'em, don't find the SS difficult to clean (the inside is another matter!), and think it's more "neutral" than a colored range. Not that a colored one wouldn't be fun and look lovely (some luscious colors to be had I'm sure!), but might make it more difficult to change a kitchen's color-scheme.

I know a lot of people love stainless steel, but for me, it feels like all the restaurants I worked in, while going to college. I was a hostess, and occasional waitress, so I was long gone before 1 a.m...and must have missed Marcolo's kitchen clean up parties :)

If I can afford it, I think a color would be fun. They are so cheerful. I'd love to find a 1920s style vintage looking range, but new. Unfortuantely, I don't think anyone makes them. My grandmother loved to watch Murder She Wrote and there was a beautiful vintage range in Jessica Fletcher's kitchen. Something like that would be wonderful!

I wish colors were an option like they are on cars.

I got a stainless front microwave to match my range, but I painted the carcass of it to match the upper cabinets and backsplash, so I have a BM Ocean Air microwave.

I think the stainless ranges make more sense than the stainless dw and fridges IMHO. They look fine, but since they are the default choice in all houses that replace appliances around here, I am tired of them. When they were new or different, they looked a lot cooler. I guess the honeymoon is over for me, lol.
We will have a ss wall oven and island vent hood, so I can't say I do not like ss. I just am tired of every appliance in every kitchen having the same finish. I see houses every day as a real estate agent and it is getting hard to fake enthusiasm for seeing cookie cutter kitchens over and over. Luckily, the buyers still like it all and are still buying, so the only one bored of it is me ;)

I do not dislike stainless steel ranges at all, but they don't excite either. What really makes me sit up and look is the Aga models, vintage O'Keefe & Merritts, French ranges, and colored Bluestars - stuff like that.

But, for me, a range is primarily a utilitarian item. I admire those who can make beauty from their appliances, I just don't personally have that talent or priorities.

Yeah, I kind of agree with johnliu ... I don't really "see" the stainless range. Back to the "stainless-is-a-neutral" meme, maybe. I have no problem with my appliances being mostly only useful, even though I do think La Cornues and Agas are totally gorgeous.

When I bought my house 17 years ago, it came with a SS oven, cook top and exhaust fan that were installed by the PO in the 50's. I don't think SS is a fad.

" I'd love to find a 1920s style vintage looking range, but new. Unfortuantely, I don't think anyone makes them."

lavender lass, have you seen the Heartland electric ranges? I don't know what your budget is, but they are definitely different from the usual!

PS teapotmissy, your Ilve is beautiful!

Becky (an O'Keefe and Merritt fan)

Here is a link that might be useful: Heartland electric ranges

Lavender Lass, take a look around. There are quite a few companies that restore old ranges and put all new works in them. They'll even change from electric to gas or vice versa for you. These cost as much as a modern, top quality range without the gonzo power or supersized oven, but if the look does it for you, you have the budget, and you're good with cooking with those givens, you can have anything you want!

1228 Oriole at AntiqueAppliances.com

Also check AntiqueGasStoves.com and GoodTimeStove.com, as well as people local to you. You can buy the parts as well if you're interested in a DIY job.

When I see a home kitchen with stainless steel everywhere, all I can think of is a school cafeteria serving line and the kitchen behind it. Indelible mental image. At the end of the day, that all-stainless steel kitchen has been hosed down from ceiling to floor and all is immaculate and absolutely empty, awaiting the next day with the cooks and the servers and all the kids. The cookware is metal and megasized and it's scrubbed to within an inch of its life after use. The food is not gourmet, but it's filling. Very filling. And when in use, the kitchen is noisy with echoes of voices on hard surfaces and metal clunking on metal.

Needless to say, I'm not chasing the stainless steel look for my kitchen.

I never thought I'd see a post like this.

I myself find the stainless trendy look extremely sterile and cold.

We still like Bisque but good luck finding decent - average priced appliances in this color much longer.

We're going with White. Never goes out of style and will always match.

Lavender - we got our 1940's Cambers stove on Craigslist and it was very reasonable. You can also try ebay. I hope you get your dream stove ;)

I am in the school where I don't think appliances have to match--especially the range.

I grew up in a house(1969) with stainless steel cooktop and hood, but the ovens, fridge and DW were white. However in that late sixties way, the oven had black, grey, and lotsa chrome trim on it. And the fridge had a fake "walnut" handle. I actually miss the chrome trim on newer appliances. I would like white fridges and ovens better if they had a nice metal handle instead of the plastic that yellows.

Don't look at cars for color options. I was casually looking at one new mid-sized model-it came in 6 "colors"- black, two shade of white and three shades of gray.

"I actually miss the chrome trim on newer appliances. I would like white fridges and ovens better if they had a nice metal handle instead of the plastic that yellows."

Me, too! I'm glad our relatively new white fridge has white-painted metal handles, not white plastic handles, but I wish it had come with chrome handles.

My much older white oven is only 2 years younger than my dad's white oven but I think it's aged better than my dad's for two reasons. One is that it has very little plastic on it and it's gray (to go with the chrome trim on the oven). The second reason is that the gray plastic has stayed the same color as opposed to the dingy yellow of the aged white plastic on my dad's oven.

Thank you for all the great suggestions. I didn't know Aga made electric ranges, but look what I found when I did an Internet search! I don't know if I'd choose red, but it looks great in this kitchen :)

Here is a link that might be useful: Red Aga kitchen

My in laws put in a SS cooktop, SS tile backsplash and SS built in oven in 1955. My parents put in SS range in the later 60's. I put my first SS range in 79 so SS ranges are the norm for me though I do like the Bluestar and viking colors.

Having been a lurker on this thread since you started it, I was quite prepared to stay in the role of silent observer. But, now that you've gone and posted that red Aga kitchen (gawgus!), it's kind of hard to continue with keeping my opinion to myself on this. So, although there's no doubt I sincerely admire seeing so many kitchens with stainless appliances, my personal choice was depart from the stainless "standard" and to go for some color!:

I have never ever regretted my choice, btw. There are some of us TKOs who really do like living with color! :-)

marthavila, that IS absolutely gorgeous! I don't think I've seen it before so thanks for posting!

Becky

How can you only lurk Martha? I'd be showing the beauty in the bathroom, appliance, home decorating, and window forums daily, lol!

nope. i like seeing the enameled colors on some ranges but i know i would tire of a blue or green or yellow range in no time. color goes in and out of fashion and i prefer to keep my appliances stainless and my cabinets white. i can change color in the room whenever i want.

back in the crazy 80s blue was hot. there was blue glass, blue kitchenaid mixers, blue EVERYTHING. i was enamoured for a good two years. and if i had to stare at anything blue that was PERMANENT i think i'd go nuts. it was so overdone. to me stainless is wonderfully neutral and smart looking.

No...I really like the look of SS. It looks classic and goes with just about every style. And...it is definitely not a fad...unless a fad lasts over 50 years!

fad: a temporary fashion, notion, manner of conduct, etc.

As others have mentioned, w/SS you can decorate in whatever colors/style w/o worrying about whether those colors/style will clash w/your appliances.

To me, most ranges (or any appliance) in color are nice to look at, but I think they look better "stand alone" than they do actually installed. (This is my personal preference, so don't give me a hard time!)