As someone once said, good ideas are a dime-a-dozen, but a good idea brought to full fruition, well, you’ve got something there. Mixed metaphors and botched aphorisms aside, the point is made—a concept is only so good as its originator’s dedication. The design team at Pininfarina must be plenty devoted then, for their Idea Kitchen for manufacturer Snaidero is not just some pie-in-the-sky notion, but a fully-realized, intelligent, and exceptionally versatile kitchen with broad aesthetic appeal.

Idea Kitchen. Designed by Pininfarina. Manufactured by Snaidero.

Snaidero’s Multi-Faceted Idea Kitchen Sports Innovation by the Dozen

The idea for Idea is simple: offer a collection of modular cabinetry and drawers with a huge variety of finish options and varied accessories. And when I say huge I’m not just tossing words around. The Idea Kitchen offers countertop, drawer, and cabinet front finishes in no less than 24 varieties of standard lacquer, six distinct shades of matte micalized and matte metalized lacquer, three species of wood, and two polymerics.

My calculus skills are more than half a lifetime old, and they weren’t that good to begin with, but I believe the simple algebra of the above choices leaves approximately 5,184 different permutations. If that’s too much to wrap your head around—and it certainly is for a Libra like me—have a look at the Idea Kitchen images on Snaidero’s website. There, you’ll get a good long gander at clever combinations like matte cherry and black lacquer; dark oak and metalized chrome; even coffee brown larch and ice white matte.

These tempting permutations are certainly worthy of sharpening your knives and whetting your appetite for a clever, clean, and contemporary look that suits your particular inclinations. And if the finishes alone don’t do it, here’s several more incentives besides: ergonomic “handle-less” fronts, polished stainless steel channels between drawers, optional upper cabinet doors in frosted glass, and oversized self-closing base drawers with more than enough room to accommodate pots and pans.

About the Manufacturer: For 65 years Snaidero has designed and manufactured kitchens and kitchen components with a cutting edge aesthetic and a careful eye to functionality. This last quality is of supreme importance in the kitchen, and Snaidero consistently balances the needs of a kitchen-based lifestyle with an avant garde aesthetic. The company routinely attracts leading designers—Massimo Iosa Ghini, Angelo Mangiarotti, and Paolo Pininfarina have all authored original work for Snaidero.

l