Hot new trends in kitchen faucets

Single-handled kitchen faucets with pull-out spouts are making quite a splash with consumers these days. They come in different finishes, and are great for cleaning fruits and vegetables, or spritzing a spouse. You will find that spouts with stainless-steel hoses are less prone to kinking than others. Faucets with water filters built into the spout are are also pretty popular. Pot fillers — cold-water taps on long swing-out arms installed within reach of your range or cook-top are also a hot item.

In the area of finishes, chrome is still the faucet fan favorite. It's durable, easy to clean and versatile. Lifetime finishes such as you find with major manufacturers like Kohler, Delta, Moen, American Standard and Price Pfister have taken the worry out of caring for polished-brass finishes. All these finishes stand up to abrasive cleaners and do not spot. According to people who keep track of such things, satin-nickel is moving up on chrome and polished brass in the race for finish supremacy. And why not? They're warm and soft, and blend in with just about everything.