“Black is replacing white or gray as the go-to choice for trophy kitchens across the country,” she writes of the trend that’s been dubbed “kitchen noir.”

One question in this year’s National Kitchen and Bath Style Report asked designers if they’d used black in at least one kitchen they’d done in the last year. About 33% of respondents answered yes, as opposed to only 12% five years ago.

Maria Stapperfenne, president-elect of the National Kitchen and Bath Association, says that clients are looking for something that sets their kitchen apart from their neighbor’s. “They want something dramatic and bold,” she continues. “And they don’t want what their mother had.”

High-End Trends
Regardless of color choices, cabinets are big business right now.

Due to rising home values and favorable lending conditions, the home construction and renovation market is rebounding.

“Not only will more houses be constructed, but many of these houses will feature larger kitchens and multiple bathrooms, the two rooms where cabinets are most often installed,” reads a market projection from ReportBuyer released Oct. 29.

According to the report, this will push demand for cabinets even higher than the approximately $20 billion the U.S. cabinet and vanity industry currently generates each year.

Consumers aren’t doing bare-bones renovations, either. “Not only will homeowners install more cabinets, but these cabinets will often feature value-added amenities that enhance convenience, such as [LED] lighting, pull-out shelves, storage racks and easy-to-open doors,” the report reads.

However, Mike Holmes, known best for his appearances on HGTV, warns homeowners against purely cosmetic upgrades. He’s quoted in a recent Boston Globe article reminding homeowners that plumbing and electrical systems need to be brought up to date in order to actually add value to a home.

Expansive Options
Since cabinets can be such a significant investment, some consumers will probably be relieved to know they aren’t the only option for going noir. There are plenty of products for those who want to add darker colors to their kitchens without committing to black cabinets.

Black appliances have been available for years, but GE is upgrading its black onyx finish (an option homeowners have had for the last 35 years) to appeal to a higher-end market. The finish, which will probably debut next year, will have a brushed graphite look, according to Lou Lenzi, GE Appliances director of industrial design.

Even small appliances are increasingly being offered in black, according to Williams-Sonoma Public Relations Director Carrie Crespo-Dixon, and don’t have to be paired with black cabinets or countertops.

“Black works well with brushed aluminum stoves, microwaves and refrigerators that are often featured in new high rise apartments or renovated spaces,” she says. “Black accents are easy ways people can make a statement without fully committing to one color in their decor.”

The injury has forced Butler to the sidelines, and when he will be back on the court is unclear. According to K.C. Johnson of The Chicago Tribune, Bulls head coach “Thibodeau said Butler is out 2-4 weeks.”

Thibodeau later clarified that “no one knows,” how many weeks Butler will be out. “Two to four, one to three, I don’t know what it is. He’s not comfortable going yet, so when he is, he will. We know he wants to be out there, and injuries are part of the game, so you just deal with it.”

“I try to come back early, and that’s not always the best thing to do,” Butler said. “They’re just making sure when I do come back, I won’t have any restraints and I’ll be able to go 100 percent.”

Unfortunately the the Bulls, this means that they’re without an important player for the beginning of the regular season, notably Wednesday night’s opener against the Knicks.

Unfortunately for Butler, the injury might complicate the contract negotiations that are set to happen October 31st. According to Hoops Habit, last season Butler missed 15 games and was injured before the regular 2014 season started. ESPN’s Chris Broussard said via Twitter Wednesday that Butler and the bulls are “unlikely to agree to contract extension,” but Butler himself doesn’t seem worried.

According to ESPN, he’s focused on recovering from his injury and getting back on the court, not on the contract negotiations. If Butler and the Bulls don’t come to an agreement by October 31st, he’ll become a restricted free agent in the 2015 season.

Moore has lived next to the problem home for 11 years. Since the problems began, she has resorted to lining her property with moth balls to discourage rodents and animals from the neighboring property from visiting her land. Finally tired of watching her neighbor making quick, insubstantial repairs, she has delivered photographs taken over a course of three months to the South Bend legal department and code enforcement offices.

While unfortunately not common due to a high rate of urban and suburban decline in the United States, property owners across the U.S. are nonetheless shocked by the reported conditions at the South Bend property.

Currently, South Bend code enforcement officials have scheduled a hearing for the problematic homeowner on September 25. Moore has stated that she is hopeful the upcoming city council meeting and hearing will cause the city to do more than issue the homeowner another fine.

Both children, who were conceived with the help of sperm donors, had one legal parent prior to the ruling. Now, the kids have two legal parents, allowing them to have rights involved with insurance coverage, inheritance, child support, and death benefits from both Kat and Teresa. The ability to adopt the children has also provided the Rileys with greater responsibilities and rights.

Dane County Circuit Judge Shelley Gaylord approved the Riley family’s adoptions. According to a transcript of the closed hearing, Gaylord said she was bound to recognize the same-sex marriage as constitutionally valid.

Although Wisconsin has a same-sex marriage ban, the couple was married in Iowa. Gaylord said Kat and Teresa’s marriage had to be considered constitutionally valid because Wisconsin’s state Constitution has a full faith and credit clause, which requires states to honor each other’s laws.

Wisconsin is one out of 31 states that still has a ban on gay marriage, which is not all that surprising, considering how tricky it is for governments to revise and amend such laws. A state constitution can only be revised or amended via a constitutional convention, a commission-referred amendment process, an initiated constitutional amendment, or a legislatively referred constitutional amendment. What’s more, legal English is often tricky and complicated, having much of its terminology derived from Latin.

Given enough time, it’s more than likely that additional states will legalize gay marriages, but until, many same sex couples will have to work around them, as the Riley family and other couples in Wisconsin are.

That’s not even the end of the good news. Over 97% of entrepreneurs in Chicago expect their revenue to stay the same or increase in the next six months, while 33% said their access to capital increased. The rest answered that it remained the same. None said that it decreased.

Fully 91% of Chicago entrepreneurs reported a belief that the U.S. economy will remain the same or improve in the next six months, and 97% said they’d start a new business in today’s economic environment.

The numbers didn’t surprise Andrea Herrera, president of the Entrepreneur Organization’s Chicago chapter. “I believe [the survey] says that we are very positive and encouraged about Chicago’s potential for economic growth,” she told the Chicago Tribune. “Two or three years ago it was much more static.”

Herrera is an entrepreneur herself. She founded Chicago-based catering company Amazing Edibles, and currently serves as the company’s president.

The Entrepreneur Organization, which conducts the survey every six months, is a global network based in Virginia that includes 120 chapters and over 8,000 business owners around the world.

Adam Robinson, another member of the group, told the Chicago Tribune that “you’ve got an economy that’s recovering, perhaps slower than some people would like. But it’s recovering. People are seeing more demand out there. Consumer-driven businesses are growing.”

Robinson is the CEO of Hireology, a Chicago-based company founded in 2010. His business started this year with 15 employees and will end with around 80. The company creates and distributes software to assist decentralized companies with hiring practices.

Software solutions like Robinson’s stimulate businesses in several ways. They assist in the growth and functionality of companies of all sizes and even create new business niches like software asset management, which tracks software inventory and licenses to help companies stay in legal compliance and negotiate for new software solutions.

“When we’re growing,” Robinson pointed out, “It’s because our customers are hiring.”