Self-Reliant: The manufacturer’s luxury brand carries faucets costing in the high hundreds, but this Reliant+ kitchen unit costs less than $200. It has a pullout spout to make kitchen tasks easy, highly reliable ceramic disc valves, and a nylon hose for quiet pullout function. Available in five finishes, it also features the company’s EverClean finish. American Standard. 800-442-1902. www.americanstandard-us.com.

Every March, Builder looks at kitchen and bath product trends you should know about. Interviewing kitchen and bath designers, we get the latest on all the geegaws that make buyers go gaga. But the sizzling hot real estate market of yesterday has come to a screeching halt, and the products you couldn’t afford to ignore have become the items you simply can’t afford. In this climate, the buyer is king and to attract attention, your designs have to be cool and the prices have to be right. So, how do you achieve a good-looking kitchen and bath on a tight budget?

Possibly the best people to answer this question are architects, individuals who believe good design comes from ingenuity and resourcefulness. (As evidence, turn to “Do Try This at Home” for our design portfolio of architects’ own homes.) Using creativity and inexpensive products, architects have a knack for turning throwaway sites, dilapidated buildings, and ugly spaces into marvelous architectural gems.

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