THE PROGRAM The clients, Kevin and Marshelle, were ready to change their cramped kitchen. The existing kitchen, in addition to being small, was hopelessly dated and sealed off from the rest of the house. A prior 2nd story bedroom addition (by the previous owner) had located the stairs right at the main entry, in the process also sealing off the previous entry hall closets. The entry ceiling was lower than the adjacent rooms. The ceiling in the kitchen was also low, containing the ubiquitous fluorescent light box, which provided most of the kitchen lighting. The space had potential, but it was going to take a lot of creative thinking and hard work to bring about a dramatic transformation.  nook before  kitchen before  to entry before | THE DESIGN CONCEPT The challenge was to open this space up as much as possible. The existing 2nd story limited our ceiling options; however, with some structural modifications, we could raise the entry and kitchen ceilings to standard height and remove walls separating the space from the rest of the house. We were also able to reclaim the old entry closet space for use in the kitchen. With these new room dimensions available, a plan was conceived to provide plenty of counter space with a large island in the middle. The wall between the kitchen and dining room was removed and the space divided instead with a short, paneled bar height wall with seating. We ended up with one 20 foot long wall that would house the cooking and clean up activities. This was a challenge aesthetically because these work centers could end up competing as focal points in the overall design. The solution was to provide emphasis for each area in different ways. The cleanup center on this interior wall featured a stepped in open shelf cabinet above with carved detail with arch. The cook top cabinet was sandwiched between decorative pilasters and above the hood a large carved wood design was added. A tumbled marble backsplash was planned with mosaic accents strategically placed to unify this wall. The alder cabinetry was finished in a light glaze. The island was finished in an olive glaze which introduced a color while tying in perfectly with the quartz slab countertop used throughout. On the opposite wall, a snack and baking center was created, utilizing a prep sink on the island, double ovens tucked under the stairway, pantry, and counter space with microwave which was built into the standard depth wall cabinetry. The pantry was angled to give interest and provide the proper viewing angle for a TV hidden behind pocket doors in the upper section. The old patio door was changed to an 8 foot long French sliding door, making room for the full sized 48 inch built-in refrigerator/freezer. Kitchen lighting was layered with extensive switching and dimming options. Decorative pendants were used for the island, undercabinet fluorescents were installed for all counter task lighting, and a combination of line voltage and low voltage halogen fixtures were recessed into the ceiling for general and task lighting. A 12x12 ceramic floor tile with an old world patina was used to unify the entry and kitchen spaces, retaining wood flooring in the dining area. The entry tile was cut into a decorative pattern for emphasis, but done in the same color to blend the areas. In the dining room, an existing closet was converted to a built-in hutch matching the kitchen cabinetry, but with a wood top. Utilizing matching cabinetry here helped to bring the dining room visually closer to the new kitchen. The entry to the bedrooms off the dining area was re-sized and arched. The professional exhaust system required ducting to the exterior. With a second floor above, we could not run ductwork thru to the roof. A decorative wood soffit was designed to conceal the ductwork which we ran out to the exterior wall instead. A review of the photos below will reveal the new kitchen. |  baking center |
 hutch |
 island |
 kitchen |
|||||||||
