Resurrection of a dull old space into a bright cottage kitchen!
From dark and dated to the kind of kitchen remodel you’d want to spend all your time prepping veggies and baking – this before and after was one of our favorites. While this space was not much to look at in the beginning, our goals were to develop a bright, fun, more crisp aesthetic where one could really display some fun kitchen wares AND get down to business.
Some of the high notes on these after pics – The painted ceiling in an unusual purpley blue- Benjamin Moore Sea Life, the incredible gas Bertazzoni range and convection oven that is a serious dream to work with and adds so much character to the space – the punchy Benjamin Moore “bright yellow” floating shelves that mimic that color intensity and brilliance – gorgeous glass mosaic backsplash that has the slightest hint of blues, a perfect tie in to the roman shades made from a graphic, stylized floral print by one of our favorite fabric manufacturers.
This old home had sat for some time and all the appliances had been stripped out of it so the before photos only show a space that needed some serious love and attention to bring it back to life.
Objectives of a bright kitchen remodel:
*Developing an overall space plan and layout with attention to multiple work space areas on either side of the kitchen
*Staying within a tightly defined budget but still choosing where to spend the money…wisely
*Keeping some elements of the original home’s architecture and age while still being FUN
*Create a serious cooking area within the super small space for potential use later for a small batch baking endeavor
*Combining the need for closed storage with the fun element of display
*Replace the flooring and lighten the color palette overall to create a more inviting space that’s meant for lively interaction and happy meetings
*Use existing footprint under roof to help increase size without adding costly square footage
*Decipher opportunity for a small area to pop up and have a quick bite or socialize with the client while she works
Design challenges of this kitchen remodel:
*Existing walls and flooring dark, drab and dated
*Super small footprint and adjacent butlers pantry that did not work well in the layout
*Ceiling oddly short compared to rest of house
*Wainscoting surrounding the room on two sides and tile behind the sink required tear out – plaster walls and ceiling made for challenging surfaces to work with and damage to both warranted the opportunity for alternative material selection to cover these planes
*Considering the small space and the range being a major splurge and necessary for the baking happening in this space, Not much room for other appliances so tough decisions had to be made
Design solutions:
*Surprise find once started poking holes in ceiling…was able to raise it! Painted Benjamin Moore Sea Life
*Developed clean layout with custom cabinetry that offered easy access to day to day needs but also provided opportunity for more long-term storage above the fridge and uppermost cabinets
*Decided against a dishwasher as not enough room on sink run for standard size and needed trash pullout and storage more…a very personal decision carefully considered but did allow for future dishwasher if window needed to be downsized one day and move seating. Planning ahead but for now decided to save the money and wash the old fashioned way…in the sink!
*Added wall at end of room where no cabinetry could be to create more s torage for rest of the house
*Used countertop microwave on bar cart to not take up valuable space on counters and to avoid unsightly microwave over the range.
*No space wasted! At end of cabinetry where a void was created due to a fireplace in other room, we added a useful “command central” bulletin board area
*Large format white tile (12×35) floor to ceiling on the sink and back wall alleviated the need to replace plaster and added a fresh, easy-to-clean surface that’s very user friendly
*Mosaic tile on floor and backsplash in intricate pattern designs helps add character consistent with the home’s age, and some needed texture to the room
*Gorgeous floating shelves painted in Benjamin Moore’s Bright Yellow
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