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Kitchen of the Week: A Bi-Coastal Construction
Houzz user Karen Heffernan reveals her dream black-and-white kitchen
Designing a kitchen is always a challenge, but it becomes much more difficult when you have to design the entire thing from more than 3,000 miles away. Houzz user Karen Heffernan was living in California while the construction on her soon-to-be-home in Boston was still being completed. But thanks to the help of her amazing builder and the power of the internet, she was able to design and execute the kitchen she'd always wanted.
Her spacious black-and-white kitchen was inspired in part by the movie Something's Gotta Give. "It's one of my husband and my favorite movies," says Heffernan. "I absolutely love her character's kitchen. We may never have her amazing house in the Hamptons, but we figured we could take a shot at the kitchen!"
Her spacious black-and-white kitchen was inspired in part by the movie Something's Gotta Give. "It's one of my husband and my favorite movies," says Heffernan. "I absolutely love her character's kitchen. We may never have her amazing house in the Hamptons, but we figured we could take a shot at the kitchen!"
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| One of the more difficult aspects was figuring out their storage solutions for the kitchen. "This is our fourth house, but we've never had a kitchen that met all my storage needs, and I wanted to get it right." Heffernan customized everything, and loves her pegged dish drawer — an idea she got from Houzz!
Heffernan was able to create a walk-in pantry and a butler's pantry. Those two spaces, combined with her fabulous kitchen cabinetry from Glenwood Kitchens, creates plenty of storage space. The cabinets were painted with Benjamin Moore White Dove, and black with a rubbed finish on the island. The barstools are the classic Precision Stools from Design Within Reach, which are modeled after hospital stools. |
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Heffernan chose the Bertazzoni Heritage 36" gas range, with the hood in matte black, to match the cabinetry on the island. The kitchen backsplash is made up of white 3" x 6" subway tile with gray grout from a local tile store.
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| "Like most kitchens, ours is a hub," Heffernan says. "So when we entertain, that's where everyone gathers." Heffernan designed her island to accommodate 4 to 5 people, and 4 more at their table. Comfy red leather Parsons chairs surround the table. The Island countertop is made of Kashmir White granite, and she picked out sleek industrial-style pendants from A.D Cola to light the space.
A sink from Milano is accessorized with the Elkay Arezzo single handle faucet. The single lever is on the front of the faucet, rather than the side. "This is just a great example of my builder's attention to detail," Heffernan says. "This accommodates my left-handedness, and my hubby's right!" |
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Heffernan was a little worried that the wall color she chose — Benjamin Moore's Gray Owl — would make the room cold. But it ended up balancing perfectly with the dark wood floors, which are made of red oak and stained with a matte chocolate brown stain. At this desk space, she had the paint magnetized, which makes it perfect for hanging up little notes and photos.
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| For an extra unique touch, Heffernan's husband had the brilliant idea of creating a different type of backsplash in the butler's pantry — wine crate lids from some of their favorite Napa Valley wines!
Overall, the kitchen turned out exactly as Heffernan had envisioned. "Along with the family room, it's where we spend most of our time," says Heffernan. "It's the best of both worlds. It's expansive enough to accommodate lots of people, yet it's still cozy." Have a great kitchen of your own? Please share a photo below and tell us about it. Your space could be our next Kitchen of the Week! More: 23 Inspiring Real-Life Kitchens High-Contrast Kitchens for Every Style Browse more photos of kitchen designs |
Ideabook updated on Aug. 19, 2011.
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I think you captured the Something's Gotta Give (my favorite too) kitchen very well.
Please tell me what you used for your perimeter countertops.
Love the back splash, original and unique.
The perimeter countertops are honed black absolute granite. Here is a photo of my pegged drawer