Kitchen of the Week: Crisp White Cabinets and Room for Family
A Victorian home near Chicago gets an updated kitchen to improve brightness, beauty, function and flow
Although roomy, this kitchen inside a century-old Victorian home needed updates to cabinets, countertops and appliances. And because the family members cook and bake almost all their meals at home from scratch due to dietary restrictions, they wanted to make the kitchen functional for multiple cooks, with several appliances, and enjoyable for anyone who wanted to watch.
AFTER: The family hired designer Laura Barber of Normandy Remodeling to spearhead the redesign. She reworked the layout based on the appliances that the homeowners had already selected, and worked to maximize function and efficiency. “They desired a space that made cooking and baking more of a pleasure than a chore,” she says.
A 7-foot-long island offers ample work surface, a prep sink and storage space while dividing the kitchen into two zones — a sink and wash-up area on the left side, and a designated cooking area with a rangetop and oven on the right side (shown in the next photo). “The mom is the primary cook in the home, so she really wanted each side of the island to be a self-sufficient workspace,” Barber says.
A wall section behind the island includes an additional oven, plus a steam oven on top and a warming drawer below.
Barber removed the bulky window valance and changed out two previous windows for three to bring in more natural light. The curved panel over the sink nods to Victorian style and hides task light fixtures.
Touches of antique brass, such as on the billiard-style island chandelier, match the finish of some of the other antique fixtures found throughout the home. The finish also provides a warm complement to the homeowner’s Delft blue antique china collection in the glass-fronted cabinets and the colorful vintage finds displayed on the overhead ledge.
Chandelier: Blue Pointe in old brass, Rejuvenation; 48-inch refrigerator (shown on far left with matching front panel): Sub-Zero
A 7-foot-long island offers ample work surface, a prep sink and storage space while dividing the kitchen into two zones — a sink and wash-up area on the left side, and a designated cooking area with a rangetop and oven on the right side (shown in the next photo). “The mom is the primary cook in the home, so she really wanted each side of the island to be a self-sufficient workspace,” Barber says.
A wall section behind the island includes an additional oven, plus a steam oven on top and a warming drawer below.
Barber removed the bulky window valance and changed out two previous windows for three to bring in more natural light. The curved panel over the sink nods to Victorian style and hides task light fixtures.
Touches of antique brass, such as on the billiard-style island chandelier, match the finish of some of the other antique fixtures found throughout the home. The finish also provides a warm complement to the homeowner’s Delft blue antique china collection in the glass-fronted cabinets and the colorful vintage finds displayed on the overhead ledge.
Chandelier: Blue Pointe in old brass, Rejuvenation; 48-inch refrigerator (shown on far left with matching front panel): Sub-Zero
A raised walnut countertop at the end of the island serves as a two-person breakfast bar, or a spot for the kids to watch the cooking action or do homework. The reclaimed heart pine floor resembles floors found elsewhere in the home.
Swivel counter stools: Provencal Rooster, Frontgate; wall paint: Kensington Green 710, Benjamin Moore
Swivel counter stools: Provencal Rooster, Frontgate; wall paint: Kensington Green 710, Benjamin Moore
Family and friends often use the door off the kitchen when entering the home, so the homeowners asked Barber to include a mudroom of sorts to corral coats, bags and shoes. The latter can rest on weather-friendly tile beneath the bench so as not to damage the wood floors with mud, rain or snow.
Steam oven (top), single oven (middle) and warming drawer (bottom): Thermador
Steam oven (top), single oven (middle) and warming drawer (bottom): Thermador
To contrast with the dark floor and tap into the Victorian style, Barber used painted-white, inset-style cabinetry with exposed hinges. The cabinets are finished with a soft glaze so the white isn’t too biting, and the classic subway tile has a crackle finish to complement the period.
Barber believes that the sink area, with its tall glass-fronted upper cabinets and appliance garages below, is the component that makes the room complete. “It adds a large-scale appropriateness to the space, but also brings lightness and architectural interest to that wall,” she says.
Loads of specialty organizers hide behind the cabinetry, like tray and pegged drawer dividers, a spice pullout, rollout shelves, utensil and cutlery dividers, a knife block, and trash and recycle pullouts. Meanwhile, two paneled dishwashers flank the sink. After all, homeowners who cook together, clean together.
Cabinets: Lakeview in Ivory; Plain & Fancy; subway tile: Sonoma Tilemakers
Barber believes that the sink area, with its tall glass-fronted upper cabinets and appliance garages below, is the component that makes the room complete. “It adds a large-scale appropriateness to the space, but also brings lightness and architectural interest to that wall,” she says.
Loads of specialty organizers hide behind the cabinetry, like tray and pegged drawer dividers, a spice pullout, rollout shelves, utensil and cutlery dividers, a knife block, and trash and recycle pullouts. Meanwhile, two paneled dishwashers flank the sink. After all, homeowners who cook together, clean together.
Cabinets: Lakeview in Ivory; Plain & Fancy; subway tile: Sonoma Tilemakers
A single-basin farmhouse sink, a bridge faucet and an ogee edge on the countertop reference classic Victorian details.
Farmhouse sink: Whitehaven K-6488-0, Kohler; white engineered-stone countertop: Torquay, Cambria; faucet: Fairfield 94501 in polished chrome, Newport Brass
Farmhouse sink: Whitehaven K-6488-0, Kohler; white engineered-stone countertop: Torquay, Cambria; faucet: Fairfield 94501 in polished chrome, Newport Brass
Arched panels, similar to those over the sink, frame the range’s decorative backsplash, which becomes the colorful focal point in the kitchen. More fun than formal, the sherbet hues crisscross in a punchy plaid pattern set on a diagonal. “The backsplash was the element to tie the homeowners’ love of bright and happy colors throughout their home into the kitchen,” Barber says.
All the family members are over six feet tall, so Barber raised the cooktop height 2 inches above the standard 36-inch height to enhance comfort.
Decorative backsplash tile: MacKenzie-Childs; 36-inch rangetop: Thermador
All the family members are over six feet tall, so Barber raised the cooktop height 2 inches above the standard 36-inch height to enhance comfort.
Decorative backsplash tile: MacKenzie-Childs; 36-inch rangetop: Thermador
The Costa Esmeralda granite on the island provides another subtle colorful element in the kitchen.
Sink: Iron/Tones K-6584-0, Kohler
Sink: Iron/Tones K-6584-0, Kohler
A stainless steel inset compost reservoir sits flush in the island countertop. It has a canister that lifts out and an airtight lid to prevent odors from escaping.
Compost system: Solon 512474, Blanco
More
Cooking With Color: When to Use White in the Kitchen
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Compost system: Solon 512474, Blanco
More
Cooking With Color: When to Use White in the Kitchen
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Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here: A busy family of four with two active teenage boys and a cat
Location: Hinsdale, Illinois
Designer: Laura Barber of Normandy Remodeling
BEFORE: The kitchen wasn’t small, but a large table took up a lot of working room, and the lack of organization meant that accessory storage ate up much of the precious countertop space.
Because they spend so much time in the kitchen, the family wanted their new space to be bright and happy, unlike the previous dim room, but still honor the Victorian style of the home.