Kitchen of the Week
Kitchen of the Week: Beer, Shuffleboard and Pizza Bring the Fun
Entertaining features and a warm industrial style create a lively atmosphere in this revamped Craftsman bungalow space
As a commercial airline captain and dad to 15-year-old daughter Avery, Wes Headrick keeps a busy schedule. So when he gets to spend time at home in his Seattle Craftsman-style bungalow, he likes to relax with friends. But his dark, closed-off kitchen with a small island didn’t make entertaining easy. He wanted a more open and light-filled space for cooking, socializing and having fun. Emphasis on fun.
Working with architect Tim Hammer and builder Mark Taylor, Headrick opened up and expanded the kitchen’s footprint, gaining 247 square feet. That created room for party-time features like a shuffleboard table hidden underneath an extra-long butcher block countertop on the island. There’s also a live-fire pizza oven, a beer station with eight taps, a more open connection to a backyard deck and a new Japanese tatami mat room for eating, lounging and doing yoga. Plus, stainless steel countertops add industrial style and provide a good surface for rolling out pizza dough. Douglas fir cabinets and flooring warm the look, while five skylights flood the space with natural light.
Working with architect Tim Hammer and builder Mark Taylor, Headrick opened up and expanded the kitchen’s footprint, gaining 247 square feet. That created room for party-time features like a shuffleboard table hidden underneath an extra-long butcher block countertop on the island. There’s also a live-fire pizza oven, a beer station with eight taps, a more open connection to a backyard deck and a new Japanese tatami mat room for eating, lounging and doing yoga. Plus, stainless steel countertops add industrial style and provide a good surface for rolling out pizza dough. Douglas fir cabinets and flooring warm the look, while five skylights flood the space with natural light.
The butcher block top comes off in three pieces to reveal a shuffleboard table. The tops are stored in the nearby living room. “This was an idea from Wes,” Hammer says. “Even if there are no plans, everyone always ends up in his kitchen. If Wes is home, the kitchen is full of people. That’s the way he rolls.”
Here, Headrick, in the foreground, plays shuffleboard with builder Mark Taylor. “He probably won, he’s intense,” Headrick says with a laugh. “We break it out a couple times a month when people are over.”
The base of the island, kitchen cabinetry and paneled refrigerator are custom flat-slab, vertical-grain Douglas fir with a clear finish and polished nickel pulls. “The house’s original floor is fir and we expanded on that,” Headrick says. “I lived in Tokyo for a couple years and wanted to make this grandiose space have some minimalist Japanese principles.”
This photo also shows LED ceiling lights that were digitally removed by the photographer in other photos to help highlight design details. The ceiling also features two stereo speakers and six mini cone-shaped stainless steel pendant lights on a steel suspension cable system.
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Here, Headrick, in the foreground, plays shuffleboard with builder Mark Taylor. “He probably won, he’s intense,” Headrick says with a laugh. “We break it out a couple times a month when people are over.”
The base of the island, kitchen cabinetry and paneled refrigerator are custom flat-slab, vertical-grain Douglas fir with a clear finish and polished nickel pulls. “The house’s original floor is fir and we expanded on that,” Headrick says. “I lived in Tokyo for a couple years and wanted to make this grandiose space have some minimalist Japanese principles.”
This photo also shows LED ceiling lights that were digitally removed by the photographer in other photos to help highlight design details. The ceiling also features two stereo speakers and six mini cone-shaped stainless steel pendant lights on a steel suspension cable system.
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On one side of the island is a custom beer station, with eight taps on a custom stainless steel drip tray attached to black hot-rolled steel wall panels. The station also includes a sink and single-lever chrome faucet. “His hangout space previously was in the basement with a Kegerator,” Hammer says. “He said at the outset of the project he wanted a way to get the beer that was downstairs upstairs into the kitchen.”
All the lines for the beer taps run in the wall down through the floor to the basement, which holds an oversize beer cooler full of kegs. “One of the metal wall panels can be removed so you can access the lines for maintenance,” Hammer says.
Headrick keeps liquid chalk handy so he can identify each beer on tap and allow guests to show their artistic side. A pair of custom angle iron shelves on the wall by the beer station keep clean glasses on hand. The wood door to the right slides open to a staircase that leads to the basement.
Bar faucet: Meta single-lever lavatory mixer in polished chrome, Dornbracht
The 10 Most Popular Kitchens So Far in 2024
All the lines for the beer taps run in the wall down through the floor to the basement, which holds an oversize beer cooler full of kegs. “One of the metal wall panels can be removed so you can access the lines for maintenance,” Hammer says.
Headrick keeps liquid chalk handy so he can identify each beer on tap and allow guests to show their artistic side. A pair of custom angle iron shelves on the wall by the beer station keep clean glasses on hand. The wood door to the right slides open to a staircase that leads to the basement.
Bar faucet: Meta single-lever lavatory mixer in polished chrome, Dornbracht
The 10 Most Popular Kitchens So Far in 2024
On the other side of the island is the working kitchen wall, with a 48-inch gas range, a 52-inch custom stainless steel hood and a stainless steel backsplash. “My goal for the kitchen was to have the commercial-style appliances match the level of architecture of the room,” Headrick says.
The countertops and single-basin sink are also stainless steel. The countertop material is good for rolling out pizza dough. “He was looking for a kitchen with professional sensibilities,” Hammer says. “It’s easy to keep clean.”
Growing up, Headrick was a dishwasher, so he requested a commercial-style sprayer faucet for his kitchen. A paneled 24-inch dishwasher sits to the left of the sink. Floating Douglas fir shelves flank the sink and are mounted to a backsplash of 3-by-6-inch grayish blue-green glass subway tiles.
Range: 48-inch RNB rangetop with 12-inch griddle, BlueStar; faucet: Tara Classic Profi chrome single-lever mixer with commercial rinse head add-on, Dornbracht
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The countertops and single-basin sink are also stainless steel. The countertop material is good for rolling out pizza dough. “He was looking for a kitchen with professional sensibilities,” Hammer says. “It’s easy to keep clean.”
Growing up, Headrick was a dishwasher, so he requested a commercial-style sprayer faucet for his kitchen. A paneled 24-inch dishwasher sits to the left of the sink. Floating Douglas fir shelves flank the sink and are mounted to a backsplash of 3-by-6-inch grayish blue-green glass subway tiles.
Range: 48-inch RNB rangetop with 12-inch griddle, BlueStar; faucet: Tara Classic Profi chrome single-lever mixer with commercial rinse head add-on, Dornbracht
Where to Start and Stop Your Backsplash
To the right of the range is the live-fire stone hearth pizza oven. Hot-rolled black steel wraps the oven and a custom panel of hot-rolled black steel covers the floor in front of it. Here, daughter Avery checks on a pie. “I wanted my daughter to have her friends over and wanted to have kids in the neighborhood come over and enjoy this kitchen,” Headrick says. “This space isn’t just about drinking beer.”
A friend gave Headrick the custom “Headrick’s Pizza & Taproom” sign that hangs at the top of the pizza oven. A hidden millwork panel on the other side of the white column on the right stores pizza-making supplies.
Pizza oven: Bistro 4343, Wood Stone Home
A friend gave Headrick the custom “Headrick’s Pizza & Taproom” sign that hangs at the top of the pizza oven. A hidden millwork panel on the other side of the white column on the right stores pizza-making supplies.
Pizza oven: Bistro 4343, Wood Stone Home
This view shows the kitchen from the back deck with the expandable glass wall fully open. The pizza oven is at the far end. “The nice thing about that deck is that it’s covered,” Hammer says. “The thought was you can open the kitchen to the outdoor deck for quite a few months of the year to expand the space and enjoy nature.” On the right is the new Japanese tatami mat room.
The family dog, Waffles, gazes into the renovated kitchen. “Hoping for a BLT in the future,” Headrick says.
Glass wall system: NanaWall
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The family dog, Waffles, gazes into the renovated kitchen. “Hoping for a BLT in the future,” Headrick says.
Glass wall system: NanaWall
New to home remodeling? Learn the basics
Local Seattle design-build pro Dale Brotherton, who specializes in authentic traditional Japanese architecture, designed and built the flexible tatami room that adjoins the kitchen. “Dale did everything in that room,” Hammer says.
The 78-square-foot room features a custom-built elm-and-walnut table and a Douglas fir floor with tatami straw mats. “Under each one of the surrounding mats, you lift up a lid and have an 18-inch-deep hidden storage area where I store futons for sleeping, bedding and a sewing machine,” Headrick says. “The tatami mats were custom-made in Japan for the room. The table can also be removed for yoga.”
Custom sliding shoji doors are made of Douglas fir and Warlon, a PVC-laminated washi/shoji paper that’s a more durable and fire-resistant alternative to traditional paper. “Paper is easy to work with but can be poked easily if you have kids and dogs,” Brotherton says.
Extra-wide cedar boards form the ceiling and were cut from one large piece so the grain matches across the room. “The atmosphere the wood ceiling creates is one of comfort,” Brotherton says.
The green interior walls of the tatami room (and the exterior of the room in the kitchen) are Juraku, a Japanese building material that mixes natural clay, sand, straw and water to create an elegant stucco. “It adds a soft texture to the walls,” Brotherton says.
The 78-square-foot room features a custom-built elm-and-walnut table and a Douglas fir floor with tatami straw mats. “Under each one of the surrounding mats, you lift up a lid and have an 18-inch-deep hidden storage area where I store futons for sleeping, bedding and a sewing machine,” Headrick says. “The tatami mats were custom-made in Japan for the room. The table can also be removed for yoga.”
Custom sliding shoji doors are made of Douglas fir and Warlon, a PVC-laminated washi/shoji paper that’s a more durable and fire-resistant alternative to traditional paper. “Paper is easy to work with but can be poked easily if you have kids and dogs,” Brotherton says.
Extra-wide cedar boards form the ceiling and were cut from one large piece so the grain matches across the room. “The atmosphere the wood ceiling creates is one of comfort,” Brotherton says.
The green interior walls of the tatami room (and the exterior of the room in the kitchen) are Juraku, a Japanese building material that mixes natural clay, sand, straw and water to create an elegant stucco. “It adds a soft texture to the walls,” Brotherton says.
Before Photo
Before: In the previous layout, the kitchen (bottom right) was closed off from the dining room (bottom middle) and backyard (bottom far right). It was a cramped 135 square feet and had a small island. The living room is in the bottom left corner.
After: The remodeling team expanded the kitchen’s footprint into the former dining room and out into the backyard. This created room to add the long central island, the tatami mat room and other fun amenities. “It was a really enjoyable journey to go on with Wes,” Hammer says. “It’s a very low-maintenance space but also over the top in every way. His approach was go big or go home.”
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Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here: Wes Headrick, a commercial airline captain, and his 15-year-old daughter, Avery (part time)
Location: Seattle
Size: 382 square feet (35 square meters), including a Japanese tatami mat room
Architect: Tim Hammer of Cast Architecture
Builder: Mark Taylor
Design-build pro: Dale Brotherton of Takumi Co. (tatami mat room)
The remodeling team took down walls to expand the kitchen into a former dining room and push the footprint into the backyard. That increased the kitchen’s square footage by 247 square feet to 382 square feet. “Wes wanted to make it as big as he possibly could,” Hammer says. “We pushed the kitchen into the backyard to the maximum allowed to the rear yard setback.”
Expandable doors open the kitchen to the backyard deck. Five large operable, solar-powered, fresh air skylights in the now-vaulted ceiling fill the kitchen with sunlight and make it feel more open and airy. “In Seattle, it’s almost like you’re underwater nine months of the year,” Hammer says. “So a lot of our work in the region is trying to pull in and maximize as much natural light as possible.”
The enlarged layout allowed for an 18-foot center island with a butcher block top that hides a fun surprise.
Skylights: Velux
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