Kitchen Design
Before and Afters
Kitchen of the Week: Warm and Bright in Wood and White
A designer expands a couple’s kitchen and creates inviting style with wood cabinets and a creamy zellige-look backsplash
This Minneapolis couple wasted no time creating their dream kitchen. Before they moved into their recently bought rambler, they brought designer Victoria Johnson onboard to start planning out how to open, brighten and update the kitchen crammed into 77 square feet.
Johnson expanded the kitchen into a former breakfast area and took down two walls to add more than 100 square feet. A U-shaped layout with a central island creates an efficient setup with appealing symmetry. Custom rift-cut white oak cabinets and a refinished red oak floor add warmth and inviting style, while creamy zellige-look backsplash tile, a white range hood and vaulted ceiling promote a light and airy look.
Johnson expanded the kitchen into a former breakfast area and took down two walls to add more than 100 square feet. A U-shaped layout with a central island creates an efficient setup with appealing symmetry. Custom rift-cut white oak cabinets and a refinished red oak floor add warmth and inviting style, while creamy zellige-look backsplash tile, a white range hood and vaulted ceiling promote a light and airy look.
After: Johnson stripped the former space back and removed the beams, partition and a couple of minor walls, then pushed the new layout into what had been the breakfast area. This helped add more than 100 square feet and create an opportunity for an efficient U-shaped layout with lots of cabinet storage and an island.
The custom inset rift-cut white oak cabinets feature a custom finish, maple melamine interiors and dovetail drawer boxes. “They wanted something warm and durable,” Johnson says. “The door style on these cabinets is different than a standard Shaker-style door, with thinner and more contemporary 1¼-inch stiles and rails.”
Refinished red oak flooring anchors the room in additional warmth. Off-white walls, crisp white range hood and ceiling (Simply White by Benjamin Moore) and creamy zellige-style backsplash tile provide a light and airy feel.
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The custom inset rift-cut white oak cabinets feature a custom finish, maple melamine interiors and dovetail drawer boxes. “They wanted something warm and durable,” Johnson says. “The door style on these cabinets is different than a standard Shaker-style door, with thinner and more contemporary 1¼-inch stiles and rails.”
Refinished red oak flooring anchors the room in additional warmth. Off-white walls, crisp white range hood and ceiling (Simply White by Benjamin Moore) and creamy zellige-style backsplash tile provide a light and airy feel.
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Johnson resized former windows to create two new casement windows flanking the new 36-inch dual-fuel range. She relocated the sink to the new island. “Symmetry was also big for them,” Johnson says. “At first they were not sure they wanted the sink in the island, but this layout gives them that symmetry they wanted.”
This photo also highlights the luminous 4-by-4-inch ceramic backsplash tile. “We were going for a zellige tile look, and this tile color worked well with the perimeter counter top,” Johnson says. “Also, because it’s not a handmade product, you have more control over the look of it.”
A marble-look quartz countertop on the island features sweeping gray veins. The perimeter countertops are dark gray quartz with soft white marbling. “In their previous house, they had soapstone and really didn’t like the maintenance of that,” Johnson says. “They liked the look of the two different tones of these countertops.”
This photo also highlights the luminous 4-by-4-inch ceramic backsplash tile. “We were going for a zellige tile look, and this tile color worked well with the perimeter counter top,” Johnson says. “Also, because it’s not a handmade product, you have more control over the look of it.”
A marble-look quartz countertop on the island features sweeping gray veins. The perimeter countertops are dark gray quartz with soft white marbling. “In their previous house, they had soapstone and really didn’t like the maintenance of that,” Johnson says. “They liked the look of the two different tones of these countertops.”
Upholstered white-and-gold stools coordinate with polished brass cabinet knobs and pulls.
Brass pendant lights with glass shades also help connect the warm metal finishes and strengthen the symmetry. “With the vaulted ceiling, we needed something with a chain,” Johnson says. “That allowed us to regulate the height better. We liked the openness of these pendants, because they are in front of the windows, and we didn’t want to block the light.”
Pendant lights: Akron in Warm Brass, Savoy House
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Brass pendant lights with glass shades also help connect the warm metal finishes and strengthen the symmetry. “With the vaulted ceiling, we needed something with a chain,” Johnson says. “That allowed us to regulate the height better. We liked the openness of these pendants, because they are in front of the windows, and we didn’t want to block the light.”
Pendant lights: Akron in Warm Brass, Savoy House
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The undermount single-bowl stainless steel sink in the island is paired with a polished chrome articulating pull-down kitchen faucet with magnetic docking spray head. The metal finish is a departure from the warm brass tones but coordinates with the new stainless steel appliances.
Sink: Crosstown, Elkay; faucet: Artesso in polished chrome, Brizo
Sink: Crosstown, Elkay; faucet: Artesso in polished chrome, Brizo
Before: This look at the former kitchen shows the cramped breakfast area and the small island with the cooktop that took up most of the countertop space. “There was a lot of space there that could be used better,” Johnson says.
After: Johnson pushed the kitchen into the former breakfast area and added pantry wall storage and countertop space. “That whole wall is where they store most of their plates and everyday glasses and dishware,” she says.
The island provides a roomier breakfast spot.
New to home remodeling? Learn the basics
The island provides a roomier breakfast spot.
New to home remodeling? Learn the basics
In the other corner of the kitchen, a 24-inch flat-panel microwave drawer sits below the counter. A drawer below the microwave holds food storage containers. The corner cabinet hides a lazy Susan to store small appliances.
Open rift-cut white oak shelves help break up the banks of cabinets. “We wanted to create a feeling of openness there,” Johnson says. “Upper cabinets in a corner can feel so heavy. This also creates a space for decorative items.”
Gold portrait lights above highlight the items on the open shelves.
Microwave drawer: Sharp
Open rift-cut white oak shelves help break up the banks of cabinets. “We wanted to create a feeling of openness there,” Johnson says. “Upper cabinets in a corner can feel so heavy. This also creates a space for decorative items.”
Gold portrait lights above highlight the items on the open shelves.
Microwave drawer: Sharp
The pantry cabinets flanking the 36-inch stainless steel French door fridge have rollouts inside.
Before: This floor plan of the former kitchen shows how the layout was crammed into one corner with a small square island in the center and a tight breakfast area to the left. The sink sat beneath a bay window. Walls near the bottom of the plan seemed at least partially responsible for the tight design.
After: By expanding the kitchen into the former breakfast area, Johnson created a more efficient and spacious layout with a center island that now holds the sink. The range now sits on the back wall (top center). “The island works great for entertaining, and we were also able to create the symmetry they love so much,” Johnson says.
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Shop for kitchen products
Kitchen at a Glance
Who lives here: A couple
Location: Minneapolis
Size: 179 square feet (17 square meters)
Designer: M. Victoria Johnson Interiors
Before: The former kitchen had some charm but also many features the homeowners disliked, such as aging white cabinets, white tile countertops, white appliances and a mini freestanding island with a cooktop that left little prep space.
The wood beams were decorative, and a slim partition wall next to the sink seemed without purpose. Plus, a wall on the right and another wall out of view here, combined with the breakfast area in the foreground, left the kitchen closed off and pushed into a corner space. “There wasn’t a lot of counter space, and the kitchen just felt small and enclosed,” Johnson says.