At this beautiful LEICHT Westchester project, The original design was traditional, with a layout involving many angled corners. The goal was to streamline the design and create a modern and more functional space. We accomplished this first by squaring off all corners, rotating the island and enlarging the main window to add more sunlight and visual balance. In the new design, there is ample pantry space, large pots/pans drawer storage and an appliance garage unit to hide away small items to keep the countertop clutter-free. An open display unit with built-in LED lighting allows the homeowner a place to showcase her beautiful artwork. Finishes- Bondi in Arctic (matt laminate), Topos in Textured Oak Marsh (wood veneer) Countertop- Quartz- Aurea in Divine, Granite- Black Absolute in a leathered finish.

Nestled in the front corner of the home, overlooking the front drive and the rose garden, this study library is a cozy academic retreat perfectly suited for the family’s love of books and learning. Originally the dining room, the space was artfully transformed into a study, with new cabinetry crafted to complement the home’s original mahogany millwork for a unifying, historical touch. Custom library built-ins wrap around the room, beautifully detailed with reeded edges and crown molding. A new mahogany window reinforces the period style, while a window seat with a plush velvet cushion provides the perfect nook to curl up with a favorite book, a blanket, and a cup of tea or coffee. The shelf above the window was designed to perfectly accommodate and showcase the family’s set of Harvard Classics. The room is color-drenched in a rich forest green, creating a moody, enveloping atmosphere, while leather club chairs and a family heirloom desk furnish the space with elegance and character. The original servery door, connecting the former dining room to the home’s office, was retained, maintaining a link to the home’s history and layout. This study library is both a functional workspace and a refined retreat—a place for reading, reflection, and quiet moments. Photos by MK Photography

The outdated, 1980's kitchen needed some serious updating. Renovate Paint and Design helped the customer realize the space potential by redesigning it while balancing a contemporary updated look with whites and natural light and medium browns. A larger opening was created along with a large passthrough opening to the living room. A breakout of all the work involved: - All popcorn ceiling textured in the kitchen and throughout the house was removed, new texture was applied, and 2 coats of Sherwin Williams flat sheen was applied. - Demolition of entire kitchen. - Large opening framed out in Kitchen with LVL beam added for support. - A kitchen pass-through opening also framed out and completed. - Old kitchen light box removed, drywall repaired, and 4 6" LED recessed lighting even spaced installed. - Shaker style cabinets custom made and painted, with soft-close doors-drawers, spice rack pull outs, lazy-susan, and wine-rack built. - New stainless steel appliances installed: vent hood, microwave, stovetop, ovens, refrigerator, and dishwasher - Kitchen level-3 Quartz countertops with eased edge profile installed. - White ceramic backsplash installed - Luxury vinyl tile installed throughout kitchen area. - New baseboards installed and caulked. - Kitchen walls painted with 2-coats of Sherwin Williams Super Paint, and trim painted with Pro Classic Oil. - More installations: electrical outlets, stainless steel sink basin, faucets, and additional storage cabinets in laundry room.

At this beautiful LEICHT Westchester project, The original design was traditional, with a layout involving many angled corners. The goal was to streamline the design and create a modern and more functional space. We accomplished this first by squaring off all corners, rotating the island and enlarging the main window to add more sunlight and visual balance. In the new design, there is ample pantry space, large pots/pans drawer storage and an appliance garage unit to hide away small items to keep the countertop clutter-free. An open display unit with built-in LED lighting allows the homeowner a place to showcase her beautiful artwork. Finishes- Bondi in Arctic (matt laminate), Topos in Textured Oak Marsh (wood veneer) Countertop- Quartz- Aurea in Divine, Granite- Black Absolute in a leathered finish.

Nestled into the hillside of the Mt. Baker neighborhood of Seattle, the private backyard blends corten steel and natural stone to create a hideaway for the homeowner's enjoyment. Bamboo decking with a complimenting pergola and gate surrounds a custom, rustic outdoor kitchen. A rusted, gas fire feature centers the patio space surrounded by a basalt and brick seat wall and uplight decorative steel screens. The brick feature wall was repurposed to compliment the architecture. A flagstone path steps through a lush shade garden and walkable groundcover "lawn". This compact space is brimming with intricate details that bring it to life.

This renovation involved expanding the kitchen space into an adjacent office area, creating a side entry, new kitchen layout that worked well for two cooks, professional grade appliances, oversized island with seating on two sides, eat-in area, sitting area and furniture look cabinets with both stained and painted finishes. We enlarged an existing window by creating a boxed bay at the relocated sink and designed a continuous quartzite counter which serves as planting ledge for herbs and flowers. Some of the appliances were integrated into the cabinetry with panels, while others were designed as impact pieces. Custom designed cabinets include a large mantel style chimney hood with vent insert, furniture grade hutch with leaded glass doors, contrasting stained island with seating on two sides, bar with wine refrigerator and deep drawers, and a galley style butler's pantry which provides secondary prep space and ample storage. Details such as shaped cabinet feet, upper glass front cabinets, pull-out trash drawer, spice columns and hidden drawers and storage make this newly designed kitchen space feel luxurious and function perfectly. Traditional materials and forms meld seamlessly with industrial accents and modern amenities. Mixed metals are used in a balanced and dynamic way with warm gold tone cabinet hardware, stainless steel and chrome all working in harmony. Antique furnishings blend with the newly designed cabinets and modern lighting. Photos by: Kimberly Kerl

This renovation involved expanding the kitchen space into an adjacent office area, creating a side entry, new kitchen layout that worked well for two cooks, professional grade appliances, oversized island with seating on two sides, eat-in area, sitting area and furniture look cabinets with both stained and painted finishes. We enlarged an existing window by creating a boxed bay at the relocated sink and designed a continuous quartzite counter which serves as planting ledge for herbs and flowers. Some of the appliances were integrated into the cabinetry with panels, while others were designed as impact pieces. Custom designed cabinets include a large mantel style chimney hood with vent insert, furniture grade hutch with leaded glass doors, contrasting stained island with seating on two sides, bar with wine refrigerator and deep drawers, and a galley style butler's pantry which provides secondary prep space and ample storage. Details such as shaped cabinet feet, upper glass front cabinets, pull-out trash drawer, spice columns and hidden drawers and storage make this newly designed kitchen space feel luxurious and function perfectly. Traditional materials and forms meld seamlessly with industrial accents and modern amenities. Mixed metals are used in a balanced and dynamic way with warm gold tone cabinet hardware, stainless steel and chrome all working in harmony. Antique furnishings blend with the newly designed cabinets and modern lighting. Photos by: Kimberly Kerl

This kitchen transformation was designed to improve flow and maximize storage, rethinking how the space functions for a family that loves to cook. A key design move involved relocating the basement doorway, allowing for the addition of a full wall of custom storage. This change not only increased capacity but also created a more streamlined and cohesive layout. A thoughtfully designed pantry further enhances organization, ensuring everything has a place while remaining easily accessible. Functional upgrades were carefully integrated throughout the space, including a dishwasher drawer for added convenience and efficiency. Every detail was considered to support daily routines, from meal prep to cleanup, without compromising the overall design. The result is a kitchen that feels highly intentional, balancing practicality with a clean, refined aesthetic, and tailored to the way the family uses their home every day.

This project involved no traditional furniture in their living room but the presence of hide rugs, Mango Wood Round Drum Coffee Table and round metal ottoman. This resulted in a warm, open and welcoming home. The neutral shades of the room get balanced by beautiful artworks that reflect soft colors and the different shades of blue.

This project for a builder husband and interior-designer wife involved adding onto and restoring the luster of a c. 1883 Carpenter Gothic cottage in Barrington that they had occupied for years while raising their two sons. They were ready to ditch their small tacked-on kitchen that was mostly isolated from the rest of the house, views/daylight, as well as the yard, and replace it with something more generous, brighter, and more open that would improve flow inside and out. They were also eager for a better mudroom, new first-floor 3/4 bath, new basement stair, and a new second-floor master suite above. The design challenge was to conceive of an addition and renovations that would be in balanced conversation with the original house without dwarfing or competing with it. The new cross-gable addition echoes the original house form, at a somewhat smaller scale and with a simplified more contemporary exterior treatment that is sympathetic to the old house but clearly differentiated from it. Renovations included the removal of replacement vinyl windows by others and the installation of new Pella black clad windows in the original house, a new dormer in one of the son’s bedrooms, and in the addition. At the first-floor interior intersection between the existing house and the addition, two new large openings enhance flow and access to daylight/view and are outfitted with pairs of salvaged oversized clear-finished wooden barn-slider doors that lend character and visual warmth. A new exterior deck off the kitchen addition leads to a new enlarged backyard patio that is also accessible from the new full basement directly below the addition. (Interior fit-out and interior finishes/fixtures by the Owners)

Cozy and Colorful Beach House Remodel! When you think funky little house by the beach – images like what you are about to see may not be what you would have anticipated. This furnishings project aimed to capture a colorful, fun, active space for a family who wanted to feel at home .Thus, creating casual and comfortable but not boring in the least. A little traveled, a lot of texture, and not much clutter! From the start, the space was not much to write home about! The common living areas were boxy with lower ceilings. Quirky ins and outs needed to be optimized. Overall, this project was a prime opportunity for us to really dig in. From treating each room top to bottom and finding the client’s mojo when it came to wallcoverings. Selecting funky lighting and the right mix and match of bold colors and more natural, organic textures. We came in too late to get involved with the kitchen but helped the client with a few little accents and color choices. Thus, acting as a jumping off point for the large dining space featuring a beautiful (and resilient!) wooden trestle table. We created a mix of seating that offers a little funk, and the fun additional cabinet storage to each end which offered a hideaway. We loved that this vista had such opportunity for great lighting and art, also! A Colorful, Cozy Living Room We knew we needed a cozy, lower profile seating area but also some sort of great reading nook by the fireplace. With the large windows and the main entry just off this space, a traffic pattern was delianted that helped guide decisions with the furniture. A funky, nubbier woven fabric on the sectional that hinted towards mid-century modern. The irregular shaped, petrified wood coffee table. The bold statement and colors carried through in the wallcovering and area rug. Jumping to the fireplace area where you can lounge or read with those gorgeous cognac leather recliners. This space needed to feel separate and the same all at once. The balance of scale and colors really helped achieve this! Can’t forget the bedrooms! Of course we can’t get by without mentioning a little bedroom love, either. In the master the overall designs dictated by a bold, saturated woven wood cloth on the headboard wall. We love the mix of color and pattern in here. The bold, sexier mood is 100% a byproduct of the level of rich colors and unusual combinations. Those bold hand-glazed ceramic lamps against those strict geo-pattern bed pillows – so good! Our sweet tween bedroom that should grow with her for a good, long time. All in all, filled with original art and layered in a softer palette. There was a lot of matching in here at first, but once we convinced her to trust us she started to understand why adding in the unexpected hit of bright coral and spring green made everything sing!

This renovation involved expanding the kitchen space into an adjacent office area, creating a side entry, new kitchen layout that worked well for two cooks, professional grade appliances, oversized island with seating on two sides, eat-in area, sitting area and furniture look cabinets with both stained and painted finishes. We enlarged an existing window by creating a boxed bay at the relocated sink and designed a continuous quartzite counter which serves as planting ledge for herbs and flowers. Some of the appliances were integrated into the cabinetry with panels, while others were designed as impact pieces. Custom designed cabinets include a large mantel style chimney hood with vent insert, furniture grade hutch with leaded glass doors, contrasting stained island with seating on two sides, bar with wine refrigerator and deep drawers, and a galley style butler's pantry which provides secondary prep space and ample storage. Details such as shaped cabinet feet, upper glass front cabinets, pull-out trash drawer, spice columns and hidden drawers and storage make this newly designed kitchen space feel luxurious and function perfectly. Traditional materials and forms meld seamlessly with industrial accents and modern amenities. Mixed metals are used in a balanced and dynamic way with warm gold tone cabinet hardware, stainless steel and chrome all working in harmony. Antique furnishings blend with the newly designed cabinets and modern lighting. Photos by: Kimberly Kerl

A complete kitchen and powder room remodel in Herndon, Virginia, designed around two clear priorities: open up the kitchen to the rest of the main level, and create an experience that felt warm and timeless rather than trendy. The original layout had a wall separating the kitchen from the dining room and an awkward fridge wall that limited both storage and traffic flow. Our solution involved removing the dividing wall (confirmed non-load-bearing), tightening the new dining room opening to 66 inches, and extending the fridge wall 25 inches into the kitchen to create a proper full-height pantry run. The result is a kitchen that breathes — open to the dining and living areas, with clear sight lines from the island to the bay windows at the far end. Design Approach The clients came in knowing they didn't want white. They didn't want navy. They wanted something with real wood character — the kind of finish that ages well and looks more like furniture than stock kitchen cabinetry. Cherry was the answer to that question. We anchored the room around contrast: warm cherry cabinetry against clean white walls and white quartz, black hardware grounding the cherry's warmth, and a single waterfall island acting as the architectural focal point. Stainless appliances, brushed gold pendant accents, and the herringbone hardwood floor pull the room together without any one element shouting for attention. The Cabinetry Medallion Gold Line Sonoma Cappuccino — a stained cherry finish that catches light differently throughout the day. All-plywood box construction, solid wood doors and drawer fronts, soft close everywhere, US-made with a lifetime warranty. Four pull-out drawers built into the pantry bottoms keep the deep storage actually usable rather than a black hole. Cabinet hardware is Top Knobs Riverside Pulls in flat black — 40 pulls across drawers and doors, plus three longer pulls on the 36-inch base drawers. The black was a deliberate decision: with cherry and stainless already providing warm and cool tones, brass or gold would have been one warm tone too many. Black grounds the cabinetry and gives the kitchen its architectural definition. The Island and Countertops MSI Calacatta Miraggio Gold quartz throughout — perimeter counters, island, waterfall ends, and the powder room. The Gold variant has subtle warm veining that pairs with cherry where cooler whites would have fought the wood tone. The island gets a full waterfall edge — slabs book-matched, miters precise, the finished edge essentially seamless. Treating the island as architectural sculpture rather than just functional storage. The black undermount farmhouse-style sink ties back to the hardware throughout the rest of the kitchen. The Backsplash MSI Metro Gold tile — small format white and gold tiles in a herringbone-adjacent pattern with intermittent gold accents. Full height, continuous behind the floating shelves and behind the hood. Four custom floating shelves are spaced above a 3-inch countertop ledge: first shelf 18 inches above the ledge, second shelf 9 inches above that, third 18 inches above the second. The shelves are stained to match the cabinetry. The backsplash continues behind the shelves and behind the hood, so the wall reads as a continuous textured surface that the shelves and hood float in front of. The Appliances This is a serious cooking kitchen. The clients chose a 48-inch Wolf gas range, a Sub-Zero built-in refrigerator integrated into the cherry cabinet wall, a Wolf microwave drawer in the island base, and a Bosch dishwasher. For ventilation, we installed a 1200 CFM hood paired with a make-up air system to balance the negative pressure that hood pulls. New ducting was routed through the exterior siding on the side of the house. The Flooring MSI engineered hardwood throughout the entire main level — approximately 800 square feet — installed in a Bramlett herringbone pattern. Herringbone adds roughly 15-20 percent to material and labor costs because of the angled cuts and waste factor, but the result is a floor that reads as more considered and luxurious than standard plank flooring. Finished with 4.5-inch white wood baseboards throughout. The Powder Room A small room with a big personality. The clients chose a deep blue and teal scallop pattern wallpaper (client-supplied, we installed) and paired it with the same Sonoma Cappuccino cherry vanity used in the kitchen — material continuity between the spaces. Powder room countertop is the same MSI Calacatta Miraggio Gold quartz from the kitchen with a rectangular white undermount sink. Hardware on the powder room vanity is Top Knobs Riverside in honey bronze rather than the kitchen's flat black — the warm bronze pulls the brass tones from the faucet into the millwork and complements the wallpaper. New sconce, kept the existing toilet (refinishing or replacing a working toilet is wasted money in a powder room remodel), and a Panasonic Whisper Green exhaust fan. Project Specs Location: Herndon, Virginia Project type: Combined kitchen and powder room remodel Project duration: Approximately 4 to 6 weeks Style: Transitional, Modern Farmhouse, Warm Wood Contemporary Color palette: Cherry, white, black, brushed gold, deep blue (powder room) Materials Cabinetry (kitchen and powder room): Medallion Gold Line Sonoma Cappuccino cherry, Shaker-style, all-plywood box construction, lifetime warranty Kitchen hardware: Top Knobs Riverside Pulls in flat black (TK1014BLK and TK1017BLK) Powder room hardware: Top Knobs Riverside Pulls in honey bronze (TK1012HB) Counter tops: MSI Calacatta Miraggio Gold Quartz, pencil edge, waterfall island Backsplash: MSI Metro Gold tile, full height Floating shelves: 4 custom shelves at 48" by 9", stained to match cabinets Range: 48-inch Wolf gas range Refrigerator: Sub-Zero built-in Microwave: Wolf microwave drawer (island base) Hood: 1200 CFM with make-up air system Kitchen sink: Kohler farmhouse-style, 36-inch base, black Kitchen faucet: Brizo (homeowner-supplied) Flooring: MSI engineered hardwood in Bramlett herringbone pattern, approximately 800 sq ft Baseboards: 4.5-inch white wood throughout Powder room wallpaper: Client-supplied scallop pattern in blues and teals Powder room exhaust fan: Panasonic Whisper Green Paint: Benjamin Moore Designed and built by My Kitchen and Bath out of our Herndon showroom at 285 Sunset Park Drive. We've been designing and building kitchens, bathrooms, and full home renovations across Northern Virginia and the DMV since 1994.

This compact modern bathroom remodel features intentionally placed colors, patterns, materials, and finishes to perfectly execute the homeowner’s style. In addition to a distaste for the bathroom’s existing brown color scheme, there was an extremely large and deep soaking tub with a shower combo that had been installed by a previous owner which made accessibility extremely difficult for these new homeowners to use the shower. The homeowners expressed a love for modern, contemporary, and sleek design styles with strong preferences for grey and slate tones and a dislike of brown tones and ornate patterns. In addition, Interior Designer Elizabeth noticed that they would get excited when discussing whimsical features. The final bathroom design involved replacing the bath vanity, toilet, flooring, and removing the obtrusive tub to create an easy-access tile shower with a sliding shower glass barn door. The existing unique bathroom layout was a narrow room open to the Primary Bedroom with no door and contained all fixtures on the interior wall facing away from the Primary Bedroom entrance. We utilized a floating vanity to give the illusion of a wider bathroom and the open space below the cabinet makes it easier to round the corner to enter the bathroom without running into the cabinet. To create a bathroom design that expressed the homeowner’s style of modern, grey, and whimsy, Interior Designer Elizabeth proposed a grey mosaic tile that formed a whimsical pattern via the grout lines, and maintained the desired modern feel by having this mosaic tile installed over the entirety of the back wall with large format tiles of the same color/collection installed on the side walls. The cool tones of the grey tile shower and charcoal tile floor are balanced with the warmth of a natural rift white oak vanity and recessed medicine cabinet mirror to create this luxurious modern bathroom.

Middlefork was retained to update and revitalize this North Shore home to a family of six. The primary goal of this project was to update and expand the home's small, eat-in kitchen. The existing space was gutted and a 1,500-square-foot addition was built to house a gourmet kitchen, connected breakfast room, fireside seating, butler's pantry, and a small office. The family desired nice, timeless spaces that were also durable and family-friendly. As such, great consideration was given to the interior finishes. The 10' kitchen island, for instance, is a solid slab of white velvet quartzite, selected for its ability to withstand mustard, ketchup and finger-paint. There are shorter, walnut extensions off either end of the island that support the children's involvement in meal preparation and crafts. Low-maintenance Atlantic Blue Stone was selected for the perimeter counters. The scope of this phase grew to include re-trimming the front façade and entry to emphasize the Georgian detailing of the home. In addition, the balance of the first floor was gutted; existing plumbing and electrical systems were updated; all windows were replaced; two powder rooms were updated; a low-voltage distribution system for HDTV and audio was added; and, the interior of the home was re-trimmed. Two new patios were also added, providing outdoor areas for entertaining, dining and cooking. Tom Harris, Hedrich Blessing

ndscape design is the art of developing a property for its greatest use and enjoyment. Effective landscape design is also a science because it involves understanding the environment around your home and selecting plants that perform well in that environment. In either case, a well-conceived landscape design, properly installed and well maintained, adds value to your property and enhances the quality of your life.

At this beautiful LEICHT Westchester project, The original design was traditional, with a layout involving many angled corners. The goal was to streamline the design and create a modern and more functional space. We accomplished this first by squaring off all corners, rotating the island and enlarging the main window to add more sunlight and visual balance. In the new design, there is ample pantry space, large pots/pans drawer storage and an appliance garage unit to hide away small items to keep the countertop clutter-free. An open display unit with built-in LED lighting allows the homeowner a place to showcase her beautiful artwork. Finishes- Bondi in Arctic (matt laminate), Topos in Textured Oak Marsh (wood veneer) Countertop- Quartz- Aurea in Divine, Granite- Black Absolute in a leathered finish.

This project for a builder husband and interior-designer wife involved adding onto and restoring the luster of a c. 1883 Carpenter Gothic cottage in Barrington that they had occupied for years while raising their two sons. They were ready to ditch their small tacked-on kitchen that was mostly isolated from the rest of the house, views/daylight, as well as the yard, and replace it with something more generous, brighter, and more open that would improve flow inside and out. They were also eager for a better mudroom, new first-floor 3/4 bath, new basement stair, and a new second-floor master suite above. The design challenge was to conceive of an addition and renovations that would be in balanced conversation with the original house without dwarfing or competing with it. The new cross-gable addition echoes the original house form, at a somewhat smaller scale and with a simplified more contemporary exterior treatment that is sympathetic to the old house but clearly differentiated from it. Renovations included the removal of replacement vinyl windows by others and the installation of new Pella black clad windows in the original house, a new dormer in one of the son’s bedrooms, and in the addition. At the first-floor interior intersection between the existing house and the addition, two new large openings enhance flow and access to daylight/view and are outfitted with pairs of salvaged oversized clear-finished wooden barn-slider doors that lend character and visual warmth. A new exterior deck off the kitchen addition leads to a new enlarged backyard patio that is also accessible from the new full basement directly below the addition. (Interior fit-out and interior finishes/fixtures by the Owners)

Bathroom remodel was a complete redesign to bring the original 90-year old San Francisco bathroom into modern day. Reimagining the space involved knocking down walls and employing artisans for handmade shower tiles and locally custom-made cabinetry to perfectly fit tight spaces. Creamy tones, Mahogany wood, and ceramic crackle and subway tiles strike a balance between traditional and contemporary. The end result is a bathroom design that's a breath of fresh air and modern sophistication - See more at: http://kimballstarr.com/projects/bathroom-remodel-st-francis-wood