A 1950s Kitchen Transformation

Project Description:

For this renovation project, we tackled an outdated 1950s kitchen in our client’s historic home. Built in 1908, the single family residence has smaller rooms and the kitchen area was strictly for cooking…not for entertaining. We focused our designs on enlarging the kitchen by extending the cabinetry past the wonderful arched opening to include the coffee bar area and a funky-fun powder room. We then connected the kitchen to the period dining room by removing the load bearing partition wall that separated them. This allowed the kitchen to have a much bigger feel with more sunlight and easy interaction between the cook and her guests. Unique design elements in the kitchen include custom, quarter-sawn white oak cabinetry, an antique metal shelf converted into a pot rack, cork flooring, and copper pendants.

Project Cost: $150,000 – $175,000

Design Details:

Removed the wall between the kitchen and dining area, replacing it with a half-wall featuring the sink, dishwasher, and trash pullout plus a raised bar top counter with stools.
Installed custom quarter-sawn white oak cabinetry throughout the kitchen, which complements the original oak beams and pocket door in the dining room.
Added a coffee bar leading to the deck to provide a seamless indoor-outdoor transition.
Enlarged the powder room to feature some wonderful English wallpaper and a brilliant red, Italian sink vanity for a functional and fun space.
Fabricated a custom pot rack fashioned from a modified hat rack with an added oak shelf and hooks.
Installed custom, copper pendants over the bar top counter.
Used LED lighting for display and under-cabinet illumination.
Preserved the original oak flooring in the dining area and chose cork flooring for the kitchen because of its comfort and durability.
Incorporated innovative details in the coffee bar, such as a microwave drawer and bookcase for cookbooks.
Full stripped and refinished the original solid oak pocket door in the dining room.
Fabricated and installed custom radiator covers in the dining room.