There must be something about before-and-after pictures that allows us to see possibilities. Last week I spoke of kitchen envy and featured a kitchen transformation by Design Plus, Inc., of Salt Lake City (Kaye Christiansen Englert, FASID, NCIDQ, CAPS), and due to the enthusiastic response I am featuring another one of Kaye’s impressive kitchen remodels along side the before pictures.
The starting point was a kitchen open to a family room. It had knotty alder cabinets and a traditional design, and the redesign took it to bright white contemporary style with ample workspace and far more storage. It also retained the family-friendly island seating.
The homeowner likes a well-organized efficient workspace, and Kaye responded by easy opening doors and cabinets with wooden separators for flatware and utensils and four specific storage areas for spices, as well as partitions in the cabinets. The area in front of the stool seating has touch opening cabinets for large items that are not often used for entertaining and holidays.
Retained also are the ample windows by the dining table and the corner of the kitchen with views to a beautiful water feature in the beautifully yard and out to the mountains.
The cooktop is relocated to the opposite counter where a hood efficiently vents it. The green soapstone countertops cover ample work surfaces and are soft to the touch. At the end of the kitchen is a pantry closed off by pocket doors with additional counter workspace as well as pantry storage.
The remodel extended to the family room adjacent to the kitchen, where Design Plus created a contemporary stacked stone fireplace to replace the more rustic river rock. The cherry wood cabinetry continues the clean contemporary lines.
The update to the entry hallway retained the front doors with the double side and overhead transom glass that introduces natural light, but made it a much brighter space and reflective of light with the lustrous marble floors and the paint selection. Kaye designed patterns in the marble floor to give the long hallway interest and to suggest the path to the rooms. Another addition is the large classic pendant light, which lowers the scale to make the entry more inviting.
I shot the project midday. It shows the natural light and the landscaping outside the windows, and I felt the time of day very appropriate for the home.
And yes, I did have massive kitchen envy: beautiful appliances, well lit, everything at one’s fingertips, and more storage than I could ever fill. Again, I could be very happy with such a kitchen.
See more of Scot’s work, plus another renovation by Design Plus, Inc.