Contemporary Design Thinking in Action: Laurel Ridge Renovation

Contemporary Design Thinking In Action Laurel Ridge Renovation

Imagine, for a moment, you’re back in high school. It’s prom night. You’re putting the final touches on your outfit. Maybe you’re adjusting the wide lapels of your powder blue tux, or snapping the enormous bow on your pink satin dress with the puffed sleeves. You may be using your second can of AquaNet to ensure your “Flock of Seagulls” hair makes it through the evening, or perhaps you’re applying iridescent blue eyeshadow.

You looked good.

The thing is, styles change. Sure, there are some timeless classics that remain in-season every season, but in most cases things don’t get better with age. While you can box up your old prom gear for a retro costume party one day, what happens when the trends come and go and leave your house behind the times? That’s a little harder to pinpoint as it happens, and a little more complicated to fix.

However, if you should wake one morning and stumble into your kitchen, turn on the light, and slowly realize with horror as you drink your coffee that your cabinets are from the seventies, your color scheme is from the eighties, and your appliances are from the nineties,

it may be time for an overhaul.

It’s a good thing John Edwards is here to help.

In over 25 years in residential architecture, he’s seen it all, from small-scale bungalows to expansive luxury mountain retreats. He and his team are also experts in transforming outdated homes into modern, high-functioning living places. They are not stingy with this expertise.

John recently wrote a piece for At Home Magazine in which he shared his nine best pieces of advice for transforming a kitchen from outmoded to modern. Kitchens are something we can all relate to personally, at whatever scale or budget; talking about kitchen design is a good way to get people talking about design, period.

As luck would have it, a recent kitchen renovation underscores all of John’s pro tips perfectly.

The owners of the Laurel Ridge home, a retired couple who have developed a strong affinity for contemporary design, needed help with a severely out-of-date beige-on-beige 1980’s kitchen. In addition to the kitchen being drab, the cabinets were embellished with fussy hardware and had an overwhelming faux craquelure finish. Closed-off from the nearby spaces it served, the kitchen was further darkened by a depressingly dull Spanish tile floor. The traditional builder-grade appliances and furnishings were outdated, ill-chosen, and poorly configured for performing kitchen tasks efficiently.

contemporary design thinking

in action

The new design transformed a dark and divided space into a bright, open floor plan characterized by simplicity and functionality. The renovation opened up the kitchen and breakfast rooms, allowing for more light and a large kitchen island with breakfast bar. Creating a pass-through to the dining room admitted more counter space and storage as well as making the kitchen feel even larger and brighter. Recessed and updated lighting fixtures provide the right combination of task and accent lighting. Modern white cabinets, white marble countertops, and stainless steel appliances contrast with the highly figured wood grain.

1

keep it

lean & clean

A successful modern kitchen is naturally going to be more Spartan in appearance than kitchens of the past, because it provides a comprehensive strategy for storage….keeping items that are messy or used infrequently out of sight.

Reducing superfluous details and embellishments on the outside of the cabinets also helps to make a smaller kitchen appear grander in scale. Resist the temptation to overdo the cabinets, and remember that even a simple slab-style cabinet door in wood or metal is quite elegant when richly finished. Be aware that the lines are cleaner in a modern space, and therefore the construction and quality of each element will stand out.

2

be consistent in the design

& avoid arbitrary details

The best modern kitchens appear to have been created with ease as a result of having a clear overall theme. Begin by keeping the door styles and perimeter countertop surfaces consistent. Today’s best modern kitchens don’t mix lots of dissimilar details, but use a limited palette of colors and materials to enhance function. If you’re not opting for integrated appliances, get stainless appliances from the same manufacturer to ensure consistency of finish.

3

refine the kitchen

spatially

Thirty years ago, kitchens emphasized small decorative patterns applied to tiny fixtures and elements. Countertops were planned as bonus storage rather than as uninterrupted work surfaces, and they held many small appliances that might only see use once in a while. Today’s most successful designs focus on the creation of space through the well-defined shaping of interior geometry.

The kitchens we love most tend to feel open and welcoming, which helps to make them vibrant and active parts of the home rather than single-task centers.

4

use high-quality countertop materials

to make a statement

Great countertops set the tone for a modern kitchen.

Resist the temptation to use granite with extremely figured veining and a mirror-like polish. Try solid surface, concrete, or quartz materials and exaggerate the thickness, or make the design uniquely heavy or thin to create additional interest. Stainless countertops also offer a beautiful monolithic surface, and can be fabricated with integral sinks to highlight the fluidity of the material.

5

pay attention to lighting

for dramatic results

The modern kitchen never leaves you fumbling in the dark. Lighting work surfaces from overhead is important, but having dimmable lighting that accents gathering areas and under-cabinet space provides layering of light and a warm glow. Lighting behind glass-front cabinets adds interest and additional depth. Pendant lighting over an island is becoming less common as a device to separate the working area of the kitchen from the eating kitchen area. In this age of multifunctional spaces, designers are no longer as prone to interrupt the view over the island, choosing instead to maintain visual connection between spaces.

6

limit upper cabinetry

to enlarge the space you already have

Traditional kitchen design strategies focused on providing cabinets to cover every available wall.

Consider removing your underused upper cabinets and just leave the base cabinets. The space you gain not only expands the visual edge of the room, but also provides a place to showcase artwork, color, or open shelving.

7

tie it all together

with good floor material selections

The kitchen flooring often covers more surface than any other feature material in the space, but it rarely gets the attention it deserves. Consider materials that are easy to maintain and convey a sense of permanence and solidity such as tile, wood or stone.

Resist the temptation to make these glossy, which will show soil and wear more easily.

8

break through walls to

enlarge your kitchen

Many traditional kitchens are confining and overly enclosed. To grow your kitchen or just to create a sense of enlargement without building an addition, consider knocking down some walls. Removing a load bearing wall will require the guidance of an architect.

Sharing space, light, windows, and views with an adjacent room can open a world of new options.

9

use expansive countertops and islands as social

centerpieces

The fragile and peculiarly low kitchen table has long been a relic. Incorporating very large islands that can connect a combination of activities such as cooking, prep work, and dining on a single surface brings people together. A generously-scaled island provides a place for kids to spread out homework and projects, while allowing parents to prepare meals in a manner that facilitates human interaction.

make it

flow

One thing to keep in mind when you’re opening up walls and connecting spaces is that one phase of renovation may trigger another. Once this kitchen project was complete, the adjacent living room needed an overhaul to bring its style into the modern era, too. This was quite a transformation of its own.

BEFORE

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