My Southern Kitchen

From Dated Kitchen to Dream Kitchen: Our goal was to take a dated, dysfunctional kitchen and transform it into a functioning heart of the home with classic style.

We bucked the popular trend of using stainless steel appliances, opting instead for white to create a kitchen with truly timeless appeal but modern function. The dual-fuel Aga professional range provides three ovens and a 5-burner cook top in a compact 36” package with vintage style. A skirted, old-fashioned wall-mount sink completes the look. Carrera marble on the custom 8-foot island is paired with budget-conscious butcher block from IKEA on the perimeter counters.

The breakfast nook in the bay window, which had been rarely used, now makes a cozy gathering place for friends and family around the hearth. The arch of the fireplace is a design element repeated throughout the kitchen.

The formerly textured ceiling is now planked and beamed. The Amish-made custom cabinets were distressed to give the appearance of “reclaimed barn wood” to complement the distressed engineered hardwood floors. Seven drawers concealed in the toe kicks are perfect for storing platters and trays. Spice and oil drawers are cleverly concealed in the decorative wood work on either side of cook top and range making ideal use of these tight spaces. Even a cubby was designed for housing a flat screen TV which sits above the corner plate rack.

Careful space planning and an eye for vintage detail have resulted in a classic kitchen with timeless appeal.

*** Because You Asked***
The light fixtures WERE a challenge! I looked at more than 400 before finding these! We bought them online from Lighting By Lux in Georgia. #2334-47 Manhattan 4 Light Iron Pendant from World Imports. Here is the link: http://www.lightingbylux.com/SearchResults.asp?Search=2334-47

RE: Island Design - We really do love this raised style. It adds dimension to the space, storage, and cover for messes! ;o Yet it does not reduce the workspace - it's 2 feet deep and 8 feet long which does not include the raised area or the lower space around it.

Wall Color: HC-3 Greenmont Silk, Benjamin Moore Paint.

THE DESIGN: I am an interior decorator and have helped many others create their own dream kitchens. When we moved into this house, I started reworking the space "in my mind". I knew I wanted to reorient the island and to put the fireplace in the bay window. Over the year+ that we lived in the house before remodeling the kitchen I made a list of what I wanted in the new kitchen. I went thru all my kitchen files and old issues of kitchen magazines and collected pages/photos of what I wanted. (It's easier for carpenters, contractors, painters, cabinet designers to "get" what you want if you can show it to them!

I hired two different people who created 3-D designs of kitchen. The first one was done just months after we moved in. That was the plan I worked off of and "tweaked". When we were ready to build, I had another virtual design done. I gave her all the pieces and parts and then she put it together so I could show my husband and everyone who was working on the project what my vision was. She's super talented and was helpful in making suggestions and actually tried a couple different versions trying to get in what I wanted. While her final version wasn't perfect (i.e. the island wasn't the style I wanted but it was in the right position, it really enabled everyone who was working on the project to "get it." Well worth the investment of time and money.

To See More Visit My Blog: www.TheDevineHome.com

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