Problem:
Family of four (+ large menagerie of pets) desperately needs kitchen update, but requires low-maintenance, hard-working storage and cooking solutions.
Solution:
We've heard it all before-a family dreams of a kitchen renovation to take an outdated ugly duckling space to a flawless, fresh-faced swan of a room. But like a great haircut that never looks the same after you leave the salon, without a whole lifestyle change for the owners, a gorgeous kitchen can look less than perfect the day after the contractors leave. Real life steps in, with its muddy boots, disorganized papers, untidy habits and bits of leftover food on the counter.
Enter the perfect palette for a bustling kitchen. A combination of off-white cabinetry with an antiqued finish, slate grey counters and floors and tumbled limestone backsplash helped camouflage the everyday wear and tear of life in the country. For this homeowner, who lives on a working farm in Southern Ontario, renovating her tired kitchen had become a priority. Despite its original Cottage Style charm, the kitchen needed to be overhauled. The wood panelling wasn't in good condition, and several structural changes, as well as re-insulating the walls, dictated most of the renovation. Designer John Vanderkolk of Kitchen Designers Plus created a kitchen plan that optimized the space (an unused back door was removed to accommodate more counter space) and carried through a traditional English Country aesthetic that improves with age. Out went the open shelves-lovely as they were, their knack for catching (and keeping!) dust meant they weren't the best storage option for a country kitchen that always has its doors wide open. In their place sit classic upper cabinets with doors.
click here for an exclusive slide show of 'before shots' of this kitchen
0 Comment