This reimagined space is sure to foster family interaction
A successful design project has a perfect synergy that blends both function and esthetic. For Rebecca Foster’s clients, a cramped, closed-off kitchen wasn’t working for their expanding family, but their wish list also included striking features to create a beautiful, timeless space — all within a fixed budget.
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“They wanted to remove the dividing wall between the kitchen and the dining room and come up with a layout that allowed for entertaining [and] for their growing family,” says Foster, principal and lead designer at Align Interior Design.
“They wanted that open-concept, collaborative, big-family moment.”
Removing the wall was the first step in fulfilling that vision. The next step was to flip the layout by moving the kitchen to the dining room position and the dining room to the original kitchen, both at the back of the house.
This was done to improve flow to the backyard and to ensure there was a wall for the range and an all-important feature: a custom, fluted range hood that was high on the clients’ wish list.
“We came up with a better layout for the kitchen that maximized storage, but still allowed for the focal point of the hood fan,” Foster says. “We really liked the idea of the backsplash wrapping up [the wall], having that little quartz ledge keeping it nice and open there.
“Because of the sloped ceiling, I knew I wanted to pull some lighting down a little bit instead of relying on pot lights. So a way to do that was putting those sconces on the wall on either side of the hood fan.”
Since the layout eliminated the upper cabinetry, except for the tall units to the right of the range that house the panel-covered fridge, freezer and pantry, Foster added a closet in the entryway to back onto the kitchen and dining rooms. In the back of that closet, they installed a shallow pantry for extra storage.
Maximizing storage also played out in the configuration of the lower cabinets. A corner cabinet by the sink has a kidney-shaped pullout, and there are narrow pullouts on either side of the range with adjustable shelves for storing spices, olive oil or even baking sheets.
Foster says a modern, but timeless design was achieved with both a narrow Shaker profile on the alder wood cabinetry and a neutral palette.
“We knew we wanted a neutral, timeless colour palette, but included black accents because the client really loved the idea of the black, gridded window,” which was added along the sink wall, she says. “We grounded this light neutral colour palette and gave it a bit more personality by doing the dark, black island and then the black light fixtures and hardware accents.”
The panel-covered appliances boosted the seamless, integrated look, allowing the dramatic hood fan to be the star feature in the space.
“There was enough of harsh contrasts and soft contrasts, so that it just really blended,” Foster says.