Kitchen & Bath Business - February/March 2021 - 42

BEFORE & AFTER
The space felt even more confined with the peninsula that was to the left of the sink. The closetstyle pantry jutted out in the middle of the room
and encroached into the remaining available space.
The former kitchen was also fairly dark, as the only
window and source of natural light was just over
the sink overlooking the back porch. The white
cabinets, original to the kitchen, were falling apart,
and the tile floor was outdated and drab.
MAXIMIZING AND INTEGRATING SPACE

Breaking Down Walls

A kitchen is redesigned to be the center of
attention for a family who loves being together

FTER SEVERAL DECADES OF ENDURING a dimly lit, closed-off and outdated galley-like kitchen, the homeowners worked with Dana Bacher,
senior designer with Jarrett Design LLC in Emmaus, Pa., to achieve a
complete overhaul of the space. Although they are empty nesters, the
couple's grown children visit frequently, and the wife is from a large
family. Ideally, the homeowners wanted their kitchen to be a gathering
place for family, but the original space was not conducive to hosting multiple
people. Like many older 1970s kitchens, it was rather tight and divided, so
the goal was to transition the first floor into an open-concept layout.

ABOVE Reclaimed barnwood

provides a warm contrast to
the white kitchen, while the
eye is drawn to the window
above the sink as the focal
point of the entire kitchen.

BELOW RIGHT Pullout drawers in the island next to the
microwave work well as space
savers in this smaller kitchen.

Bacher's primary challenges were to find a way to
maximize the use of space and maintain a consistent flow throughout the entire downstairs.
" Since they were not adding square footage to
the actual kitchen, and we were losing considerable wall space by removing valuable cabinet real
estate by taking walls down, we needed to find
ways to make sure they didn't lose too much cabinet space, " said the designer. " We did this by carefully planning out exactly what would go inside
each cabinet and utilizing organizers like rollouts,
tray dividers and spice organizers to make the
most of each cabinet. "
Adding the new peninsula also provided additional storage for pots and pans while also offering
a place for the designer to locate the range and
incorporate counter seating. It was also important
that Bacher integrate the kitchen design throughout the other adjacent rooms.
" Trying to make it all seem intentional was
important to us, " she explained. " We didn't want
to take three walls down and have nothing work
together, so it was important that the spaces
echoed each other, made sense and were related. "
To that end, for example, Bacher made sure that
the new hutch had the same door style and cabinetry color as what was in the kitchen. She also
used the same style of chairs for the counter stools
at the peninsula that are in the dining room. All
the hardwood floors throughout the downstairs
were restained the same color so that there is a
unified look, and all the trim was painted to 
match the kitchen cabinetry.

ADDRESSING ISSUES

" The space was defined by walls, " said Bacher. " We wanted to open everything up and have it be much brighter, so when family would come home,
they could all be together. "
The kitchen also had significant layout issues; the configuration of the space
was clunky and cluttered, with appliances jutting out and tables in the way.
" They had a table sitting in front of the sliding doors, so you had to go
around that to get to the back porch, " said the designer, who explained that a
refrigerator, which was on the same wall as the sink, partially obstructed the
entrance to the family room.

42
42-44_KBB_0221_BeforeAfter.indd 42

By HILARY
DANINHIRSCH

/ FEB.-MAR. 2021 / KBBONLINE.COM / The official publication of NKBA (NKBA.org) and KBIS (KBIS.com)

1/26/21 1:43 PM

http://www.KBBONLINE.COM http://www.NKBA.org http://www.KBIS.com

Kitchen & Bath Business - February/March 2021

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