“This project was part of a big renovation that took about six months to complete. The original kitchen space was extremely dark and dated. The room was huge, but it wasn’t utilized well. There was no seating in the original kitchen, and there was no access to a wraparound porch just on the other side of the wall. It just made for a very dysfunctional space. The clients are a bit more contemporary in their style, so we tried to really bridge that gap and make the kitchen feel clean and more up-to-date.

“The inspiration came from the challenges presented within the room. There were nice high ceilings, but it was still very dark, so we added a door from the kitchen for porch access, and we added windows on either side of the hood, both of which let in a lot of light. We used soft blue-gray cabinets paired with walnut floors and quartz countertops to keep the space light and bright but still warm. We broke up the layout into a variety of useable spaces: the main kitchen area was turned into a galley style layout with the workstation sink on the island, the range behind it on the opposite side, and the refrigerator at the end of that space, so everything is in close proximity and right where you need it to be. There’s a cleanup area behind the main island, and there’s an L-shaped counter-height seating area so the kids can do homework while meals are being prepped. And instead of creating a separate area for the kitchen table, we created this beautiful banquette that’s built into the island so that the family has room for big meals.

“During the renovation we redid the entryway, the mudroom, the bathroom, and the wood floors through – out the first floor, and updated the doors and windows, but I love the way the kitchen became the center of the home. It flows from the entry to the garage, and it now opens onto the front porch. We updated the living room with a new media center made from walnut shelving that plays off the kitchen—the kitchen really became the fo – cal point that changed the entire home, and the banquette has become a real gathering space. Everybody starts and ends their day there.”

—Mary O. Adams, owner at Kitchen Cove Design Studio