I am SO excited to finally share our Kitchen R E V E A L! Both my husband and I love to cook so it’s probably no secret that this is hands down my absolute F A V O R I T E space in my house. And these appliances 😍 OMG, I swear I hear angels sing every time I open my fridge. A little preface for you, if you don’t already know me or haven’t read my about page, my gratitude scale is seriously off the charts as we have been living in tiny 700-800sf homes for the past 14 years (with three kids), a compact fridge and stuff scattered EVERYwhere. So when it came to designing, not only our kitchen, but our entire home, I was very intentional about creating spaces that were altogether inspiring, organized and functional. The messes are still there, I swear, they’re just intentionally hidden. I was lucky enough to have my good friend, Dan Dewaard, who happens to be one of my favorite photographers, come photograph our house a couple weeks ago. All of these stunning photos in this post are his. Get ready to see more of his exceptional work in posts to come.
Where to start? Let’s go from the beginning. Research. I’ve been pinning ideas on Pinterest since 2012, but it hasn’t been until the past 4 years that I’ve seriously narrowed my focus pinning the design features and functional elements I wanted to incorporate in my own home. I am a sucker for a good clean white kitchen but I also love the darker, moodier and more funky kitchens so I decided to compromise blending white uppers and lowers with a bold black island and clean, minimal finishes.
One of my first purchases, besides our black-framed 🖤 Marvin windows, were our appliances. Not a small decision (or price tag) but I waited until the Day-After-Thanksgiving Sale to purchase them which saved a lot of $$$$. I’m all for saving where you can. One of my favorite scores was finding these RH Pendants hanging above our island on Offerup, which I also used in our guest bath and laundry room, I bought 8 of them, over $800 worth of lights, for only $50! You may not believe it from these photos, but I am actually a pretty thrifty person and have been in save-mode for so long it was really hard to start spending money. But, in all the investments we could make, I knew I wanted to invest in our home, creating spaces my family could not only live in, but love to live in, everyday. That was my goal pre-Covid, which is now, more important than ever.
I love that brass is back. (You’ll probably hear me say the word love a million times throughout this post, but I can’t help it, it’s true). I hesitated for a hot second worried about it being a quick fad, but in the end, I decided to just go for it because, I love it. I think that is one of the things I’d encourage the most, if you love it, go for it. And listen to your gut. If you’re too nervous or unsure you’ll love it later, just make sure it’s in places where it can be easily swapped out. I ended up peppering brass throughout the kitchen on our hardware and lighting and love the minimal pop of pretty it adds. It even matches my favorite pair of Timberlands 😂
Ok, back to the appliances, that were not $50 (gulp). Because we love to cook, I knew I wanted to invest in our kitchen and its overall experience. I decided to mix my appliances based on performance, function, reviews and look. I knew I wanted a large gas range, a double oven, pot filler (love!), a Bosch dishwasher (they’re the BEST) and because we’ve been living with an even smaller compact fridge for the past 2 years, I wanted a LARGE fridge. I fell in love with this lovely Jennair Built-in Side-by-Side and opted for a wider 48″ model since it’s counter-depth. Although you lose a bit of space in the back, counter-depth is amazing because you can easily see everything you have without it getting lost in the deep dark depths of a standard depth. It is glorious and I swear I hear angels sing every time I open it! I’m also glad I opted for the water and ice dispenser on the exterior. My kids are constantly getting water and ice and this way they aren’t continuously opening the fridge/freezer every time which seems counter-intuitive to energy and keeping your refrigerated goods fresh.
Our range is also Jennair, their new RISE series is so pretty! I’m all for mixing metals, which you will see throughout our kitchen and home, and the RISE range offers a classy mix of stainless with a touch of brass on the knobs. I knew I wanted at least two ovens so I opted for their 48″ Pro Range which boasts a large cooking area, double oven, stainless griddle and even has soft close doors (swoon). We went with duel-fuel. (They say duel-fuel bakes more evenly so we opted for that instead of full gas). We’ve had a few hiccups with this range (the fan was faulty from the get-go, a bad design, and making a loud buzzing noise) but it got fixed 🤞 and cooks and bakes like a dream now.
Instead of sticking to the norm, I opted for an entirely different brand for my range hood by ILVE. Why? Because, I loved it. It was not only love at first sight, but It also has great reviews, dishwasher safe anodized aluminum filters, ample overhead lights, warming lights AND it packs a mean air punch. Turn that sucker on high and you now have a jet flying overhead 😂 only downside, it takes a while to ship in as they come from Italy, but totally worth the wait! My finish contractor, Ken of KJB Building & Design, did a top-notch job custom installing this baby (along with all our other interior finish including our white oak floors by Kentwood).
I love the look of marble (as you saw in our master bath), but real marble is a soft natural stone which stains and scratches easily = does not pair well with red wine or children (both of which we love in our home 😂). We used white quartz in our last kitchen and really loved how clean, pretty and easy-to-maintain it was so I knew I wanted quartz again for the counters in this home. I ended up choosing a white “marble-looking” quartz from Pental, called Misterio, which has beautiful soft veining, then paired it with a true marble tile for our backsplash (found at Lowe’s, so pretty)! I chose polished because it’s easier to clean and maintain, but they also have a honed option as well.
TIPS : I highly recommend going to the warehouse and picking out your actual slabs. The samples they have in stores are very inconsistent as each batch from the warehouse can vary. I am so glad I went down and picked out my slabs in person as I had an entirely different brand and option selected before seeing it in person. I had originally selected MSI’s Calacatta Clara but when I went to the warehouse it looked really yellow. Apparently it was a bad batch (which their salesman didn’t mention until I pointed it out). I ended up hopping over to Pental (an incredibly pleasant showroom and experience) and fell in love with one I’d previously ex’d from my original options based off the samples from the stores.
I also recommend bringing the exact samples you liked in your kitchen with you to the warehouse so you can compare it to the actual slabs to make sure it’s the same hue you liked in your lighting. Seriously that saved my bacon, otherwise I may have ended up choosing that bad batch unknowingly.
And finally, best cleaner for quartz (thanks Mom!)…Denatured alcohol it cleans EVERYTHING, even permanent marker. I got mine at Lowe’s but you can find it almost anywhere 👍
RS Tile & Stone (local Skagit Valley) did a stunning job fabricating and installing our counters and backsplash. He also did our custom master bath vanity (seen here) which is a work of art.
My cabinets. I am 💯 percent in love with my custom cabinets by Grey & Grey Construction. I did a lot of cabinets throughout my home (can’t wait to show you our mudroom 😍) and Amos of G&G was such a pleasure to work with. I did all the layout and design of my cabinets using Home Designer Architectural (which I used to design my whole house in 3D). I’ll do another post later detailing that more, diving into design process, layout and must-haves for gaining as much functional storage as possible, but let’s first talk about Susan. (funny on-going joke around here between my Husband and I). My Husband and I almost broke up over Susan (not really) I just think she’s super lazy and he really digs her. 😂 Long story short, I am so happy I did NOT add a lazy susan in my kitchen. Ok, now let’s talk about these gorgeous cabs.
I chose shaker-style, inset, painted cabs for all the cabinets in my home. I love the look of classic shaker and the seamlessness of an inset. I wanted our kitchen to feel clean and airy while offering as much functional storage as possible so I opted to do full uppers and lowers on the range wall, leaving the sink and window wall wide open which draws your attention to those gorgeous black framed windows each highlighted by one of my favorite sconces by RH. I love the look of open shelving, but I knew for my own home I wanted enclosed uppers for both storage and ease of cleaning (not worrying about dust or keeping it looking “picture perfect”). I contemplated adding just a few open shelves on the far right of the range wall uppers, but in the end decided to do a full counter-to-ceiling, sliding glass cabinet, which still offers that bit of pretty for styling my favorite stemware and serveware but keeps things clean and at the ready.
Tip: Sliding glass doors are a great option because it doesn’t interfere with your counter space. Just make sure to take measurements of your larger serveware and give those to your cabinet maker so they can accommodate for the accurate clearance needed 👍
Hardware! I knew I wanted brass in my kitchen from the get-go. It is just SO pretty, especially when coordinated against a bold black. I ordered a bunch of samples and visited several showrooms hunting for the right brass tones I wanted. There are quite a few color variations between brands and it’s always good to compare a few in your lighting. I also wanted something with clean lines and no fancy detailing (My mind is always thinking “is this easy to clean”). I ended up finding my favorite ones on Amazon by Amerock Hardware. I used their Blackrock Knobs & Riva Pulls in golden champagne for my kitchen and pantry, which I’ll share later, and used matte black for my laundry room. (Riva pulls are currently unavailable on Amazon, but you can find them at Build.com)
Who loves a big sink? 🙋♀️ I’ve had both, single basin and double basin, and for me, the winner goes to….single basin. I bought a large single basin for our last home and absolutely loved it so I knew I wanted a single basin again, but bigger. I wanted enough space that I could leave dishes to dry in the sink, leaving my counters clean. I looked at several options and in the end, decided on a 36″ wide Elkay Stainless sink which pairs perfectly with my FAVORITE faucet by Kohler (PURIST Semi-Professional).
Thank you so much for visiting and reading! If you have any questions leave them in the comments below, I’d love to hear from you! Then make sure to SUBSCRIBE below and follow me on instagram to see all the latest! 🙏
SOURCES.
- Fridge – Jennair 48″ Built-in Side by Side Pro-Style Refrigerator w/water dispenser & Rise Handles
- Range – Jennair 48″ Rise Series Duel-Fuel Professional Range
- Range Hood – ILVE Majestic 48″ UAM120I
- Backsplash Tile – Satori Venatino Polished Marble 3″x6″ found at Lowe’s w/white grout
- Counters – Pental Quartz | Misterio
- Sink – Elkay Crosstown 36-1/2″ Undermount Single Basin Stainless Steel
- Faucet – Kohler Purist Semi-Professional Faucet w/magnetic docking station
- Dishwasher – Bosch
- Cabinet Pulls – Amerock Hardware // Riva (Pulls) + Blackrock (Knobs) in Golden Champagne
- Island Pendants – Restoration Hardware Bare Bulb Pendant
- Wall Sconces – Restoration Hardware 20th C. Library Sconce in Aged Steel
- Windows – The Marvin Brand // Essential Collection (formerly called Integrity All Ultrex)
- Floors – Kentwood Sculpted Oak Halfmoon Bay
- White Cabinet Color – Chantilly Lace (BM) L2 Custom Color match w/Miller Paint
- Black Island Color – Black Magic (SW) Color Match w/Miller Paint
- Wall Color – Chantilly Lace (BM) L2 Custom Color match
- Cabinets – Built/Installed by Grey & Grey Construction // Paint by K&K Finishes // Layout & Design by me
- Interior Finish – KJB Building & Design/Ken Beane
- Builder – Old World Homes & Garden/Cody Sedgwick
- Quartz Counter Fabrication/Install – RS Tile and Stone
- Favorite Jeans – PAIGE Verdugo Ankle found at my other fave Nordstrom Rack
SUBSCRIBE // Stay connected to see all the latest!