Kitchen, Hidden Butler Pantry, & Mudroom Redesign
Spaces Included:
Kitchen, Butler's Pantry & MudroomLocation:
Eastover, Charlotte, NCProject Scope:
Pull & ReplaceDue to their large family and love of entertaining, it was critical that the appliances and their placement, and adequate kitchen storage supported large gatherings. Two sinks and two trash and recycling stations provide separate locations for the host and hostess to prep and clean up without bumping into one another. The icemaker, main wine refrigerator and a hidden warming drawer are all built into the island for easy access before, during and after dinner parties.
Placing the main sink in front of the tall window posed quite a design challenge. In the end, the best solution was to bring the sink cabinet out a few inches to provide space for the window casing and sill to be uninterrupted. The back of the cabinet was finished to provide a clean view from the front of the house.
To accommodate our clients’ tall statures, all the countertops were built up 2 ½ inches higher than standard. The mitered edges create a seamless appearance and the illusion of a thicker countertop slab which fits with the scale of the room.
Mudroom & Powder Room Remodel
Heavy bead groove paneling was removed from the mudroom and powder room to continue the cleaner, more modern look from the kitchen. Symmetrical wall cabinets with benches and open shelves provide storage for shoes, dog leashes and sunscreen.
Challenges & Goals
- Moving the sink in front of the window without changing the size of the window was a design challenge.
- Create a contemporary aesthetic that still feels appropriate for the traditional bones of the home.
- Redesign the hidden butler pantry under the stairs to function as a secondary prep space while also maintaining adequate dry good storage in an attractive way.
- The kitchen design needed to include large, professional grade appliances suitable for this family of six who entertain frequently. The appliance package included a 48” range, 60” of integrated Subzero refrigeration, an ice maker, warming drawer, dish washer, microwave and two wine chillers.
- The island design, with cantilevered bar top, 4-inch mitered sides and waterfall legs took creative engineering.
Solutions
- We designed a custom cabinet with a finished back to stand proud of the window so it would appear finished from the street. U-shaped drawers provide kitchen storage for cleaning supplies below the large undermount sink.
- Using simple materials with classic finishes in a more contemporary way and toning down the more traditional components (such as the heavy moldings) created a transitional kitchen design.
- Eliminating an art alcove in the formal living room allowed us to incorporate that square footage into the pantry. A mixture of cabinetry and site-built shelves keep pantry items hidden, but accessible for morning smoothies. The voids underneath the stair framing were the perfect place to recess the secondary wine refrigerator and seldom used microwave.
- The location of the range and refrigeration units stayed as they were, while the entertaining appliances (wine chiller, ice maker and warming drawer) were relegated to the island for easy access during parties. The microwave and secondary wine chiller are found in the hidden butler pantry since they aren’t used as frequently.
- After the island design was finalized, it took two rounds of countertop templating, hidden supports and over twelve precision cut pieces of quartz just to create the raised bar top. Ultimately, the cantilevered bar top is the focal point of the entire kitchen design.