Good connections: kitchen design is a relative matter

Custom Home, April, 2004 by Meghan Drueding

Open-plan kitchens have captivated designers and homeowners for several years, but recently the idea of connecting them to the rest of the house has evolved to a higher level. No longer thought of as an individual room, the kitchen is routinely regarded as part of a larger whole. It has merged with the dining, family, and living rooms to the extent that in many homes little formal separation between the spaces exists. Stylistically, designers are using color, materials, and detailing to tie the kitchen into the overall theme of a house, and they're even taking bigger-picture elements, such as the site or the surrounding natural environment, into account, the best custom kitchens, like the ones on the following pages, explore this trend toward integration in creative, often unexpected ways.

Chef's Choice

Architect Stuart Silk and his wife, Mary, aren't afraid of a little chopped garlic or hot chili oil. "We do a lot of heavy, smelly cooking, with lots of spices and oils," the Seattle-based Silk says. Cooking is such an integral part of their lifestyle that they designed the kitchen of their new house in the city's Madison Park neighborhood to share one large space with the family room. * Just because they like to cook, however, doesn't mean they want the entire first floor wearing eau de roast chicken. The solution? A powerful range hood built directly into the wall. The hood and cooktop are framed with a custom precast concrete piece resembling quite intentionally--an oversized fireplace surround. "Historically, cooking was done in the fireplace," says Silk. In addition to the enclosure's sense of tradition, it also provides a contained spot to trap and expel pungent cooking smells. * Built-in spice racks and extra counter space fill the nooks on either side of the range. Ivory firebrick laid in a herringbone pattern makes a durable backsplash, and a pot filler above the range saves time and effort. While the kitchen contains a healthy amount of storage--in the island, flanking the stove, and in the cabinetry that stretches almost up to the 11-foot ceilings--a pantry behind the range holds even more culinary supplies.

Mixing Bowl

Architect Ellen Bailey Dickson loves the traditional style of her 1940s Tudor in suburban Chicago. But she's equally partial to mid-century Modern design. Her remodeled kitchen blends both tastes, from the stained-glass window found at an antiques fair to the funky metal light fixtures that hang over the island. "I enjoy dispensing bits of Modern," she says. "It's like having little surprises to catch people off guard." * In order to give the kitchen more square footage for cabinets, Dickson switched its location with that of the old dining room. She also knocked down the wall between the two spaces so they flow easily into one another. To keep the cabinets from appearing monolithic she varied their finishes, hardware, and dimensions, designing one section to look like a freestanding hutch. The cheerful yellow wall tiles--some plain, some patterned with either dots or waves--are applied in a random order that fits the room's relaxed, playful tone. * Dickson and her husband wanted their three school-age children to be able to help with cooking, so they installed the oven and freezer down low, where the kids can reach them. Two additional advantages, in her book, are the room's extra-deep sink and unusual trash can location. "After making dinner, you can put all of the dirty pots and pans in the sink," she notes. "It's so deep that you can't see them if you're sitting at the dining room table." And placing the built-in trash can by the food prep area instead of under the sink saves time during cleanup. "You can get everything thrown away quickly," she says.

Island Chain

Architect Wayne Good didn't stop at one island when designing this kitchen in a 1935 hunting lodge outside Easton, Md. He needed to create enough workspace for owners who cook frequently, as well as the caterers they sometimes hire for parties. And he wanted to delineate the difference between the family room and kitchen while still keeping them open to one another. So he used two islands, one for each purpose. "The working island was built at the normal 3-foot height," he says. "The second island is only 18 inches deep but 42 inches high. It acts as a divider, separating the basic kitchen area from the family room." * With its carved, antique heart pine legs and honed granite top, the first island stands out against a cream-colored background of painted wood, limestone, and brick. Eighteenth-century furniture designs provided Good with inspiration for the room's custom detailing, including the islands and cabinets. He also developed the built-in telephone desk and display shelves on the east wall. "We incorporated the window on that wall so that the window becomes part of the desk," he says. The complex woodwork throughout the space meant the involvement of three different cabinetmakers, but the finished kitchen was worth the effort. The project fits together like a puzzle, with each element dependent on the next.