In 2000 Kitchn reader Sue and her husband moved into a charming circa-1905 New Jersey colonial with a kitchen that was still firmly living in the 1980s, complete with mauve Formica countertops, sleek particle board cabinets, and a DIY backsplash tiling job. The couple saved and planned for nine years before they were able to expand the footprint and create a mind-blowing kitchen any serious cook would dream to work in. Check out the story and 'After' photos below:
Sue (of Subee's Kitchen) shares the process with us:
In the fall of 2000, my husband and I got married and moved into a charming, century-old colonial in Morristown, NJ (where George Washington spent a winter during the Revolutionary War). It had a lot of quaint features (mouldings, fir flooring, brick fireplaces), but unfortunately the kitchen wasn't one of them. It had been remodeled in 1983, with no attempt whatsoever to blend with the rest of the house. It had good natural light, though, and was just functional enough for us to live with for 9 years while we started a family and planned and saved for our own renovation.
As an avid cook and entertainer, I knew I eventually wanted a functional, chef-caliber kitchen that was open to a family room. We also wanted to maximize natural light, preserve the views to the private backyard, and make the kitchen seem like it had always been a part of the old house. Easier dreamed than done, we soon discovered! Some architects we spoke with were too quick to "McMansionize" the house, with proportions and features that just wouldn't work with the modest colonial. Fortunately we found Chris Pickell (of Pickell Architecture, Flemington, NJ) who has built a following by embracing the quirks and special qualities of older homes. (He's worked on several homes in our neighborhood.) Chris and his team understood what we were looking for, and in no time came back with viable layout options for the new space.
Old kitchen glassware storage, pantry cabinet and fridge. Also, the wood flooring that didn't match that in the rest of the house.
New bar area, with water filter and chiller in cabinet below the sink and beverage refrigerator in the center.
One of the biggest design challenges was finding room for a kitchen table/eating area. I wanted a large (HUGE) work island, and we wanted the kitchen to open onto a small family room, but we also wanted to keep the expansion footprint as small as possible (since more square footage = more dollars). The solution came in the form of the 2-story window bay, which provided enough room for a built-in dining banquette and also gave the back of the house the boost of historic character it needed after the '80s remuddling. Had it not been for the collaborative environment fostered by Chris and his team, this stylish solution might never have come to be.
The window wall on the right was pushed out to create the new kitchen and bay window seating area.
The theme of collaboration continued throughout the job, from contractor (Wexford Custom Renovations, of Madison, NJ) to interior designer (Katja van der Loo of Papyrus Home Design) and cabinet maker (Darren Edsall of Lafayette, NJ). I had a vision, and this team worked together to make it a reality. We all share credit for the kitchen design. Katja was instrumental in keeping me on task — just about everyone tried to talk me out of white marble countertops and white cabinetry, even though all of my favorite kitchens had this scheme. Katja also brought in Darren the woodworker, who took "custom" to a new level (and for the same price as semi-custom lines in kitchen showrooms). He and a metal-worker buddy created an open stainless steel-lined cabinet next to the range for storing sheet pans, a smaller-scale version of the racks used in commercial kitchens. From cubbies and a printer tray to spice drawers and recycling bins, he was able to utilize every available inch of kitchen storage space. (He also built the window bench and did all the trim work in the kitchen and family room.)Resources
- Gas Range: BlueStar (8-burner)
- Refrigerator: Sub-Zero
- Wall oven & warming drawer: Dacor
- Faucets (island and clean-up): Dornbracht "Tara"
- Pendant lights: Hudson Valley "Haverhill"
- Stools: Emeco by Starck
Thanks so much for sharing, Sue!
Related: Kitchen Before & After: An Old Kitchen Gets Some English Flavor
(Images: Katrina Mojzesz, used with permission)
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Holy cow! I wasn't expecting that! Awesome.
Amazing!
Lovely!
Everything about this redo is personalized and stunning. Well worth the wait!
What a stunning transformation! The first before pic looks a lot like my current kitchen (complete with corner sink), so it's great to know something truly remarkable can be done with the space!
Looks awesome! I like how bright it is. I currently have rose-coloured Formica counters and the exact same cupboards, although thankfully not the tile! We'll be saving for a few more years before renovating, too.
Can I move in? Please? It's so lovely!!!
WOW! What a transformation.
Stunning. One of the best, most beautiful reno's I've seen lately!
Wow! I never saw the before pictures! Definitely one of my favorites!
Three sinks? Seems excessive.
Wow. Thats impressive. That is alot of eighties to take away.
I love it! Bet you someone's going to complain about it being too white in three... two... one...
Of course the upgrade is beautiful, with much more light and space, but 3 sinks, really?
The owner said she is an avid cook and entertainer ... so no, three sinks are not excessive.
Very nice job on the re-do!
Love it!
Beautiful remodel! Well done.
Three sinks can be entirely necessary if you entertain a ton. Especially if you entertain the way I do where guests are a part of the cooking experience as well.
I looked at the before picture and thought, well that's nice light from the window, maybe they will have opened up that wall with less cabinets... and BABOOM!! KAZOWIE WOWIE, you made it the most beautiful kitchen/seating area EVER! Do they give a Nobel prize for kitchen re-dos?
Amazing!!! This is certainly my dream kitchen. Great job. Time to start stashing my pennies away...
Gorgeous and definitely worth the wait. This makes me want to stop the plans for smaller upgrades to our kitchen and save the money for a big beautiful redo. I admire your patience.
UNF.
Gorgeous!! We’re planning our 1890 Victorian kitchen remodel, in Philadelphia… close to you!
I’m trying to talk myself out of white cabinets and white marble… but every time I see it, I just love it more. -- Victoria@Restoring our Victorian
Wow! Doesn't look like the same space. Beautiful! Great job!
Wow! Looks awesome!!!
You must feel so good walking into your kitchen every day now. Beautiful!
AMAZING renovation job! Absolutely gorgeous results. It makes me re-think all the discussions with my husband where I want a quick-fix cheapie kitchen make-over while he'd rather save for the real deal a few years down the line.
And slow claps to KHinNJ for the rudest, snarkiest comment I've seen on Apartment Therapy in a while. Green-eyed monster thinking their $1300 kitchen is better than this stunning job?? Please, as if.
Wow this is stunning! Good for you for waiting so long to get the kitchen you dreamed of. I am not sure I would have had the impulse control not to start sinking money into it to make it bearable. I love that bay window - it looks like a great homework or reading spot too.
What a beautiful and thoughtful renovation! I really appreciate the detailed explanations of her decision-making process. I'm sure this kitchen will be the site of many fun parties and family dinners for years to come!
Deens: of course I don't think my $1300 kitchen is better than this. My point, and you failed to actually read my comment, is that there was no reason why the owners had to live with that awful kitchen for 9 years before they made an expensive upgrade.
I'm not sure a reno post is really helpful if you don't have $80000. The owners showed a stunning lack of initiative in transitioning to a less expensive but cosmetically more pleasing kitchen in the intervening 9 years. That would have been a lot more instructive. Beautiful white high end kitchens are rather common on design sites. Doing a staged transition is relatively rare. Do you have the kind of budget it takes to get the kitchen above? Most of us don't. But most of us can scrape together a couple thousand to make it less hideous to cook in. As far as I'm concerned, the owners failed to imaginate.
KHinNJ, I see your point and I would probably do as you sugested, but I'm guessing they were busy with life and young children and maybe aren't into DIY. The kitchen seemed totally functional so why not live with it as is until you save the money for the dream kitchen? I admire their patience.
I liked the before better...just kidding. I had those same cabinets and was happy when my dishwasher caught fire and I had to redo the kitchen. Really classic and functional redo.
I did like the wall o'windows before but the after is also lovely
Thank you for all the positive comments about our kitchen renovation! KHinNJ, I'm sorry if our "Before" photos left you with nightmares. I admit I was tempted to start ripping out the sagging particle board cabinets on numerous occasions. For the record, we are in fact quite "imaginative" DIY-ers, but here's how/why we were able to live with that eyesore for 9 years: 1) the old kitchen looked a little better when the clutter, kids' art and shoes were stashed away; 2) we did paint all the doors and trim white, which was a big improvement from the dingy brown wood; 3) if you think the kitchen was bad, you should've seen the master bathroom -- it was horrid and barely functional, thus at the top of our priority list; 4) before we could address the kitchen, we needed to waterproof the basement, install central air conditioning (yes - this was a must), decorate a nursery and later a toddler's room; 5) call us frugal, but we couldn't bring ourselves to waste money, time or materials on short-term fixes when we knew a more permanent fix was in the future; 6) at least 2 of those 9 years were spent on architectural planning, bidding, etc. As for the necessity of 3 sinks-- I'm thrilled with them and would recommend this many for any serious cook/entertainer who can find the space.
I love the marble countertops!