Atmosphere
I would like a mixture of rustic, elegant, timeless, and traditional, but maybe a little sparkle or whimsy too. Many times I have walked into a high-end kitchen and it feels cold, severe, or just not special for all of the money that went into it. The details are there, but the feeling is not. We hope to achieve that sense of contentment for ourselves and our guests that comes about when a home feels balanced and has multiple layers of interest.
Decor
We have planned on using a variety of finishes in the kitchen to create more of a European furniture look. Our kitchen is the most important room to us, really a core for the feeling we are trying to create for our entire home. We will draw from the details in the kitchen to finish many other rooms on the main floor. Details we want included in the kitchen design….
- Both Distressed wood cabinets and cream painted and glazed.
- Inset doors and drawers with beading
- Drawers!... deep, wide, whatever it takes to customize them perfectly for specific uses
- Rustic ceiling beams.
- Thicker walls and doorways. (Like in Bethesda designer's kitchen)
- Would love to incorporate a rustic hammered copper sink
- Main level will use a wide plank rustic hickory or antique oak hand scraped floor.
- Shelving or Hutch-like cabinet for white ceramic collection
- We would like to display a lot of items that might not be used every day. I have a growing collection of white/cream large platters and bowls, as well as white embossed Italian buffet plates that I love. Most of these items do not fit in wall cabinets and can be easily forgotten in base cabinets. I would use all of these items more if they were visible and easily accessible.
- Renaissance cabinet custom piece (refer to photo)Custom Furniture piece, or possibly built-in from the Renaissance Cabinetry photo. This piece really is integral to the feeling of the design we want. It sets a tone.
In addition, we want.....
- Multiple countertop heights and finishes.
- Black accents, possibly in the island cabinets, tile, countertop, and/or accessories
- Possible mobile baking station that uses a clever bulky table on casters (could double as extra buffet space while entertaining).
- Family room fireplace mantle.
- Stove Mantle (this is not in plan anymore due to island cooktop)
Breakfast Turret Area seating
- We want this area to be a destination, not something to walk around on the way to the family room or out the back door.
- We like the idea of a big round table (up to 60") in a turret with half bench, half regular seating, but we are open to other ideas.
Breakfast/Kids prep area
- This spot would be nice to have for the morning. There would be a few appliances that would need to sit on the counter all the time (as opposed to being stored in my equipment pantry. I would like to hide them as much as possible from a main view of the kitchen.
