What's Cooking?
Recipe for a Tasteful Custom Kitchen

By Ashley Nichols

Even the best home chefs can get a little heated when it comes to the layout of their kitchens. Oftentimes, the ingredients and appliances needed to create a meal are worlds apart. And a lack of counter space can limit one’s efficiency when trying to feed a large family. Why couldn’t the builder or previous owner of your home have designed the space where you spend hours slaving over a hot stove in a way that works for you? The answer, of course, just may be bringing in an expert to help you customize your kitchen. While it’s a pricey investment, the kitchen is one of the smartest rooms in a house to renovate. Before the recent drop in the housing market, most kitchen remodels were bringing in 125 percent returns.

We’ve sought out some local kitchen installation firms and spoken with their designers to find out which ingredients combine well to create a great custom kitchen. Read on to find out what aesthetically appealing elements can help you cut down on your prep time.

Integrating appliances to look like cabinetry is
one approach homeowners are taking to
create a streamlined space.
Courtesy of Maytag

One Set Custom Cabinets
Are you the type who haphazardly piles pots and pan in the cabinet, twisting them until the handles no longer block the door? Chances are glass-front cabinetry is not for you. And that’s not really an issue, since most of today’s clients lean towards traditional over contemporary. Karen Barnette, of Harvey’s Kitchens and Baths in Sterling, says most Northern Virginians want a French country look and notes that clients looking for a modern approach are mostly from the Reston area.

There are many options in cabinetry today, with wood with raised paneling as the most popular choice. Two important things to keep in mind when making selections are to opt for something you’ll be happy to look at on a daily basis (nothing too dramatic or flashy) and to devote consideration to where you want extra tall and deep shelving. A professional can help you determine where everything should go so your design is built for your inventory of products—a welcome change from resigning yourself to a space that doesn’t work with what you’ve got.

Bob Clements, of Bath and Kitchen Creations, also in Sterling, says that at the core, what his clients are looking to do is create more storage. He says that on occasion, this means giving up storage elsewhere. In a recent project, the homeowners were set on adding an island, but their floor plan didn’t allow for one. Clement’s team ended up knocking out two pantries and a coat closet to give them what they wanted.

Barnette says one of the trends she’s seen growing in popularity is the idea of totally integrating appliances to look like cabinetry. “It could be a trash compactor or a dishwasher. You really don’t know what’s underneath,” she explains. Hiding everything can create a seamless look and appeals to the traditionalist who likes a cohesive feel.

While selecting cabinetry and hardware can be fun, it can also be daunting. A plethora of choices awaits you, and once you’ve picked a wood you’ll have to pick a finish. It may be tempting to remain indecisive until you feel like you’ve seen everything, but a good designer will recommend a handful of options that fit your taste. Choosing one of them will save you the time of exploring all of the options. It’s a little like picking out a wedding dress: You should stop when you really like one.

Before (Courtesy of Karen Barnette)


A variety of shading in finishes wards off the threat of
monotony in one of the home’s most-used rooms.
Courtesy of Todd Wright Photography

A Few Slices of Stone Countertop
Unless you’ve been in hiding, you’re probably aware that granite countertops are the hot topic right now in kitchen remodeling. Clements says that about 80 percent of the 20 to 25 kitchens his firm completes each year use granite. “We do very little these days with solid surfaces. It’s turned completely into natural stone or quartz,” he says.

Like cabinetry, the choices in stone countertops may sometimes seem limitless. And clients are eager to select something that has a little wow factor, says Barnette. “They want the more exotic granites. They’re looking for something that’s different and not like their neighbors’,” she says. Barnette recently renovated her own kitchen and used a dark granite for her countertops. Working in the industry, she knew when she saw something unique. “I used honed granite to create a soft look on the perimeter and a breathtaking, textured granite countertop on the island,” she says.

Clement says that, whereas in years past countertop color has been about using off-whites, creams and other light tones, today’s kitchens bring in rich, dark colors. Stone allows you to choose something that occurs naturally, rather than the more forced color schemes in Corian. Swirls of dark blacks and browns can create an intense and custom look.

A Heaping Serving of Fine Flooring
Say goodbye to linoleum if you want your kitchen to look updated and contemporary. Though a bit pricier, clients are opting for real tile (try heated tile for those chilly winter mornings) or hardwood flooring. Both up the ante in creating a luxurious look for a space that has always been part utilitarian and part personally comforting. Be sure when you make selections to ask about finishes that keep what’s underfoot from staining. A good firm will keep you realistic and guide you to choices that work well in a kitchen that sees lots of traffic and the spills that come with it.

Jenn-Air Oven (Courtesy of Maytag)

A Delivery Truck-Full of Modern Appliances
Unless you’ve got a cool, retro oven that really works, you’ll want to order a new set of appliances that coordinate well and serve your cooking needs. “You can tell if they cook by the type of range they get,” Barnette says. The cook top area is a new topic of focus these days. “Before it was the sink area,” Barnette says. “Now it’s a cook top with a nice backsplash.” She notes that detailed hoods are one of the main ways to personalize a kitchen.

In terms of ovens, Clements says he typically uses Jenn-Air and sometimes Sub-Zero/Wolf, and both Clements and Barnette recommend KitchenAid. Barnette personally uses a refrigerator with a pull-out freezer drawer at the bottom. She says it makes sense in terms of using space.

Today’s appliances come in a standard variety of finishes, but stainless steel is the most popular. “It’s really hot here,” Barnette says. “And they’re expanding on that idea. Now they’re using it everywhere throughout the house.”

In addition, cooks who want a customized space may opt for refrigerated vegetable drawers in their islands or heating drawers for their bread. When it comes to placement of these smaller, specialty appliances, as well as larger ones, make sure you do many walk-throughs with your designer to create a space that will function well for you. Think about where you’ll have your bowls and silverware in relation to your refrigerator to see if preparing a bowl of cereal is going to be a relay around the kitchen or a more stationary event. Do the same with your spice cabinet, the countertop space where you’ll prepare your food, your pots and pans, and your cook top and range. Try different combinations until it feels like it fits your style.

Warming drawer (Courtesy of Maytag)

Add Accessories to Taste
When you think about what you want your kitchen to look like, you probably imagine some of the larger details (previously mentioned ingredients) and not as much about the smaller ones. But for a really custom look, it’s all about the details. Try envisioning a backsplash that will evoke a calming mood, like aqua glass tile. Is this something you’d prefer over painted Italian tiles? And which grout color will you be able to keep clean and look at years later and appreciate?

Take the time to consider your family’s needs. Will children need a space to do their homework at a counter on the island? If so, maybe it should be a height they can reach on a short bar stool instead of a taller one. Is there a space that’s easy to hide a coffee maker so that it’s not continually on the countertop but always easily accessible for that morning cup of joe?

Before


Elaborately developed light designs, including recessed
and under-cabinet bulbs, can be fine-tuned to direct
the eye, lending prominence to room highlights.
Courtesy of Andrew Clements (Kitchen before & after)

Envisioning these types of scenarios can help you achieve what you really want: a truly custom kitchen where you are happy to spend time. Maybe you already have artwork that you want on the walls. If so, be sure to leave adequate space and to paint the walls in a color that will complement your pieces. Write yourself a checklist of all the things you really want to have, then work with your designer to see how they can be done. And don’t be surprised if your designer comes up with some stellar ideas that rival your own. It’s totally OK to change your mind. Otherwise, why did you hire someone in the first place?

Prep and Cook Time
Depending on how available the products you select for your own kitchen are, a remodel with a local design firm will typically take two to three months. You’ll first meet with a designer who will generate plans and have you sign a contract. A few weeks will be spent ordering the cabinetry, floors, countertops and other major elements. You’ll make a few trips to a firm’s showroom to make selections and decide on all of the details. From there, it will take a few weeks for pieces to arrive to the company.

Once enough elements have arrived so that the remodel can begin, a crew will start the installation. Prepare for noisy workers. Walls don’t just knock down themselves. You’ll need to ask about how long you’ll be without use of some of your appliances, but never fear—when it’s all over and done with, chances are you won’t be eating fast food very often. You’ll see a team of carpenters, electricians and the like for a few weeks or even a month or two, depending on how much it takes to make your dream kitchen a reality. Be patient. It’s worth the wait. And your designer should be able to estimate a timeframe for you that’s pretty close to accurate so you’re not in the dark, waiting for the new chandelier to turn on. This recipe might call for simmering, but a tasty space is in your future.

Serve & Enjoy
When your kitchen is complete, you’ll be elated. Plan on preparing a favorite recipe the first night you are able to get in there and use it. Invite a few people over for a kitchen warming party to celebrate. You’ll be an even better hostess than before now that everything’s exactly as you want it.

(April 2008)