12 years ago

last modified: 12 years ago

I own a house (old tavern) build in 1790. The kitchen was "remuddled" in the 1970's. I would like to remodel it in a style consistant with the age of the house. I already have new stainless steel appliances. The size of the space is 16' x 19' with an original buildin cupboard which will remain. It also has the original wide board wainscot half way up the wall. Suggestions?

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fife2

11 years ago

I would like to suggest that you find an ARICHITECT/ASID who specializes in period houses and homes of architectural significance? Please - your home sounds fabulous - but it can get messed up - quickly - everyone has a bias. There are many beautiful ways to make a period home modern and livable - yet retain every ounce of significance. I sure do hope you show us.

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Comments (11)

bepsf
12 years ago
Take your flooplan to a local kitchen designer who can help you make the most of your space, and select cabinets and finishes that complement the rest of your home.
PRO
Interiors Unleashed
12 years ago
By all means keep any of the original architectural detail and think about how you want the kitchen to function. There are many ways to design your kitchen so think about how you want to live in it. Do you want an island? Do you need lots of cabinet storage? Do you like some open cabinets? mixed materials? For a house that age you can do some interesting things and bring in ideas and materials from a range of periods. A good designer will be able to use elements of design to get you more than cabinets. They can give you a fabulous kitchen that works in your house.
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I do not see the wall in the picture. I think the shades of grey on the floor and tile planter tile looks great. You might consider a light version of those. It really depends on the amount of light you have in the room.
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Hi again. I see where Dytecture is going with this. It's hard to say, really, because the only existing colour you mentioned was white. Once you put something coloured or dark in the space, your eye will zoom past the white and look at the colour or the visual weight of the piece. When I was recommending something white or colourless (glass and metal), I had in mind that you probably don't want to make the desk your only feature. I would recommend having your desk as a functional piece that blends with the decor, but I would definitely add punches of colour elsewhere. Large colourful artworks on the walls, a couple of bold colour-blocked cushions on the sofa (see Dytecture's first picture above), a grouping of three very tall boldly coloured vases (different heights), and so on. These will give you the pizzazz you're looking for. In an otherwise white apartment, a dark or coloured desk is still not going to give you much style or impact.
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I take it this isn't your bathroom. The glass could be handmade lead light which means bespoke by someone who makes lead light windows or it could be a transfer applied to a plain glass window. Check on ebay or online sticker/transfer stores for similar. I've never seen a piece like that in Australia so I'm thinking this might be an American antique. It's not normal to put an expensive antique piece in a bathroom and if you did it would be best in a bathroom that only has minimal use. And you would want to have a lot of good exhaust extraction to get rid of moisture. If you picked up one of those repro Indonesian mahogany pieces you would be spending a lot less money and might regard the piece as expendable. You can buy wood hardening sprays that resist moisture from the hardware store and spray the carcass (all the unstained pieces inside) with this stuff to resist moisture. You'd still need a good exhaust system however and keep the room well aired.
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I'm not a pro (and I hope a real designer answers your question), but here's how my family does it in Singapore: 1. Get rid of things. Don't fall prey to sunk cost fallacies. Just because you bought a piece of furniture or a bunch of clothing or books or toys or whatever, doesn't mean you need to keep them if they are no longer working for you. You can sell stuff on Carousell or donate them to needy people. Sometimes not having those things will provide more value, by freeing up space, than the false belief that you need to keep things around because you paid for them. 2. Everything should be multi-function. Especially here in Singapore, everything should have multiple uses. Your bed can lift up to provide storage. Your book shelf can also be your entertainment stand. Your coffee table can double as a breakfast nook or homework table. No tool in your kitchen should be a one-job tool (for example, if you have a blender, a food processor, a spice grinder, an immersion blender, a coffee grinder and a mortar and pestle - maybe it's time to clean out the kitchen cabinets). 3. Rotate toys We have a baby at home and try really hard not to accumulate too many toys. To do that we have two toy bins. Every two weeks we switch the bin that's in rotation, so every two weeks our baby gets "new" toys that he hasn't seen for a few weeks. That allows us to keep the total number of toys to a minimum and he seems to be pretty happy (and hasn't caught on to this trick yet). Hope that helps some. Google around for "small apartment" blogs and ideas - there is a ton out there. Andrew
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clarencebrocky
Original Author
12 years ago
Thank you. I plan on retaining all the original features including cupboard, board an?d batten doors with original thumb hardware, wainscotting,etc. I believe there is plenty of room for an island. Is it appropriate to have concrete counter tops, since soapstone is so very expensive?
bepsf
12 years ago
Sure concrete is appropriate - Depending on how it's finished it can appear super-modern or quite rustic.

You may also want to mix materials - for example, concrete around the sink and stove, and wood for the island.
clarencebrocky
Original Author
12 years ago
my husband makes furniture and wil make the island which will encompass the stove with concrete counter. He is also making a baking station which will hold the drawer microwave with cabinets on either side and wood counter. It will have old looking shelves above it to hold my spongeware. What kind of finish should be put on the wood counter?
PRO
Interiors Unleashed
12 years ago
I have a polished concrete counter and a wood island top in a kitchen with a colonial style brick corner fireplace and original oak flooring with walnut pegs. Check out my photos here on Houzz.

Colonial Charm does not have to be rustic all over. Soapstone is nice but sucks the light out of a space. Lighting is very important in a kitchen and there are many ways to help brighten a space without electricity. Your stainless appliances will serve you well in this regard as they bounce some of the light the enters the space, as does anything shiny.

A dark countertop that is shiny helps bouncy light as does glossy floors and cabinet finishes.

Concrete counters are tricky and they can stain and crack. Research for reliable and knowledgable sources whatever you do.

Ice Stone makes some nice concrete countertops with recycled glass and other stuff. They come in slabs like granite and are formed in Brooklyn, NY. Your local granite fabricator can install and seal them.
PRO
Andersen Design Group
12 years ago
I don't know where you are located, but soapstone is not expensive in the Philadelphia region. Plus, it is almost a DIY project, as you can use traditional tools with carbide blades/sandpaper to shape. But you do have to review your color choices as there are over 8 types of soapstone, and each varies whether you oil or not, so really 16 choices.
clarencebrocky
Original Author
12 years ago
Wonderful information. I live in upstate New York in a small, historic community of 500. The entire village is on both the New York and National Historic Registers as is my home. The location is so isolated that going shopping requires a full day half of which is travel. There is a local craftsman who does concrete, everything else is at least 1 to 2 hours away. About lighting, that, too, is difficult due to the lowness of the ceiling -- ideas?
PRO
Interiors Unleashed
12 years ago
With real low ceilings you may not need actual ceiling fixtures, except maybe over an island or table. Try experimenting with lamps at different heights and see how they bounce light off the ceiling. You can just hold them up in various places with a low watt light so you are not blinded but enough wattage to bounce some light, and no shade on them.

You can determine how high a light needs to be to give good light in certain areas. Lamps and wall sconces may serve your purpose.

Search Houzz for "bouncing light" and see what helps to bring light into a room and bounce it around without electricity. Large wall art with glass fronts are great for this and subtle.
TanCalGal
12 years ago
If your house is registered, doesn't the design have to pass muster with the historical committees? If your DH is a talented woodworker, how about wooden counters? I think they would have been used in the 1790s. Checkout Smallbone Kitchens. They are UK based and their cabinets often look like very old separate pieces of furniture, maybe your DH could make cabinets that look very much like the original cupboard you have. Here's a Smallbone pine kitchen http://www.smallbone.co.uk/handmade-kitchens/pine-kitchens.html Also look at this for the idea of cabinets that resemble furniture pieces http://www.smallbone.co.uk/handmade-kitchens/pilaster-kitchens.html
Here's an article I found on how important Taverns were to our country http://www.beerhistory.com/library/holdings/taverngold.shtml Maybe the ceiling would be higher if you exposed the beams? The beams would look nice, too.

fife2

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