Kitchen Tour: Nods to History in a Renovated Farmhouse
A designer thoughtfully updates a 19th-century kitchen and improves its layout for a young family
This 1800s farmhouse in Massachusetts in the US had lots of original charm, but it had also undergone several renovations over the years. The homeowners, parents of two young boys, needed help adapting the kitchen to work with their 21st century lifestyle. “I would describe my clients’ style as traditional but clean and unfussy,” interior designer Jeanne Barber of Camden Grace says.
The existing kitchen was generously sized, but had a lot of wasted space. For the new layout, Jeanne considered things such as improving the traffic flow between rooms, accommodating gatherings, and creating a way for the young children who live here to grab drinks and snacks in a spot outside the work triangle. She aimed to blend modern conveniences with traditional elements, and she did so skilfully, giving the kitchen what she calls “mood and soul”.
The existing kitchen was generously sized, but had a lot of wasted space. For the new layout, Jeanne considered things such as improving the traffic flow between rooms, accommodating gatherings, and creating a way for the young children who live here to grab drinks and snacks in a spot outside the work triangle. She aimed to blend modern conveniences with traditional elements, and she did so skilfully, giving the kitchen what she calls “mood and soul”.
Before Photo
Jeanne removed the kitchen desk and dining area and made this side of the room the main prep and cooking area. She centred a range cooker alcove on the wall to serve as the focal point. A new large island serves as a breakfast bar and prep surface. It contains a 90cm sink and a dishwasher.
Jeanne had worked with these homeowners before, so she already had a solid understanding of their lifestyle, as well as their trust. “Working with them had given me insight into how they live,” she says. “This is an active and sporty family without pretension, and the kitchen had to reflect that.” Style-wise, the new design mixes old and new, updating the kitchen to suit the historic home.
Understanding the family’s lifestyle was important when designing the layout and choosing materials. “I knew they weren’t afraid of a little upkeep, such as oiling soapstone or keeping glass cabinets organised, but also that they didn’t like a lot of fussiness,” Jeanne says.
Cabinets painted in Edgecomb Gray, Benjamin Moore. Range cooker, Aga. Tap, Brizo. Sink, Kohler.
Jeanne had worked with these homeowners before, so she already had a solid understanding of their lifestyle, as well as their trust. “Working with them had given me insight into how they live,” she says. “This is an active and sporty family without pretension, and the kitchen had to reflect that.” Style-wise, the new design mixes old and new, updating the kitchen to suit the historic home.
Understanding the family’s lifestyle was important when designing the layout and choosing materials. “I knew they weren’t afraid of a little upkeep, such as oiling soapstone or keeping glass cabinets organised, but also that they didn’t like a lot of fussiness,” Jeanne says.
Cabinets painted in Edgecomb Gray, Benjamin Moore. Range cooker, Aga. Tap, Brizo. Sink, Kohler.
The homeowners wanted to maintain the exterior wall and its windows and doors, seen here on the left. This is the door the family uses to enter the house, so Jeanne had to consider that traffic flow when reconfiguring the layout. She placed the island accordingly, leaving open routes to the hallway off the other end of the island and to the dining room behind it.
The large island and a better connection between the kitchen and dining room has turned the kitchen into a great spot for gathering. It’s a casual space that works with the family’s lifestyle and looks as if it was layered over time, working beautifully with the home’s traditional style.
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The large island and a better connection between the kitchen and dining room has turned the kitchen into a great spot for gathering. It’s a casual space that works with the family’s lifestyle and looks as if it was layered over time, working beautifully with the home’s traditional style.
Discover why you should hire a professional who uses Houzz Pro software.
The cooker wall has a Vermont Danby marble splashback. Jeanne recommended tongue-and-groove panelling on the splashback around it. “The tongue-and-groove is a nod to country houses, and it also allows the range splashback to take centre stage,” she says. “Also, its verticality accentuates the high ceiling.”
The designer tucked niches around the sides of the range cooker, making it easy to grab items such as oils and seasonings. The cabinets that flank the range have brass grilles. “This is a great way to add a textural element to a kitchen,” Jeanne says. “I like to use a tight weave to hide anything that might look a little messy inside.”
The bar stools bring in an updated touch and a mix of textures and patterns. “These stools are great. They’re teak with woven backs,” Jeanne says. “I used a wipeable faux leather on the seats and a Peter Dunham performance fabric on the backs.”
The designer tucked niches around the sides of the range cooker, making it easy to grab items such as oils and seasonings. The cabinets that flank the range have brass grilles. “This is a great way to add a textural element to a kitchen,” Jeanne says. “I like to use a tight weave to hide anything that might look a little messy inside.”
The bar stools bring in an updated touch and a mix of textures and patterns. “These stools are great. They’re teak with woven backs,” Jeanne says. “I used a wipeable faux leather on the seats and a Peter Dunham performance fabric on the backs.”
“I used a mix of beige-y grey paint and walnut in here, which gives the kitchen a little bit of a country feel,” Jeanne says. “A super-white kitchen would have felt too modern. I like to give kitchens some mood and soul.”
The cabinets are inset Shaker style. “These are very simple and clean and fit the historic house,” Jeanne says. The worktops are soapstone, a material that’s appropriate to the home’s era. The black pendant lights with mirrored shade interiors nod to the midcentury era, lending a layered-over-time look to the space.
The tall walnut cabinet has a freestanding furniture look that also nods to historic kitchens. “My clients like uncluttered worktops, and this gave them a good place to conceal small appliances,” Jeanne says. The integrated fridge-freezer was a good fit for a historic home.
The cabinets are inset Shaker style. “These are very simple and clean and fit the historic house,” Jeanne says. The worktops are soapstone, a material that’s appropriate to the home’s era. The black pendant lights with mirrored shade interiors nod to the midcentury era, lending a layered-over-time look to the space.
The tall walnut cabinet has a freestanding furniture look that also nods to historic kitchens. “My clients like uncluttered worktops, and this gave them a good place to conceal small appliances,” Jeanne says. The integrated fridge-freezer was a good fit for a historic home.
Before Photo
This ‘before’ photo shows the main food prep and work area on the other side of the original kitchen. To get a sense of the room’s configuration, compare the fridge-freezer in the photo above with the new one in the previous photo. An exterior window is in the centre of the worktop and cabinet area. The right side of the photo shows the original opening to the dining room.
The kitchen work area and island were compressed into this corner, even though it accounted for only about half the room’s square footage. The generous size of the kitchen allowed Jeanne to move the main work area out of this corner to the opposite side of the kitchen and make this a special spot.
More: How to Start a Kitchen Renovation
The kitchen work area and island were compressed into this corner, even though it accounted for only about half the room’s square footage. The generous size of the kitchen allowed Jeanne to move the main work area out of this corner to the opposite side of the kitchen and make this a special spot.
More: How to Start a Kitchen Renovation
This shot looks straight on towards the new fridge-freezer and worktop area. The window is just visible on the right and the double ovens have been removed.
“I wanted this corner to maintain an open feeling,” Jeanne says. “It has a window, and I didn’t want things to feel too enclosed around it.” Accordingly, she added an open shelf fitted with a brass rail. “I’m passionate about making an open shelf run into a cabinet or a wall,” Jeanne says. “When a shelf’s corners are exposed, it looks less deliberate.”
She also recommended a different splashback for this corner. “To make this area feel special and a bit separate from the rest of the kitchen, I used zellige tiles with taupe-y gold accents,” she says. “I wanted these hooks to be useful not only for pots and pans, but also for dishtowels and cups for the kids.”
The decision to locate the fridge-freezer outside the main work triangle was intentional. “With two small boys in the house, it’s in a spot where they can grab things without getting in the way of whoever is cooking,” Jeanne says.
The designer knew her clients wanted a kitchen that was more conducive to entertaining, so she created a bigger opening to the dining room. She was able to do this by removing the wall ovens and shortening the run of cabinetry on the right. It wasn’t photographed, but the enlarged opening begins just past the end of those cabinets.
“I wanted this corner to maintain an open feeling,” Jeanne says. “It has a window, and I didn’t want things to feel too enclosed around it.” Accordingly, she added an open shelf fitted with a brass rail. “I’m passionate about making an open shelf run into a cabinet or a wall,” Jeanne says. “When a shelf’s corners are exposed, it looks less deliberate.”
She also recommended a different splashback for this corner. “To make this area feel special and a bit separate from the rest of the kitchen, I used zellige tiles with taupe-y gold accents,” she says. “I wanted these hooks to be useful not only for pots and pans, but also for dishtowels and cups for the kids.”
The decision to locate the fridge-freezer outside the main work triangle was intentional. “With two small boys in the house, it’s in a spot where they can grab things without getting in the way of whoever is cooking,” Jeanne says.
The designer knew her clients wanted a kitchen that was more conducive to entertaining, so she created a bigger opening to the dining room. She was able to do this by removing the wall ovens and shortening the run of cabinetry on the right. It wasn’t photographed, but the enlarged opening begins just past the end of those cabinets.
These long-armed sconces shed light onto the worktop. The window provides a sunny spot on the worktop for placing herbs. The window treatment is a French fabric by Antoinette Poisson.
“This is a very classic historical pattern that brought in the colours my clients liked,” Jeanne says. “It also has a little charcoal in it that mirrors the island pendants.”
Tell us…
What do you like about this kitchen renovation? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
“This is a very classic historical pattern that brought in the colours my clients liked,” Jeanne says. “It also has a little charcoal in it that mirrors the island pendants.”
Tell us…
What do you like about this kitchen renovation? Share your thoughts in the Comments.
Who lives here? A couple and their two young boys
Location Dover, Massachusetts
Size 30 sq m
Designer Jeanne Barber of Camden Grace
Photos by Kiera Slye Photography
The existing kitchen was divided into two parts. The prep and cooking area was on the other side, out of shot to the right. (You can see it below in another ‘before’ photo.) The side pictured here had a desk in the corner with worktops surrounding it, and its main purpose was storage. The homeowners didn’t use the desk area, so it was wasting valuable space. To the left was a dining table.
“This house has some additions, but the kitchen was part of the original home,” Jeanne says. “It had a beautifully high ceiling, but a funky layout.”
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