Project Reflection
Every home has a story and changing a space to reflect a family’s dream and vision is one of the many reasons I love my job! Project Reflection also had some personal influences that reflected back to my childhood making this project even more special for me. It was so fun designing this beautiful space for an amazing family of four, as they were so eager to transform their dark kitchen space into their dream kitchen! (I think we nailed it;)
All my projects start with meetings…. lots of meetings! During the initial meetings my goal is to listen to the client’s thoughts and visions on their space. I never want to come into a new space to only do what I think would look best or copy from other projects. My main objective is to weave my visions with the client’s wishes and TOGETHER create a beautiful space. Every home/space is a blank canvas that we get to start fresh and bring it to life.
When working on any project, we begin by creating the full design plan which shows how every detail is thought out, from what flooring or paint colors to use down to the tiny details of faucet selections or hardware. Once the design is approved by the client the construction team begins their work of demolition and installation. I am there every step of the way to make sure no detail is missed! I am on the job site minimum of twice a week, sometimes every day, working alongside the contractors to make sure the job is being done right. My job as the designer would be meaningless if not for the amazing construction team I work with. They are able to take my visions and turn them in to a reality. They truly are amazing and I am so grateful to be working with them.
I spent months with this client going through all of the details to ensure the space we were creating would be perfect for them. We were able to order all materials and store them in their garage so that when demolition and installation actually began, we weren’t waiting around on materials to show up. This helped make this project run so smooth!
This kitchen at Project Reflection was dark, dark, dark- very low lighting, brown cabinets, brown tile floors, dark granite, etc. One of the first goals that we all agreed on was it needed to be light, bright and airy! I immediately knew a bigger window over the kitchen sink was going to help solve this problem, with some lighter paint and new flooring.
Another concern we wanted to address was functionality. When I first walked into the space and saw the tiny island in the middle of the kitchen that made it difficult for two people to walk or even have space to open up the refrigerator door, I knew we would need to do something about it. My first thought was to remove the island and add a peninsula instead, as this would open up their kitchen space and create a nice large gathering place for company, with seating area at the peninsula. This new space really is the heart of their home!
To make this kitchen light, bright and airy, we did the following:
Removed the tiny island and created a peninsula with seating
Installed all white custom cabinetry with shaker style doors from one of my favorite cabinet makers in San Diego with simple and clean matte black hardware from San Diego Hardware
Installed horizontal paneling on the kitchen wall (one of my favorite touches!). I usually like to run the paneling horizontal rather than vertical to elongate the space and bring a softer balance to the space.
Installed a much larger 60” x 60” picture window from Sierra Padres Doors and Windows (which was way trickier than you think- there is a lot of “behind the wall” plumbing and electrical that needs to be rerouted and new beams installed…so don’t think this is an easy change). I am a big WINDOW fan:) I prefer picture windows if possible (no muntins)
We installed light wood “raw” luxury vinyl planks from CoreTec in Calypso to create a softer feel throughout the house
Brand new Bosch appliances purchased from Fergusons (so far this is the only project I haven’t had to wait on appliances!)
We chose a beautiful gray picket tile with soft undertones (no blue or purple) purchased from The Tile Collective, my favorite tile and stone store in north San Diego County
We installed these beautiful creamy white with light marble-looking veining quartz countertops from Vadara Quartz purchased from The Tile Collective
This project was styled primarily with décor from Bixby and Ball on Cedors in Solana Beach, as well as some items from West Elm and Target. However, when I was styling this project, I knew it didn’t need much as the real beauty was in the hard materials, so I just added a few little pieces to warm the space up and give it some extra texture.
I hope you enjoy this kitchen as much as I do. Kitchen transformations are one of my favorite before and after’s when designing a home. This kitchen went from dark, dull and gloomy to light, airy and calm. Removing the island and adding the peninsula changed the entire space. This may be my favorite quaint kitchen so far. I am so happy this sweet family has a beautiful new space they are proud to call home.
We also changed a few other spaces in their home…keep an eye out for those before and after’s to come!