I designed this project at the end of 2019 and construction started in February of 2020. Not only did these clients live in the home during the renovation, they also lived through a renovation during the beginning weeks and months of the pandemic. They handled everything with grace and humor.
BEFORE: A classic home from the late 1990’s.
The client’s wanted to try to get more light into their north-facing space, they wanted an island and a more family friendly layout. The blond wood cabinets were original to the home, but not something they had selected.
AFTER: I opened up the path on the left to allow light to stream through from double height windows in the adjoining living room. I closed up the path on the right to fit a 42″ wide refrigerator. To keep the look cohesive, I added white oak wood beam wraps to all the headers. The island is open to the family room. (Styled by Kristy Oatman, Photographed by Jordan Katz for Laura Medicus Interiors)BEFORE: Here’s another glimpse of the side of the kitchen, showing part of the breakfast nook on the left. They had low glass block windows here that we changed to a full height window to match the other one. AFTER: Here’s a view looking away from the windows. You can see the microwave tucked into an end cabinet. On the other end of the island is a small beverage fridge. Per the client’s request we also added a small prep sink. Not shown, but next to the sink are double ovens. (Styled by Kristy Oatman, Photographed by Jordan Katz for Laura Medicus Interiors)
BEFORE: The breakfast nook.
I think this kitchen a good example of mixing metals. We have polished nickel faucets from Brizo with satin brass on the hardware and the Rejuvenation fixtures. The barstools are from Article. I sourced the Woodharbor cabinets from a fantastic local cabinet shop called Sander & Son. The floors are original, 2″ red oak planks. We stained them a medium walnut.
It was a great family area before and it still is! The table is the client’s original, mid-century dining table and the chairs are from Article. The light fixture is from West Elm. The countertops here and in the kitchen are Pental Quartz’s Misterio.
BEFORE: This is the small butler’s pantry in between the kitchen and the living room.
In changing up the traffic pattern for the kitchen, I closed off the Butler’s Pantry and added a wet bar to the living room in the area where you see the bookcase. Note the two low walls and carpeting – we did not think twice about getting rid of this!
After: I loved that we could take up the space of the previous bookcase. (Styled by Kristy Oatman, Photographed by Jordan Katz for Laura Medicus Interiors)
We also added new railing to the staircase which you can see in the back; it was a drywalled pony wall before. I love the way this black, glass Jeffrey Court tile looks. The tile faces huge windows and the reflections are gorgeous. The cute rug is from Shaver-Ramsey.
BEFORE: Carpeting and a travertine fireplace that was not the client’s cup of tea.
After: I added a fun tile from Wizard Enterprise bought locally at The Floor Club and a simple mantel. I was there the day the tile installers were installing this tile and from the way it was going, I think they probably saw this pattern in their sleep that night. The artwork is from Amy Clemens. (Styled by Kristy Oatman, Photographed by Jordan Katz for Laura Medicus Interiors)
After: A nice detail near the stove. I love that white picket tile! We selected that locally at The Floor Club. (Styled by Kristy Oatman, Photographed by Jordan Katz for Laura Medicus Interiors)
After: The other side of the stove with that beautiful, northern light. (Styled by Kristy Oatman, Photographed by Jordan Katz for Laura Medicus Interiors)
After: A close up of the polished nickel prep sink. Polished nickel is such a classic metal – I absolutely love it. (Styled by Kristy Oatman, Photographed by Jordan Katz for Laura Medicus Interiors)
“At the end of the day, it isn’t where I came from. Maybe home is somewhere I’m going and never have been before.”
Laura is a Denver Interior Designer who runs an Interior Design Studio based in sunny Colorado with a strong commitment to livable and interesting interiors. She also runs The Colorado Nest, a Denver blog about Design, Art and Life in the Mountain West and co-hosts the book podcast "The Inside Flap" on iTunes, Stitcher and Google Play.
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3 thoughts on “Before and After: A late 90’s home gets a light and airy remodel”
Such a beautiful renovation! Loving all the tiles and the light open feeling.
The Colorado Nest 
Such a beautiful renovation! Loving all the tiles and the light open feeling.
Love this transformation! Could you please share the cabinet paint color? Thank you
Thank you! The kitchen is Simply White with Naragansett Green from Ben. Moore.