Formerly a tight and dysfunctional kitchen, this space became an open and organized family area when designer Jessica Curry of Rochester, Minn.-based Interiors by J.Curry stepped in.
When the design team set out to expand the kitchen, they first removed the wall between the dining room and kitchen. This presented the first challenge, as some venting hidden in the original soffits had to be reworked into the back of the new pantry cabinet they planned. Although still a narrow space, the newly opened transitional kitchen design had plenty of room for a long island complete with storage and a work area on one side and seating on the other.
A raised serving area was implemented in the new transitional kitchen design to help connect the kitchen and dining area, while blocking the view to the main sink.
The island’s two separate working parts – the prepping area and the seating table – are differentiated not only by the standalone legs of the table side but also the countertop. While using the same material, the table has a thicker, 2.5-in. edge to add interest and accentuate the change from work area to seating and entertaining.
The island is differentiated from the perimeter areas with dovetail gray paint and a unique piece of stone for the countertops.
“Playing off the somewhat rustic feel, the backsplash tile had a handmade aesthetic to it where we added in some darker tiles to also tie with the matte-black hardware,” said Curry.
To make the workflow around the design easier, the team did a more shallow-depth hutch area behind island.