*The toaster oven, blender and food processor are conveniently hidden in an appliance garage that pulls out onto the counter. *The kitchen’s streamlined space creates a balance for art displayed in the adjacent dining and living areas. *The large volumes of the cabinet wall, island and window bank create a strong, masculine feel. *The kitchen seems bigger than it is because the eye isn’t stopped by numerous drawers and level changes.
Remodeling
Kitchen Haiku
This redesigned poetic kitchen makes us feel positively Zen-like.
BY
Jacqueline Jensen Ryan
PHOTOGRAPHY
After photographs by Brian Francis

kitchen before remodelTHE CHALLENGE:

True to its 1970s split-level styling, this tiny 200-square-foot kitchen was walled off from the dining and living areas, leaving all three areas pinched and aesthetically unfulfilled. Designer Rick Baye says his client, Dave Anderson, wanted a beautiful light-filled kitchen in its place, with all appliances sight-unseen. Fortunately, Anderson found exactly what he wanted in Baye’s own kitchen—so he asked for a carbon copy.

THE SOLUTION:

Flattered, Baye adapted his own construction drawings to Anderson’s needs, reproportioning and resizing everything. Baye “cleaned up” the kitchen by hiding the refrigerator, freezers, oven, microwave and pantry behind a full wall of cabinet doors. Lost counter space was regained on an island that replaced the two interior walls. (Anderson did the demolition himself, bringing in friends to tear out the walls.) The key to the kitchen’s beauty is clean lines, consistency of volumes and large proportions. “People need to look at what they’re using and how they use it every day— [then] edit it down to the very basics,” Baye advises. “If I had to do it all over again,  would do exactly the same thing,” says his satisfied client.

Design Details

Interior Designer: Rick Baye, Rick Baye Design, (206) 721-7981