Kitchen Design: Think of Each Run as a Vignette

When I decided to open up some walls for our kitchen renovation, I knew I'd have to consider the design carefully from every angle. What would be the first impression when you entered our home? How much kitchen could you see from the entryway? Sitting on the sofa and gazing over at the kitchen, would I be looking at a sinkful of dishes? A hulking stainless steel appliance? On the wall of the sink elevation: Did I really need wall cabinets, which would block the line of sight to the window? It pays to consider every elevation as a vignette. These are the considerations that gave shape to my kitchen design.

The Cabinetry

Choosing cabinet doors was a foundational decision. Our home was built in 1946—mid-century—so I could very well have gone with slab doors. It would have fit right in with the clean lines of the architecture of the era. But when I would close my eyes and picture myself sitting in my future living room—say, sitting on the sofa, reading a good book or listening to music—and imagine my gaze setting idly upon... so much kitchen... I didn't like the image that I saw in my mind's eye. Slab doors would feel utilitarian. And that subway tile I'd long thought I wanted—that was a big trend the year I was planning my kitchen—was out, as well. That backsplash was going to be a focal point, so it needed to be really special.

Christopher Peacock kitchen via Kitchen Design Network

An open kitchen is an extension of the living and dining room, so as beautiful as it is, formal cabinets with milled cornices and ornate crown molding would be overwhelming. I chose traditional white Shaker doors, but used them in a modern slab fashion, elongated and devoid of ornamentation. In lieu of bling-y hardware, I chose simple white edge pulls that fade into the woodwork.

Via Sweeten

The Pantry Run

The kitchens I admire most—Poggenpohl, DeVOL, Henrybuilt, Plain English, British Standard—all have certain design principles in common. A main takeaway for me is that they bank all tall pantries to one side. This lends simplicity, symmetry, and grace to the design. It's easy on the eye. I planned to do this, too.

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Paneled Appliances

I would be doubling the size of the kitchen by taking over the former dining area. Awesome, yes, but also risky. The kitchen would now run the entire length of the living room, and if I got the proportions or the design wrong, it could feel like we were living in a kitchen. I wanted the fridge out in the open, where anyone could grab a drink without disturbing the cooks, but I didn't want to be staring at a stainless-steel monolith, however luxury-priced, from every seat in the house. So a paneled fridge was absolutely essential—and I did a great deal of research to find one that could be totally integrated.

Via Sweeten

The Cooktop Vignette

In our original kitchen, the range was adjacent to the sink. Moving the cooktop to the opposite wall was an added expense—the plumber had to run a branch over the ceiling to the gas line—but it was well worth it. Consider this kitchen below that's been recently remodeled and that is very much like ours. It's lovely, and a vast improvement over the "before." But they made different choices. I chose to leave the sink run open, with no wall cabinets. This was made possible by going with drawer base cabinets, which more than made up for the lost storage.

A kitchen similar to ours via Sweeten

If I'd kept the range on the sink run, we would not have the beautiful vignette that is our cooktop and marble backsplash. 

Also, wall cabinets above a range would have blocked the line of sight to the windows, so the kitchen would not have seemed as open, spacious, and bright.

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The Sink Vignette

And I would have missed the opportunity to create this lovely vignette above the sink.

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... with a brass picture shelf to lean artwork on.

Viewing each elevation of a kitchen plan as a vignette is an extra step in the design process, and I tinkered quite a bit. Here are some of my early sketches:

The first was just a marble slab, with no shelf.

In this one I mimicked some DeVOL and Plain English kitchens that I loved at the time, which featured sconces—new and fresh then but seen in kitchens everywhere now.

I went instead with slim-profile brass cylinder pendants. And I'm happy with the choice, which draws the eye upward and accentuates the height of the ceilings.

Little by little, I made additions—the marble slab backsplash, the picture shelf, the recessed spot for a stool, where I can sit and read recipes.

Treating each elevation as a vignette was a bit of an exercise, but the result is a kitchen that looks beautiful from every angle, no matter where I'm standing.