Santa Rosa Residence

This project is a kitchen remodel project for a house originally built in 1939. The elegant details and character of the era are reflected in the main part of the house. However, this was not reflected in the wing that housed the kitchen. The original design for this wing of the house was a small kitchen and a warren of little rooms for the servants. This wing was very dark, with flat ceilings and dated details that did not match the quality of the rest of the house. Our approach was to bring in natural light, open up the ceilings and refocus the kitchen as the center of the house for the lifestyle of the current owners, while making sure the new work reflected the elegance of the main part of the house.

 

The clients sought a new kitchen space to more closely fit their modern lifestyle. They have two young daughters and lead active lives, and had the desire for their new kitchen to function as the center of their house. Another key desire was a bright, comfortable kitchen that spoke to the rich detail and grand spaces of the rest of their house. They also sought a more direct link to their backyard that the current layout did not accommodate.
The design response was to clear out the ‘warren-like’ room layout of the former servants quarters and open up the entire wing to a kitchen and connected family room space. The low flat existing ceiling was opened up with some new trusses that celebrated the details of the old, while providing a reflection of the current work.

The whole North side of the house was opened up with pairs of windows that match the existing, bringing in abundant natural light, supplemented with cove lighting detailed to reflect the elegance of the other rooms of the house.