A mid-century ranch on Nix Drive — original kitchen, a chair-rail dining nook, and the kind of 1980s finishes that only a full gut can un-do. Rebuilt into a bright, working kitchen with proper sight lines to the dining space.
The Ask
A bright, timeless kitchen. White cabinetry with grey walls. Gas range. A real dishwasher for once. Open up the wall between kitchen and dining — and save the original crown moulding while you do it. No more oak trim anywhere.
The Design
Bright-white shaker cabinetry with satin-chrome pulls and soft-close throughout. Grey quartz counters with a muted vein. A classic grey subway backsplash runs behind the range to the ceiling, terminating cleanly at the window trim. The wall between kitchen and dining came down to open the spaces — and the original crown moulding stayed, carefully removed during demo, refinished, and reinstalled so it runs continuously from the new opening into both rooms. Hardwood floors refinished in place in a natural matte — no stain, just lacquer.
The Build
Four weeks. The wall between kitchen and dining was load-bearing — engineered LVL header, structural permit pulled, header tied back into the existing roof load path. Original crown moulding removed in sections during demo, labeled, refinished off-site, and reinstalled across the new opening with seamless miter returns into both rooms. Full plumbing rework for the new sink location. Gas line run from the utility room for the new range — permit-pulled and pressure-tested. Dedicated 20-amp circuit added for the dishwasher where none had existed.
See it in motion.
The moment it came together.
Details, from every angle.
“A clean, modern kitchen that does more with less square footage than the original ever did. The geometry is tight; the finishes are honest. Exactly what a small-but-real cooking kitchen should be.”
