Lexi Ribar and Morgan Stewart, cofounders of Pittsburgh firm Studio Lithe, aren’t usually privy to their clients’ childhood bedrooms. But when a homeowner who had recently bought the house she’d grown up in came to the designers asking for help in bringing it up to speed, they relished the initial walk-through. “Her room had the original wallpaper border around the top—I think it had Dalmatians?” recalls Ribar. Their favorite find was a poster of an old Levi’s advertisement. “We framed it because we were like, we cannot get rid of this,” adds Stewart. The home’s most obvious blast from the past was the circa-1926 blue and white tile in the kitchen, which sparked some controversy at first. 

“Immediately, she and her husband wanted the entire thing to be new,” recalls Ribar. “Because of how bold all the other materials were in the space, it didn’t leave a lot to the imagination about where things could potentially go [with the tile].” The couple’s two main concerns were the darkness of the grout and how much work (and money) it would take to restore the sections that had been damaged over time. “They really weren’t planning to keep it,” adds Ribar.

Studio Lithe had to do some serious convincing, but after showing a few different renderings of how the old tile could fit in the new space, they got the green light. Another major selling point? Buying the same amount of tile of the same high quality would cost a small fortune—saving it saved the budget. Ahead, the designers take us behind the scenes of the reno, revealing what they kept and what they added. 

For the Past

Step one for Stewart and Ribar was coming up with a delicate demo plan with the contractor. They wanted to leave as much tile intact as possible as they removed nearly everything else. During the process, it became clear that there were big gaps in certain areas that had been previously covered up by old appliances or cupboards. The designers tracked down a woman online who was selling historical white tiles from the 1920s. “Thankfully we didn’t need to replace any of the blue ones along the archway,” says Stewart, noting that the intricacy of the curved edges would have made them nearly impossible to find (and expensive to try to replicate).

For the Present

Once the quartzite countertops went in, the crew did a detailed pass at filling any old screw holes or cracks in the tiles. The designers warned the couple, though, that the salvaged squares would never look perfect. “But it’s the imperfection that makes it even more fun and exciting; seeing the layers of history that this kitchen has existed through,” shares Ribar. To help see past the dark gray grout lines, Stewart and Ribar simply gave them a good clean, which went a long way in making the final look bright and fresh.

For Function

The area beyond the blue arch was more or less a cramped closet when the designers first stepped on the scene. Now it’s a decked-out prep pantry. “There are secretly a lot of appliances in there,” hints Stewart. It took roughly 17 passes at layouts to figure out a configuration that would fit a column freezer, column fridge, ice maker, beverage cooler drawers, and speed oven. (The dishwasher and range are the only things in the main area of the kitchen.)

For Good Looks

To highlight the metal detailing on the range and curvature of the arch, the designers tasked Drury Cabinetry with making custom cabinets with radius corners and a fluted range hood with a sneaky magnetic push-to-open door in the top-left corner. To take advantage of the large lower corner cabinet to the right of the oven, Ribar and Stewart added a carousel inside that’s on a swivel, so no one has to crouch down to get to pots and heavy countertop appliances. 

For the Kids

More important than reviving the client’s childhood was accommodating her own children. An extra-long island was essential—but first a wall had to come down and a load-bearing beam had to go in. The structure is partly composed of low drawers where the couple’s three kids can easily access their lunch boxes and seating so they can do their homework in the space while Mom and Dad cook. The La Cornue induction cooktop is also a bonus for the young family. Unlike electric versions that pass heat from surface to cookware and make the whole top hot, induction cooktops warm the cookware directly. In other words, no one has to worry about little fingers getting burned from resting their hand down in the wrong spot. Now the next generation is set.

The post Bold 1920s Tile Was Too Priceless to Give Up for This Kitchen Reno appeared first on domino.

There’s no denying that cornices, fireplaces, and wall moldings all add charm and a sense of history to a home. But in contemporary properties lacking original features, a renovation provides an opportunity to create them from scratch. So that’s exactly what Celine Erlam, director of interior design practice Indie & Co., and her associates, Lea Berkhman and Sophie Walker, set about doing when they were asked to remodel this South London home for a couple welcoming their first child. 

Built in the 1970s in a simple, modernist style, the house hadn’t been touched for decades. Plain and uninspiring, and with an abundance of awkward storage (the cupboard in the main bedroom couldn’t be fully accessed), it was calling out for an injection of character. The owners love the mid-century aesthetic and brought several key pieces with them, such as the principal bedroom’s bedside tables and chest of drawers, “so we kept the lines very clean and streamlined, and nodded to the era throughout,” says Berkhman. Here, the trio explains how they added spirited touches to turn an unloved space into a playful family home. 

Embrace a Retro Color Theme

The warm palette of oranges, buttery yellows, and mossy greens chosen by Erlam and her team nods to the property’s construction date. Even the most neutral shade (in the hallway) is a pastel version of a classic white. “It’s 1970 reimagined for modern times,” explains Berkhman, who knew right from the start that she wanted to use Light Bronze Green by Little Greene in the kitchen. However, the clients, who were easygoing about most decisions, pushed back, as the room faces north and they wanted to ensure it remained as luminous as possible. “Instead of putting it on the walls, we used it on the top cabinets, so I still got it in there,” she says, laughing.

Have Fun With Millwork

With a little imagination, the designers and their open-minded millworker gave the no-frills stairwell a characterful boost with some MDF. Wavy handles elevate the otherwise unremarkable storage cupboard, but Erlam knows out-there decisions often come down to timing. “We’d worked with the clients for a while [at this point], so they trusted our vision and were ready to take the leap,” she says. The asymmetrical radiator cover was born out of budget: “We often do treatments on radiators when there isn’t scope to replace them,” she explains. It was Walker who came up with the wavy line to echo the new arch leading to the living room, which not only disguises it but provides a surface on which to place something decorative. 

Drop the Preconceptions of Parquet Flooring

Upon peeling back the ugly carpets, the designers and owners held their breath, hoping that swaths of original wood floors would be revealed. Disappointingly, it wasn’t the case (all they found was subflooring), but an old-school, finger-block parquet style felt like a must-have for the house, so they redid everything.

“It fits with the era perfectly while creating interest and character,” says Erlam. Deemed dated by some, the scale was just right: “The rooms aren’t big, so going for something larger would have felt odd,” she justifies. 

Create Some Drama in the Bathroom

Because the bathroom was devoid of natural light, the team decided to get playful with color and form. Moving the tub to where the toilet used to live provided the opportunity to enclose it with another arch. “It’s quite theatrical, and with the curtain, it’s like a stage. Yet when you’re showering, you feel cocooned,” says Berkhman of her idea.

The yellow tile was inspired by a picture of a hotel in Marseille, France, depicting retro mustard-striped sun loungers. But there was no question of using it everywhere. “It would have been too much, so we found something more neutral for the walls,” explains Berkhman of the peachy vertical tile that serves as a complement. 

Repeat to Cheat

It’s an all-too-familiar-sounding COVID-era story: During the renovation, the price of materials rose dramatically (the cost of the parquet increased 52 percent between the quote and installation), so the designers made a few clever cutbacks. For starters, they saved the remainder of the terrazzo slab from the kitchen worktops and used it in the bathroom. “There wasn’t much in the way of extra templating or installation costs, because the tradespeople were already coming for the kitchen,” explains Walker. The kitchen cabinets were a hack themselves: A local millworker created walnut fronts with unique notch handles to work with IKEA frames—though you’d never know from looking at them.

The post Why a “Dated” Flooring Choice Was Just What This London Home Reno Needed appeared first on domino.

Robby and Lauren Simon have a saying: “When you’re home, you’re with your family. And when you’re with your family, you’re home.” The phrase was one the couple told themselves on repeat during their two-year-long kitchen renovation. “It’s one of those made-up, Olive Garden sayings, but it’s essentially like, things don’t have to be perfect. It just has to be home,” says Robby. 

When the Simons bought their split-level home in Atlanta in February 2020, it was clear the kitchen hadn’t been touched since the 1980s. The couple focused on the things that could easily be changed with a little bit of elbow grease (the dark wood cabinets and fluorescent light box) and learned to live with the things that couldn’t, like the galley layout and travertine tiled floors. “In a dream world I would have put in Fireclay tile, but this isn’t our forever home,” notes Lauren. While she acted as project manager during the remodel, Robby took on the role of woodworker and even turned his cabinet- and furniture-making hobby into a full-fledged side hustle (by day, he works at Mailchimp; by night he runs Play.room). 

In the end, the pair estimates they spent less than $10,000 on the transformation. Ahead, they share the updates that, at the very least, made it feel like home. 

Leave Your IKEA Cabinets As Is 

The Simons measured the existing lower cabinetry to a T and then ventured to their local IKEA to put an order in for the black Kungsbacka cupboards, with no intentions to swap out the hardware or hack the door fronts. With the help of their handy friend, Mike, they cut the butcher block countertops (also IKEA) down to size. “Lauren built every one of those cabinets—she could be a TaskRabbit,” Robby says with a laugh. Even though they were a major cost saver, they’ve held up nicely considering they are constantly being opened and touched by their 6-year-old son and 6-month-old daughter. 

Make the Most Out of a Bad Vent Situation

While Robby now sells cool credenzas and consoles on his brand’s site, the first cabinet he ever made sits above the vent hood. He created the unit solely out of necessity after learning that they had to replace the old microwave–slash–range hood, which was apparently venting inside the house. Their new ductless hood needed something to attach to. “I thought, if I’m going to do it, I might as well make it look cool,” he says. The piece is made out of a combination of walnut-veneer plywood and solid walnut. 

Paint It Twice If It Doesn’t Look Nice

Lauren also shares Robby’s let’s-just-go-for-it attitude. One day, when he was out of the house, she decided to remove the doorframe and then posed the idea of turning it into an arch once he got home. “He said, you just made so much more work for me. And I was like, we have to do it now—we don’t have a door,” she says slyly. When it came to painting the walls in the space, their first instinct was green, so they went for it. “But we could tell it wasn’t right,” she says. Lauren, the designated painter at that point, shifted gears to a soft peachy pink, and later on they swapped the light box for a PH5 pendant lamp that perfectly matched the color. 

Ask the Hardware Store for Help

The dining nook bench was another first for Robby—and he didn’t even own the proper saw for it at the time. Instead he went to Home Depot and had them cut down pieces of plywood and 2-by-4s to his specifications and then screwed it together at home. “Our long-term plan is to make a cushion for it,” he says.

Type Your Wildest Dreams Into the Search Bar

When it comes to finding cool thrifted pieces, Robby says Lauren has all the luck. “She will go into a Goodwill and literally find a Mario Bellini couch,” he says with a laugh. But his turn came when he decided to type “vintage snake handles” into Google on a whim and found exactly what he was looking for on Etsy. The cobra pulls, which now adorn the pantry, are Justina Blakeney–approved. Lauren posted a photo of the cabinet on Instagram and tagged the designer in it, crediting her for the inspiration—and Blakeney shared it. “I was like, I’ve made it,” says Lauren.

Get the Appliances That Make Life Easier

Toward the end of the reno, the Simons splurged big: all new appliances. “The fridge that was there before stuck out into the hallway. It was so deep,” recalls Robby. The challenge wasn’t landing on what brand to buy (they loved LG’s streamlined look and reasonable price point) but rather getting the appliances into the house. The oven and refrigerator were at least 300 pounds and required the help of five other people. 

Once they were in the kitchen, Robby handled all the hookups (his friend told him about Plumber’s Putty, a waterproof seal that turned out to be necessary for installing the oven). “The stove is crazy…you knock on it and a light turns on,” says Robby, “and the fridge makes regular ice, crushed ice, and whiskey balls.” After a two-year reno, a chilled cocktail is a welcome reward. 

The post Pink Walls and Black IKEA Cabinets Helped This Couple Love Their Galley Kitchen appeared first on domino.

A solid oak island topped with a 78-inch-long slab of Agaria marble and tricked out with a hidden garbage bin and counter stool seating now sits at the heart of Emily Henderson’s client’s kitchen. It looks as custom as it sounds, but the catch is, it’s actually not. The piece is a brand-new offering from Crate & Barrel, which just launched its first-ever home renovation collection. The line features ready-made kitchen islands ranging from a $999 French country–inspired piece to Henderson’s $4,999 pick, but also encompasses bathroom vanities, medicine cabinets, hardware, and lighting fixtures. 

“So many people come to us saying, ‘We don’t need to demo our entire cabinetry runs, we just want to update them to make them look better,’” says Henderson, “and in many cases that goes with the island.” In her latest client’s case, there was no previously existing island—just a dining table. But with two young boys in the house, they needed their setup to work a little harder, both from a dining and storage perspective. 

Henderson focused on low-lift changes she could make in their six-week time frame, including replacing some of the upper cabinets with floating shelves, painting the cabinetry, swapping out the lighting, and covering the ceiling in paneling. Then they ordered Crate’s aforementioned Terra island. 

Terra 78-Inch Marble Top and Natural Oak Wood Kitchen Island

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Terra 78″ Marble Top and Natural Oak Wood Kitchen Island with Storage, Crate & Barrel ($4,999)

“It has the most beautiful stone on top, which we were very floored by because you think, it’s coming off a truck from a retailer,” says Henderson. “I didn’t expect it to be as big.” There was no assembly required on her part—the delivery people placed it in the space for them and scooted it around until it was exactly where they wanted it. The only items that call for hiring a professional are the bathroom vanities (a plumber will have to set up the water connection with the sink). “But other than that, it’s assembled and ready to go,” notes Crate & Barrel senior vice president and head of design Sebastian Brauer.

Shop More Reno Finds From the Collection

Basque 56″ Light Brown Solid Wood Kitchen Island with Storage, Crate & Barrel ($999)

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Tate 60″ Black Granite Top Double Sink Vanity with Walnut Wood Doors, Crate & Barrel ($2,899)

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Edge Brass Arch Medicine Cabinet, Crate & Barrel ($379)

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Batten 84″ Natural Oak Wood Kitchen Island with Storage, Crate & Barrel ($3,999)

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The post Crate & Barrel’s Newest Line Makes No-Demo Renos Look Totally Custom appeared first on domino.

Barry Bordelon and Jordan Slocum, the designer couple better known as the Brownstone Boys, usually have a heat gun and metal putty knife at the ready on the first day of a brownstone renovation. But their latest Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, remodel didn’t call for the exhaustive varnish stripping technique they’ve come to perfect over the years. This three-story space, owned by young couple Taylor and Moore, had wood bones in pretty solid condition. “We were even able to save the original floors, which is one of the coolest features,” says Bordelon, who also served as the pair’s real-estate agent at the beginning of the process.

Moore and Taylor struck gold once more when they realized they’d be able to save money by living on the ground floor while the construction took place (a perk given they were expecting their first child, Harry, at the time). So after giving the garden-level kitchen and bathroom a light touch-up, Slocum and Bordelon got to work on the top two floors. Ahead, the designers reveal the new (and sort-of-new) updates. 

Some Things New

First up: add a kitchen on the main parlor level where there previously wasn’t one. Slocum and Bordelon started with a product they swear by (Semihandmade’s paintable DIY Shaker cabinets) in their favorite neutral hue (Shaded White by Farrow & Ball). “We’ve used it several times—it’s this creamy shade of white that also has some gray tones,” explains Bordelon. The vent hood is another signature Brownstone Boys move: It’s just a simple drywall box with a 2-inch radius corner bead that’s painted the same color as the walls. They kept the silhouette going in the adjacent dining area in the form of custom open shelves built by Brooklyn Builders Collective.

“The tricky thing about designing a brownstone is that they are long and narrow,” notes Slocum. “You always need additional storage.” So the designers also snuck in hidden cabinets underneath the island that are only 15 inches deep but just big enough for holding rarely used appliances. For something totally fresh, they sourced the pendant lights hanging above from Taylor’s ceramist mother. The rust shades pair perfectly with the Paonazzo stone counters, which sport subtle flecks of brown-gray. 

When it came to the primary bathroom, the designers drew on the clients’ past experiences rather than their own. “Moore is originally from California; Taylor is from Australia; and they spent a lot of time in North Carolina together, so there’s coastal things happening in that space,” notes Slocum. While the pinkish terracotta Roman Clay backdrop behind the tub was a bespoke touch, the slatted white vanity is an off-the-shelf piece (it’s from Signature Hardware).

Some Things Borrowed

In true restorer fashion, the designers had to do some outsourcing for elements that were likely a part of the house when it was built in the 1800s but had since been removed at some point. The big missing piece? Fireplace mantels. Just when Bordelon and Slocum had proposed the idea of buying marble surrounds new, they got an Instagram DM from someone in New Jersey who was doing a remodel and had just what they were looking for. “We’ve become kind of known for always wanting marble fireplaces,” says Slocum. “It was just at the right time.”

Some Things Old

While the home’s original staircase was in good enough condition to keep, the designers gave it a glow-up by painting it Tricorn Black by Sherwin-Williams and covering the steps with a one-of-a-kind runner. Taylor collected a bunch of Moroccan rugs, which they eventually had sewn together to make a long stretch of carpet. 

A skylight on the top floor was another existing detail worth salvaging—with a few strategic tweaks. Previously it was a 2-by-2-foot interior shaft with windows flanking it on multiple sides (back in the day, it would have provided natural ventilation for the bathroom). Nixing those extra panes made it possible to build a shower stall there instead. “We were able to reclaim that space, and then the skylight that was at the top of the shaft just looked onto the shower,” shares Bordelon. Taking full advantage of the sun-drenched corner, they opted for a moody, two-tone look using Zia Tile’s 4-by-4-inch zellige tiles in Tidepool and Aegean—a perfect marriage.

The post How These Pro Renovators Avoided Stripping Any Wood During This Brownstone Remodel appeared first on domino.

Who says you have to completely demo your kitchen (not to mention, your budget) to make it yours? In our new series, The No-Reno Kitchen, we’re highlighting total transformations that prove the power of paint, fixtures, and a little elbow grease.

Size: 69 square feet

Location: Galveston, Texas

Budget: $2,500

Top priority: Quick fixes that pack an aesthetic punch. 

When Brooklynite Hannah Armitage and her husband, Daniel, of Soleil House decided to purchase a fourplex all the way down in Galveston, Texas, they never imagined that in only a few months’ time they would be living there themselves. (They had planned to rent it to vacationers.) But with jobs (she’s the founder of Simka Rose; he’s the director of operations for Unis), city life, and, well, everything in flux due to the pandemic, the couple decided to take a leap of faith. They packed up their apartment and moved south to throw themselves into renovating full-time. “We knew there was a good chance that this property would become our main source of income,” says Hannah, “so as soon as the shelter-in-place order went out in New York City, we were like, ‘Let’s go.’”

Hannah grew up vacationing in Galveston, so she knew that the town’s proximity to Houston would attract city dwellers looking for an escape. But as is, the property itself wasn’t such a sure thing. The kitchen desperately needed a revamp in the form of bold cabinets, updated hardware, and elevated lighting, and the Armitages were up to taking on the challenge themselves. “We wanted to do everything we possibly could to make the space nice for guests, but we couldn’t afford a complete gut reno,” says Daniel. “Not to mention we don’t have the skills for that kind of undertaking, which we learned the hard way.” It wasn’t until they tackled the cabinets that they realized just how much learning was in store. Here, the pair walks us through the many mistakes (and eventual successes!).

Save: Making Sacrifices

Daniel: The question we kept asking ourselves was: How can we make this space as nice as possible as quickly as possible? We started renovating before making a dollar, so we had to focus on small fixes until income came in. It all boiled down to deciding which changes would pack the biggest punch. 

Hannah: We originally wanted to redo the flooring to be entirely hardwood, but these units are old—there are more than six layers of laminate and tile that have built up over the years. We only had the budget to tackle either the cabinets or the flooring, and the cupboards take up much more visual real estate, so it was important to do those first. We purchased a kitchen rug for $50 from Wayfair to cover as much of the less-than-desirable floor tile as we could.

Splurge: Painting, Then Repainting

Hannah: We tried to save time and cost by skipping all the prep steps, which ended up being our biggest mistake. We spent $108 on Sublime paint from Clare (a nod to the ocean) and covered all of the cabinets, before noticing that it wasn’t drying properly. We discovered that the original paint was oil based, which is great for wiping down cabinets but not for painting over them. We had to start from scratch. 

Daniel: We peeled off as much of it as we could before eventually turning to our trusty sander to handle the rest. We took the cabinets off their hinges, sanded them down, and then added a layer of well-mixed primer. Because we live in such a humid environment, we decided to add a top layer of sealer after we repainted, which we highly recommend for any kitchen cabinet project. It has made for fewer nicks and scratches. 

Splurge: Investing in New Appliances

Daniel: Instead of keeping the original stove, which was gas-burning, we ended up switching to an electric stove from Home Depot for $750. The old gas pipes stuck out from the wall, so it required the stove to sit pretty far out, which was an eyesore. Going electric allowed us to push the appliance back against the wall, which looked better and saved space.

Save: Compromising on Finish

Hannah: We were looking for a matching pendant light and a smallish drop chandelier, but it’s hard to find identical fixtures in different sizes that won’t break the bank. We ended up with two pieces from AllModern—the fixture above the sink was $66 and the larger chandelier-esque light was $163. The gold finish wasn’t exactly what I was hoping for—it’s a bit too olive green for my taste—but I was ultimately okay sacrificing color for similarity. 

Splurge: Updating the Little (But Impactful) Moments

Hannah: We left the countertops and flooring as is for budget reasons, but we were able to redo the sink and the hardware. Like the cabinets, these are noticeable features that would make a big difference to the space’s overall aesthetic once updated. The original sink was stainless steel and the counters are a creamy white tile, which didn’t go together at all. We replaced the sink with a white farmhouse-style option from Lowe’s for $138, which complemented the tile nicely. We then chose a $137 brass faucet from Amazon for a bit of shine.

Get the Look

Yearby Light by Mercury Row, Wayfair ($157 was $225)

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Kitchen Faucet with Pull Down Sprayer by Forious, Amazon ($99)

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Mayfield Drop-In Cast Iron Kitchen Sink, Lowe’s ($524 was $549)

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Sublime, Clare Paint

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In Renovator’s Notebook, homeowners open up about the nitty-gritty of their remodels: How long it really took; how much it actually cost; what went horribly wrong; and what went wonderfully, serendipitously, it’s-all-worth-it-in-the-end right. For more tips to nail your next project, follow @reno_notebook.

The post All the Mistakes We Made During Our $2.5K DIY Kitchen Remodel appeared first on domino.

Leanne Ford started her design career in an old schoolhouse in Pittsburgh 14 years ago. The Pennsylvania native, who was working in fashion at the time, was determined to turn her attic into a dreamy primary bathroom with help from her brother, Steve Ford, a seasoned carpenter, even though three contractors told her it was impossible. The roof was slanted. The window was tiny. And there was no obvious place to put a tub (a must-have for Leanne, who takes at least one soak a day). 

Still, her vision was clear: an open-concept wet zone with no shower curtain. To accomplish that, Steve cut into a crawl space and took over a closet. Next came the waterproofing. Wall-to-wall tile was absolutely necessary, so Leanne went searching for the perfect option where any other novice renovator would: Home Depot. “When I’m using construction materials, I like to use the classic, more simple stuff that big-box stores have so that it is timeless and will let my fun, funkier, more artistic pieces do the talking,” shares Leanne. An affordable white subway tile by Daltile—a case goes for $15 and covers around 12.5 square feet—called her name then, and it still does now.

“I used this in my very first bathroom, in my very first house, and I still love it,” admits Leanne. While the subway style is very much a staple today, the designer remembers it was hard to find back then. “Now I’m glad it’s a go-to,” she says. The trick to making it appear more custom is all in the grout. Ford tends to go for high contrast by pairing it with a charcoal shade. An oldie but a goodie.

Daltile Restore Ceramic Bright White Subway Tile

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Daltile Restore 3 in. x 6 in. Ceramic Bright White Subway Tile, Home Depot ($15 per case)

The post The Best Thing Leanne Ford Bought From Home Depot Goes Back to Her First Reno appeared first on domino.

When New Zealand–based architect Raimana Jones’s clients told him their Titirangi home would (hopefully) be their forever one, a list of boxes to tick followed—particularly for the 156-square-foot kitchen. At the top was an open floor plan that would allow them to see into the living room (it was previously closed off by a wall of pea green melamine cabinets from the 1990s) and an extra-long peninsula with room for food prep and seating. Some more unusual requests followed: a dedicated area for pasta making, a built-in sliding cutting board, and a hidden compost bin.

The first stipulation required some coordination with an engineer and a steel fabrication company to install l-beams where the old wall used to be, which everyone was nervous wouldn’t fit inside the house. Luckily they came in separate parts so they could be welded on-site as the frame for the peninsula, the custom pivot lights by Tom Lopes, and a spice rack. Jones, who has always been fascinated by utilitarian interiors, notes he frequently referenced the Frankfurt kitchen by Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky while working on this project with his business partner at Atelier Jones, Mathilde Polmard. “It was built for the efficiency of tasks in mind, and I appreciate the integration of small elements such as built-in aluminum pouring bins for storing flour and spices,” he says. Here are four hardworking details we never knew we needed in a kitchen until now.

A Suspended Spice Station

Jones’s favorite storage solution is hands down the magnetic spice jars that attach to a wood block above the peninsula (on the other side, the cubby provides open shelving). “I think it is always nice when spices are visible in a kitchen,” he says. “Being exposed to their colors and aromas can give you inspiration.”

Jones and his team tested the height of the box on-site before installing it to ensure it wouldn’t cut off the view of anyone sitting in the adjacent lounge area but would still be easy to reach—they landed on 6 feet. And the bar hung beneath it? That’s a place for homeowners a spot to hang dried herbs. 

A Cutting Board That Moves

One of the later additions to the kitchen was the built-in cutting board that can be slid from one end of the stainless steel surface peninsula to the other. The permanent piece was crafted from leftover wood from the butcher block countertop. For a seamless look when it’s in its corner resting spot, the board slopes down on one side.

A Proper Place for Pasta Night

The designated pasta-making area is just to the left of the sink. After whipping together the dough on the stainless steel peninsula, the owners roll everything over to the wood surface, where an open cavity underneath the counter allows them to securely clamp down a pasta maker. On the right-hand side of the basin? Trash and compost bins. Although you’d almost never know it thanks to a removable lid integrated in the countertop.

Cupboards That Are Durable and Quiet

The home’s location in the western part of Auckland served as the major inspiration for both styles of cabinetry. Some of the cupboards are crafted out of oiled, recycled rimu, a wood native to New Zealand that is most commonly used for cutting and cheese boards. “One of the main reasons we chose rimu is its ability to match the original flooring of the house,” adds Jones. (It’s also incredibly strong and resistant to rot.) The powder-coated green steel drawers, on the other hand, are a nod to Titirangi’s lush landscape. Jones custom-designed everything with soft closing drawers. We wouldn’t want a slam to disturb those peaceful pasta-making sessions.

The post This Forever Kitchen’s Structural Steel Beams Serve a Second Purpose: Spice Storage appeared first on domino.

Who says you have to completely demo your kitchen (not to mention your budget) to make it yours? In our new series, The No-Reno Kitchen, we’re highlighting total transformations that prove the power of paint, fixtures, and a little elbow grease. 

If you wanted to spice up your binder or laptop in school, it was easy: You’d cover it with stickers. Turns out, the same logic applies to the kitchen. It costs, on average, $895 to paint your cabinets and a cool $3,100 to replace countertops, according to HomeAdvisor, but a roll of adhesive contact paper from Amazon? That’ll only run you 50 cents per square foot. Peel-and-stick products have become a go-to solution for renters and budget-conscious homeowners. Much like the best faux backsplashes, when applied carefully (read: using a smoothing tool to get rid of air bubbles) the decal-like material can take on the appearance of authentic surfaces. Still, we know it feels risky to wrap your kitchen in a big sticker, so we rounded up vetted products featured in some of our favorite DIY renovations. 

The Best Contact Paper for Cabinets

No More Singing the Blues

Renter and New York–based creative Madeline Scalzi had always wanted blue cabinets, but her landlord told her that painting was out of the question. So she bought Safiyya’s gray-blue sheets on Amazon for around $15 and spent a weekend wrapping her doors, applying the material from the bottom to the top of the cabinet and occasionally using a hair dryer to help melt the adhesive backing. 

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Safiyya Blue Contact Paper, Amazon ($7 per 118″x17.7″ roll)

Shine Bright

Brass has taken kitchens by storm, first starting with hardware and now lending itself to vent hoods and cupboards. Designer Alvin Wayne got the look of metal for way less with this removable, wipeable liner, which he glossed over his flat slab doors, using a nifty debit card to fine-tune his mistakes.

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Gold Self Adhesive Contact Paper, Amazon ($7 per 17.7”X 118.11” roll)

Ground Control

To add a splash of temporary color to their all-white kitchen, Utharaa Zacharias and Palaash Chaudhary, the owners of furniture studio Soft Geometry, went with royal blue contact paper on the lower cabinets. Fortunately, this wasn’t their first rodeo working with products by Dimoon via Amazon—they had used its mint green adhesive and a softer blue version in previous spaces. While their exact contact paper is no longer in stock, Zacharias shares a close look-alike, below. 

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Blue Peel-and-Stick Wallpaper, Amazon ($6 per 15.7″X118″ roll)

The Best Contact Paper for Countertops

Into the Woods

In an effort to restore his rental kitchen’s 1920s charm, design influencer and TikToker Marco Zamora swathed his white countertops in a butcher block–inspired option that has proven to withstand exposure to moisture around the sink.  

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Livelynine Brown Wood Contact Paper, Amazon ($8 per 15.8″x78.8″ roll)

Lovely in Lilac 

Serial DIYer Imani Keal sought to replicate the look of a stone called Plumeria that’s got a white Calacatta marble appearance to it, with streaks of pink and purple veining strung throughout. A quick search for purple-pink contact paper on Amazon led her to this nearly identical solution that could be removed once she moved. “A smart person would have probably ordered one roll to see what it looked like, but I thought, I’ll order six and go with it,” she says. The gamble paid off.

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VEELIKE Grey Marble Contact Paper, Amazon ($11 per 15.8″x118″ roll)

Clean Slate

An Edited Lifestyle blogger Ellenor Griffin’s biggest piece of advice: Unless your countertops are the exact length of the contact paper roll, cut the paper to size before you try to stick it on—especially when you’re working around the sink and cooktop. 

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D-c-fix Peel-and-Stick Contact Paper Marmi Marble Grey, Amazon ($15 per 26.5″ x 78.7″ roll)

A Touch of Terrazzo

DIYer Chloe Rey admits that covering up her formerly dark, dated countertop “completely changed everything.” She used up two rolls of this terrazzo-patterned adhesive from Walmart, which is ideal if you’re stressed about lining up the seams perfectly (because of the sporadic speckles, no one will be able to tell if it’s not exact). Rey’s exact version is currently out of stock, but luckily the mass retailer carries alternative options (peep below).  

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LaCheery Terrazzo Contact Paper for Countertops, Walmart ($10)

The Best Contact Paper for the Refrigerator

Party Time

Feast your eyes on Los Angeles–based writer Camilla Blackett’s fridge. It took all of 30 minutes for Blackett to apply the stick-on sheets to the facade of the appliance. For any of the air bubbles that she couldn’t smooth out with a credit card, she poked holes in them with the end of a safety pin. 

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Terrazzo Confetti Contact Paper, Samantha Santana ($20 per 19.5” x 52” roll)

The post The Best Contact Paper for a Low-Lift Countertop (or Cabinet!) Facelift appeared first on domino.

Who says you have to completely demo your kitchen (not to mention your budget) to make it yours? In our new series, The No-Reno Kitchen, we’re highlighting total transformations that prove the power of paint, fixtures, and a little elbow grease. 

Marco Zamora almost didn’t show up to tour his Los Angeles apartment. “All the photos on the listing site were taken six years ago and were bad quality,” he recalls. But knowing that it met his major requirements (it was in his budget and came with a parking spot), he went anyway—and discovered a completely different space. There was French windows, ornate molding, and exposed ceiling beams. The only room that had been stripped of the 1920s charm was the boring white kitchen.

Feeling inspired by the architecture he saw on a recent trip to Mexico City, the design influencer set out to revive the space, all while relying on renter-friendly upgrades. “I wanted to channel my own culture and make it my special place,” says Zamora. Here are four game-changing DIYs he tackled on a $300 budget. 

Fill in (Some of) the Blanks

One surefire way to add character to a space is with color. Zamora bought a pack of red and white peel-and-stick floor tiles on Amazon for $22, despite the product having very few reviews at the time. “I thought, let’s take a risk. At least there is a good return policy,” he says with a laugh. Once they arrived, he realized he didn’t even need to use the white squares in the box (his flooring is already made up of actual white tiles). Instead, Zamora laid the red stickers down in a checkerboard fashion, trimming the sides with an X-acto knife to expose the grout lines for a more realistic look. “I’m surprised, but they’ve been holding up great,” he says. 

Embrace a New Frame of Mind

Zamora’s only rule for updating his kitchen was that anything that he put up had to be something he could easily take down. This included the new doorframe he made out of wood blanks from the hardware store and cut with a compound miter saw in the back of his apartment complex. After staining the boards with a dark brown finish, he nailed the three pieces together and then to the existing threshold. But he wasn’t done yet: Zamora topped the doorway with a faux stained-glass transom window made out of lightweight plexiglass, faux lead lines, and a glass paint set. 

Get Cutting-Edge With Your Counters

Zamora went the peel-and-stick route once more with his countertops, which he covered in a butcher block-inspired contact paper. Pulling off the illusion is all in the application. “It’s the details, like making sure you don’t have any air bubbles, that take it to the next level,” he points out. The vinyl product is waterproof, but to maintain it for as long as possible, Zamora says he avoids directly cutting anything on top of it. 

Hide Eyesores With Art 

Zamora’s kitchen did have one noteworthy quirk: a microwave recessed in the middle of the wall. As a quick fix, he mounted a thick piece of wood next to it on hinges so he could hang a large piece of thrifted art to act as a door. “It was perfect for my kitchen—it had the right colors and wood tones,” he says. An open-and-shut case if we’ve ever seen one.

The post A $300 Renter-Friendly Makeover Brought 1920s Charm to This Boring White Kitchen appeared first on domino.