We are wrapping up this amazing project and I can’t believe this is the first time we are posting about this kitchen. This kitchen was crafted by the talented Benjamin Blackwelder. We are so happy with how everything came together and the backsplash was especially exciting. You can find something kind of like it at Contempo for $30/sqft but after a couple hours of research Steve found it for $8/sqft on overstock.com. It was an awesome find!
PS- All the paint colors turned out perfect! More pictures by the awesome Meikel Reece to come.
Picking paint colors can be a stressful task because what you see on the swatch is never what you see on the wall. I’ve found some colors in my research but it always surprises me how different colors look from house to house and room to room. That’s why most the house looked like the pictures below. See the final paint colors in a day or two…
Here’s our inspiration picture for the family room. Posted by Caitlin Creer (more about her later 
There is something about having a cherry cabinet in an all marble bathroom. It’s a great contrast. Especially when you have the talented Benjamin Blackwelder making the vanity. We used hex tile in a couple places in this house. It has a early 1900′s feel.
And nothing like a 1923 original clawfoot tub to compliment the other finishes for this bathroom. If you need one of these call Mike at the Tub Doctor. He has 70+ of them and he can re-enamel them any color. If you’re going to do a tub, it may as well look classy. And no, I’m not a fan of the space-wasting corner jetted tubs. They’re so 2002.
And this is the kids bathroom vanity, still needs drawers. We did a 1″ white ceramic hex tile with a black inlay. This yellow light fixture is going to be a perfect accent in this bathroom.
Generally, the finish work phase of building can just take a couple of days doing the base and case throughout the house. However, if you want a house to be done right, the finish work needs to be well designed and look as if it’s been part of the house for years.
Here are two of my favorites: The Living Room Fireplace
Family Room Fireplace:
Before moving to the interior, we needed to give an update on the exterior.
As a reminder, here’s the before..
This is the siding going up. Using cedar verses hardy gives a more authentic coastal look.
Once painted you can see variation due to the variation in the cedar. Like a box of fine wine, with age it patinas and only gets better.
This front door turned out amazing with it’s side lights and trims. Once all the trims are painted and the wood porch is framed it will really pop.
And just when I thought I’d never get over Craftsman/Arts and Crafts. I’ve spent a lot of time studying cape cod and shingle style to identify it’s root design in order to implement them well on our current project. In it’s original form it is at it’s simplest and resembles many homes common in the older Salt Lake neighborhoods.
Born out of Cape Cod influence you get Shingle Style homes which are frequently done as huge coastal retreats.
Of all the homes I’ve snapped photos of in my “field research” I had this home on my laptop’s desktop. My brother-in-law saw it one day in passing and said “hey, I painted that house” That’s great cause I’ve referenced this home for colors, shingles, trims, etc. Now I can get the paint color matches.
And here are some other awesome EXTERIORS I’ve collected on my Pinterest account.
Here’s a sneak peak at the kitchen. I found this article and it contained some similar details we are using. We are keeping with the traditional theme of Cape Cod throughout the home with a more coastal/casual feel.
This is our current project that we are extremely excited about and we’d like to post regular updates because it’s been so fun to see this house transform. Plus the homeowners have put a lot of trust in me so I’ve been able to flex my “design muscles.” It’s been my 3rd baby because I’ve been able to design everything from the floor plan, architectural details, windows, trim details, and everything in between. So if it turns out terrible, it’s my fault. But if it turns out awesome…. it’s also my fault.
Here’s my design of the exterior…well some of the details are inconsistent. This is where I can try everything out first. I have literally buried my head in the cape cod/shingle style homes and am now a self-certified expert on their authentic design. I’m a fan of the cape cod look and will probably incorporate it into my own home…some day. I’ll post some pictures of cape cod homes I’m using as inspiration.
And this is what the house looked like as you walk up the driveway. Notice the lack of a front door… confusing.
Ah, here’s the “front” door.. it’s facing the side yard.
But of course, it’s in Holladay so the lot is amazing with lots of potential.
The Nielsons home was such fun project for us! They live on a beautiful piece of property and it was so great to watch this remodel transform their house into a home that blended beautifully with their surroundings and reflected their personal style.
As you can see below we took some before pictures and then created a mock up of the vision that we had for their home. We love being able to show our clients what their home will look like before we actually start the work. It gets everyone involved so excited about the project!
The Kitchen and living room turned out beautifully and have become such warm and inviting spaces for their family. The Nielsons were thrilled with the way it turned out and so are we!
All images by Meikel Reece
