Atomic Kitchens
A design team takes care to update this mid century kitchen while maintaining, and sometimes duplicating, many of its original features.
NO MATTER HOW PASSIONATE you are about preserving Mid Century Modern design, kitchens that haven’t been touched are usually in need of a few functional updates. When the homeowners of this 1962 ranch wanted to remodel their kitchen, they hired Beth Rhoades, owner of C& R Design Remodel, to help them achieve their vision.
“The homeowners loved the house and its structure and wanted to embrace that,” she says. “Our motivation was to help these homeowners update their beautiful home in ways that stayed true to the original design and aesthetic.”
BUILT TO BLEND
The home had many original features still intact, including an indoor barbecue grill. But because the homeowners needed a functional stove, it was one of the fi rst features to go in the remodel. “We rebuilt the range wall’s whole section,” says Beth. But you’d never guess that the section is new when you look at the existing cabinets. “All the cabinetry was either existing or built to blend in with what was existing,” she says.
They even duplicated the angled design found on the existing drawers on the range wall for consistency. The design allows the drawers to open, even with a smooth fi nish. “We didn’t want to add hardware, because we didn’t want it to look busy,” says Beth.
Other original features were preserved, such as the sliding glass doors and the wood paneling on the walls and ceiling. “We had to patch some areas after the modifi cations to the lighting and plumbing, but it’s all existing,” says Beth.
MID CENTURY MOODY
But preservation isn’t solely about retaining existing features. It’s also about preserving the original design aesthetic. In the case of this Salem, Oregon, kitchen project, they didn’t want to add bright, retro colors to the space and completely change its character. “Living in the Northwest, we have a moody atmosphere,” says Beth. “The wood- on- wood tone was part of the architectural design. That’s something you would see everywhere, and it was something we needed to embrace with the new material selections.”
The new quartz countertops and quartz backsplash are dark and complement the sophisticated kitchen palette, while the new heated limestone fl ooring adds a lighter foundation. “The windows with the sliding glass doors fl ow right through to the exterior, so we wanted to bring those colors into the kitchen,” says Beth. “I kept the grays as warm as possible.”
Because the kitchen has a neutral palette with mostly wood tones, it was important to highlight the textural elements to keep the features from blending together. Some of the original wood elements already had that contrast. “The ceiling paneling is a rough- sawn wood, but the paneled walls are smooth,” Beth says. Other textures needed to be added, such as the backsplash tiles and the limestone fl oor squares, which helped balance the room.
With a few carefully chosen updates and a classic color palette, the owners and Beth were able to successfully transform the kitchen into a mid century time capsule that’s fi t for modern living.