In the Summer of 2019 we started a major home renovation and addition on our tiny 1940’s fixer upper home in West Seattle. We bought the house a few years prior with plans to add on someday. After several different plans were drawn, we decided on a 300 square foot addition, that was mostly new kitchen (yay!) and a 2nd bathroom, mudroom and laundry. The old kitchen became the new 3rd bedroom. We were going from a 2 Bedroom/1 Bathroom to a 3 Bedroom / 2 Bathroom – a major upgrade by any West Seattle standards. We had previously remodeled the original bathroom which prepared us (kind of) for what was to come. Had I known we’d be living with no kitchen for a full year (not to mention during the lockdown at the beginning of the Pandemic and in my 2nd and 3rd trimesters of being pregnant with our second child, oh and did I mention we adopted a puppy too?!), I’m not sure I would have done it. I cooked on a hotplate for an entire year! Let’s just say I would make a great camping chef, now that I’ve been through all of that. The whole experience made me more resilient and realize that you CAN and DO get through things you don’t think you can. Things got real ugly before they got even close to looking good and I’m positive I have way more gray hair now than I did before. Not only did we add on to the existing house, but we replaced all the old windows, re-sided, added all new insulation, wiring, plumbing, a massive retaining wall, fencing, landscaping – the works! It has been gratifying to see our vision for this sweet home come to life and finally get to enjoy it.
Anyways, I digress – following are some crazy before and afters. Enjoy!
Kitchen
Range – The old and original kitchen still had an oven from the 1960’s – and for the first two years we lived in this house, it did just a fine job! Amazing! As someone who loves to cook and bake, it was definitely time for an upgrade. I chose a Bertazzoni dual fuel range in a matte white finish that is a workhorse. The fifth burner in the middle is a real plus, and for a 30″ range this feature is much appreciated. The range hood was custom designed by Scott and myself. We used an extra strip of cabinetry to make the look cohesive. The only downside to this range is that the fan that blows while the oven is on is quite loud.
Lighting
I know a lot of designers would say to use little or no can lighting, but it is so nice to have a bright space when you live in often cloudy Seattle. We wired the kitchen so that you could have the sconces and pendant on dimmers, and then the cans and the smaller directional lights above the kitchen table were each on their own set of dimmers, so you could really change the lighting however you needed and create whatever mood you wanted. The pendant above the sink is from Rejuvenation and the scones are the Issac Long Arm from Schoolhouse.
Cabinets – the cabinets are from Barker Cabinets in Oregon. I designed the layout after countless sketches and many late nights thinking about where each and every kitchen item would go. I measured again and again, before we even had drywall up, and somehow everything came together relatively seamlessly. I would highly recommend this company if you are looking for a high quality and very custom cabinet, and are willing to the do the work of assembling them. I helped Scott assemble when I was 8 months pregnant, so anything is possible! Barker has amazing tutorials on their website and has a great response time when I emailed questions. I loved working with them. The cabinet hardware is from Rejuvenation and I love the mid-century vibe they added.
Fireplace/Built In’s – We took out the original brick fireplace to make more space in the 3rd bedroom for a closet. This was a huge undertaking and one of the few things Scott didn’t do on his own (thankfully!). The now vacated fireplace space created a cool built-in area with custom shelving and a buffet style area with cabinetry to maximize storage. We matched the counter in this space to the Quartz kitchen counters and I made some custom leather pulls for the doors. I love how it all came together.
Now that the original fireplace was gone, we upgraded to a stand along unit from Jotul, a company that carries a Scandinavian styled modern unit that is just dreamy and happened to fit perfectly in the corner of the living room. The black and white color scheme was a win and the unit pumps out plenty of heat (and was our only heat source for a period of time during the remodel).
Pantry/Desk Area – Since there wasn’t room in this house for an office, I designed this built in desk and hutch into the kitchen. Maximizing storage was key. I loved having a cookbook nook and the cabinet next to the cookbooks was sized to fit (and hide) our home printer. The tall cabinet on the right of this wall was sized to fit our vacuum. Clock is from Schoolhouse.
Outdoor
This property is on a slope, and previous to adding a large retaining wall and regrading the lot, we had very little usable yard. We hired a company to install the wall, and my husband laid the paver patio, terraced garden beds and built-in fire pit. We addd too many plants to count on this property – the idea was to create an oasis within the city. We hired a fencing company to add a gorgeous cedar fence around the property and then my husband made the decks and railings for the two porches (front and back).
While I could go on and on about this remodel, I think I’ll leave it at that. It turned out beautiful and I’m not sure I would change a thing. For more resources, please see below!
