The challenge for Trish Houck of Kitchen Concepts by Trish Houck in Ellicott City, Maryland was to take a large kitchen and create an area with small functional spaces including a butler’s pantry and a place for baking. This transformation allows the couple to use the kitchen effectively on a daily basis, but it also provides spaces for large-scale food preparation for holidays and entertaining.
Houck’s design solution was to create zones; kitchens within a kitchen. “It is sometimes more difficult to design a large kitchen than a small one,” says Houck. “In this case, I needed a kitchen that would work efficiently and not have the homeowner going out of her way each time she needed something.”Zones are important in a kitchen that will have more than one person working at a time, or even at different times. “This kitchen can easily accommodate two cooks,” she says. “It also allows for clean-up to happen while someone is still cooking without crowding.”
LEFT: Kitchen Designer Trish Houck decided to brighten the room with floor-to-celing Prevo cabinetry in a fresh, custom color Houck has dubbed "Tarragon." They are offset by "Lemon Chiffon" granite countertops. RIGHT: With tiles from Chesapeake Tile, Interior Designer Helen Ward designed a mural above the range. "She collects a lot of diferent things and she's a beekeeper," says Ward of the homeowner, "so we wanted to incorporate things that interested her."
Helen Ward of Hall & Company, who was the interior designer for the whole house, worked with the homeowner and Houck to create a truly functional space that conveys the unique interests of the lady of the house. The cheery wall color, the draperies, and the tile mural above the range were just a few of Ward’s contributions. The homeowner’s collections (Victorian napkin holders, juicers, and all things daisy, to name a few) were also able to find homes throughout the space.
The primary zone, the daily use kitchen, begins with the range and flows to the sunny breakfast room with a view. In addition to the 48-inch Wolf range, this area includes a large stone sink, a dishwasher, recycling and trash in the island, and Sub-Zero refrigerator drawers on the range wall. This area is used for everyday food preparation and cooking for the couple, mostly meals for two. “The granite on the island is ‘Antique Cambrian Black,’ and is textured so that it doesn’t show fingerprints,” says Houck. “The ‘Lemon Chiffon’ granite on the perimeter is for contrast.”
The suny breakfast nook is accented with Stroheim & Romann custom drapery designed by Helen Ward and a modern Company C rug and lit by an antiqued chandelier from Jones Lighting Specialists.
A baking area is arranged with its own 30-inch Wolf oven, a mixer lift for the professional sized KitchenAid mixer, and storage for baking ingredients and pans. “The lift is a great addition which allows the baker to access heavy equipment with ease,” Houck explains. “The baking area also includes its own stone sink.”
The last significant area of the kitchen, the butler’s pantry, is located between the kitchen and the dining room, and includes a second dishwasher, a sink, and all-white cabinetry and counters to house and display some of the homeowner’s collections, China, and glassware.
LEFT: One of the zones of the kitchen--the baking area--features its own oven, sink, storage, and prep counter, along with a mixer lift for the convenience of the baker. RIGHT: The simplicity of the glass-front cabinetry and silver hardware in this butler's pantry allow the homewoner's vaarious collections of china and glassware to be the main features of the room.
Even with all of this organization, there is one last service that Trish Houck provides for all of her clients. “We offer a ‘put away party’ for all of our kitchens,” she explains. “We have the clients bring all of their kitchenware into the room in boxes, and we put it away and organize it in a way that will best work for the kitchen and the cook!”
A successful kitchen, like a recipe, requires the right ingredients, and the right artist to combine them. “Understanding at the end of the day what the homeowner needed translated into a kitchen that will work for years to come.”
Amy Feinstin is a regular contributor to ChesapeakeHome.
Contacts:
Kitchen Concepts by Trish Houck: trishhouckkitchens.com or 410-461-3510
Resources:
Hall & Company: 410-296-8499
Jeffress Stone: jeffresstone.com or 410-488-9105
Jones Lighting Specialists Inc.: joneslighting.com or 410-828-1010
