The Lawrenceville, N.J. kitchen, with its circa 1950s painted plywood cabinets, small windows and vinyl flooring, had been on borrowed time for a while, owing to a whole-house vision conceived by the architects at Princeton Design Collaborative. The firm’s principal in charge, John Conroy, notes that this kitchen renovation would be the fifth of a series of projects that PDC has done for the client, all based on a master plan that the team had put in place several years ago, to act as a road map to create a cohesive design and a logical process.
Master Plan Benefits
“We come across more and more clients like this one who have the forethought to hire an architect to develop a master plan, and then carefully execute it piece by piece, when their schedule and budget allows,” said Conroy.
A strong dialogue between homeowners, designers and builders can go a long way towards ensuring the success of a project, keeping costs within a manageable margin without sacrificing design and quality – particularly important in times of inflation and unpredictable supply chain challenges. “Pandemic pricing and material shortages forced us to do a deep dive into sourcing, reuse and help from colleagues. Collaboration is what we do best and truly helped on this project,” said the architect.
The master plan also allows construction to be sequenced to avoid undoing previously completed work, reducing physical and financial waste.
Kitchen Central
“Today’s kitchens are integrated elements that usually affect surrounding spaces within the home,” said Conroy. “A successful kitchen design should look beyond the four walls of the room and examine the adjoining spaces and social actions of the household.”
This kitchen does exactly that, by integrating adjoining living spaces, expanding view and flow to the exterior and connections to the lower level to form the heart and central hub of this house. Measuring approximately 10 x 27, the room was enlarged slightly by an 80-sq.-ft. addition.
To make the cooking wall center stage, PDC angled the refrigeration wall so attention is focused on the range, keeping the microwave, steam oven, and warming drawer out of direct view. This also gives the kitchen a spatial dynamic while maximizing storage space and flow.
The design incorporated a ton of storage, without making the kitchen feel like a room of cabinets. The varied types and configuration of cabinets create pleasing stimulation to the eye, while not overpowering in the space. The material palette was kept simple: Painted white cabinets with oak graining showing through the finish to give interest; some with glass fronts; butcher block and quartz counters; partial quartz backsplash at the stove; and white oak flooring that continues throughout the main level of the home.
Sources
Design: John Conroy RA, Princeton Design Collaborative (PDC); Photography: Jeffrey E. Tryon, PDC Art Director/Photographer; Cabinets: PDC; Cabinet Hardware: Blum; Countertops: Pental; Dishwasher: Cove; Faucets: Grohe; Lighting: Nova Flex, Liton, Stickbulb; Microwave, Wall Ovens: Bosch; Paint: Sherwin-Williams; Range, Vent Hood: Viking; Refrigerator: Liebherr; Seating: DWR, Rejuvenation; Sinks: Franke
