Moorish appetizer

The downside to living in a period home, or one that follows the strict dictates of a particular style, can be that interior spaces are at odds with a modern lifestyle.

One area in which this is particularly true is the kitchen. While it's commonplace to have an open-plan kitchen these days, traditionally, kitchens were separate from other living areas.

The owners of this Spanish-style house wanted to inject some character into the kitchen, while improving its functionality, says interior designer Melissa Salamoff.

"The original kitchen didn't have the same richness as the rest of the home, and was outdated. Located between a small eating area and utility space with exterior access, it also lacked aesthetic cohesion."

Working within the same footprint, the designer first set about tying the three spaces together to achieve harmony.

"Creating uniformity began with painting the walls and ceilings of the three rooms in the same soft green color so they read as one space," says Salamoff. "This creates a warm, comforting atmosphere.

With the spaces presenting a consistent look, the focus shifted to improving the overall functionality. Maximizing storage was a priority, and the design employed a number of stratagems to provide this, including concealed utility drawers in the toekick space below the base cabinets, says Salamoff.

"Creating additional space was really the key design driver, and ranged from creating a small niche shelf above the stove for spices, to raising the ceiling to incorporate overhead cabinetry."

To prevent the kitchen from looking closed in due to the extra cabinets, the designer chose to use open shelving and glass-fronted cabinets on the kitchen sink side of the space.

"The remodel also provided us with the opportunity to make more of the adjoining eating area," says Salamoff. "Originally, the space just contained a table and chairs and was not a place you would want to spend all day in.

"To make the area more attractive and functional, we incorporated built-in seating with soft cushions and colorful pillows, and drawers for storage below. This has been augmented with a full-height media and storage unit that houses a small television and bookshelves."

"Together this has made the space somewhere to eat, work, read the paper, watch TV or just hang out creating a kitchen area that is as comfortable as the rest of the home."

Story by: Justin Foote

Photography by: Val Riolo