Chef’s choice: This home renovation starts with the kitchen
October 1, 2024
A Charlotte couple renovates a home tailored to their culinary interests and to meet the needs of their growing family.
by Catherine Ruth Kelly | photographs by Dustin and Susie Peck
With a 3-month-old baby and a desire for more space, a young Charlotte couple felt the itch to move a few months into the pandemic. After perusing the internet and touring homes, they found a lovely Georgian-style house on a golf course in south Charlotte. By September 2020, they had moved in, and one year later— with another baby on the way— they were ready to renovate.
“We wanted to move in and see how we lived in the house and what our needs were,” explains the homeowner. “We were planning to update just the kitchen and master bedroom, but then it snowballed a bit.”
L-R: The commercial-grade BlueStar range and hood were customized with a rich sage green finish. Visual Comfort pendants illuminate the island, anchored by a two-faucet Galley sink from Bird Decorative Hardware. Jewel-toned wallpaper by York Wallcoverings creates a moody ambience in the powder room.
The house provided enough space for their family, but the homeowners needed to reconfigure the layout in a few rooms and update the interiors to accommodate their lifestyle. While they had a general idea of what they wanted, they needed some professional guidance to help with the selections. Their real-estate agent introduced them to local interior designer Kendra White of Pheasant Hill Designs to shepherd them through the process.
White, who moved to Charlotte in 2000 and started her interior-design business soon thereafter, has a business degree and corporate experience, but her natural eye for design led her to helping friends with soft interior updates. Eventually, because of her innate interest in architectural design, she expanded her skill set to focus on the structural process, too.
The custom wooden slab dining table is surrounded by Made Good chairs, upholstered in an aubergine velvet. The crystal quartz chandelier is by Currey & Company. An enclosed refrigerated wine storage system lines the wall.
“I like to call it baptism by fire,” White laughs. “I taught myself how to draft and how to read construction drawings because I love renovation work; I love walking into an existing space and reimagining it.”
White worked with the homeowners and White House Builders to draw up plans for their house, which was originally constructed in 2000. While almost every room was updated, the kitchen was a top priority: The wife is a trained chef and sommelier and envisioned a highly functional, chef-style kitchen.
L-R: A crystal chandelier by Visual Comfort illuminates the entry hall. An emerald green faux-horn sideboard and gold starburst mirror by Made Goods accent a wall in the living room. A boldly colored painting purchased from a friend was the inspiration for the living-room design scheme. The custom 110-inch sofa provides plenty of seating for entertaining. The coffee table is by Modern History.
“The original kitchen was small and didn’t have an ideal layout or much storage,” says the homeowner. “My main goal was function, and Kendra was able to prioritize that while putting a design spin on it and making it look beautiful.”
With form and function in mind, White suggested a BlueStar commercial-grade range that is available in custom colors. The couple selected a rich sage green for the range and custom hood, which is complemented by a warm, walnut finish on the kitchen island. With the homeowner’s food-prep preferences in mind, the island was designed taller than standard height, and the extra-large, 48-inch sink has double faucets, allowing two people to work next to each other.
L-R: In the primary bedroom, a variety of textures adds interest to the soft color palette. A four-poster bed by Modern History is layered with velvet, silk and cotton bedding. Theodore Alexander faux-bone chests of drawers flank the bed. A coffee station in the primary suite features a built-in water dispenser for coffee and baby formula, as well as a refrigerator.
“I love to cook, obviously, and it is my stress release, so I spend a lot of my day in the kitchen doing food prep,” the homeowner notes. “Our family hangs out in there all the time, which we couldn’t have done in the old kitchen.”
In addition to her culinary talents, the homeowner is a Level 1 sommelier and casual wine collector. She and her husband wanted to properly store their wines, so they added a temperature-controlled wine-storage area along one wall of the generously-sized dining room.
“We designed the wine-storage cabinetry, glass enclosure and stone wall to create a sleek, sophisticated aesthetic that complements the moody, jewel tones of the dining room and gives them easy access to their wines,” White says.
A Currey & Company chandelier hangs in the bathroom, where cabinets are painted a soft sage green to create a soothing, spa-like atmosphere. In the primary bathroom, the centerpiece is a polished-nickel bathtub, which is complemented by a polished-nickel pattern in the Walker Zanger shower tile.
In the primary suite, White completely redesigned the bathroom and closet, tailoring the space to her clients’ preferences. The bedroom’s soft color palette creates a comfortable, serene space that offers a respite for the parents of two young girls.
“Kendra really listened to our ideas and turned them into something beautiful and tangible,” the homeowner adds. “We didn’t want to sacrifice sophistication and pretty things because of kids, so she designed it in a way that we could have it all.” SP
Featured image: Wrought-iron stools by Arteriors flank the kitchen island, which is illuminated by Visual Comfort pendant lights. The wet bar, opposite, features an ice maker and under-cabinet refrigerator for casual entertaining.
