HOT Kitchen Designs
From classic to rustic to opulent, a kitchen for every taste
By Dina Cheney
Photography by Iko
Dreaming of renovating your kitchen? Whether you fantasize a sleek contemporary look or imagine a rustic, country room, these five ultra-gorgeous Westchester kitchens should help you make your kitchen reveries come true.
Classy and Classic
Sporting clean lines and all-white handcrafted cabinetry, this Scarsdale eat-in kitchen is flat-out beautiful—and super practical. Witness the center island, complete with sink and cooktop (see previous page). The island is designed to accommodate cooking on one side, cleaning and preparation on another, food storage on the third, and dining and socializing on the fourth. The cabinet handles underneath the sink are intended to hold hanging towels. And clever features hidden from your view, such as a knife drawer, tilt-out sponge storage, roll-out shelves, built-in tray and drawer dividers, and pull-out wastebaskets keep clutter out of the way, maintaining this kitchen’s clean, streamlined appearance.
Honed Impala black granite and thick teak counters add visual contrast, giving this room an even greater dramatic look. And the kitchen’s Sub-Zero refrigerator and freezer, custom-fabricated range hood, Viking cooktop, Thermador warming drawer and wall oven, and two fully integrated Bosch dishwashers offer all of the necessary creature comforts. Clearly a working kitchen, albeit one with a sophisticated classic design that surely should withstand the test of time.
Designer: Mark Brody,
Kitchen Solutions, Bronx, NY 718.547.6100,
Authentic Provençal
You wouldn’t be surprised to see earthenware pottery, fresh baguettes and a crock of freshly churned butter on the counter or to hear the whistle of the mistral wind outside the door at this Provençal kitchen. The year could be 1800—were it not for the ultra-modern appliances.
A Sub-Zero refrigerator, stainless steel Morice range, fully integrated Miele dishwasher, and Fisher & Paykel integrated single drawer dishwasher are dead giveaways that this fantasy space belongs in the here-and-now, specifically to a family in Rye. Yet, faux ocher stone and French plaster walls, a sculpted wood and plaster hood and surround, and antique variegated terracotta floors help to maintain the illusion, lending a warm, aged country look to the room. The dark-stained oak rack, deep hand-carved stone sink, and limestone countertops and solid oak cabinetry made in the south of France with an antique-looking painted finish further suggest an Old World feel. Who says you can’t have it all: an old-fashioned, earthy Provençal look and modern conveniences?
Designers: Jani Caroli, Chuck Wheelock, and Provence Kitchens at French Country Living, Greenwich, CT 203.869.9559,
Modern and Innovative
Debbie Schmidt and Robert Warshaw of Pound Ridge were hankering for a kitchen that could fit 12 people working simultaneously. They dreamed of a space where family members and guests could have ample room to cook or talk at casual gatherings as well as more formal dining parties. The problem? The original 170-square-foot kitchen was cramped and the adjacent space had a much higher ceiling: a lofty 14 feet. What was designer Mark Gillies of Kitchen Design Studios in New Canaan to do?
Install a sculptural hood and reclaim the additional 153 square feet for the kitchen, of course.
With this newfound real estate, Gillies created a very large center island with a curved end that can be used as additional workspace or seating. The room’s capacity is further expanded by the three sinks in the working part of the kitchen. To maximize workspace, open shelving for serving pieces, a fourth sink, and a second dishwasher are set outside of the cooking area. Gillies also added open shelving near the dining room, to divide the workspace from the adjacent seating area.
This kitchen is more than a treatise on innovative kitchen design, though. It’s also luxurious. A Wolf warming drawer, a 48-inch side-by-side Sub-Zero fridge and a Wolf range round out the roster of appliance niceties every upscale kitchen should possess.
Designer: Mark Gillies,
Kitchen Design Studios of
New Canaan, 203.966.0355, www.kitchendesignstudios.com
Fairy-Tale Opulent
Why does a kitchen need to look like every other kitchen, with appliances starring front-and-center?
It doesn’t, the Cappelli-Scavone family of Eastchester discovered. Their fairy-tale kitchen blends seamlessly into their formal traditional house, with many of the room’s appliances, such as the Sub-Zero refrigerator and separate Sub-Zero freezer drawers, fronted by the same custom glazed green cabinetry with gold leaf and carved and fluted pilasters. As a result, these elements have the look of Regency-style fitted furniture, rather than clunky quotidian necessities. The hearth, with carved corbels surrounding the Wolf cooktop and tall pilasters and pediment flanking the oven, further bolster the elegant, integrated look. It is the Grecian-style stone-relief friezes above the refrigerator and mantle, however, that elevate this room to exalted, museum-quality status.
Yet, this spacious kitchen is much more than a pretty face. Even though the friezes and hand-painted cabinetry are the focal points, there’s still plenty of room for luxury features, such as a built-in Miele coffee system and a Thermador warming drawer beneath the cooktop. One island houses double waste bins, the main sink, and a Miele dishwasher on one side and a microwave, Sub-Zero freezer drawers and temperature-controlled wine storage on the other. Not shown: a second more decorative island, adorned by two tiers, a pistachio-green onyx countertop, and additional pilasters. Plus the room features a TV cabinet in the breakfast area, as well as a second sink and dishwasher. Who knew that a kitchen could be so beautiful—and so practical?
Designer: Robert Varca, Clive Christian of Greenwich, 203.629.9417, www.bilotta.com
Warm and Eclectic
Imagine borrowing from several distinct architectural traditions when designing your dream kitchen. This New Rochelle family did just that. The room’s mustard yellow walls, glass-fronted butter-colored cabinetry, multi-colored granite countertops, and creamy burnt sienna ceramic floors emit a warm, country feel. The tumbled marble backsplash with a mosaic of handcrafted imported tiles evokes the villas of Tuscany, while the English country-style door gives the kitchen an earthy European effect. In a nod to classic American formality, the kitchen matches the arched doorways in the family’s Colonial-style home with arched valances.
And this eclectic beauty has brawn: witness the gleaming 48” Viking range, 48” Sub-Zero refrigerator fronted by the same butter-yellow cabinetry, temperature-controlled wine storage, two sinks and dishwashers, and hidden microwave, accessible via a retractable door on the surface of the counter. Sometimes, the more (styles), the merrier.
Designer: Laura Sperandio,
Bilotta Home Center, Mamaroneck Showroom,
914.381.7734, www.bilotta.com