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Our goal with our kitchen is to create a cozy, warm, and welcoming space that we can enjoy daily and when entertaining friends and family.
We also wanted the space to be functional. As homesteaders, we spend a lot of time cooking and preparing the food we grow on our land. Having plenty of space and organization incorporated into the design was really important to us!
Cabinet Color and Style
We initially planned on having all white cabinets but as our design evolved, we realized adding color in the kitchen was exactly what we needed to make the space feel warm and cozy. White upper cabinets and green base cabinets help bring our cozy cottage kitchen vision to life.
Our cabinets are preassembled shaker style cabinets from The RTA Store. We considered building the cabinetry ourselves but realized it would’ve taken us months to build a full kitchen!
Our base cabinets are Midtown Mint Green Shaker and the uppers are Midtown White Shaker.
We are extremely happy with the quality of the cabinets! The finish is beautiful and is extremely smooth.
We added a few speciality cabinets to help keep our kitchen organized including a spice rack, tray divider, and trash can pull-out. These are a total game changer!
Kitchen Cabinet Hardware Color and Style
To bring our cozy farmhouse kitchen to life, we knew we wanted hardware that was both traditional and timeless. We also focused on options that would be easy to clean!
We landed on using a mixture of Amerock pulls and knobs in our kitchen. Both the knobs and pulls are from the Renown Collection in Champagne Bronze. The Champagne Bronze provides beautiful contrast against our colored base cabinets and makes the space feel elevated!
We used knobs on all of the doors and varying pull sizes on the drawers. We scaled each pull based on the size of the drawers. For example, on our 30" wide drawers, we used a 7 9/16 size pull but on our smaller drawers that were 21" wide, we used a 5 1/16 size pull.
We loved the hardware so much that we decided to purchase a panel ready dishwasher and use a matching appliance pull to continue the look!
Layered Lighting
Lighting can easily be overlooked but it has the power to transform a space. We have several layers of lighting including canless recessed lights, under cabinet lights, above sink lights, and island pendants. Everything is switched separately, allowing us to easily control the mood and ambiance of the space.
For the main ceiling lights, we installed eight HALO Canless 6” lights. We liked the flat profile of these lights and that you can change the color tone and brightness. Ours are set to 3500K which provides warm light. We use the canless lights when we want to make our space extra bright - typically when we are focused on productivity!
Our under cabinet lighting is also a HALO product and is offered in various sizes. We use our under cabinet lights frequently when preparing food! We also love using them in the evening when we want less light to wind down for the day.
We added decorative lighting above our kitchen sink/ windows and it is one of my favorite parts about our kitchen. Very early on in the design process I knew I wanted swing arm style lighting in this area. However, we have Tilt and Turn style windows that open inwards and a sloped ceiling so spacing and clearance was a challenge. We ended up modifying the Progress Lighting Hinton Swing Arm Light to perfectly fit our space and we love them!
We installed pendant lighting above our island that complimented the lighting above the sink. The pendant lights are from Progress Lighting’s Singleton collection! They are simple but the shape of the glass feels traditional and timeless. We love using both the over-sink and pendant lights at night or early in the morning to create a relaxing, cozy feel!
Stainless Appliances
We spent a lot of time on the small design details for the kitchen and knew we wanted appliances that fit the space! We saw Zline appliances at the International Builders’ Show and knew the stainless with champagne bronze hardware would be the perfect fit!
We installed their Autograph Series refrigerator, stove, drawer microwave, and mini fridge.
For the dishwasher we opted for a Bosch panel-ready model. We had heard great things from family and friends about Bosch dishwashers and so far we are extremely happy with our purchase! We purchased an extra panel of cabinetry when ordering our cabinets and matching appliance pull. The upgrade to a panel-ready dishwasher was really easy and straightforward!
Kitchen Windows
Our black custom windows are the first feature you see when you walk in our kitchen. Our apartment space is relatively small (~1200 sqft) and we wanted as much natural light as possible to keep the space bright and airy.
We chose tilt and turn style windows for efficiency. Tilt and turn windows are commonly seen in Europe; however, they are very rarely installed in homes in the US. Energy efficiency is very important to us. We liked that the tilt and turn windows use a fixed gasket (as opposed to a sliding gasket in standard, double hung windows) and have multiple locking points around the window to seal tightly and prevent air leakage.
They are also easy to clean since they open inwards, and are just really cool in general. Such a great talking point when we have guests over!
To learn more about our windows and the install, watch this video:
Want the same windows for your project? You can work with the same (extremely knowledgeable & patient) representative we did! Enter your contact info in the Google form link and Shawn will be in touch! ⬇️
🔹 Request your own Alpen Window Quote!
Custom Range Hood
We built a curved range hood using a custom-cut framing kit made by Archways and Ceilings. Using one of their kits allowed us to customize our range hood to our exact vision and sizing needs!
Assembling the framing kit itself was super easy, but finishing and installing was a bit more work! It was fun to take our vision from concept to reality with the kit and we are really happy with the end result.
Quartz Countertops
After a lot of research and weighing pros/cons of the different stone types, we decided to use quartz for our kitchen counters. We saw several beautiful Spectrum Quartz slabs at the International Builders’ Show and then toured their warehouse to finalize our decision.
Before our visit to Spectrum Quartz, we didn’t realize that there was so much that goes into deciding on the perfect quartz for our space. There are many features to consider including the base color, the veining pattern, veining color, and overall style of the slab.
We settled on Euphoric from Spectrum Quartz. We love the bright white base color with subtle gray and brown veining. We used this quartz in the kitchen, pantry, and bathroom. It’s beautiful and compliments all the other colors in the apartment! Using the same stone makes the design of our small space feel cohesive.
Kitchen Sink/Faucet
Functionality was a top priority for us when selecting our sink and faucet. There are so many options on the market today that it can be a bit overwhelming to narrow it down!
We ultimately decided on a touch style faucet. The Delta Touch2O Trinsic Faucet turns on and off when you touch the faucet neck or handle. We liked this over a motion sensor faucet for simplicity - no guessing where the motion sensor is, or continuously waving your hand in front of the faucet until it turns on. Just a light touch with a fingertip, back of hand, or arm turns it on and off. This feature is fantastic when both of your hands are messy, or just to very quickly toggle the sink on/off for rinsing something small or a quick hand wash.
We purchased the matching Delta Air Switch and used this for turning our garbage disposal on/off. The air switch is mounted directly left of the faucet, making it easy to reach.
For the sink we chose a black quartz composite sink with an offset drain. The KRAUS undermount sink we chose is also a workstation sink and comes with several accessories including a cutting board and drying rack. We like the durability of the quartz composite and that we don’t have to worry as much about scuffs with the color being black! The color also compliments our windows.
Kitchen Design Details We Love
We might be slightly biased.. but we absolutely love all of the design decisions we have made for our kitchen. Each selection is the perfect combination of functionality and aesthetics.
We still have several projects that need to be completed such as the crown molding, tile backsplash, window trim, and floating shelves, but after living in the space for 6 months, we can confidently say we would make all of the same choices over again!
