Welcome to the reveal of my brother’s New River House Modern Kitchen. She is open, minimal, textured and functional to a family of four. We love how it turned out and when you walk around the house it flows very well throughout the design. Colors, textures and minimalism calm everything while styling and furniture pop. Let us know about the tour (and see the family actually doing it).
Now this kitchen was a design collaboration between myself (like the rest of the house) (I’m a sister), Max Humphrey (local designer), and Anne Usher (Architect). My job was to get involved in places where my partner was, such as tiles, plumbing, lighting, etc. So I was reaching out quite a bit with appliances and cabinets. But this was all an ugly way to do it, as everything has an impact on everything designally. Also, you can’t have different chefs making different entrees for the same meal. That’s what Max and Anne deserve a lot of credits for the layout, the overall flow (Annie killed it), and some hard finishes. I took over some of the other elements (and all the styling, stones, hardware, lighting). Heck, maybe because this collaboration turned out to be pretty amazing. At one point, I was so emotionally invested that I wanted to see every room to the end, as it was a big part of my life, despite not being a “hired designer” over the years.
Bar Stool | Stacked bowls | vase (Not available) | Cake stand | Cutting board
The kitchen lives in the middle of the first floor and is open to the living/family rooms, dining rooms and games rooms. So, to choose a hard finish, we had to look at the design as a whole to make sure we didn’t design a fun home.
About tile selection…
runner | The drawer is pulled | Cabinet Latch | tile | range
We chose this super beautiful thing, Creamy Ansack Tiles From the new studio McGee Line. The furniture was not trapped when selecting tiles or stones. Also, Katie and Ken are quite risk-averse when it comes to tile colours/patterns, so as you can see, the main finish is pretty safe (if not yet beautiful). From day one, I knew they wanted an entire tiled wall to create that beautiful texture and reflection, so the overall influence is soft, quiet and truly beautiful. You don’t turn the corner and scream with boldness from the colour. That’s a good thing (they’re not bold tile forks, TBH).
Also within the view there are two huge tiled fireplaces (living and dining), so the tiles had to work with other options. Now that it’s all done, I love the gentle simplicity of it (especially on the green stone countertop). The ultimate vision and intention of the home remains clear. It is a warm minimalism that curves the Pacific Northwest.
Boring, yet still “safe” tile layout
I laid out a tile for what is called a “double stux tigas,” where two tiles are stacked horizontally with each other, but I shifted it to two stacked tiles in a 1/2 way (hard to explain, see above). It was a little middle-aged, a bit unexpected. We went through all the options (horizontal or vertical stacks or traditional shifted running bonds) and this felt like it really complemented the other tiled fireplaces in the room. Katie and Ken were nervous, but I felt it was a very safe risk so I pushed and they agreed. We chose a truly neutral grout. Platinum with prismit added some dimensions without being too busy (but not bright white). I love how to put it behind a hanging cabinet (designed by Max) so I can see the tiles through the glass. It’s a bit subtle, but very beautiful.
Pendant light
I was really excited to finally use it Blueprint lighting. I’ve been a fan for a while, but my house is so vintage, so it wasn’t exactly that. However, this kitchen was the right move to add more sculpture pendants, like art on the island. These are called Monterra PendantThere are many different metal and enamel color options from both the shade and stem. We chose the slate, which sometimes reads more blue, but that was the intention (as in the other photos, they are more gray). Black candlestick Above the bar is something from rejuvenation, which complements the blueprint pendant very well, pulling the black hits around the kitchen.
I love the more delicate shape of the shade contrasts with all the hard lines of the wood, and the shiny metal reflections fall out of the wood very well. When they stood up I decided that the black stems and canopies were actually better and ordered them to exchange the gold. They just felt like they were disappearing too much. But when the rooms came together (and we kept postponing the continued calls to electricians), we decided these would look great.
Bar + Coffee Bar
Top bowl | Central bowl | Mug | Espresso machine | The drawer is pulled | Cabinet knob | Appliance pulls | plate |Vase (not available)| runner
They run another cabinet for the bar (opens to the kitchen patio) and house the coffee situation. There is also a drawer fridge and a pebble ice machine (like brothers, sisters). The window is from Lacantina Doorand although I had nothing to do with it, it’s pretty amazing.
As you can see, we chose uncleaned brass hardware from the rinsation. handle, knob, latchand Appliance pulls. Again, their choices and customization options can make your project look really special. I was hoping to reduce contrast by choosing brass here, but I think the black might have looked hot too. Even in modern homes like this, they love the brass patina.
Brass faucet + purified water
planter | faucet | sink | Berry basket
faucet For vegetables and drinking water, this is a purist Kohler pull-out bar faucet (vibrant brush modern brass). Here they have Carrigan Water Filtration Systeminside the cabinet below, gives highly refined water (all things including microplastics are excluded). Listen, Portland doesn’t have the best water, so I was jealous of this and might get it now (especially after the recent microplastics report). It was a very easy installation for them (for me, it’s more difficult for me as there is less cabinet clearance, so enjoy it). The faucet has many finishes and the Kohler has so many different styles, but I thought this was modern and transitional.
Kitchen faucet It’s very gorgeous. It’s a Kohler, a modern brass finish with the same vibrant brush, single hole pull-down. There is a normal water flow or a more shower-like spray. It is the only faucet for those who want many features in a truly simple form.
Green leather stone countertop
Pasta Bowl | Ramen bowl | plate | Pasta Bowl (Similar)| glasses | Small bowl | Wide bowl
I wrote about the process of choosing stones here, but as the tiles are creamy white and the cabinets are wood, I was eager to bring in something with some colour and punch. Caesarstone was on board to replace the countertops (this is a very durable choice that Ken and Katie were excited about), but I was worried that if there was no colour here, this kitchen would simply look boring (and I told them). So I found this green stone from Elmer and thankfully they were on board (we were nervous, but they trusted me). It felt so perfect as the green of all the trees outside was a big part of the interior color palette.
We had leather stones, which strengthened many veins and gave them a more matte texture finish. Note that they didn’t, so they need to be sealed up immediately. And there was an instant ring from the sub, which was very expensive to remove, although no one was responsible. I don’t know why it wasn’t sealed when it was leathered on the scene, but it was one of the situations in the unfortunate, stupid accusation game during the modification. And I felt so responsible because I was the one who forced them to have natural stones, but you can barely see it now, thank you.
Counter stool Originally from CB2, it’s pretty perfect here (so I forced them to buy them). You are staring at these stools primarily from your back, so they need to be interesting, and their mixed leather/metal finish is very architecturally impressive (not to mention family friendly as it is comfortable and is a dark fabric).
The biggest argument we had at the beginning of the design was whether we wanted to face the river while washing dishes or eating on the island. That’s really a personal preference. At one point, Anne tried a sink cabinet running through the window with a kitchen island behind the window. There are a lot of opinions on this! I love Anne’s final layout design and spent a lot of time at home, so sitting at that dining table is something very special, the kitchen is so close and very charming.
Wait, where are you putting your food?
I completely forgot that there was a large walk-in pantry in the hallway, with a second small fridge, a built-in microwave and steam oven, and plenty of food cabinets and drawers. We will eventually shoot it, I promise you will see the dining room soon. But for now, let’s go to them before and after the slider
This is the real case for keeping a hard finish simple, the power of styling and decoration. I can’t stress this enough – you don’t want to redo the hard finish, but it’s very easy to switch between almost everything else based on your style shift.
I’ll show you the living room right away, but I know you can watch TV from the kitchen. Singles We are all very excited.
It’s so easy to live in, it’s easy to maintain a clean, dreamy kitchen for this family, and I’m so lucky and grateful to be involved in it (and hang out here).
Kitchen Resources:
Piping: Caller
Water Filtration System: Karigan
Windows: Lacantina Door
Tiles/Stones: Unsax
Cabinet: Custom
Main wall colors: Alabaster by Sherwin-Williams
pendant: Blueprint lighting
Sconces and Hardware: Rejuvenation
Fee: CB2
Flooring: Stuga
*Architect: Anne Usher
**General contractor: JP Macy Sierra Custom Construction
***Interior designers: Emily Henderson (me!) Max Humphrey
****Styling: Emily Henderson (me!)
*****photograph Caitlyn Green
Source: Emily Henderson – stylebyemilyhenderson.com
